Chapter 163 My Angel | 056
AZREN
The room smells like blood and antiseptic. It clings to the back of my throat, making my stomach hurt. I sit on the couch opposite my father, my elbow on the arm rest, my cheek on my palm. Val is crouched beside him, his gloves a bright red.
It's not working. I can tell without even asking. Every time Val presses gauze to the wound, the blood seeps through like it's mocking him.
My father looks worse. He's all grey.
I stare at him, my vision pulsing faintly at the edges. My head throbs in slow, brutal waves, as though something is trying to crack its way out from the inside.
I inhale but it doesn't help.
Val mutters something under his breath, switching tools. It all looks the same to me now. Pointless.
The door opens and Jake strides in. I don't look at him. I already know that posture and hesitation.
It's bad news.
"Alpha," he says carefully.
I drag my gaze away from my father and lean back slowly, resting my head against the couch. My fingers come up, pressing hard into my temples.
"Say it."
"We can't find Noelle."
Everything inside my skull goes quiet for a second. Then it roars.
"What do you mean you can't find her?" I ask, my voice flat.
Jake steps further into the room. I can hear it in his breathing. He's bracing himself.
"She left campus about an hour ago. Security didn't see her go. Blue is missing as well."
My fingers dig harder into my temples.
"Surveillance?" I ask.
"Nothing useful yet. We're pulling street cams now. Phones are off. No scent trail outside the perimeter."
I nod slowly, my heart going out of control and beating out of the usual rhythm. It's to the point where it hurts.
"And my mother?" I ask.
Jake exhales. "No progress yet."
I try to reach for Noelle with the tracker on her necklace, only for my headache to spike so brutally that I jerk forward, a sharp breath tearing out of my chest. My stomach churns.
Fuck—
I swallow hard, but it doesn't stay down. Nausea rolls through me in waves.
"Azren—" Jake starts.
"I'm fine," I snap.
I'm not. I can feel it. Everything is slipping.
My father is dying. My mother is gone. My mate is missing. And I'm sitting here doing nothing.
A sound pierces through the air. It's the sound of a body hitting the floor. So, I glance up and find Darrel on his knees. His head is bowed, his hands clenched into fists at his sides.
"I'm sorry," he says hoarsely. "Alpha, I'm so sorry."
Darrel's voice cracks.
"This is the second time," he says. "The second time she's failed you. I should've—I should've been there. I should've—"
His shoulders shake.
"Please," he chokes. "Spare her. Whatever punishment—give it to me instead. Don't—don't hold this against her."
The air thickens as I stare at him.
He's clearly terrified. But it's not for himself. But for his sister. For Blue.
I sway slightly as I push myself to my feet, catching myself on the back of the couch before anyone can move towards me.
"I didn't ask for excuses," I rasp.
Darrel flinches.
I don't look at him again as I turn and walk out. The hallway feels endless. Every step I take sends another pulse of pain through my skull.
I reach my old room and shove the door open. It smells the same. Lavender. It's not dusty at all. Mum has clearly been keeping it clean. Knowing this hurts worse.
I head straight for the bathroom, barely making it to the sink before I'm bracing my hands on the porcelain and vomiting.
It burns.
My throat. My chest. My head. Everything hurts.
I grip the edge of the sink, my knuckles whitening as another wave hits. My body trembles with it, my shoulders jerking.
"Fuck—" I rasp between breaths.
When it finally stops, I sag forward, breathing hard.
Water is running but I don't remember turning it on.
I rinse my mouth mechanically, spitting blood and bile down the drain. Then I lift my head and stare.
The man in the mirror stares back at me. He's pale, his eyes are bloodshot and his hair's a mess. There's blood on my shirt. It isn't mine. It's dad's.
I grip the sink harder.
This is the Alpha? This is the monster everyone fears? I look like a man who's about to lose everything.
A hollow laugh almost bubbles out of me, but it dies in my throat.
"I'm supposed to lead them," I mutter.
My reflection doesn't answer.
"I'm supposed to protect them."
My lip curls slightly.
"I can't even keep my own family safe."
I feel the words crawling under my skin. Familiar whispers reach my ears, and I try to fight them. More voices follow. And even more. They layer over each other, curling through my skull like smoke.
I flinch, squeezing my eyes shut.
"Not now," I whisper.
They don't stop. They just get louder and bolder.
'Weak. You're weak. You're losing them,' they hum.
My breathing grows heavier.
"Shut up—"
'You couldn't save him. You couldn't protect her. And now she's gone.'
My chest feels like it's on fire.
"Stop."
The pressure builds inside my head and behind my eyes. It feels like I'm dying.
'Let us help you. Let us fix it. Let us tear them apart.'
My hands curl into fists against the sink. Tears burn unexpectedly at the back of my eyes.
"I don't need you," I choke.
'You do. You always do,' The voices rise until they're all I can hear.
A choked sound punches out of me...and then I'm laughing.
It bursts out of my chest, echoing off the bathroom walls. My shoulders shake with it, my head dropping forward as I clutch the sink.
It doesn't sound or feel sane.
Tears roll down my face, mixing with the water still dripping from my chin.
I laugh harder.
Everything is slipping through my fingers. And the only thing that's still here are the monsters in my head.
My eyes lift slowly to the mirror again. They're darker now, burning with unadulterated fury.
"Fine," I whisper hoarsely. My reflection smiles. And there's nothing human in it.
"Let's fix it."
I drag in a deep breath. And gods, it burns. My chest rises twice. Then, I'm gone in the blink of an eye.
The penthouse slams into existence around me. It's so unnerving empty. It makes me want to scream. Her scent is everywhere. Cherry blossom. It hits me like a gunshot to the chest.
I stagger forward, grabbing the edge of the dresser to steady myself. I shove the weakness down immediately. I have to focus.
I tear through the room, and yank the drawers open, clothes get dragged out and tossed aside until my fingers grip a small black lace. My heart skips a beat.
Slowly, I bring it to my nose and breathe her in.
She's alive. She has to be.
I close my eyes, drinking in more of this delectable scent even through the smell of soap.
I reach past the walls, my soul traveling distances, searching fervently.
'Find her.'
It's a command woven into my existence now. One I must accomplish at all costs.
At first, nothing happens. Then I feel it. A faint thread.
I pull myself forward, hard. The connection resists. It has to be magic.
Nyxara.
My nose starts to bleed, blood dripping over my lips. I don't stop. I dig deeper and rip harder. The thread stretches, strains and finally snaps.
I land in a warehouse with an explosion. Concrete cracks beneath my feet.
Air explodes outward in a violent shockwave, dust and debris blasting in every direction. Power crawls over my skin, lightning dancing along my arms, my wings snapping open behind me.
The barriers don't just break. They scream as they shatter. Slowly, I tuck the fabric in my hand in the pocket of my pants. Then I lift my head.
And I smell it. My wife's blood.
My eyes burn.
"WHERE IS MY WIFE?!"
My voice vibrates through the room, shaking the walls. Nyxara is already turning and so is Haden. But they're too slow.
I vanish.
I'm in front of Nyxara before she can blink. I wrap a hand around her throat and slam her into the wall.
There's movement to my left.
Haden. He's charging at me stupidly. I drop Nyxara and pivot. He swings, and I catch his arm, twisting. His bone snaps. He grins anyway, blood already on his teeth.
"I was wondering when you'd—"
I don't let him finish. My hand drives straight through his chest. My fingers wrap around something warm and beating.
I rip.
Blood rains across the floor. His scream chokes into nothing as I tear upward through muscle, bone and through his throat.
It opens under my hand.
He staggers back, clutching at nothing, blood pouring down his chest and bubbling from his mouth as he collapses to his knees.
I don't even look at him again.
Nyxara hits me from behind. Magic slams into my spine like a truck. Her power wraps around me, constricting and crushing. I tear through it nonetheless. When I turn to face her, she lunges at me in desperation using her poisonous claws
It burns, tearing skin from bone.
I don't care. I catch her mid-strike and slam her into the ground. She claws at my face, blood sliding across my cheek. Gripping her throat, I drag her up.
"You should've stayed away from her," I snarl.
"If you destroy me, your father dies!" she screams, and I freeze.
The nerve of this bitch to try and negotiate with me. Anger paints my insides black and the instant I lift my hand to strike her again, I hear them.
"Az...ren..."
The voices of the women I adore the most. Very slowly, I turn. They're there on the floor, huddled together.
My hand slips from Nyxara and she crumples. Then my knees hit the ground hard.