Chapter 193 My Angel | 086

Chapter 193 My Angel | 086
JAKE

The drive back to the penthouse is dead silent except for the low hum of the engine and Azren's ragged breathing.

He's slumped in the passenger seat like a broken doll, his head lolling against the window. His face is pale and dripping with sweat. Even unconscious, he looks like shit.

There are dark circles under his eyes, his lips cracked, his body twitching every few seconds like the pain is still chasing him in his sleep. The faint red glow of the runes under his shirt pulses weakly, as though they're not quite done torturing him.

I grip the steering wheel so hard that my knuckles turn white.

"Fuck," I mutter under my breath, glancing at him again. "You stubborn bastard... look at you."

My chest feels like someone's squeezing it. This is my Alpha. The man who's pulled me out of more fires than I can count. The one who's carried the weight of an entire pack on his back even at the cost of his deteriorating mental health. And right now, he looks like a ghost of himself.

I swallow hard, my eyes stinging.

"Moon Goddess," I whisper, my voice cracking as I stare at the dark road ahead. "Please... I'm begging you. Don't put him through any more hell. He's barely holding on. He's got Noelle now. He's got something worth living for. Just... give him a break. Please. He doesn't deserve this shit anymore."

Azren lets out a low, pained groan in his sleep, shifting uncomfortably. I reach over without thinking and rest a hand on his shoulder, steadying him.

"Just hold on a little longer," I whisper.

His phone vibrates in the cupholder.

I glance at it, expecting it to be Noelle. She's probably losing her mind waiting for him. I pick it up, ready to text her that we're almost home and he's... okay-ish.

But the message isn't from Noelle.

It's from the Werewolf Corps.

'Location confirmed. Midnight tomorrow. Be there alone. The ritual begins at the stroke of twelve.'

My blood runs cold.

I stare at the screen for a long second, my jaw clenched so tight it hurts.

"Fuck," I whisper.

Azren stirs beside me, his eyelids fluttering but not opening. He looks even sicker under the passing streetlights. His skin is ashen, sweat beading on his forehead.

I shove the phone back into the cupholder and grip the wheel again, my knuckles white.

They're really going to do it. I have the strongest feeling that they're going to try to kill my Alpha tomorrow night.

And I don't know how the hell we're going to stop it.

….

I pull the car up to the private entrance of the penthouse and kill the engine. The silence that follows is suffocating.

Azren is still slumped in the passenger seat looking like something that is already half-broken, his head resting against the window. His face has become deathly pale.

I sit there for a moment, just staring at him, my breathing strained.

"Az," I say. "We're home."

He stirs slowly. His eyelids flutter open, glassy and unfocused. When his gaze finally finds me, there's a haunted look in his eyes that makes my stomach drop.

"...Jake?" His voice is raw, like he's been screaming for hours.

"Yeah, it's me." I reach over and unbuckle his seatbelt. "Come on. Let's get you inside before Noelle comes looking."

I get out and circle to his side. The second I open the door, Azren tries to stand. He makes it two steps before his legs give out. He drops to his knees on the pavement and lunges for the bin near the entrance.

Violent retching tears out of him. He heaves hard, throwing up everything left in his stomach. His whole body shakes with each brutal spasm.

"Fuck..." I crouch beside him, rubbing his back. "It's okay, man. Get it out."

When he finally stops, he's panting hard, barely able to catch his breath. He wipes his mouth with a trembling hand and leans against the car, squeezing his eyes shut.

I sit on the curb next to him, my heart aching.

"Talk to me," I say. "What the hell is going on in your head right now?"

Azren's voice comes out low and full of raw agony.

"The Corps should have sent the location by now," he rasps. "Or maybe it's been postponed."

He laughs, letting out a horrible, bitter sound that turns into a cough.

"I should feel relieved, right? A way out. A chance to finally end this nightmare." His voice cracks. "But all I feel is dread, Jake. Because nothing is ever that simple. Not for me. They're probably going to rip me apart and call it salvation."

"I can't keep doing this," he whispers, his voice trembling. "The pain never stops. The voices never shut up. And now this... thing inside me, Haden's rot, it keeps poisoning every thought of her. It whispers how I should break her. Breed her. Claim her until there's nothing left. I'm terrified that one day I'll wake up and I won't be able to stop it. I'll hurt her. I'll destroy the only good thing I've ever had."

Tears slip down his face.

"I'm so fucking done, Jake," he chokes out. "I just want it to end. I want the screaming to stop. I want to be able to hold my wife without being afraid I'll turn into a monster."

I feel my own eyes burning as I reach out and grip his shoulder hard.

"You're not a monster," I say, my voice thick. "You hear me? You're not."

Azren just closes his eyes and leans his head back against the car, looking completely shattered.

...

The drive home feels longer than usual. Azren is finally inside the penthouse with Noelle. I watched him stumble through the door, leaning heavily on her frame, before I forced myself to leave. My instincts screamed at me to stay, but I know my place. Right now, he needs her more than he needs me.

My hands grip the steering wheel so tight that the leather creaks. The city lights blur past, but all I can see is Azren on that balcony rail, swaying with tears in his eyes.

I swallow hard, a lump in my throat.

"Fuck..." I whisper to the empty car.

I hit the call button on the dashboard. It rings twice before Mom picks up.

"Jake? Sweetheart, it's late. Is everything okay?"

I let out a shaky breath.

"Mom... I need your help. Please."

There's a pause. She hears the tremor in my voice.

"What happened?"

"It's Azren." My voice cracks. "The runes... they're getting worse. He didn't even use his power tonight, Mom. He was just sitting in his office, and they started burning him from the inside. He was in so much pain he could barely stand. He dragged himself to the balcony... climbed onto the fucking rail. He wanted me to knock him out. Begged me. Said he couldn't take it anymore."

I have to stop for a second, my eyes stinging.

"I hit him, Mom. I punched my own Alpha because he was screaming and writhing on the ground, begging for it to stop. The screams he let out... I've never heard him sound like that. Not even during the worst episodes. I'm terrified the runes aren't just punishing him. I think they're designed to kill him. Slowly."

Mom is quiet for a long moment. I can almost hear her thinking.

"I'll find a way," she finally says, her voice firm. "I know old magic. Ancient wards. There might be something in the archives that can suppress or remove them. I'll start looking tonight."

Relief floods through me, but it's small and fragile.

"Thank you," I whisper. "He's... he's barely holding on. Noelle is keeping him together right now, but if this keeps up... I don't know how much longer he can fight it."

"I know, baby," Mom says gently. "I'll do everything I can. You just keep watching over him. And Jake?"

"Yeah?"

"Tell him he's not alone. Not even for a second."

I nod even though she can't see me.

"I will."

The call ends.

I keep driving through the empty streets, jaw clenched, eyes burning.

Azren's screams are still echoing in my head.

I won't let them kill him. Not while I'm still breathing.

Headlights flood my windshield.

All of a sudden, two cars pull up right in front of me, forcing me to slam hard on the brakes. Before I can reverse, two more cars pull up behind him.

I grit my teeth, letting my claws extend. An Ambush. That's what this is. And I have a very bad feeling...

The Werewolf Corps just made their move.