Chapter 43

Chapter 43
Quanah
I ran through the forest, my heart pounding in my chest, my lungs protesting the relentless sprint, but I kept going. I wasn’t going to stop until I got there and proved once and for all whether that demon had lied again.
I felt my blood boil in my veins every second my thoughts returned to the moment I felt him holding her, kissing her, and her not resisting. Once again, Bridget gave in to him easily, offering no resistance.
The first time, I understood. We weren’t together; she was free to hook up with whoever she wanted, and there was the fact that he’d used Seth’s body. But now it should’ve been different. We were together, like a couple. She’d said with all her words that she wanted him gone.
So why didn’t she resist? Why didn’t she fight him? What kind of power did he hold over her?
The more I thought, the fewer answers I had, so I decided to focus on what I could do: get answers. If there was no ambush, it’d prove that bastard just wanted time with Bridget.
“Louis!” I shouted without wasting time, shifting back to my human form as soon as I reached the mountains where we’d arranged to meet. “Show yourself, wherever you are!”
I was eager to see him once and for all, get the answers, and run back home. It’d be a pleasure to prove I was right.
“Well, well,” a booming voice echoed through the trees, and it wasn’t Louis. “Look at what we have here. Quanah Parker, the werewolf who refused to break the curse but ended up impregnating a witch.”
“Show your face, whoever you are!”
My wolf wanted to break free and fight. I could feel it warring inside me, sensing the danger surrounding us.
“Silence!” The command came, and even though I wanted to scream with all my being, nothing came out. “Back to where we were—you got a witch pregnant, but not just any witch. It had to be my damned daughter, didn’t it?”
I looked around, trying to find anyone, any sign, but all I could smell was sulfur. My instincts were on high alert. Who could control someone like that? A witch? A mage?
“The little wolf is brave, who would’ve thought? It’s a pity you didn’t bring Bridget with you. I thought this would be a family reunion.”
A tall, strong man appeared, despite the white strands in his beard and hair. He didn’t seem affected by age at all. He wore a black cloak, much like Koschei’s, but there was something even more terrifying about him that I couldn’t pinpoint—maybe his cold eyes or the haughty posture of someone who knew the power he held.
Louis emerged from the trees, and I ran toward him, ready to rip the bastard’s head off. If Bri hadn’t insisted it was a trap, she’d be here in danger—she and our son.
Before I could reach him, a force pulled me down. I fell to my knees a few steps from the vampire, struggling to stand, to get closer, to drag myself even an inch, but it was like a wall was stopping me from moving forward and a hand was keeping me from getting up.
“I’m sorry, Parker. I didn’t have a choice.”
“You didn’t have a choice, you bastard? No choice? And you wanted my woman to be killed by this thing?” I shouted, fighting to free myself from that invisible power.
“Tsk, tsk, tsk,” Bri’s father made a sound with his tongue as he approached me. “He’s telling the truth. He had no choice. I control every creature of the underworld. Unfortunately, I don’t control your kind—that’s Zeus’s domain, since you’re my brother’s creation.” He bent down, grabbing my hair. “Otherwise, I would’ve made you kill her for me.”
“You son of a bitch!” I tried to break free from his grip, but it was useless, and my desperation seemed to amuse him.
“Maybe that’s not entirely a lie, but I’ll teach you a little about the gods and creation.” His hands yanked my hair so hard I thought he’d rip my scalp off. “I am Hades.”
That couldn’t be possible. Gods didn’t exist. This was… my head hit the ground with tremendous force, and darkness overtook me.
The rain fell relentlessly, and I turned in bed, searching for the soft body I knew was there, but what I found was something cold. My heart sank, and I opened my eyes, sitting up.
Bridget was there, her huge belly up, lying the same way she’d gone to sleep, but now her eyes were open and lifeless, her skin cold as death, her heart no longer beating.
“No, no, no!” I shook her lifeless body as if that could bring her back. “No! Bridget, don’t do this to me!” I leaned over her, pressing my ear to her belly, hoping to hear something, but everything was silent—a cold, painful silence.
“You did this to her. You knew you couldn’t protect her, and in your blind selfishness, you killed her!” It was Koschei’s voice behind me, but I couldn’t take my eyes off her. “She needed me, not you!”
“Wake up!” The booming voice made me snap awake, as if my entire body obeyed his command.
“Aaaaaah!” I screamed, clenching my teeth, trying to contain the pain that consumed my body when I woke.
I was hanging upside down, silver chains wrapped around my body, burning my skin, tearing deeper with every movement.
“There you are. It’s about time you stopped dreaming about my daughter and woke up.” Bri’s father, Louis, the trap—it all came rushing back like a lightning bolt. “Even if it’s a miracle you’re still alive, I have plans for you.”
“You’d better kill me now. I won’t do your dirty work and kill her.” I fought through the pain to get the words out.
“No, I know you won’t. But let’s get to the point. You came here to find out who you’re up against. Now you’ll know, but it’s only fair if it’s a two-way street, isn’t it?”
Every minute I was trapped here, Bridget was in danger. I never should’ve let her go back with Peta. I should’ve gone with her. The regret I felt now was as great as the fear that my dream would come true.
“You can keep dreaming. I won’t tell you anything about my life!”
“Fool, I don’t need you to tell me anything. I just need to enter your mind.” His words chilled my soul, and I thrashed again, no longer caring if the chains burned or cut me. I had to escape. “The more you resist, the more painful it’ll be, but I’ll enjoy it more.”
His fingers rose, and I felt like a thousand daggers were piercing my head, tearing and slicing their way to my brain. All I could do was scream and thrash.
I had to stay hidden. The longer I stayed there, the less she’d hate me. My stomach growled and hurt so much, but I couldn’t—I couldn’t leave my hiding spot.
“Quanah! Quanah, where are you, son?” It was my dad’s voice. I wanted to run out, but I remembered she said she didn’t want to see me. “There you are. What were you doing hiding there? The elders are waiting for your lesson.”
“I… I…”
“Your mother should’ve gotten you ready. Come on, go change your clothes and eat something. I can hear your stomach growling.”
And I did what he told me, even though he didn’t hit me like she did. Dad could get angry too.
I ran to my room and changed, but I could hear their shouts before I even went downstairs.
“You should take care of the boy! What kind of mother are you?”
“The kind who didn’t ask for this. I didn’t ask for a son, let alone one who looks so much like you!” Her voice scared me, but not as much as when she hit me. “He’s useless, as useless as his father. My life would be so much better if he just died!”
Those words were branded in my mind, and I couldn’t forget them. The memory was as painful as my life once was. Thankfully, I blacked out again from the torturous pain of the daggers.