CHAPTER 54: The Slap Heard Round the Palace

CHAPTER 54: The Slap Heard Round the Palace

Georgia's POV

The Lycan King's army charged toward us, and I didn't have time to think.

"Run!" I screamed at my children. "Get behind the palace walls!"

But they didn't move. Shadow grabbed my hand, his silver eyes sparkling brighter than ever.

"Mom, we can fight them," he said.

"No!" I pulled him closer. "You're children, not soldiers!"

The ground shook as the enemy dogs got closer. I could see their teeth, hear their growls. We had maybe thirty seconds before they reached us.

Then Jared stepped in front of me.

"I'll hold them off," he said, his voice weak. Blood still dripped from his mouth. "Take the kids and go."

I looked at him. This man who had rejected me. Who had ruined my life. Who had just admitted that everything bad that happened to me was his fault.

And now he wanted to die for us?

"You can barely stand," I said. "You'll die in seconds."

"Then I die protecting my family," he said simply.

Something inside me snapped. All the anger I'd been holding in for six years burst.

I slapped him.

The sound echoed across the entire battlefield. Everyone stopped moving. Even the Lycan King's army stopped.

Jared's head snapped to the side. A red mark emerged on his cheek.

"You don't get to be the hero now," I said, my voice shaking. "You don't get to say sorry and then throw your life away like that fixes everything."

"Georgia—"

"No!" I slapped him again, harder this time. "You refused me in front of everyone. You made me feel useless. You didn't even recognize me when I came back. And now you want to die for me? Now you want to be the good guy?"

Tears streamed down my face. I hit his chest with my fists, not caring that he was hurt.

"You destroyed me! You destroyed everything! And you don't get to die and leave me alone with this guilt!"

Jared caught my wrists gently. "Georgia, please—"

"I hate you!" I screamed. "I hate that I still love you after everything you did!"

The words hung in the air between us.

"Mom?" Emma's small voice cut through my rage. "We need to go. They're coming again."

I looked up. The Lycan King was laughing.

"How touching," he said. "A lovers' fight. But it changes nothing. I'm taking you, Georgia. And your children. Today."

I pulled away from Jared and grabbed my kids.

"We're leaving," I said. "All of us. Right now."

"Where will you go?" Oracle Mira asked. "They'll just follow you."

"I don't care!" I was already backing toward the palace gates with my children. "Anywhere is better than here."

"Georgia, wait!" Jared called after me.

But I was done waiting. Done listening. Done being the weak one who everyone made choices for.

I ran into the house with my five children. Behind us, I heard fighting start again. Jared's pack facing the Lycan King's army.

"Mom, what are we doing?" Kelvin asked as we raced through the halls.

"We're getting out of here," I said. "Pack only what you can carry. We leave in five minutes."

"But Papa—" Kelsey started.

"Your Papa will be fine," I lied. "He's strong. He can handle himself."

We reached the room where we'd been staying. I threw clothes into bags while the children collected their toys.

"I don't want to leave," Emma said quietly. "This is our home."

"Home?" I stopped packing. "Emma, we've only been here a few weeks."

"But Papa's here," she said. "And everyone likes us here. Where we lived before, people stared at us because we looked different."

She was right. At Anna's place, people had always talked about my children's red hair and green eyes. Here, they fit in.

But that didn't matter now.

"Sometimes we have to leave places we like," I said. "To stay safe."

"Are we running away?" Shadow asked. His voice was different. Harder. "Or are we being chased away?"

I looked at my oldest son. He was only six, but sometimes he seemed old.

"What's the difference?" I asked.

"Running away is being a coward," Shadow said. "Being chased away means we lost."

"Then we're being smart," I said strongly. "Now pack."

A crash echoed from downstairs. Then screaming.

"They're in the palace!" someone yelled.

My blood turned to ice. The Lycan King's wolves had broken through already.

I grabbed Keira and pushed the other children toward the window.

"We're climbing down," I said. "Shadow first, then—"

The door burst inward.

Three massive dogs stood in the doorway. Their eyes glowed red. Saliva dripped from their mouths.

My children screamed.

I put myself between them and the wolves.

"You'll have to go through me," I said.

The lead wolf laughed—actually laughed in his wolf form.

"That won't be hard," he said, moving forward.

I closed my eyes, preparing for the attack.

But it never came.

Instead, I heard a roar that shook the entire room. A roar I'd never heard before.

I opened my eyes.

Jared stood in the doorway. But he wasn't in his True Alpha form anymore. He was something else. Something bigger. His fur was pure silver now, and his eyes blazed with white fire.

"Touch my family," he growled, "and I'll erase you from existence."

The three wolves backed away, suddenly looking scared.

"Impossible," one whispered. "The Guardian change. It's meant to be just a myth."

"What's happening to Papa?" Kelvin asked.

I didn't know. But I could feel it through our mate bond. Jared wasn't just an Alpha anymore. He'd become something old. Something strong.

Something that might kill him.

"Jared, stop!" I shouted. "You'll burn out!"

But he didn't stop. He attacked the three dogs with speed that shouldn't be possible. Within seconds, all three were dead.

Then Jared fell.

I ran to him, my children following. He'd changed back to human form, but his skin was burning hot.

"You idiot," I whispered, holding his head. "You stubborn, stupid idiot."

"Had to... protect you," he managed to say. "My family... my responsibility."

"You're dying," I said, tears falling on his face. "This power is killing you."

"Worth it," he smiled weakly.

Then his eyes closed.

"Papa!" all five children screamed.

I felt for his pulse. It was there, but barely.

Oracle Mira ran into the room. "What happened?"

"He used Guardian magic," I said. "I don't know how, but he did."

"That's impossible. Only children of two Guardians can use that magic."

I looked at her. "What are you saying?"

"I'm saying Jared must have Guardian blood. But that would mean—"

She stopped, her eyes going wide.

"What?" I asked. "That would mean what?"

"That would mean he's the son of a Guardian and a True Alpha," Oracle Mira said slowly. "The forecast mentioned someone like that. Someone who would either save the world or destroy it."

My heart stopped.

"Which one?" I asked.

Oracle Mira looked at Jared's unconscious body.

"I don't know," she revealed. "But we're about to find out. Because the First Evil just came. It's at the palace gates right now. And it's asking specifically for Jared."

I looked down at my mate, who couldn't even open his eyes.

"How do we fight something called the First Evil?" I spoke softly.

"We don't," a cold voice said from the doorway.

I looked up.

A woman stood there. She was beautiful and terrible at the same time. Her skin was pale as death, her eyes black as night.

"I am the First Evil," she said quietly. "And I'm not here to fight. I'm here to collect my son.

"

She pointed at Jared.

"That's my kid. And he's coming home with me. Whether you like it or not."