Chapter 74 Seventy Four
DANIKA
Dad opens what looks like a folder, placing it on his lap. Papers spill out, including photographs, sketches, symbols, and old notes. There are stuff that look too dark to have been inside our home. He picks up the first page with shaking fingers.
"She started the moment you turned eight."
My stomach drops.
He turns a page towards me. It looks like a medical chart, but it also looks wrong. There are energy readings, weird symbols, and curves that look like sound waves on graphs.
"She called it your core signature," Dad says. "She logged every fever, every nightmare, every time you said you 'felt weird' or had headaches or saw lights. I didn't understand what it meant then."
He wipes his face with both hands, ashamed.
"She wasn't caring for you, Danika. She was tracking you."
A coldness seeps into my bones, and Kaziel's grip on my hand tightens. Dad pulls out another sheet, filled with Ember's handwriting.
"She wrote... that you were 'ripening.' That your power would stabilize between 18 and 19. That you'd be at your... your most vulnerable then."
My father shakes his head, disgusted.
"She wanted to use that window. She'd been planning to take you for years."
Kaziel's jaw flexes. "That's why she plans to act soon."
Dad nods miserably. He then picks up a letter. The edges are burnt.
"She didn't love me," he utters in a heartbreaking tone. "She never did."
My heart sinks. He'd genuinely fallen in love with her. I'd always been able to tell. That woman had brazenly toyed with his feelings.
"She married me because she needed access to you. She pretended to care so she could get closer to you." His voice cracks, and my chest tightens.
Dad pulls out a photo. A symbol with three interlocked crescents that had been carved into wood.
"I thought she was just into strange spirituality. I didn't know she was part of a cult."
Kaziel stiffens instantly.
"That mark," he murmurs darkly. "She's not just a witch. She's a Null Witch."
I look at him, confused.
"Null witches are naturally empty. They seek to absolve power, and no matter how much power they take, the void inside of them never fills up."
My stomach flips. I've always been aware of the possibility that witches existed. I just didn't think there was one close by. But if she's a witch, how is Tyler a werewolf? Maybe his dad? I never met his dad, so I can't say.
"I found her ceremonial things. Spell books. Blood crescent sigils. And a list of ingredients for... for something called the Vessel Offering."
My vision blurs. Kaziel curses under his breath.
Dad reaches for a torn, faded journal page. His hand shakes so badly he almost drops it.
"This... this was the worst part."
He shows us Ember's scrawled note:
'Attempt failed. The child resisted. There was an unknown interference. The next window will come in ten years.'
The air vanishes from my lungs.
"She already tried to sacrifice me?" I whisper.
Dad's eyes glisten.
"You remember that fever you had when you were nine? When you were screaming about monsters touching you?"
My heart plummets.
"I thought you were just having a nightmare. But she wrote that she tried to do the ritual early, and... something stopped her."
Kaziel closes his eyes, torment etched across his face.
My father breaks down right then. He buries his face in his hands, his shoulders shaking. I've never seen him cry like this.
"I should have protected you. I should have seen it. I should have—"
"Dad," I whisper, grabbing his hand. "You didn't know. She fooled everyone."
Kaziel's hand rests on my back to comfort me, and we both exchange a knowing look. I would never have guessed how cruel Ember can be. I guess I know better now.
....
The rain starts before we even reach the car. Dad kisses my forehead to bid me goodbye. His eyes meet with my mate’s, almost like they’re communicating without words. Weird.
Kaziel opens the door for me, gently guiding me inside before he circles to the driver's seat. The moment he closes the door, the downpour begins.
My chest feels so tight, I want to scream.
Kaziel's knuckles go white around the steering wheel.
"Dove..." His voice is soft when he calls for me. "Talk to me."
I stare out the window, watching water blur the passing streetlights. My tears fall silently, my lower lip trembling.
"I don't understand," I whisper, my throat raw. "My whole life... she was pretending. Watching me. Planning to use me."
Kaziel grips the wheel harder.
I squeeze my eyes shut, my hands balled on my lap.
"You don't deserve this," Kaziel breathes. "You didn't deserve any of it."
He reaches out and rests a hand over mine. I don't pull away this time.
When we finally pull into the driveway, I'm exhausted in a way that feels bone-deep.
He gets out first, rushing around to open my door, shielding me with his jacket from the downpour. His hand settles on my back, guiding me to the porch.
I head straight for the living room, wiping my face with the back of my hand.
Kaziel closes the door behind us and moves towards me slowly, as if he's approaching a frightened animal he desperately doesn't want to lose.
"Dove..." he croaks. "I'm sorry."
I turn to face him, my throat burning.
"For what?" I whisper. "For Ember? For my childhood? For the baby? For everything?"
"All of it," he breathes. "Every damn thing—"
He stops suddenly, his eyes widening. His hand flies to his chest. He looks horrified.
"Kaz?" I move forward. "Kaziel?"
He grimaces, his face contorting in pain.
"Fuck—" he hisses, doubling over. "Shit—just—just give me a second—"
"Kaziel!" I reach for him, my heart racing. "What's wrong? What's happening?"
He squeezes his eyes shut, his jaw clenched so tight I hear his teeth grind.
"Kaz, look at me!" My voice cracks. "What is it?!"
"I—" he rasps, struggling for air. "It's nothing. It's—just—fuck, Dove—"
Another wave hits him, and he growls in agony. My heart slams against my ribs.
This isn't nothing.
"Kaziel—tell me what's happening!" I plead, my voice trembling. "Please!"
He finally lifts his head, dragging in a shaky breath. He lowers his hand from his chest and pulls me into his arms.
"Kaz—"
"That's how much it hurt to hear those words from you earlier," he tells me, and my heart splits in two, fresh tears welling up in my sore eyes.
"I'm sorry, sweetheart. Forgive me." The words break out of him like they're being torn from somewhere deep in his chest. His arms tighten around me, desperately.
"Kaz..." I whisper, closing my eyes.
He exhales shakily... and then his knees buckle. I gasp, reaching out to hold him, but he sinks to the floor in front of me as if his legs can no longer hold him.
Just before I can follow him down, he leans forward, his forehead resting on my abdomen.
"I'm so sorry," he chokes out, his fists clutching the fabric of my shirt. "I'm so, so sorry, Dove."
"Kaziel—"
"You're nineteen," he croaks, and my breath catches in my throat.
"You're nineteen," he repeats, bitter tears dripping down his face. "A fresher. You've barely lived, Dani. You have your whole damn life in front of you…and now you're carrying two cores inside you." He shudders. "Two cores strong enough to kill you in a heartbeat."
My mouth goes dry.
"And I'm the reason." He squeezes his eyes shut. “I'm the reason your life is in danger."
"Kaz—"
"I did this to you." He lifts his head just enough for me to see his tormented eyes overflowing with tears. "You're pregnant because of me. You're at risk because of me. You could die because of me."
He chokes on a sob and drops his head back to my stomach, kissing it. His hands tremble on my hips.
"I want a future with you," he whispers. "I want this baby, Dove. I want them so badly it terrifies me. I didn't think I could love anything this much."
He swallows hard.
"But I'm so fucking scared."
"Kaz..." My voice trembles.
He curls his arms tighter around my waist.
"I can't lose you."
I sink to my knees completely, cupping his face, forcing him to look at me even as tears run down our cheeks.
"Kaziel," I whisper, brushing his wet hair back. "Look at me."
He does. Barely.
"We can do this." I rasp. “Let's give our baby a chance."
He shakes his head, his lashes wet. “I'm scared."
His arms wrap around me, pulling me into him.
"I know," I say again, my fingers sinking into his hair. "But we'll face it. Together."
He nods against me, but I can feel him trembling uncontrollably.
"I want this baby," he whispers, his voice cracking. "I want them with you. I want all of it. I just... I can't lose you."
"You won't," I breathe, kissing his forehead.
He finally looks up, his face blotchy and drenched with tears.
"You promise?"
"I promise."
Kaziel exhales like he's been drowning for hours and is finally able to breathe. I lean in to kiss him, and his lips move against mine, feverishly. He lets out a muffled groan, cupping my face and kissing me until we run out of air. Then he rises and helps me to my feet. We both head upstairs together, my eyelids already drooping with exhaustion.
Kaziel helps me out of my clothes and bundles me in his hoodie, laying me in bed and kissing my forehead.
Just as he starts to pull away, I grab his hand and look into his beautiful bloodshot blue eyes.
“Everything is going to be okay,” I tell him, and he nods, biting his swollen lower lip.
Just then we hear the front door open, Aaron calling out.
“Alpha?! Are you here? It’s urgent!”