150. Underground auction

150. Underground auction
ALLISON.

Four hours had passed since we discussed the plan for later. Still, that didn’t erase the tension in the air as we all prepared for what was to come. The next battle wasn’t just another skirmish we have to face, after all. It was the final stand. All or nothing. If we won, we secured the peace I desperately wanted for myself, for my daughter, for my family. If we lost… I didn’t let my mind wander that far.
No, we have to win.
The boys had insisted I take a nap, but sleep was impossible. My thoughts were restless. All I could think about was the bloodshed that was to come. Instead, I sat in the living room and cradled Amaris in my arms. Her tiny chest rose and fell in steady rhythm, completely unaware of the chaos looming ahead. I thought it was better that way. I would rather have her oblivious of all the chaos around her. I want her to only know peace.
I wonder if this was the same thought that my Mom had when she decided to hide our dragonblood ancestry from us.
I gently traced my daughter’s soft cheeks with my fingertips. She was perfect. Everything we were fighting for, every drop of blood that would be spilled, was for her. My daughter. My family.
The soft creak of the door made me look up. River stepped inside, his dark eyes immediately locking onto me.
“Hey…” I greeted with a small smile.
River didn’t say anything at first. He simply walked over and sat beside me. His brushed against Amaris’ cheek as she slept soundly in my arms.
“When you were taken, she wouldn’t stop crying. It was like she knew you were in danger,” he muttered softly.
My heart squeezed at his words. I didn’t want Amaris to suffer like that.
“I spent the past few days thinking about her… about all of you,” I said.
River exhaled sharply. He ran a hand through his dark hair before whispering a curse.
“Damn it, Allison. I’m just… I’m so fucking thankful you’re safe.”
His voice was raw, filled with something I couldn’t quite place. It wasn’t the usual indifferent tone that he used. It was a mix of relief, regret, and something else—something that made my throat tighten.
I reached up and gently traced the burns on his face,
“Does it hurt?” I asked softly.
River let out a short breath, shaking his head. “Not as much as when I realized I couldn’t stop them from taking you away from us.”
I frowned. “River, you did everything you could.”
“I did. And it wasn’t enough. But this time, I’ll make sure it is.” His dark eyes met mine, blazing with quiet determination.
He leaned in and pressed a lingering kiss to my shoulder, sending a shiver down my spine. Silence settled between us after that. But it wasn’t the awkward kind. It was comfortable, peaceful.
But then, in the midst of our silence, I couldn’t hold back the question that has been bugging me at the back of my head since I have arrived here. So, I turned to face him fully.
“River… earlier, when I mentioned the Hallowed Keep Coven, you and Mason reacted strangely. Can I ask why?”
River took a sharp breath.
“W-Well, you don’t want to talk about it, it’s okay!” I quickly added.
He shook his head.
“No. I think it’s time you know. I don’t want to keep any secrets from you now, Allison.”
I stroked Amaris River told me everything.
"Mason and I…" He exhaled sharply, as if forcing the words out. "We used to be decent friends. The three of us, actually. Me, Mason, and Wesley. That was six years ago. Back then, I also had a mate."
My lips parted slightly. River had a mate? I didn’t know that.
"Her name was Noelle. She was a she-wolf in my pack. My first mate."
A pang of something I couldn’t quite place settled in my chest. Maybe sorrow, maybe sympathy. But strangely, not jealousy. I could only imagine how much River must have loved her.
"Unfortunately, Noelle got sick. It was a terrible sickness. One that no potion or medicine could cure. I went everywhere trying to find something, anything, that could heal her. But months passed, and nothing worked. And she… she just kept getting worse."
I bit my lip, my heart aching at the pain in his voice. I already had a sinking feeling about how this story would end.
River clenched his fists.
"I was running out of time. Losing her was a fate I couldn’t bear to think about."
I understood that feeling all too well. I remembered my own desperation while searching for a cure for Quinn. That overwhelming fear that the person you love is slipping away, and there’s nothing you can do to stop it. River must have suffered so much during those times.
"Then I heard about the Dragon’s Heart Fragment." His gaze flickered toward me. "A mythical artifact said to have miraculous healing properties. It sounded like some bullshit bedtime story, but if anything could save Noelle, I was willing to risk it all. I knew I had to get my hands on it fast. I didn’t know how much longer she had."
I held my breath.
"I asked Mason and Wesley for help. They knew how much I needed that fragment. And they agreed."
For a moment, I pictured them. River, Mason, and Wesley working together, before everything between them shattered.
"We tracked down an underground auction. It turns out Two Dragon’s Heart Fragments were being sold. I managed to acquire one."
His jaw tensed.
"But just as I thought I had finally won, the vampires attacked."
A chill ran down my spine.
"They stormed the auction house, demanding the fragment. I was cornered. Trapped. I had no choice, so I tossed the fragment to Mason. I told him to keep it safe. I trusted him." He let out a bitter chuckle. "We agreed to meet in two days at his club. I’d retrieve the fragment then."
I already knew what was coming, but I still braced myself.
"When I finally went to his club to get it back, Mason wasn’t in his office. His Beta, Alex, told me he might be upstairs. And guess what? He was. In his bedroom."
I frowned slightly.
"He was sprawled on his damn bed like he’d just had the best fuck of his life." River spat the words in pure sarcasm and fury. "I didn’t care about his personal life. I just wanted the fragment. But when I woke him up… It was gone." His fists tightened.
I felt my stomach twist. “Gone?”
"Stolen. By the bitch he was sleeping with that night. Valentina Madrigal. One of the higher-ups in the Hallowed Keep Coven."
Valentina. I wonder if she was related to Elara?