Chapter 97

Chapter 97
Mihai PoV

I grabbed Mae’s hips and locked her in place, I was having trouble controlling myself whilst knowing she was probably walking into a trap. They wanted to hurt her, they’ve made that perfectly clear since the moment I met her. But the question is, do they need her more alive or would they kill her to make an example of her?

They killed her mother for betraying the order, what’s to stop them from doing the exact same thing to her?

I want to tell Mae to stay with me, I want to tell her not to meet with them. But I know that I can’t. She needs to face this on her own, and I have to respect that. Even if I don’t want to.

Even if it is killing me inside to watch her go.

“Be safe.” I say, forcing myself to remain perfectly still, even whilst my entire body is screaming at me to stop her.

This could be the biggest mistake of her life, but the choice has to be made by her, I can’t make it for her. She’d never forgive me if I did.

She looks up at me with those big knowing eyes, “I’ll come back to you.” She tells me softly, planting a kiss on my lips. “You’ll hear everything that’s said, and if anything happens, you’ll get me out of there.”

Damn right I will.

I won’t let them hurt her, not whilst ever I am around to stop them.

I let Mae go, despite my entire existence being torn apart with each step she takes away from me. “Keep your promise.” I say, causing her to stop again. “Come back to me.”

I don’t care if she’s late, I need to hear her say it.

I need to hear her say she’ll come back.

“I promise Mihai, I’ll come back.” She says, not seeming to mind my attachment to her.

Overnight she became the very woman that all Nati men want, yet I wanted her first, even when I thought she was just a silly little human girl who let me feed from her.

Luthor places a hand on my shoulder as we watch her walk towards Dren. He’s driving her as close to the location as possible and we will follow, but we will stay far enough behind them not to be noticed.

I’m much faster on foot than in a car, but I can’t guarantee that I won’t be seen.

My heart is telling me to go after her, but my mind is screaming she needs to do this alone. Maybe it’s her pride, or maybe it’s because she grew up following their rules, but I have a bad feeling about all of this.

It screams trap.

But Mae knows that. She’s expecting a fight.

I can’t decide whether she’s stupid or brave.

“She’ll be fine.” Luthor said letting go of me. “You know her about as well as I do to know that she won’t go down without a fight, and we can get to her before things get serious.”

“It could be a trap.” I say through gritted teeth. “She could be walking into an ambush.”

“She suspects that’s the case.” Luthor nods, not seeming the least bit fazed. “But she knows what she’s doing, I think she expected them to do something like this. Especially when they realised that she had come into her powers.”

“But she doesn’t know how to even use those powers yet.” I argue, trying to keep my voice low. “She can barely conjure enough power to shake the ground.”

I watch as she jumps into the black suv, my heart thumping hard in my chest.

“It’ll come to her when she needs it.” Luthor says, sounding so sure when things could just as easily go wrong.

How can he be so damn calm when his daughter could be walking straight to her death?

I don’t understand him, I don’t understand what is going through his mind. He might have blind faith that Mae knows what she is doing, but I don’t. She could just as easily be wrong.

Dren jogs over and hands me an earpiece, “you won’t be able to talk to her, but you’ll hear everything she says, and everything the council says.”

I nod, placing it into my ear and watching as her father does the same. “Make sure you take the backroads.” I tell him before he can walk away.

Dren looks at me like I have suddenly grown six heads, “I know the plan.” He snaps.

“Good.” I say, my voice just as clipped.

He runs back towards the car and jumps in, the engine revving several times before they speed away. It’ll take them thirty minutes to get to the location, and we’ll set off in the next ten.

I’m going to be a nervous wreck by the time this night is over.

“How can you be so calm?” I ask Luthor, half expecting him to laugh at me.

Before Mae, I didn’t think much about emotions and how they affected me, sure, I got angry and all the others. But I’ve never really been in love before, not like this.

If anything happens to her… I don’t know what I’d do. But the world would pay for her loss. I’d make damn sure of it, and the hunter council would run away screaming. I’d let none of them live, not even the ones forced to serve. All of them would die if they hurt her.

“I’m not calm.” He admits with a short laugh, “I’m nervous as hell, but I believe she knows what she’s doing, even if she doesn’t want to admit it, the council are dangerous. But Mae is more dangerous against them. And they know it.”

“They want to keep her close or eliminate her, I can see it clearly, but she doesn’t seem to get it.” I say, shaking my head and running a hand through my hair. “I swear sometimes I think she still wants to please them.”

“They were her family for a long time, and training was all she knew.” Luthor says softly, “they groomed her to be loyal only to them, and that is why they want this meeting, they want to see if she will still bow to them.”

“I see.” I murmur, hating that he was right.

If the council want to see where Mae’s loyalty lies, they are going to be disappointed to learn she is on my side, and the side of her own people.

She never wanted to kill Nati, she admitted that a long time ago. But how far will they go to try and make her?

How far will they go to try and make her fall in line?

I need the answer, but I am almost afraid to find it.

Fuck, I just hope we both live through the night, then we can work the rest out as a team, together.