Chapter 67 Sixty-Seven

Chapter 67 Sixty-Seven
Amber
“Did you start hunting rogues?” he asked, and I didn’t answer. I simply hung my head. His sigh told me that he understood my silence, and soon after, I felt his fingers brushing my chin before lifting my gaze to meet his.
“I’m not mad,” he whispered.
“Me either,” Aliah added with a sigh of her own. “It’s in our blood, baby sister. We knew this, which is why we did it instead. We thought that if we did the dirty work—”
“Then I’d be able to live a normal life,” I finished for her, and she nodded in agreement.
“But then we learnt of Dageian and his origin. We learnt that he was after us, so we sought out why.”
“So, you know that it is our blood that made him?” I asked, and they nodded.
“When we went after him, it was blindly and foolishly. We lost our lives that same night.” Aliah met eyes with Alex before he dropped his gaze in shame. “We should’ve been more prepared. We could’ve saved you all that pain, grief and trouble of rogue hunting if only….” Her voice broke, and it seemed like she couldn’t finish, but I already understood.
I felt terrible that they blamed themselves for my sadness. It wasn’t their fault they ran into the path of a crazy, power-hungry hybrid.
“So come back with me,” I whispered. “I know how to kill Dageian, and I’ve had encounters with him more than once. For some reason, he wants me alive, and I think I know why now. He wants to turn me into a hybrid, too, saying that he fancies me.” I shivered at the memory.
“That could be one reason,” Alex said as he shook his head. “But that isn’t the only one.”
“Why did he want to turn you guys into hybrids? Elma said she saw it when she touched you.”
“When Dageian changes a wolf himself, they are automatically sired to him with a loyalty that only he can break if he so desires. After centuries of being hunted by our ancestors, I think he changed his motive,” Alex explained with his eyebrows pulled together. “He wanted to change us, not because he wanted us alive, but because he wanted us as his puppets.”
“Can you imagine Dageian with Rousseaux Hybrids sired by him? With our blood and the power it has over hybrids, he’d be unstoppable,” Aliah said as she picked up from Alex. “But when he changed us, he was in for a rude awakening.”
“You wouldn’t feed,” I concluded.
“Yes,” she agreed. “But he could’ve forced us if he wanted to. That wasn’t his problem.”
“What was it then?” I was confused. If they actually woke up as hybrids, then Dageian got what he wanted. Though they wouldn’t feed, Aliah was right when she pointed out that he could’ve simply forced them.
“We weren’t sired to him,” came her simple reply. “He was furious, as you can imagine. But our blood was the very agent that made him in the first place. I wasn’t surprised that we were immune to his bond. A regular hybrid can’t compel us, and their gifts don’t work on us. Plus, we can even control wolves once they have hybrid venom in their veins! This was just a cherry on top.” I could hear the smile in her voice, though there was none on her lips.
“So he put you guys to sleep.” I sighed.
“Yes. He knew that we would die if we didn’t feed, and he needed us alive long enough to try and find a way around it. So, he got a witch to do his bidding, putting us in this place while he tried to make a sire bond. But every witch failed. He had brought over ten different witches, and none of them could do what he wanted.”
“That sick freak,” I mumbled as I shook my head.
“That he is,” Aliah agreed. “But baby sister, we cannot return with you, and you know how dangerous he is. You need to stop hunting him.”
I whipped my head to her so fast that my neck cricked, but I didn’t mind. I tried to process what she just said, and I wasn’t even shocked that Alex seemed to agree with her.
“Wh-what do you mean?”
“We use to live to kill rogues, and later on, hybrids, Amber,” Alex said, switching the conversation again. “And there is no way we can feed from human beings for a living.”
“Then feed from animals,” I suggested as my voice broke. “I need you guys. Look, we pissed off Dageian for sure. There is no way I can just run away, and he won’t find us!”
“But you must,” he said, holding my shoulders put. “There is a country you and your mate can go—”
“No!” I shouted as I jumped to my feet, my eyes stinging with tears again. “I won’t run away. Not from him. He killed my friend, Alex. And he almost killed my mate!”
“Which is why you should go,” Alex threw back as they stood also. “Amber, we know you aren’t afraid of him and we weren’t either. But he is strong and conniving. He will kill people you love and weaken you, then use you to his advantage or kill you too! He is all about games, Amber. And when he is not winning, things get ugly.”
“I know!” I pulled on my hair in frustration, hating the direction in which this was going. “I know first hand how full of shit he is. And I could give up now and leave another person to stop him, but I won’t. This is my fight, guys, and I will not stop until he or I am dead. That is with or without your help.
“Look, I am not forcing you to come back with me. I understand more than anyone how you might feel waking up as hybrids. So, I wouldn’t want to bring a burden to your lives. But guys, please understand that I will not sit around or run away from Dageian. I know the chances of my demise are high, especially since we temporarily defeated him last night and took you guys. I knew he would come after us harder than ever. But please understand that I must do this. I cannot run and look over my shoulder in fear for the rest of my life.”
I paused briefly as I snuggled between them again to give them another hug.
“If this is goodbye, then….” My lips quivered at the thought, but I took a deep breath as I found the will to continue. “Then so be it.”
My heart shattered at the mere thought of letting them go again. But forcing them to join me and be miserable isn’t living at all. If they think they found peace in death, then it was their decision.
Silence followed for a while as I kept my head down. Then, I heard a deep sigh, and they pulled me away from their embrace. Alex cupped my cheek and brushed my tears away with his thumb before placing a lingering kiss on my forehead.
“I’ll come,” he whispered, and my heart frolicked in joy for a mere second. “I’ll help you stop Dageian, then I’ll pass on, okay?”
My heart squeezed at the last part of his statement, but I found myself nodding in agreement nonetheless. “Okay,” I managed to say as I dried my tears.
“I’ll go too,” Aliah whispered with a sigh. “But I only drink animal blood until….” She shivered as if she couldn’t say it out loud.
“Thank you.” I was utterly grateful and elated. A few more days or hours with them would be bliss. Though they still chose death, I understood why, so I didn’t complain. I know it will be hard when I have to let go again, but at least this time, I’ll have closure.
“If you’re fighting, then I can’t find peace knowing we left when we could’ve helped,” Alex said.
“I love you guys.” I hugged them for the umpteenth time before pulling away, excited to go back and tell everyone.
“I love you too,” they said in unison, smiling at my excitement.
“And I am ready to meet that Drew too,” Alex added in a low mumble.” I’ll give him the big brother threat—I mean, talk that he never got.”
Aliah and I shared a look as we burst out in giggles. That’s Alex for you.
But then I realized that I had an issue. I didn’t know how to get back.
“Guys? How do I get back?” I asked with a little bit of panic.
Aliah, however, didn’t seem the least bit concerned. As she ran her hand through my hair with one hand, she used the other to brush over my eyelids, causing me to close them.
“The exact way you came is how you may leave. Close your eyes and focus on the conscious world. Think about that hybrid boyfriend of yours if you must. Your anchor will pull you out.”
And so, I did.
I thought of Drew and the world of the living, waiting for Elma’s spell and Mason’s anchor to pull me out. However, none of that happened.
Instead, I started to feel warm, then my entire body felt as if it was dunked in a pit of lava. I snapped my eyes open, sensing that something was wrong. Alex and Aliah’s confusion scared me even more, telling me indeed that something was wrong.
What the hell was happening?