The moment Jada’s eyes land on me, they narrow with hostility. She regards me in much the same way
Apollo’s mother does. It’s clear to me that they both harbor a deep disdain for my existence.
Apollo’s mother motions with her hands for Jada to join her in helping my mate. I watch helplessly as they both approach us, a determined look on both of their faces.
I want to scream at them, to tell them to leave us alone. However, I’m still filled with so much guilt that I am
immovable as stone. I could never forgive myself for rejecting Apollo even under such terrible circumstances. I didn’t care that I was only trying to protect him, in the end, I still hurt him tremendously.
My heart raced as i was suddenly shoved aside by Apollo’s mother, the force of it taking me by surprise. I gasp as my mate’s head slides off my lap and Jada takes my place instead. “You!” his mother exclaimed, her
voice sharp as a knife. Her eyes blazed with fury, directed straight at me. “You are the reason for all of this! Stay the hell away from my son! When he wakes up from this mess that you caused, he will finally
understand what I’ve been trying to protect him from.”
Stay away from him?
The thought of distancing myself from Apollo was unbearable. I shook my head fiercely, a surge of defiance fueling my willpower.
I knew I rejected him just a moment ago, but strangely enough, my feelings for him had not faded. The intensity of my attachment remained unchanged, wrapped around my heart like a stubborn vine.
In fact, it was possible that my feelings had only intensified since rejecting him. It was difficult to bring to words and I knew it was hopeless trying to explain this to Jada and my mate’s mother. They would never
believe me after what just took place.
But was I the only one still overwhelmed by intense emotions and profound feelings?
With Apollo lying there, motionless and deeply unconscious, I couldn’t figure out whether his feelings had changed course now that I’d done this to him. And I would never know the truth until he opened his eyes
again.
“Didn’t you hear Ms. Reign?” Jada demands from me. “She said to get out! What are you waiting for? We do
not want you here!”
Her audacity, along with her belief that it was perfectly fine to step into my role in Apollo’s life, left me seething with anger.
“I’m staying with him,” I declare firmly, my voice steady despite the unrest inside me. The room felt charged with an unspoken tension, and I knew I couldn’t leave him now–not when he needed me by his side more
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than ever.
Since I was responsible for this, I wanted to fix it. I needed to be here when he opened his eyes, I had to tell him how sorry I was and that I didn’t intentionally do this to him. He needed to know the truth. If he opened his eyes and saw his mother and Jada first, they would no doubt fill his head with lies about me. I didn’t want that to happen. Besides, I was also desperate to make sure that he was doing fine after the rejection.
His mother glares at me, “You’re the reason he’s like this!” Her voice rises with frustration. “I can’t believe I was ready to give you a chance. I called Apollo hoping that we could fix things. I was so foolish. All this time, you were plotting to reject him and completely ruin my son!”
What on earth is she talking about? What did she call him to talk about? And when had she ever considered giving me a chance? She has always hated me.
As I prepare to speak, mustering the courage to ask her for another chance, our conversation is suddenly disrupted by the sound of hurried footsteps echoing against the wooden floor.
I notice my mother and step–father standing at the entrance, their faces reflecting shock as they take in the scene around us.
“Lana!” My mother calls out, racing into the room, her urgency palpable. As soon as she catches sight of me, she rushes to my side and wraps me in a warm, tight hug.
“Oh, my sweet, sweet child,” she sobs. “I thought I had lost you forever.”
I return my mother’s embrace, feeling a mixture of helplessness and dread as Jada’s family walks in. I know they’re all here to try to take Apollo from me. Since he is still unconscious, he cannot defend himself. I glance at his pack members, who appear torn about what to do. They are aware that I have rejected Apollo, which means I am supposedly no longer his mate. Yet, they also know how much Apollo loves his mother and typically heeds her wishes. Caught in the middle, they don’t know whose side to take in this situation. I realize painfully that I can’t count on them for support.
I knew that if Jake were here, he would step in and help me prevent them from tearing Apollo away from me. He understood just how much his Alpha cared about our bond. But unfortunately, he wasn’t here. The only other person I could rely on in this tough moment was my mother, now that she was present, but even she had made attempts to pull us apart.
“Mom,” I say, my voice trembling. “Ms. Reign doesn’t want me going with him, but I really need to be by his
side. I have to figure out what’s wrong and do whatever I can to help
“Shh,” she tries to soothe me. “Please Lana, think about yourself as well. You are bruised everywhere. You need to get yourself checked out by a doctor and then we can discuss letting you see Apollo.”
No. She was not understanding me at all. Why wasn’t she listening?
I did not need to see a doctor. My mate was the one w
needed to get checked out. I was okay. All I wanted
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was to be by his side. That was all. Nothing else mattered to me in this moment. My life meant nothing while his life was in danger.
“Mom,” I plead as Jada’s parents assist in lifting my mate from the ground. “Please. Do something to convince her. I’m begging.”
She glances over at my step–father, a flicker of pressure crossing her face as she battles with the weight of my request. I can see the unease settling in their eyes, each reflecting a mix of anxiety and hesitation.
“Oh no you don’t,” Ms. Reign hissed when she looked over at us. “All of you are responsible for what happened to my son today and I will not have another second of this madness. Look at him. He cannot even stand, he isn’t even aware of anything happening around him. My son was tortured because of your daughter and I will never let her close enough for her to harm him again!”
My mother squints, her brows furrowing in confusion. “What on earth are you talking about?” she insists. “How could my daughter possibly be to blame for this mess? She hasn’t done anything wrong. Are you forgetting that she was also kidnapped? Your son wasn’t the only one trapped here.”
Ms. Reign walks over to us with a scowl on her face, “ask your daughter what she did. Find out from her why my son is in this position!”
My mother furrows her brow, a look of confusion crossing her face as she turns to me with a curious gaze. “Sweetheart,” she asks softly, “can you help me understand what she’s talking about?” The uneasiness is evident in her voice, as she tries to cope with the rising tension of the moment.
As I stand before my mother, remorse and sorrow wash over me, and I can’t bring myself to meet her gaze. Tears cascade down my cheeks, glistening like droplets plunging from a fountain.
“What are you waiting for?” Apollo’s mother demands. “We don’t have all day to wait for you to give a
response.”
“Do not rush her.” My mother snaps, clearly upset by the way Ms. Reign is speaking to me. “She is obviously in a lot of pain from what took place here.”
I finally lift my face to look at her, my bottom lip trembling as I whisper in a shattered tone “I–rejected him,
mother.”
Her eyes grew wide with horror, and I could see the surprise gleaming in her gaze, as if time itself had briefly frozen at the confession I had just laid bare. Even my own mother couldn’t believe what I’d done.
“Rejected him?” she gasps.
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