Page 93 of Alpha Leo and the Heart of Fire
“I’m surprised Marcel never mentioned it,” I say instead, changing the topic.
“No, he didn’t… I’ll ask him tomorrow… but then again, he hasn’t said much about this pack, respecting Leo’s wish. Marcel is just stuck in the middle, wanting this to work,” she sighs before smiling gently. “Let’s not worry about that for now. Leo cares for you. If he didn’t, he wouldn’t have called for me.”
“Or he cares for his pup,” I suggest. I am happy that he does, don’t get me wrong… but at the same time, I don’t think us as a couple will work. He already told me he regretted marking me…
“Talk to him,” Kiara encourages softly, almost as if she knows what I am thinking. I nod, not sure if I will, as I turn my back to her.
“Yeah…” I say, closing my eyes. She runs her fingers through my hair tenderly, and I appreciate her not pushing the topic.
I am blessed to have so many who love me… but doesn’t Leo realise he does, too? I saw the way he became distant when Kia and Raihana had entered… the way he just wanted to leave…
With Kia’s comforting touch, sleep soon overcomes me, and I welcome it…
I am staringat something intently through maybe a crack or bars… I’m not sure…
I am terrified. I don’t know why, but I am. A shriek of agony reaches my ears, and I begin looking around frantically.
“Please stop! Don’t hurt her!” A young boy’s voice leaves my lips as my entire body shakes with anger, frustration, and fear. I begin running, climbing over what looks like some rocks, and stare down into the dimly lit room. The sight before me makes my blood run cold.
There on the floor in a five-pointed star, surrounded by symbols written in what looks a lot like blood, lies a woman. She is pinned to the floor with four daggers, one embedded through her wrists and two through her ankles. This is dark magic… I can feel it.
My eyes blur as I take a shuddering breath, and I wipe them in irritation. Pain and agony are clear on her face as a dark, smoky shadow swirls around her. Everywhere it touches her, it slicesviciously into her skin.
“Please stop! Don’t hurt her!” The strangled sob leaves me.
Where am I? What is this?
“Shut him up before I kill him, too,” a woman’s voice hisses ominously, and it is then that I see her. Her back is to me. She is wearing a long black dress, her hair is halfway down her back, and she has her hands raised. She begins chanting, and the room seems to become darker. There is an immense evil around her, one that is beginning to grow around the woman on the floor, a woman with brown hair and ashy skin.
Skin that is littered with scars, burns, and bruises.
“Yes.”
Marcel? It sounds like him, but it is a voice void of emotion.
“No! Dad, save Mom!” I seem to scream again, and it is then that I realise what this is.
A memory. Not just any memory, but one that belongs to Leo. I am in Leo’s head.
My heart is pounding as Marcel approaches, pulling open the barred door and grabbing me by the collar.
“You need to learn to control yourself, boy,” he growls.
“Dad! Please help her!” He begs. Marcel shakes his head, his eyes blank as he drops me, or should I say, Leo, onto the ground.
“Lock him up,” he growls.
“Please! Help Mom!” Leo’s scream breaks into a sob, and then something strikes the back of his head. Jarring pain seems to split my head open, and my eyes snap open.
My heart is pounding violently as I look around. I am back in the bedroom at Marcel’s mansion.
That woman was Endora. The one on the ground with daggers in her wrists and ankles was Leo’s mom. I feel sick. What had Leo been through and seen as a child…
I sit up, staring at the clock on the wall, unseeing, with only one thought in my mind.What else is Leo going through?Thefact that that memory or nightmare came to me means Leo is still having nightmares of his past. I pull my legs up, tucking them against my chest and wrapping my arms around them. No matter what I do to calm my erratic heart, I am unable to, feeling tenfold more restless.
Suddenly the restlessness seems to ease, and I realise that it had been Leo’s feelings. It is hard to differentiate between my emotions and his. But he must have put his walls up just now.
Leo?
