Leah's POV
The sky shattered above me, a jagged maw of chaos spitting debris like venom. But Darren was there, his arms clamping around me, fierce and unyielding, rolling me across the ground as the hulking ship model plummeted from the heavens. It crashed where we'd been, its splintered bulk clawing the earth, and I felt the tremor in my bones. Dust choked the air, a gritty veil, but all I knew was his body pressed against mine, hard and desperate, his heat searing through the cold dread coiling in my gut.
When the world stilled, our eyes locked. His stare cut through the haze, sharp as a blade, stripping me raw. Memories clawed their way up—him looming over me, blood-smeared and feral, shielding me from death's jaws. Tears burned my eyes, spilling hot and relentless, carving tracks down my dust-caked face. I couldn't stop them, couldn't cage the ache ripping through me.
But then I caught it - or didn't. The air around him was wrong, empty. No musk of wolf, no primal tang I'd always known. My gaze snagged on his arm, gashed deep by jagged debris, blood pooling dark and steady. It didn't close, didn't heal. Panic sank its teeth into me. I tore at my shirt, fumbling, pressing the ragged cloth against his wound, my hands trembling. "Darren, what happened?" My voice cracked, raw and ragged. "What the fuck happened? Where's your wolf? You're not healing... you're human?!"
His eyes, calm as a still pool, met mine. "It seems you've lost your balance again, Miss Lewyn," he said, soft as a whisper, steady as stone.
That line broke me. Scenes flooded in, unbidden and cruel. The swimming pool, water glinting under a lazy sun, his Harley Davidson snarling through traffic, me clinging to him as horns blared. His face at sunset, painted in blood, fierce and unbroken. Those afterimages tangled with the haggard man before me, and I shattered. Sobs tore from my throat, loud and ugly, as I collapsed into him.
Darren's arms tightened around me, his hand sliding through my hair, stroking slow and sure. "Leah, I'm here with you," he murmured, his voice mechanical, a drone against my ear. "I'll get you out. No one will hurt you again." It was a vow, hollow yet heavy, and I clung to it like a lifeline.
Then came the screech of tires. Liam's car tearing through the ruin. He vaulted out, eyes wild, searching the wreckage. When he saw Darren pinning me, he lunged, shoving Darren aside and yanking me behind him. "Stay the fuck away from her!" he bellowed, voice thick with fury.
But I couldn't let him. Something snapped inside me, primal and fierce. I surged forward, wrapping myself around Darren, shielding him. "What the fuck are you doing?!" I snarled at Liam, my voice dropping low, a growl rumbling up from my core. For a heartbeat, the wolf in me bared its teeth, fierce and unyielding. Liam staggered back, hitting the ground, fear flickering in his wide eyes.
"I'm… sorry," he stammered, hands up, voice shaking. "I just wanted to help."
Sirens wailed, closing in - police, fire trucks, a cacophony of order piercing the chaos. I hauled Darren up, his weight heavy against me, and steered him toward Liam's car. "Let's go home," I whispered, my breath catching on the words.
The drive to my mansion was a silent wound, tension bleeding into the air. Inside, Talia took over, her hands deft as she bandaged Darren's gashes. I stayed rooted by his side, gripping his hand, my scarred knuckles white against his skin. I couldn't let go, wouldn't.
Talia finished, stepping back, and nudged Liam, who hovered like a lost dog. "I'm right outside, Boss," he muttered, awkward and quick, before they slipped out.
The door clicked shut, and I broke. I leaned down, burying myself in Darren's arms, sobs clawing out of me like a wounded beast. He held me, stroking my hair, whispering, "Everything's okay. I'm fine." Lies, maybe, but I drank them down.
"I missed you so much," I choked out, tears soaking his chest. "I thought you were dead. Where did you go? What happened? Are Josephine and the child okay?"
His face twisted, pain carving deep lines. He dropped his head, voice heavy as lead. "Jo is dead. So is my child."
The words hit like a fist, knocking the air from me. "What happened?!" I gasped, lips trembling.
"You were dying," he said, eyes distant, hollow. "Unconscious, bleeding out. The court locked the city down... There was a curfew. To get you out of the Kingdom, I had to fake your death. Jo… she was going to sell you out to the Royal Guards. I had no choice. I killed her… and the child inside her. I used her body to make them think it was you."
I froze, horror sinking claws into my chest. My mind reeled, staggering under the weight of it - his mate, his child, gone by his hand. For me.
"The Moon Goddess cursed me for it," he went on, voice breaking. "Stripped my wolf away. I'm nothing now... just what's left... a human being."
Tears streamed down my face, a flood I couldn't stem. I couldn't speak, couldn't breathe past the grief and guilt choking me. Then my wolf stirred, her voice a hiss in my skull. Fear him, Leah. He lost Lester for you, now his mate, his child, his soul. What madness festers beneath that calm? Why's he here now, after all these years? He killed your child!
Darren's whisper cut through her venom. "I'm sorry, Leah. I had to save you. The syringe Dr. Jafar gave me... it killed the child. I didn't know what else to do. I couldn't watch you die."
His words were a blade, twisting deep. I pressed a finger to his lips, silencing him, my hand shaking. His eyes met mine, dark with despair, and I couldn't hold back. I bent down, crashing my mouth against his, kissing him hard, desperate, tasting salt and sorrow.
He kissed me back, a starving man, his hands gripping me like I'd vanish. The heat between us flared, wild and reckless, and I pulled back, staring into his eyes. I saw it then - the poolside, years ago, his gaze raw and hungry. "I want to fuck you," he confessed, bold and bare, no shame.