Once again, I pondered where Cain was. Wondering if he was hurt, if he was even alive, and I could only hope that he was alright and would reach me before Erik either killed me or took me away from him.
“Ca…” I tried to yell for Cain, but Erik slapped a hand over my mouth and silenced my pleas.
He glared down at me. “Shut the fuck up!” I bit down on his hand, causing blood to trickle into my mouth. Erik ripped his hand away from my lips and stared at the teeth marks before lifting his hand into the air and backhanding me across the face so hard; I spit out blood.
I turned my gaze back to him and grinned wickedly before spitting in his face. “Guess I am finally seeing your true colours, huh, Erik?” I said in a dark, soft tone. My wolf was close to the surface now and trying to force the shift, yearning to eliminate the threat.
His upper lip twitched, and once again, Erik cocked his arm back and balled his hand into a fist, aiming for my face. I closed my eyes and tilted my face to the side to shield myself, but nothing happened and then suddenly, Erik was lifted off of me. I opened my eyes and watched as he went flying through the air, landing almost ten feet away from me. I peered up and was relieved to see my monster of a mate standing there, looking all broody. Cain’s breathing was erratic, and his muscles were tense as the sweat glistened on his sculpted chest. Finally, he looked down at me, and the tension eased slightly. I gave him a soft smile, and my eyes began to burn as I resisted the urge to cry, thankful that he was alright and alive.
Cain knelt beside me, his eyes frantically roaming up and down my body, inspecting every inch. Finally, our eyes locked, and we both smiled, happy to see each other alive. His hand came down and caressed my face, lightly grazing his thumb along my bottom lip.
I looked deep into his eyes and swallowed roughly. “It’s nice to see you again,” I said jokingly and smirked.
Cain shook his head at my words. “Come on, get your ass up; we need to leave.” He said, standing to his feet before extending his hand out for me to take. I gripped onto his hand, and he carefully helped me up, holding me tightly in his arms as I stood on my feet. Cain’s arms wrapped around me, blanketing me in his warmth and making me feel at ease. Then, he loosened his hold and leaned back, staring into my eyes. “We need to go, love. Are you alright to walk?” He asked, concern in his tone.
I nodded my head. “Yes, I think so. Maybe, not too sure, if I am being honest,” I said, joking with him and also telling the truth. My legs were sore and a bit numb. Cian gave me a deadpan stare, clearly not in the mood to be joking around. I grabbed his hands and tried to remove them from my body. However, Cain stopped me and held me tighter to him. I raised a brow at his actions, and he huffed, not wanting to let me go, but he did, very reluctantly. I stabled myself on my feet and didn’t fall over. Cain observed me intently. “Are you good?” He asked me as I wobbled slightly.
I nodded my head. “Yes, I am fine,” I reassured him with a smile.
He gave me a curt nod. “Good, then let’s go.” Cain took my hand in his, and we started to walk. However, we didn’t make it very far, as an angry voice made us come to an abrupt stop.
“Where the fuck do you think you are going? You are not taking her from me again!” Erik boomed from behind us.
Cain looked down at me, a frustrated expression on his features, before turning us around. “I am taking her home, and she was never yours to keep.” He said bluntly while gritting his teeth.
Erik’s eyes widened, and his jaw clenched tightly. “Freja is mine, not yours, and she is not going anywhere with you.” He was shaking with anger now, but Cain matched that intensity in greater numbers.
Cain straightened himself and was radiating with Alpha dominance now, “She is not yours; Freja has always been mine. She is my mate, and I will die before I let you take her from me.” He shouted furiously, making me cringe a little from the deep tone in his words.
I put a hand up, silencing them both, and now their focus was solely on me. “Both of you shut the fuck up! I am not yours.” I pointed at Erik. “And I am not yours either.” Next, I gestured to Cain, “I am mine; I am not some object or piece of property that you two can fight to the death over. I don’t belong to anyone but myself. That being said, though.” I peered up at Cain with tender eyes. “You are my mate, and a piece of my soul belongs to you. Just as it always has and always will.” I told him honestly.
Cain smiled and winked at me before looking at Erik, his expression neutral now. “We are done here, and we are leaving.” He looked down at me once again. “Let’s go, love.” I didn’t say anything in response; I just smiled and nodded in agreement. We started to turn around when a loud and menacing growl roared throughout the forest. I knew it came from Erik, but I didn’t turn around to look at him, as I had seen a new side to the man I had grown up with, a side that had broken a piece of my heart. Cain’s body turned slightly, and he peeked over his shoulder, then suddenly, Cain grabbed me by the arms and swung me around, placing me in front of him.
He looked down at me with an apologetic expression, and to say I was bewildered, was an understatement. I had no idea what was going on or why he was shielding me. He groaned slightly and squeezed his eyes shut before looking at me again. Cain’s eyes looked heavy now but filled with love. A smile spread across those plump lips as his hand came up and caressed my cheek. “I love you, Freja, and you were the greatest prize I ever received.” He said softly before collapsing onto the ground. I tried to hold him up, but he was too heavy, and as he fell to his knees, that’s when I saw the knife sticking out of his back, the same one that Adela had tried to kill me with earlier.