Aurora’s Pov
I was falling.
The pain was unbearable, my vision blurred, and my body felt cold. Blood was dripping down my face, my arms, my dress was soaked in blood. It was getting harder to breathe, harder to keep my eyes open.
But I forced myself to watch. I had to.
Ryan, no, this wasn’t Ryan. This was something else, something terrifying. His red eyes still burned with fury, his sharp claws glistened under the moonlight, and his presence alone made the air thick with danger. He was unrecognizable, lost in rage, in bloodlust.
“Ryan,” Karen called again, stepping back slightly for the second time. “Ryan, stop this!”
He didn’t even flinch at her words.
His gaze was locked onto them, onto the people who hurt me. He was seething, his breathing heavy and controlled, as if he was holding back the full force of what he was capable of.
A man lunged at him, the same man who had beaten Jamie to the ground. But before he could even reach Ryan, Ryan struck. His claws sliced through the man’s throat in a swift, brutal motion. Blood sprayed everywhere, and the man dropped like a lifeless doll.
Karen gasped. “No…stop! Don’t!”
But the others didn’t listen. They lunged at him, one after the other, attacking him in unison. It was chaos. Growls, cries, the sound of bones snapping and flesh tearing. Ryan tore through them effortlessly, his movements deadly, precise. They didn’t stand a chance.
“We won’t Stop! We’re here to protect her” one of them shouted. “Her father sent us to keep her safe…”
Ryan didn’t care. He was too far gone. The words meant nothing to him.
And in no time, they were all being dealt with.
“Let’s go! Now!” Tania shouted, gripping my arm painfully as she dragged me toward the car.
“Yes let’s go,” Karen said, her claws still at my throat. My knees buckled, my body too weak to fight back, too weak to even resist.
Then, out of nowhere…
“Let her go.”
The voice was strong, commanding.
It sent shivers down my spine.
Caleb.
Tania tried fighting him off but she barely had a second to react before she was on the ground, groaning in pain. Caleb had moved so fast, so effortlessly, knocking her down in one swift motion. His eyes burned with determination as he turned to Karen.
Ryan, now finished with the others, turned toward me. His beastly form still towered, his chest rising and falling with slow, controlled breaths. But then his eyes found mine.
And something changed, the look he gave me was different from the one he gave others.
I saw it, the flash of horror in his gaze, the way his body stiffened when he saw me like this, covered in blood, barely holding on.
But Karen wasn’t done. She grabbed my hair and yanked my head back, her claws pressing against my neck.
“Step back, or I’ll end her.” She told Ryan and Caleb.
Ryan growled, a deep, animalistic sound that sent chills down my spine. He took a step forward, his hands clenched into fists, his entire body shaking with barely contained rage.
“I said step back!”
Caleb held up a hand, trying to reason. “Karen, this is pointless. Let her go.”
“I won’t,”
I could hear pure hatred in her voice.
Karen tightened her grip, her nails digging into my skin. I winced, a weak whimper escaping my lips. My body was giving out. I couldn’t take much more.
Then, in a blur, Ryan moved.
Before I could even process what was happening, Karen was lifted off the ground, Ryan’s clawed hand wrapped around her throat. She gasped, her legs kicking as she struggled against his hold.
Caleb caught me just as I started to sway, holding me steady. But I couldn’t look away. Ryan’s grip tightened, his face filled with raw fury as Karen clawed at his hand, choking, struggling, her eyes wide with terror.
He was going to kill her.
I could feel it.
And I didn’t want that.
With all the strength I had left, I whispered, “Ryan… stop.”
He didn’t move. He didn’t hear me.
I forced myself to speak louder, my voice shaky, broken. “Ryan… please.”
Still nothing.
So I screamed.
“Ryan, stop!”
It drained every ounce of energy left in my body, and the moment the words left my lips, everything blurred. My knees gave out, my body collapsed, and darkness threatened to consume me. But before I could fall, before everything started turning to nothing, I saw him…
The moment he dropped Karen, the panic in his eyes as he turned to me, the way he rushed forward and caught me before I hit the ground.
He turned back to the Ryan I knew. The one that won my heart.
“Aurora! Stay with me,” he begged, his voice frantic, desperate.
I tried. I really did.
I felt him lift me into his arms, holding me close as my head rested against his chest. His scent, his warmth, it was all I could focus on.
“Caleb, Take Jaime to the hospital, I’ll be right at your back,” He ordered Caleb but I could Still hear the panic in his voice. He really cared for me.
That sudden thought made my heart melt.
“Stay with me, Aurora. Please,” he whispered, his voice breaking as he carried me to the car.
I barely felt the seat beneath me as he laid me down gently. I barely felt his hands as they gripped mine, as he called my name over and over again.
“I’m taking you to the hospital, just hold on for me for a little bit, please,”
I just gave him a reassuring smile that I was going to hold on. I couldn’t speak anymore. I felt like my soul was leaving my body.
He closed the door and went to the driver seat, he started the car and immediately called someone. I didn’t know who he was talking to, but I heard what he said.
“Clear the hospital now, I want every doctor to be available right now!”
His voice was the last thing I heard before everything went black.