Gemini of the Shifter Realm

Chapter 16 The Druid

Valentine Winters P.O.V

"Leaving?" my father asked, confusion etched across his face.

"Not alone," I replied firmly. "I need both you and Mom to come with us."

My parents exchanged a wary look, their unspoken concerns clear in their shared glance. When they turned back to me, my father's expression had hardened, while my mother's was softer, tinged with worry.

"We can't just abandon the pack," my father said, his eyes shifting to Lucifer. "Their lives depend on you—on your heir."

"You betrayed your clan once, and now you're repeating those same patterns," my father continued, his voice growing cold. Lucifer's lips curled into a low, warning growl. "I chose your daughter," he said, his tone steady but tense.

"That doesn't make you fit for the responsibility, either way," my father countered sharply. My mother placed a calming hand on his arm, trying to quiet him, but he shook her off.

"It's true," he pressed on, ignoring her attempt to de-escalate. "You've been a mess, and I've been patient long enough. I'm done waiting for you to get your act together."

"Dad, enough! It's not his fault," I defended, feeling the anger rise within me.

"Not his fault?" My father's voice rose, his frustration spilling over. "It's because of an abomination like him that there's been chaos in everyone's lives—your lives, your children's lives. Are you really that blind?"

I felt a sharp sting at his words, but I couldn't let him have the last say. "None of us asked for this, Dad," I shot back, my voice trembling with emotion. "He didn't ask to be born this way, and I didn't ask to be mated to him. This is fate. We don't understand why, but we have to accept that it's happening."

Lucifer's expression softened, and he looked almost taken aback by my defense of him, a flicker of vulnerability crossing his face.

"What made you agree to this decision?" my mom asked quietly, her gaze piercing through me. She knew there was more to this than what we were letting on.

"I—" I started, but the words got stuck in my throat. I didn't know how to explain everything that had led us to this point—the visions, the urgency, the unshakable feeling that something was coming.

"We can't tell you everything," Lucifer interjected, his voice firm yet pleading. "But we need you to trust us. This is for the greater good."

Oz Wyllt P.O.V

I woke up drenched in sweat, the relentless grip of night terrors pulling me from the depths of a restless sleep. The memories of my dead mate lingered, haunting every corner of my mind.

I sighed, feeling the weight of it all bearing down on me, and stumbled to the washroom. Leaning over the sink, I splashed my face with cold water, trying to wash away the ghostly remnants of dreams that would never fade.

They never go away.

Reaper's words echoed in my head, a constant reminder that no matter how far I ran or how deeply I buried them, these memories were etched into my very soul.

I gripped the edges of the sink, my knuckles turning white, trying to steady myself against the temptation that gnawed at the edges of my consciousness. The urge to give in, to surrender to the pull of the past, was almost overwhelming.

I couldn't let myself be swayed.

I still hadn't deciphered the full meaning of Lorraine's vision about the hybrids. They were so close, right within my reach. I had wanted to end Vanity that night I held her in my arms. I could have sacrificed her, used her hybrid blood, experimented. Who knows what wonders my magic could have wrought with it?