Flame
Chapter 29 - Milo?
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I would never see Ian ever again. I wouldn't see Christopher or Nicholas or even Milo and the others. Gabbie or Cameron. I would never see my family again.
I couldn't even be left alone to die in peace.
No. I guess the idea of me dying without suffering enough was too much for father. He wanted me to pay for taking Ian away from him, he wanted me to feel anything but happiness ever again. He really was sick. Cody was right, he didn't deserve to live. He didn't deserve to be alive anymore. Father's like him... that treated their sons the way they treated us... those fathers didn't deserve to be fathers. They shouldn't have been let to parent in any way.
We shouldn't have had to grow up with those... scars. They were the ones that were supposed to keep us from that, to shield us from all of that. Not give them to us. Maybe I'd done something too horrible... but it didn't mean that I deserved any of that. I hoped I didn't.
I crack my eyes open slowly and study the top o. The roof of the car. It had been there a while, moving every so often and getting blurry other times, but it was all i could see for the past couple of times I've opened my eyes.
I wasn't bleeding much anymore. Father had taken care of that. He'd taken the bullet out, had cleaned it and wrapped it up. I didn't think he'd been in his right mind to operate, but apparently I'd been passed out. I woke up on the backseat, laying back with a thick gauze wrapped around my abdomen. The only way I knew it wasn't correctly stitched was the small red stain slowly forming on the white cloth.
It would be so completely easy to kill myself. I could just remove the gauze and let myself bleed to death. Father was too busy driving to even look at me. He probably knew I didn't have the energy to even move. But the thing was, I didn't want to die. I wanted to see Christopher and Nicholas and Ian. I wanted to see Milo and even Will, who was always protecting his mate with everything he had. I wondered how he felt, if he'd found Milo. I wished he had.
My eyes travel to the back of father's head and I manage to evade his assault, but I wasn't sure if I would be able to again. A sudden wave of cold hits me and I try to curl up into myself- it hurt to move. I wasn't sure where exactly I was, but it was probably a long ways from home.
"...Sam..." Father was mumbling. He really believed that this Sam was real. Then again, maybe she was. Maybe she was my mother. Maybe Ian wasn't really my brother. How would that explain Ian remembering Sarah being pregnant. And if Samantha really was my mother, then where was she? How did I end up with him?
The next time I wake up, the car was parked by the side of the road. Father wasn't in the driver's seat and i was all alone in here. I sit up slowly my eyes immediately going to see if the keys were there, but feeling my heart sink even more when they weren't. My brain immediately thinks about running away but with how I was, I wasn't sure how long I'd last. I didn't know where I was.
I also didn't have time to think about any other type of escape because i'm startled by the door being pulled open hard, Father giving me a cold glance as he fixed his pants. He climbs into the car and slams the door closed, setting his pistol on his lap. The next plan my brain has is reaching for it, but I immediately cancel that one out. I probably wouldn't even make it half ways towards the pistol.
Instead I lay back down and force my eyes to stay open, my brain aware for any opportunity. Who knows how long he had been gone this stop. Maybe if I hadn't slept, I could've been far away. Father's voice breaks me from my staring at the wall. "I've seen you."
I don't respond to what he says because he could mean anything. Maybe he was even talking to himself. At this point, I didn't know how lost in the head he was.
"With them" he adds in a sneer. That makes my heart skip a beat because there really was only one them he could be talking about. I swallow hard and pretend to let my eyes fall closed. "You won't see them anymore."
That simple sentence made me want to scream at the top of my lungs. My chest constricted and I feel my eyes burn with hot tears. He was lying. I would see them again. He didn't know what they were capable of. They would do anything for me. They wouldn't stop looking for me.
They were werewolves.
They were probably even tracing us right now. They were probably so close. I knew they were, they had to be. And Gage and Elliot would help look for me too. My heart rised just the tiniest bit because I'd disappeared before my party. All the people they had to welcome into the land. All the people who now knew that I was gone. All of them...
I look up at the ceiling slowly, numbness hitting me like a ton of bricks. "You knew" I croak weakly, my throat a little dry. "About my party."
It was impossible. He couldn't know about them. There was no way. He couldn't...
Father doesn't laugh or sneer or even turn to look back at me. "I know everything. Those two can't hide my boy from me."
I blink back the tears fast and feel a hard shudder travel through me. He couldn't know they were werewolves. He couldn't. Maybe he just thought they were a weird big family. But then where did he see me. What did he see. He couldn't have seen much.
The next couple of hours, I distract my mind with the memory of my mates. I hold on to one particular memory, where Nicholas, Christopher and I were in the woods. I'd been resting against their wolves, running my fingers through their fur. I'd been snuggled between the two large wolves, protected and safe. Then Christopher had shifted back into his human form, completely naked and warm. And with Nicholas resting beside us protectively, he'd eased my legs apart and made love to me.
Tears burned my eyes because I missed their warmth, I missed them.
By the time I managed to calm my tears, the sun was setting. I sit up slowly and lean back against the seat trying not to gasp at the sharp pain in my abdomen. I didn't want to rip the stitches, I didn't want to hurt anymore. I slump against the door and let my eyes follow the trees. It reminded me of when Ian and I were barely coming into town. Only then I'd been happy. Now, I was devastated.
I blink in confusion though when I see a dark flash between the trees. I'd seen it twice already and I blink hard to be able to look for it again. My heart sinks when I don't see it anymore and I move my eyes to the front of the car just in time to see the dark flash jumping across the street. Father slams his foot on the brake and I cry out when I'm sent forward against the seat. Pain rushes up my abdomen making my head spin, almost blinding me. Father curses as he stops the car but his voice was a little muffled through the ringing in my ears. Then I blink hard as I watch him get out the car, pistol aimed at the trees.
Go.
My mind is a dizzy mess as I crawl to the opposite side of the car. My fingers feel numb as I grab the door handle and the rush of cool air that hits me makes me gasp in surprise. My head was pounding as I slid from the car and I could feel the thick trails of tears down my cheeks. I fumble with the seat belt before I'm stumbling forwards towards the edge of the trees.
"Brandon." Father's voice was beyond enraged behind me and I choke as I near the trees. Relief hits me like a ton of bricks when I pass the treeline and I feel myself stumble when I hear his pistol go off behind me. He was going to kill me. "Brandon!"
I stumble around a thick tree and manage to hear a sharp impact against it. My fingers move to my abdomen when the pain became excruciating and I shudder when I feel the wet substance against them. My vision spins for a second and I trip against a root, slamming forwards with a scream of pain. I choke on my sobs before turning to my back. With the small amount of daylight left, I manage to see father approaching, his pistol still in his hand. He studies me for a second before raising his arm at me, "Join your whore of a mother."
All of a sudden a large, brown wolf lunges at father and bites at his arm. I try to control my breathing as I press my hands against my abdomen. And with the sudden wave of tiredness that hits me I slump back against the forest floor, hearing the pistol go off as father screamed. I tilt my head slowly and watch as the wolf pinned father down before tearing with his teeth. I could hear the bones crunch, the clothes and skin tear, the blood splashing out. Mostly, I could hear father's screams, his struggle, and I could even hear him choking in his blood.
I couldn't help but feel... free as his screams echoed around in the emptiness.
It wasn't long before silence fell and all I could hear was the wolf snarling as he tore what was left of father apart. My head pounded as I watched it, its head shaking as he pulled a piece. Then I watch as the wolf turns around, its golden eyes landing on me. A piece of meat drops from its jaw and I watch him slowly stride towards me. My heart lurches in my chest as he approached but I didn't have the energy to even roll over. Maybe I would have the same end as he did. And no one would hear me either.
But as the wolf came closer, some of its features became much more familiar. I recognized the thick eyes, the ears, the body and the way he walked. I could even remember its teeth trying to sink into my shoulder.
Tears blurr my vision even more and I choke in a breath, "Milo." Relief hits me like a ton of bricks and I wait for him to shift back and wrap his arms around me. I wait for Christopher and Nicholas to show up, for Will and Lukas. I wait for anything to happen but as seconds passed, I realized that nothing would. I stare at Milo's wolf a little longer. "Milo?" I croak weakly.
They hadn't found him either yet.
"Milo, please" I whisper slumping back against the grass. His wolf studies me a while longer before approaching me slowly. He leans into my stomach and sniffs before turning and laying down next to me. His face was close to mine, keeping an eye on me and I could smell the blood from him, I could see his wet muzzle. He starts licking his paws, which I knew without seeing that they were covered in blood.
And with Milo next to me, the heat he was giving off in waves, I completely fell back against darkness.
When I woke up, Milo was still watching me but it was even darker around us. My head hurt and my lips were dry, I didn't even know how I could still wake up. All I knew was that I'd lost too much blood already and I didn't know how much more until I finally fell into eternal darkness.
Milo's wolf huffs before he lays his head down, eyes never leaving me. It was probably good that he was like this because last I'd seen him, he had tried to kill me. "Milo" I whisper tiredly. His ears twitch but otherwise he doesn't move an inch. "I'm bleeding out..." my fingers tighten against my stomach, "Help me. I need Nicholas."
His glowing eyes close as he rests but his ears were sharp. Other than that he doesn't seem like he'd be turning back into Milo's human form soon.
I reach with one of my hand and he snarls as he stands up, baring his teeth at me. Tears blurr my vision, "I'll die." I reach for his paw again weakly, "Please."
He snarls slowly before leaning in to me again. For a second, as he opened his jaw against my shoulder I thought he would end me too, but I'm stunned when he bites at my shirt and pulls. Pain stabs my abdomen when I slide up by his strength and I realize he wanted to drag me. Normally I wouldn't mind but I couldn't bear the pain anymore and I'd probably be a rough terrain. Instead, I take my chance and try to sit up. Milo snarls sharply, snapping his jaws in my face.
I ignore his threat and grab at his side, watching him stiffen incredibly still, a low growl building in his throat. When he does nothing, I pull myself up and gasp in pain when I try to haul myself over his back. He supports me easily and I slump against him when I'm straddling his back. Then my eyes flutter as he starts slowly making his way deeper into the trees.
Anywhere he took me was better than where father lay torn apart.
Milo's wolf takes us around a couple thick trees, sniffing for something. I'm told what it is when I hear the soft sound of rushing water. Milo shakes me off hard and I drop beside him, slumping against the floor. I watch as he goes to the small river and starts drinking. I pull myself to the water and relief washes through my body even at the first drink I get. Milo decodes to rest here and I swallow hard feeling the tiniest bit better. I still hurt, and I still bleed from my wound, but I was still fighting. I was still alive. I really didn't know how.
I wash my hands with the water but I could feel them get sticky again when I press my hands against my stomach. I let myself close my eyes, not even realising I was falling asleep.
I'm woken up by hands shaking my shoulders, hands patting my cheeks, hands pulling me to a lap. My eyes flutter open to see Milo, eyes wide with... everything. He was terrified.
"Brandon." His chest was rising and falling quickly, his hair a mess. That's when I noticed the blood on his mouth, how he wasn't wearing anything, how he had a long gash along his side. He was covered in blood but I was too tired to ask what happened to him. "Brandon, God, what did I do. I'm so sorry. What did I do to you."
I try to shake my head, "Father... shot me."
Milo blinks and looks around quickly, "Your father? He's here? Where is he?"
I shake my head, "You killed him."
Milo opens his mouth but he doesn't say anything and instead looks down at me. "You've lost so much blood. Where are we? How did we get here? It was my wolf wasn't it? He's no good, he always-"
"He saved me" I murmur and rest against his arms, "You saved me."
"Keep your eyes open" he demands, shaking me a little. "You are still alive because of your mates. One mark keeps a human mate living just a bit longer than they usually do, they age slower. But you have two marks. That most likely improved your healing. We need to get you home."
"I'm tired" I whisper, raising my eyes to his. "It hurts."
Milo shakes his head, "I know it does. Brandon, I have control but I don't know for how long. I need to get you home. When I was drugged, I lost any connection to Will I had that mates have when mating. He can't feel me and I can't feel him. We've been trying to practice communicating but it's only been successful when we're in the same room. You have to try and connect with Christopher or Nicholas. You need to link them. Now get on my back, I'll go south for now. Hopefully they'll find us."
Milo wipes his forehead once, his eyes meeting mine warily. Then he moves back and I watch him shift into his wolf. It was the first time I saw him shift willingly. He approaches me slowly before crouching and I pull myself over his body. Once I'm laying against him, Milo starts walking a little quickly.
It was probably hours later that I felt an itch at the back of my mind. A warm sensation. It was soothing, it was safe. I knew who it was and I knew they were close. I knew that this was over. And then I knew it was the perfect time to actually rest. With that in my mind, I let myself finally fall into much needed rest. I didn't have to worry anymore. I was safe.
I still manage to feel the hands pulling me from Milo. I feel the warm chest I was pulled into. I feel the extra set of hands cupping my face and brushing my hair. I hear the voices, the orders, the wolves. I feel the warm embrace I was on, and then the second embrace as I was passed over. I hear their voices and it was then that I completely sink under.
"Brandon."
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A/N: this is completely unedited. That said, I apologize and hope this much sooner update makes up for this lol
9/11/18