CHAPTER 209: CHAPTER 209

[SAMANTHA’s Point of View]

“Mom!”

I couldn’t leave. No. I couldn’t leave them.

I glanced back as tears rolled down my face and went running back to my kids. I sobbed as they wrapped their little arms around me and buried their faces on my shoulders.

Trembling, I had never felt so scared like this my whole life. Dominic needed my help, but I couldn’t leave my children. Not like this.

“I could help,” Devon said bravely despite the tears streaming down his face. He was sobbing terribly as he looked into my eyes and then wiped his tears with the back of his hand, trying to suppress his voice from croaking. “I could help, Mom! I want to help him!”

“It will be too dangerous if Olivia finds both of you.”

Devon did something that blew my mind.

He lifted his hand, leading me to believe he was about to show me something, but his hands were empty. From the cracks on the floor, a plant suddenly sprouted and crawled to Devon as if it was reaching for my son—no. It wasn’t reaching for him; it was reaching for Devon! Devon was calling it! The plant grew bigger; thorns grew out from it, sharp and deadly, but it didn’t hurt my son. Instead, it grew beautiful flowers that made Diana smile and giggle.

“We’ve been hiding this from you and Dad because we know you both are going to freak out.” Diana smiled shyly as she glanced at her brother with pride on her face. “But it seems Devon has finally developed his ability, and he can also control it well now.”

“I practiced so many times in the backyard,” Devon said shyly, too, his eyes on the floor, scared of what my reaction would be. “Diana and I decided to hide it from you until I can control it well. We also want to fight with you, Mom. Please let Diana and me help you.”

I looked up at Liam, still full of shock, and I saw that same reaction on his face. Liam let out a heavy sigh and then dragged his hands down his chin, thinking.

“Liam?” I asked, waiting for him to agree. “I can’t leave you all here. But we can’t let anything happen to my husband. If he’s hurt, then that means Olivia and her shadow werewolves are heading this way, too. It’s better to just go there with the children and help Dominic. I know he asked you to never go after him, no matter what happens, but the children and I wouldn’t survive this if the Alpha dies.”

“You have a point, Samantha,” Liam nodded. So what’s the plan?

“And Mom?”

“Yes, Diana?”

“Devon and I have something we haven’t told you yet, too...”

*****

[HANG ON TIGHT!!!]

Liam decided to shift into his wolf form so we could mount on his back and get us all out of the tower fast. I made sure Diana was securely sitting in front of me while Devon, who decided to sit behind me, had his little arms around my waist.

I wasn’t sure if this plan would work, but we needed to get Dominic out of the building. It wasn’t safe anymore for all of us. We needed to escape and find Killian.

Diana pressed herself against me the moment Liam stormed out of the clock tower’s door. As he lunged mid-air, I saw my husband kneeling on the floor.

Blood dripped down the floor from the wounds that had already turned black from the curse, while Olivia was in front of him; her eyes were wide in shock as she saw all of us. Her eyes locked with mine.

“This is it, Devon!”

Devon responded to my call, and he stood on Liam’s back. His one arm was around my neck, while the other was stretched above his head, opening his hands wide as he summoned that power that had already awakened in him.

The earth quaked beneath us as Liam landed on the floor; all of us were cautious and on full alert at the enemies around us. But the shadow werewolves were distracted by the trembling of the ground, and in a matter of seconds, gigantic thorny vines sprouted violently from the cracks of the floor and snatched all of them in one swoop—stabbing, piercing, and killing the shadow werewolves one by one until Olivia was the only one left.

“DOMINIC!”

My husband immediately ran towards us at a speed that couldn’t be followed by just ordinary werewolf eyes. I felt Liam’s apprehension when he saw Olivia start to chase us, while my husband struggled to keep up with our speed because of his injuries.

“You will never get out of this place alive!”

Olivia sprang to her feet and kicked Liam in his ribs, sending him flying to the other side of the room. I grabbed the kids away from him fast, and the three of us rolled on the ground. I went after Diana first, making sure she didn’t break any bones, and then Devon, who dislocated his ankle but remained calm as he did his best not to scream in pain.

“Oh, Devon!” I said in panic as I checked the injured part of his feet, “It will heal, sweetheart. It will heal.”

“Mom, it hurts so bad!”

“I know, I know...” I didn’t know what to do! His feet started to swell so badly, and the first thing I thought was to tear the hem of my shirt and tie his ankle like a bandage so he couldn’t move it too much. I glanced at Liam, and he could barely move from broken ribs.

From behind us, I felt Olivia’s menacing glare piercing through me. I wondered where Dominic went. My heart was pounding so hard and fast in my chest, searching for my husband, and then I saw him being knocked to the floor as well, his arm bleeding badly as the black veins spread fast from his fingers up to his elbow.

“Mom...” Diana crawled to me in fear as soon as she saw Olivia coming towards us.

“OLIVIA!”

Dominic roared her name in anger as she kept her steps steady and slow toward us. His eyes were filled with fear as soon as he saw her retract her deadly, sharp claws. Her eyes curved into a dark, menacing grin as she licked her lower lip with the tip of her tongue.

I pulled the children behind me, ready to defend them with my life. I stood and glared, crouching in a fighting stance, and was ready to attack the moment I saw Olivia jump on me and the children.

“NO!”

In a split second, I blinked my eyes, and my husband was already in front of me, shielding me from Olivia’s massive claws. It pierced through his shoulder, and his warm, crimson blood splattered on my face.

My mind was in a haze, my body petrified in shock at what I saw, and then the next thing I saw was Dominic, kneeling in pain in front of me. His hand was on his shoulder, covering the wound that wouldn’t stop bleeding.

“Dominic!” I cried my husband’s name as I saw him almost unconscious from all the injuries, all worsened by the curse that was slowly spreading in his arm.

Diana and Devon started to cry as they both rushed to their father, but I stopped them, scared of what might happen to them if they ever had any contact with Dominic’s infected wounds.

“What are you going to do, Samantha?” Olivia laughed with scorn and hatred in her voice, “Who is going to save you now?”

“Diana! Now!”

Devon’s voice echoed all through the area. I saw how Diana ran bravely, close to Olivia, and threw moongrass power on the phantom woman’s face.

My daughter’s face was red with fury as she tossed the particles to Olivia, jumping and screaming, “This is for what you did to grandma!”

Dominic’s face lifted as he heard our little girl’s voice. I moved to grab her away from Olivia, scared that the phantom woman might recover and hurt her, but Dominic stopped me by my wrist and asked me not to intervene. Devon joined his sister and threw the powder at their enemy, too, and my heart felt as if it was about to explode with love and pride for my children.

We raised brave little warriors.

Dominic looked at me with softness in his eyes as he watched the tears roll down my face. He stood, almost losing his balance, but I made sure he wouldn’t fall as I put his arm around my shoulders, carrying some of his weight.

“And this is for hurting Mom and Dad!”

My husband’s eyes widened at what Devon screamed at Olivia as he tossed the moongrass powder at Olivia. His eyes watered after hearing Devon call him ‘dad’. I turned to him, and he looked me in the eyes. His face was full of love and happiness for his twins.

Olivia screamed in torment as her face started to sizzle and burn from the moongrass powder. She howled, writhed, and cried as she flinched from the two. Dominic and I started to move to get Devon and Diana away from her, but as soon as Olivia turned back to her human phantom form, she took a crystal ball she fished from the shadows that she summoned. She glared at all of us as she bared her teeth. Her face was full of burns and boils.

“If I can’t have the twins, then you can’t have them both either!”

A fear surged in me, and I pushed away from Dominic and ran to the kids.

Olivia threw the crystal ball in Devon and Diana’s direction. I focused all my strength on my legs and ran as fast as I could, and before the ball could hit them, I had already caught it with my hand.

To my horror, it slipped and fell on the floor and cracked.