Chapter 23 - Klaus
I stared at the door, counting the wood grooves. I was at two hundred and nine before a voice outside broke the silence.
“How is he doing?”
“No changes,” someone responded. “It’s sad. He had so much potential, and now he’s locked up, slowly losing his mind.”
I ground my teeth together, hating that there was nothing I could do. I had been working my ass off to prove I was the best for the role. I earned the title of Alpha. I was doing everything that I could, and it still wasn’t enough.
I turned away from the door, needing to move.
I couldn’t stay seated anymore. I had all of this energy, and I needed to get it out.
I started to pace. If I moved, maybe that would help keep my anger under control.
I could only walk half the span of the room.
The chain was pulling at my legs, which only pissed me off even more.
I felt like I was losing my sanity. It had been days since I’d been in here, but it felt so much longer. The hours blurred together into a never-ending stretch.
I wanted Aubrey. I wanted to apologize for earlier and tell her that I didn’t mean it. I just wanted to keep her safe. I used to be the one protecting her, and now I was what she needed protection from.
If you would stop fighting, you’d feel better. Doesn’t she deserve your embrace? If you get yourself free, you could go to her. You could have her.
I shook my head. I had to stay in here and keep myself calm. Because if I got out, who knows the damage I could do. There were few people who could stop me.
I went back to counting the grooves in the door. But my mind was slipping.
You want her.
Two hundred and twenty-one, two hundred and twenty-three.
If you find her, you could tell her. You could tell her everything.
Two hundred and twenty-four
You could tell her you love her. She might even love you back.
Two hundred and twenty-five.
You could have her every way you want. Isn’t that what you want? To have her? To sink yourself into her?
No! No, I couldn’t.
You could kiss her and hold her. You could squeeze her in your arms.
Stop it! Stop it!
You could make love to her and listen to her come apart on your dick. You could have her like before and never have to let go. Just get up and take what you deserve, because you’ve earned her.
I felt my body stiffen, so exhausted from constantly fighting. I was tired. I hadn’t slept, hadn’t turned my mind off in days. I just wanted to give up.
But then I felt something twisting in my gut, and I could feel a strong pull. I heard Aubrey’s scream fill my head. It was blood-curdling, and it stilled everything in my body.
All the extra voices stopped, and my mind focused on one thing and one thing only. Aubrey.
I yanked at the chains, trying to get closer to the door. I felt them tugging against my ankles, and I pulled tighter. I yanked hard, putting all my muscle into moving.
I heard the chain pop, and I was free. I grabbed the door and threw it open. I stepped into the hall, my eyes searching the space. I thought maybe she’d been out here. The scream sounded near, but I found the hallway empty. There was no one around, not a soul in the area.
I walked down the hallway and felt my heart racing now. I just needed to see her, to hear her voice, and I knew that I’d be okay. I had to make sure that she was okay.
But I found workers instead. They all looked stunned as they saw me, a few even backing away. “Alpha, you’re supposed to be in your room.”
“Where is she?” I asked, looking between them all for her face. But she wasn’t here. I didn’t see her.
Someone moved closer, and I turned to Victoria. She held a stern face as she stood between me and the others. “Klaus, you’re not supposed to be out here. You’re not in the right state of mind.”
“She’s hurt. Where is she, Victoria? I know she’s hurt, so tell me where she is.”
Victoria raised an eyebrow at me. “How do you know that?”
“Because I heard her. I know she’s somewhere, and she’s hurt.” I looked at the others, still trying to see her. I had to be wrong because if I wasn’t, I didn’t know how I would handle it. All I wanted to do was protect her, and I wasn’t. She was out somewhere, and I wasn’t there for her.
“Klaus, look at me.” Victoria’s voice was sharp, and I looked right at her. Her eyes were scanning me, her face serious. “You still have darkness inside you. I can smell it. The best thing you can do for her is go back to your room.”
“And I’m still me,” I stated. Aubrey had been right before.
I was still myself, and I knew right from wrong.
I had to fight it. “I heard her scream, Victoria. She’s out there somewhere, and she needs me.
Put aside your concerns about me and help me find her.
If you want to lock me up after a fine, lock me back up.
But she needs me. So you either move out of my way, or I’ll move you myself. ”
She remained quiet for a long moment before her shoulders relaxed. “Alright, but if I see that something is going to change, I’ll be sure to restrain you.”
I nodded. “Now, where is she?”
No one seemed to know where Aubrey was. No one even seemed to know where Cal was. My gut was twisted up because it was unlike Cal not to answer his phone. He always answered his phone.
I leaned over the table, Victoria sitting next to me, her eyes glued on every moment I made. I shook my head. “Where did they go? They didn’t just disappear.”
Just then, Julia walked through the doors. She froze when she saw me, her eyes widening. “Klaus, you’re here. Does that mean you’re better?”
“No. Where is Cal? Where is my wife?”
She frowned. “That’s why I ran down here. Cal called me earlier to say that Aubrey and he were going to see the cauldron. But that was hours ago. They should be back by now.”
The cauldron.
“We need to move now,” Victoria said, shoving herself up.
I moved faster, not even giving Victoria a chance to stop me. I ran down the hallway and through the doors. Outside, I scanned the parking lot. I could hear Victoria behind me. “Klaus! You need to wait. I’ll call Riley and have him run down to the cauldron.”
I couldn’t wait. I wouldn’t wait. I already lost enough time as it was.
I hurried across the street and just kept moving. I could hear Victoria yelling after me.
I ran home. I needed my vehicle because I knew I couldn’t run all the way there. I’d never make it to her in time.
I ran inside, and my body came to a halt.
I could see her everywhere. Her coffee was on the counter, and her socks were on the staircase.
She had her purse slung over a chair in the dining room, and her jacket was still hanging next to it.
It was like I’d walk home and everything was normal. But she wasn’t here.
I grabbed my keys and got into the car. I spun out of the driveway and headed toward Riley’s pack. My hands were tight on the steering wheel, and I stared ahead.
But visions hit me left and right. She was taken into a vehicle, and I’d never see her again. I could hear her screaming my name, begging me to come and help her.
Mike was there. The one person I knew she feared the most. The man who was supposed to be dead but was somehow alive. I had questions, hundreds of questions, but no answers to them.
I sped, watching the dial go from sixty to seventy. I pushed harder on the gas, hitting eighty miles an hour. My hands were shaking, and my mind was racing.
I had to get to her in time. I had to. I couldn’t live in a world without her. I refused to. She’d changed my life so much, and I didn’t want to go back. I couldn’t.
I watched trees pass, and I hit ninety miles an hour. My vision zoned in on the road.
Time seemed to slow as her face filled my mind. Her soft amber eyes were always comforting. I could stare into them all day long. And her soft brown hair. I wondered what she used to make it that soft. I loved running my fingers through it and watching her face relax into my arm.
Aubrey was soft, and I had worried about her breaking. But she was strong, too. Aubrey was the perfect half to stand by me. She softened me, but in every good way.
And she fit in this pack more than she knew. I always thought I would want someone who ruled like me, but I was wrong. I wanted Aubrey. I wanted someone who wasn’t scared of me.
I pulled into Riley’s pack and headed straight for City Hall. I shoved the door open and headed inside. I ran to the meeting room, and the council members all jumped up. “Klaus. What are you doing here?”
I looked past them toward the door. I hurried around their table and yanked the door open.
“Klaus!” They yelled after me, but I ignored them, running down the stairs. The smell of rot was pungent and made my stomach curl. I came to a halt when I found Cal lying on the ground face down.
“Cal!”
I jumped over him and shook him. He had a cut on his forehead like someone had hit him with something. There was blood on the ground and his phone, lying next to him.
“Oh, my god.” Jessica gasped as she saw him. “Is he okay?”
“How the hell did you not know he was down here?” I snapped, my anger building. “My Beta is unconscious, and you didn’t even know about it!”
“We didn’t know. We just started that meeting. We didn’t know he was down here.”
I looked down the hallway and saw the door to the cauldron room open. The smell filled the space, and water was seeping into the hallway.
Aubrey.
I pulled Cal up, resting him against the wall. I made sure he was breathing before I stepped away.
“Help him,” I snapped as I headed down the hallway toward the door. I stepped into the room and found Mike lying on the ground. He looked exactly as I remembered. Blood was pooling out of his head, and his body looked pale, like he’d been dead a long time.
I turned my attention to the cauldron that was bubbling furiously. Water curled over the edge like a beating heart. And then I spotted her.
Her hair was moving, and her hands were clawing at the water like someone was holding her down. My eyes widened as I heard her screaming in my head.
Help!
I moved across the room quickly, grabbing at her and yanking her to the surface. She was soaking wet, and her body went limp in my arms. “Aubrey!”
I grabbed her face, patting her cheeks, trying to get her to open her eyes. But her head lagged back, and I wasn’t even sure she was breathing.
“Klaus.”
I turned as Cal wobbled his way into the room. He held his head, the council member standing behind him.
“Why did you guys come here?” I snapped, furious that he didn’t protect her as I asked.
He frowned. “Because… she was searching for an answer. More of the members were losing control, and we were running out of options. She thought…” He shook his head. “I was just outside in the hallway when something struck me from behind. I didn’t leave her.”
I turned back to her and shook her as I bent down, holding her tightly in my arms. I could smell the difference in her now. That sweet scent was gone, and she smelled of a corpse.
“Aubrey, this is not how it ends. It can’t be how it ends for us.” I could feel that darkness seeping over me once more, like claws pulling at my skin. “Aubrey, you’re too good for this. Don’t let them take you. Not when you just got what you wanted. Not after everything you survived.”
I wiped her hair back, tugging her body against mine. She felt cold even. I pressed my forehead against hers. “Aubrey, don’t go. Please, I need you.”
She coughed, and water spattered out of her mouth as she gasped for air. Her eyes opened, but they looked exhausted. She didn’t seem sure she was looking at me. “Klaus?”
I tightened my hold on her, feeling her shaking under my touch. “I’m here.”
She frowned. “You shouldn’t be here. That’s her plan.”
I didn’t care. I would give up everything if it meant she was safe. She was all that mattered to me.
I felt my anger spiking, and my mind glitched. I wanted to protect her, but another part wanted to shove her back into the cauldron.
I could hear footsteps around us, and I knew Victoria’s voice. But I focused on Aubrey. Her eyes were soft as she looked at me.
I felt her hand reach up, her fingers pressing against my cheek. “Is that really you?”
I nodded, grabbed her hand, and kissed her knuckles. Aubrey wrapped her arms around me, her arms shaking. “I’m right here. I’m not going anywhere.”
I held her close, feeling everything she was feeling. I could feel her heartbeat and smell her. She smelled like vanilla. She was my salvation.
I pressed my forehead against her, and I felt my shoulders relax.
I felt a shift as the air suddenly felt softer.
Those hands that were clawing at me suddenly stopped.
I didn’t feel that anger the way I did a moment ago.
I opened my eyes, and Aubrey was staring into my eyes. I knew she could feel it. We were free.