Chapter 25 - Lila
The breath leaves me in shallow waves as I slowly resurface before drawing in enough air to make my raw throat more apparent.
Cold stone pressing against my cheek registers first, and for a long moment, only a blur of grey and black fills my vision before more awareness slowly comes to me.
Then comes the ache. The deep, throbbing pain in the side of my head threatens to send me right back under. As I shakily force myself to my elbows, more bright lights flare behind my eyes. Still, the shapes gradually sharpen until the room settles into something real.
Then I see her. I feel her faint body heat next to mine.
“Astrid,” I breathe, overwhelmed by the relief as I look down at her. But just as quickly, my heart aches at the sight of her.
She sits with her back against the wall beside me, small hands bound with her knees tucked under her chin for warmth. Her eyes are wide, frightened, and shimmering in the low light. But something close to hope moves through them as she looks at me.
“Mama?” Astrid whispers, voice small and hushed.
Even seeing her makes me feel like I could collapse again, but I shuffle closer, ignoring the rope biting into my wrists, along with the two figures standing just outside the open doorway. Gathering her close as best as I can despite our restraints, I press my forehead to hers for comfort.
“I’m here, sweetheart,” I say, voice shaking and still hoarse from earlier. “You’re okay.”
We may be alive, but we’re far from okay, and I know it. She doesn’t need to know that.
The space around us is dark and cold, despite the usual summer heat, and the air is so damp it feels like a basement or cellar.
With my weakened senses, I try to reach out and get a feel for our surroundings, but nothing about it feels familiar. The wolves just outside the room certainly aren’t either.
Flashes of memories hit me while I sit there, syphoning comfort and reassurance from Astrid. The wolves closing in, the panic, and the blow to my head…
Without question, I know we’re in Wraith Peak territory.
Even now, I can hear Astrid’s scream in my head.
She shudders from the cold, pressed in as tightly as she can be against me. “I was scared.”
“I know, honey,” I murmur, lightly kissing her forehead. “But you aren’t alone. We’re together, and that’s what matters, right?”
At that, she nods, but her fingers still curl against my shirt, like she’s afraid I might vanish.
The thought of her being terrified and defenseless while I was unconscious sends rage and remorse through my system. Even knowing there was a moment where she was in their clutches, while I couldn’t do anything about it, has me seeing red.
“Did they hurt you?” I ask her quietly, holding her gaze.
“No,” she whispers, glancing away for a moment. Then, something close to worry moves through her eyes. “But I think I hurt one of them?”
My brows knit at that in confusion. “How?”
“With my magic,” she murmurs, ducking as if she’s afraid of getting in trouble. “I got scared when they came into the room.”
I blink back at her, struggling to accept the idea of Astrid hurting anyone, but after a moment, it settles in. It makes perfect sense.
Through her heightened emotions, and while I was too busy trying to protect her to bother maintaining my shield over her powers, they came out.
Here and now, rather than fearing the wolves outside the room, she looks more afraid of her own lack of control. The unpredictability of her strength and the kind of damage it can cause.
Just like I had to teach her, even if I never wanted to dampen that side of her.
Shame curls inside me. All of this is my fault, down to every last decision. If I hadn’t isolated us and had told Caleb the truth from the start, maybe he would’ve been there. Maybe we wouldn’t be in this situation at all.
Yet, even now, something in me still clings to the belief that hiding her abilities was the right thing. Magic use is outlawed on the Willow Island, and I didn’t even know what would happen if someone found out before, but I didn’t want to know.
“Mama…” Astrid murmurs, nestled against my side. “Are we going to die?”
That cuts through me even deeper than my fight with Caleb. Far deeper than any cold shoulder from him.
It’s the last thing I ever want her to even consider.
“No, Astrid,” I whisper with a fierce intensity that can’t be mistaken, gently cupping her cheek despite the restraints. “I won’t ever let that happen, and neither will your father.”
She looks up at me with that wholehearted, child-like hope. “Will he come?”
Emotion tightens around my throat, and I force myself not to choke on it. “Yes, he will. I’m sure he’s on the way right now.”
I have no proof of it, but even if Caleb is still hurt and pushing me away, I know he’ll come. He’d tear every last wolf apart before letting anyone harm Astrid.
The words garner a tiny nod from her, and despite the circumstances, she doesn’t look quite as burdened by it.
I don’t know how long we sit there for, but the fear never loosens its grip on me. The guards don’t say a word, and they don’t even move.
Not knowing what they want with either of us makes it even harder to bear, but we won’t survive long enough to find out unless I act.
While there, with Astrid nestled in my arms, I feel the stirring of magic inside her. It lingers in her chest like always, almost alive in the way it pulses, just waiting for the chance to be harnessed.
Mentally, I reach for it like I usually do, covering it before it can spread further.
But the moment I do, I imagine how it might’ve looked when Astrid hurt that one wolf back at the house, and the beginning of an idea finds its way into my mind.
I spent years tamping down her power, redirecting it, and caging it, all to keep it a secret and ensure her safety. It has always been wild in its own way, especially in a world that doesn’t welcome witches or half-breeds.
Despite my efforts, it feels like the only real option we have.
We won’t survive unless I unleash it. Unless we finally let her magic free.
Leaning in close, keeping my voice quiet enough for the guards to miss it entirely, I murmur, “Astrid, sweetheart… Listen very carefully.”
She only looks at me, vaguely confused and slightly trembling still.
“Do you remember what I told you about your power?”
She nods. “That we keep it inside so nobody sees.”
My heart lurches, but I nod in return. “That’s right. But right now, I need you to do the opposite.”
Her eyes widen slightly, suddenly looking far older than she really is. “But, what about—”
“I know,” I murmur, gently brushing her hair back despite the shake in my fingers. “I know it sounds scary, but we can use it to get out of here. We’re going to use it together, okay? I’ll help you.”
Astrid looks down at her bound hands, then toward the wolves outside. “What if I hurt people?”
“These people don’t want you to be safe,” I whisper, trying to be as reassuring as I can be despite the circumstances. “They want us scared so we’ll give up, but we aren’t going to do that. We won’t let them win.”
Her hesitation lingers, but as she looks at me again, I feel her place all of her trust in me. “You’ll help?”
I nod, giving her the best smile I can muster. “Always, sweetheart. I’ll help you control it.”
She leans forward then until her forehead presses to mine, mirroring my gesture from before, and she nods.
“Okay.”
A sliver of doubt creeps into my system, well aware that this is a complete shot in the dark. We’ve never done anything like this before, but with these restraints, along with the dull pain still making me weak, we don’t have any other option.
But I push it down and take a breath.
“Do you feel the warmth in your chest?”
She nods.
“Good. I want you to hold it just like you’ve done before, but this time, you won’t feel me pushing it down. This time, I want you to let it rise slowly. When I say, I want you to let it go.” I tell her, bringing my hands together to mimic the action on the inside.
It stirs again as Astrid puts her energy into it, growing bit by bit until it sparks on its own and rises faster.
I keep the lid on it at first, holding it in place as well as I can while I concentrate, trying to shape it in my mind.
Her eyes widen a bit more. “Mama—”
“I’m here,” I whisper, forming my own energy around hers, releasing some of the tension to make room for it. “Just close your eyes and let it grow.”
Mine is nothing compared to hers. It’s more like a sensitive thread, a conduit more than a direct source. But I can mold it, and more importantly, guide it.
From within the stone room, the air shifts and ripples as her power begins to leak out at the edges, growing in both strength and magnitude. It won’t be long now.
“It’s too much…”
“I’ve got you, Astrid. Let it move through me, and we’ll hold it together.”
Despite the fear coming from her, she nods, allowing it to move as it wishes within her.
One of the guards finally steps farther into the doorway, words muffled by the pressure in the room. “What—”
But it’s already too late.
“Now, Astrid!”
Just as her magic breaks through the barrier, I imagine a tunnel, guiding it with my hands, and that’s when it fires.
A shockwave explodes outwards from her body and through my hands, both raw and blinding. The guards are thrown across the building, even those I can’t see from the wall. Rock and debris shoot forward, crumbling part of the archway. The ropes around our wrists snap, crumbling away to nothing.
Astrid cries out as the force surges higher and wider, caving in even more of the wall in front of us. But I hold her close, using what’s left of my strength to redirect the flow, forcing it out rather than letting it linger inside her.
Despite the damage being done, completely unbridled, I don’t hold back.
And the moment the magic cuts off, Astrid leans against me, eyes drooping from exhaustion.
Arms wrapped around her, I kiss the top of her head. “You did beautifully, honey.”
“I’m scared,” she whimpers, clinging to my shirt more.
“I know… but we’ll be safe soon,” I whisper, moving the last remnants of rope from around her, letting it fall away before slowly standing and reaching for her. My legs tremble from the adrenaline, but I ignore it and reach for her. “Come on… we need to move.”
Astrid hesitates again, but when she sees that no other wolves approach, she gets to her feet and reaches for my hand, letting me hold hers securely.
Even if the blast of magic is something that would never be allowed in any capacity among our pack, I don’t have it in me to care.
We’re alive, and that’s what matters to me.
As tempting as it is to wait for someone to save us, I’m not sitting idly. Not anymore.
This time, I’m fighting back, and I’m taking my daughter home.