Alpha Leo and the Heart of Fire

41. You Don’t Know the Pain

LEO.

“Leo…”

She walked over to me, and the moment she touched my back, sending a rush of sparks through me, I felt a wave of calmness washi over me,

The fucking bond.

“I didn‘t mean it in a bad way. You know. Hrowing up, everyone called me a freak because I was born with the help of magic, so they found the word fitting. There were even a few people in the pack who refused to acknowledge me because of it. Heck, some still exist.... as I got older, I stopped telling my family because I didn‘t want to always cause them trouble...” She sighed, and I did my best to remain calm. Flaring anger rushed through me, and I wondered if that was why she was so cheerful because inside she was dealing with a lot.

“I know you always say I‘m the daughter of an Elite. Although my life is nowhere as harrowing as I‘m sure yours has been, I just wanted to let you know that things aren‘t always what they seem.” She moved in front of me, her hand running along my waist, before she placed it on my chest. “It‘s ok to be afraid. I sometimes am... like right now. I don‘t know how this will work... with this baby... us... What will we tell our child? Why aren‘t we together?”

She placed her hand on her stomach, and that intense urge to touch it once more tempted me, but I didn‘t.

“We‘ll figure it out...” I said quietly. We would... I would figure it out for all of you...

I saw the vulnerability in her eyes when she had told me her situation.

Tonight had felt like a snippet of the life that maybe we could have… Her, Corrado... our unborn pup... She‘d be the mother Corrado would love. Even if she wasn‘t what I would have expected, somehow, she had won him over, the perfect balance of wild, cheeky and mature...

I reached up, brushing her silky locks back. Her eyes fluttered shut for a second as my fingers grazed her skin ever so lightly.

These sparks... What were they?

So unexplainable…

She leaned into my touch, her head tilting up slightly, and that intense tension returned.

I wanted her.

“Yeah... maybe we will.” She responded quietly. We fell silent, but I didn‘t remove my hand from her hair, my thumb caressing her jaw. 1 knew what I was afraid of, but I‘d never speak it out loud... I was fucking afraid of us letting our guards down once more, only to be cast aside like always...

her heart

moment I thought she‘d have forgotten... I sighed, looking down into her

she began experimenting on me too. But whatever she was trying to attain wasn‘t happening. Her magic never really worked on me as it did with Marcel and the others. I was just someone she never wanted to lose, yet someone she hated... I was only a pup who wouldn‘t be able to do any damage to her anyway, for now. But I saw it all, the beatings, the torture, the dark magic... Her sacrificing our own kind... her feeding the scraps of our people to our own. Creating the wendigos... it was sick. No one would hear me... because those who had a chance to do something... well they were under her control or too scared to rebel. I was just a fool to think that there

away, wishing I had a cigarette right now. “There is good in this world.” She

our heroes... our saviours, were allowed to storm into this pack and caused more suffering. I get the reasons, I fucking do. I know the pain when one‘s mate is hurt, but then I realised violence is dealt with, with violence. Was there a difference between good and evil when those views and beliefs became distorted

I had seen her struggling to free herself, and so I had secretly unlocked the cell and cleared the escape route for her. She never knew I had helped her back then, and I made sure no one saw me, but I had wanted to help her because she didn‘t deserve the

her food I‘d get punished if I was caught, but it was

I didn‘t really know.

and wrong were

to her. She‘d tie me up, and all I remember is the excruciating pain that she inflicted on me. I would wake up bleeding after blacking out on the floor, and I would just get up and get back to my sorry life.” I was unable to hide the pain and bitterness from my voice. “Do you know how it felt to drag the dead body of my mother to try to bury her? A body that I couldn‘t even recognise after her transformation into a Wendigo?” 4 She reached up cupping my face, her heart pounding and her eyes full of anger and pain. I was unable to stop myself from grabbing hold of her waist. My own emotions were a fucking storm, I had never told anyone that shit. “I‘m

the Djinn a decade ago. You had

his or her parents... I did it because it was the right fucking thing to do... not because of the bastard.” I replied icily. “Rafael Rossi... I want to believe that if he knew, he wouldn‘t have let Rayhan do what he did. I did

shows that you have a good heart... just like Marcel

just showed that no matter what I did, it was never

exactly what you suffered at her hands... you told me to speak to my parents, and I think you need to do the same... But regardless of that... Do you know what I see? I see an incredible human before me, a true leader, one with compassion, strength, and

not, but jokes aside, you are a good person Leo, and I‘m lucky that you are the father of my child. He or she will be lucky to have you.” I fucking wasn‘t expecting her to say that.... not after the shit I had put

that child

chance to prove that they mean it. You don‘t need to be chums with them... but maybe putting it behind you will help you move

deeply, there‘s no way to forgive that.” I replied, coldly glancing down into her dazzling silver

refuse to meet your half–brother, right? When

with surprise, before

“Are you challenging me?”

to show you

this? Let‘s make a deal. I‘ll talk to him… and you, you talk to Rayhan.” I frowned deeply at the spark of challenge in her eyes. “Not enough. Talking to your half–brother who didn‘t do shit isn‘t enough.” She raised her eyebrow, her nails digging into my neck. What the fuck was with this girl and violence? 2 “Fine, I‘ll visit her grave... I will speak my mind and I will tell my parents how I feel about Indigo...and you, you tell Marcel how hard you had it. It‘s not

I growled, gripping her wrists and yanking her hands away from where she had drawn blood, I pulled her hands against my chest glaring down at her. “Don‘t

know what you‘re fucking trying to do but forgiving isn‘t that easy.” I shot back, gripping her hips and yanking her

reflex. Her heart

did to me... I‘m dealing with the fact that you‘re only being nice to

as I stared

Try...