Chapter 327 – Back to the Real World
Ella
I’m sitting anxiously by Rafe’s basinet, watching him sleep, while my mind wanders impatiently
elsewhere. It’s been twenty–four hours since we heard from Cora and Roger and I feel, just a tiny
little bit, that every passing minute is a knife in my heart.
Where is my sister? I wonder to myself, sighing as I look down at my baby and honestly barely
seeing him. 1
It’s okay, my wolf says to me, rubbing her body warmly against my poor aching heart, nuzzling
me with her snout. Roger will take care of her – I know it. He can’t not.
But what if he couldn’t, I think anxiously, my mind turning inevitably to that freak storm that
they hit – the storm which separated them from their guards, which seemed….just, too precise.
Too convenient. To perfect to be coincidence. What if the cult trapped them? And hurt them both?
I wail, inwardly, my wolf giving in a little and sitting back on her haunches to raise her nose to the
sky and howl a little along with me. She still believes, but she’s overwhelmed, a little, by my
despair, even though inwardly she keeps the faith.
“Ella!” I hear Sinclair shout from downstairs. I jump a little, turning towards the door, but I freeze,
not allowing myself to hope. If it was bad news – he wouldn’t be shouting from downstairs –
But something very urgent could be happening so he can’t come up –
“Ella!” he calls again. “Come down! There’s a car in the drive!”
I gasp, leaning down to quickly scoop Rafe up into my arms. He gives a little half–hearted cry of
protest and I know that I should leave him here to sleep more – but damn it, with the cult out
there looking for him, there’s no way I’m leaving him out of one of his parents‘ sight for an instant.
Not until I know he’s safe.
of the room and pound down the stairs, looking anxiously into my
raised to take mine. I slip my hand
leaving his. “Is it “I
–
say anything and I realize that he doesn’t know he came to get me before he
together, we both stride to
–
sinking against Sinclair as my knees weaken, just a little,
Roger, turning towards her and saying a
filling my eyes as I dash
I throw myself at her, tossing my arm around her neck. Cora takes too steadying steps backwards at the force of me, but wraps her arms around me nonetheless. “Easy, sis!”
—
baby,” I mutter,
this moment, all I care about is that I have my sister back, safe. “Where were you?” I demand, stepping back and wiping at my eyes, shifting Rafe again so that he’s safely against my
meaning it at all, of course – I made sure to
me. “We were in the
have a
to stay so
cord
wasn’t one
have stopped,” I cry, “at a gas station
my eyes with her own wide
were fine. – we are fine! We
we just wanted to get here quickly. I’m
–
you should have,” I say, sniffing a little and
can’t lose you, Cora. I
putting a warm arm around me. “I’m sorry, Ella,”
we should
–
she hesitates here, but Roger
he says, smirking smugly at me and sinking
looking between the two of them. “Distracted
Cora blushes –
Blushes?!
My mouth drops open.
then Cora, a little chagrined but smiling a little at Roger, explains. “The storm was bad – we stopped…at a little motel. Just to weather
I shout, shoving her a little. “I’m sitting here, for
Ella,” Roger quips, and when I turn to him I see that he’s smirking at
good measure and then turning
awe.
Roger says smoothly, ignoring my
to take her
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