CHAPTER THIRTEEN
DROCCO
The pain that embraced his body had been dizzying. If it wasn’t for him focusing on the bite on his neck, he would have most likely had to wait to gain his strength before going after Cailyn, but he knew he couldn’t waste that time.
The bite wound throbbed, but it was pleasant. There was a satisfaction to the feeling he couldn't quite place. Of course, he had been surprised that Cailyn had claimed him, but fiercely overjoyed. As soon as she had done so, flutterings appeared on edge of his awareness. As though there was something that he couldn't quite feel, couldn't quite experience, lingered out of reach. He knew it was her and he finally understood why the one-way bond was not satisfactory between Alphas and Omegas. He intended to correct that immediately. The echoes of her distress had kept him pushing against the magic, fighting the binds that had held him, until he was free.
With her in his arms, he bit into the most fragrant spot on her neck and instinctively pulled the sweet blood into his mouth.
As he sucked, the fluttering awareness on the edge of his senses, strengthened and swirled in his mind. As he pulled away, it nestled in his chest, pulsing with emotions and thoughts he couldn't quite capture and mingling with his own desperate desire to be inside her.
"Drocco," Cailyn breathed, the relief in her voice sent a tingle of pleasure through him. "I can't believe you did that here."
Drocco released rumble. "I don't care where we bond, Cailyn," he said. "I just care that we do." Before she could respond, he grabbed the back of her head and kissed her hard, smearing her mouth with her own blood.
Breaking the kiss, Drocco glanced around them, taking in their environment. His eyes hardened on the Mothers standing a few paces away. The urge rose wildly to storm over and break all their fucking necks, but he finally had his Omega in his arms and he was not prepared to let her go. The frustration and conflict burned him deeply, and he squeezed Cailyn tighter to him as he watched them. Slowly, he became aware of her purr vibrating against him, and the harsh edge of his anger softened.
"Let them be, Drocco," she said softly.
He snapped his eyes to hers, his fury rising that she was, once again, defending these fucks!
"I am not loyal to them," she added, before he could respond. "But I need you here with me. I don't want you hurt anymore."
"They do not deserve to live for what they have done to us, Cailyn," Drocco warned.
Cailyn held his eyes for a moment. "You don't have to always punish others, Drocco."
He flinched at her words. "It is not the same," he said, stiffly. "They have made all Alphas suffer by their actions."
"And they could say the same about Alphas' actions towards Omegas," Cailyn returned. "They believe they had good reason at the time. We may not understand it fully, but their intentions came from a desperate place.”
"That does not excuse all they have done," Drocco barked.
Cailyn gazed at him, her purr soft, her eyes darting over his face. "Don't leave me just to punish them."
A spark of hope flared in him at her words, at the fact she wanted him to stay with her, but he pushed it away, exhaling harshly. She may have bonded to him, but he didn't know how much of that was real—whether she initiated the soul-bond because of the trauma she had suffered from being away from him during the pregnancy or if she truly considered him her Alpha now. Regardless, the simple truth was, if he had to make a choice about whether to kill the Mothers or stay with his Omega, she would win every time. And that was lucky for them.
“Emperor!”
They both turned to see the Lox Talent-crafters marching toward them; two large figures, one in red, one in black, as a magical storm blazed around them, distorting the environment of the compound.
Drocco had felt them enter the compound. His charm chain had suddenly begun vibrating and he knew they had to be close, trying to locate him.
“These are your Lox Talent-crafters?” Cailyn asked.
“Yes. They are Alpha females.”
“They are twins!” one of the Mothers exclaimed. The Mothers began to spread into a line to face the Kuan and Rada, all but one.
“Join us now, Naysa,” Mother Azia said to the unmoved Mother. “We can discuss later.”
“Are they true Alphas?” Cailyn asked him, her head turned to the Mothers.
“I don’t know. Why?”
Cailyn turned her head to the opposite side to look at the Alpha twins, who had stopped a little way behind them. “I don’t know who will be stronger.”
Suddenly Drocco realized they were in the middle of potentially deadly magical battle. On one side of them were Kuan and Rada, powerful and determined, ready to give their lives for him. On the other side, the Omega Mothers, stronger in number and with twins of their own, desperate to keep their home.
“Will you spare them?” Cailyn breathed, her eyes glistening.
Within him, the bond bloomed with hope, opening like a flower as she waited for his answer.
He lifted a hand to her face, a thumb brushing her velvety cheek. Although he was unable to personally kill them, he would not stop his Talent-crafters from doing so. She had to realize the truth of her situation. “I am sorry, Cailyn.”
She exhaled a breath and blinked, the bond closing-in again with shock. “What?”
He pressed her close to him, trying to comfort her as much as he could, understanding he was saying something she never expected to hear—the one thing he said he would never say.
“I’m sorry for every moment I hurt you, Cailyn,” he said, knowing she could feel how serious he was through the bond, “and I’m sorry that I will need to do it again. I cannot keep that promise I made. I know I can’t because you left. I need you and I will not be without you, ever. You will not like my methods and you will not like who may get hurt along the way, like these Mothers. So for all the pain I have caused and will cause, and for my broken promise, I am sorry.”
The bond pulsed inside him, a chaos of emotions as her eyes filled with tears.
Around them, the magical war began, the air shuddering and shaking as bolts, sparks, and spears whipped past them. Magic crashed into Cailyn’s shield, but it didn’t even waver, and neither did their gaze on each other.
He began to turn, to move them out of the fray, but Cailyn’s voice stopped him.
“Do you think I plan to leave you again, Drocco?” Cailyn said, quietly. “I bonded myself to you. I will never leave.”
“You will never have a chance, Cailyn,” Drocco growled. “The bond doesn’t mean you cannot leave or be taken. It happened to Grandfather.”
To his surprise, she smiled, even though tears tracked down her face. She leaned her head until their foreheads touched, those beautiful eyes locked with his. “I can feel how you feel about me, Drocco,” she whispered. “I would tell you I love you too but you wouldn’t believe me.”
Drocco tensed. He did want to hear her say that.
“So just feel for it,” she said, closing her eyes. “The shield will protect us. Just feel for it.”
He glanced around, barely believing what she was encouraging. They were in the middle of a battle, cries and screams and yells surrounded them as each side attacked and defended. Admittedly, in the middle of battle had always been his favorite place to be, but having his arms around his Omega had most certainly surpassed that now.
He pressed his forehead against hers and closed his eyes.
Within him, the flower that was the bond opened under his attention, blooming and multiplying in intensity until it consumed him. It was complex and layered, emotions pulsing and twisting on the surface, changeable and fleeting. But deep in the middle, a strong beam of passion penetrated right through him and left him stunned. He couldn’t describe it because it couldn’t possibly be love. It couldn’t be the gentle, happy, warm feeling that many talked about. This was raw and pure and so unbelievably strong. It encompassed everything he felt for her himself; fierce desire and passion, ownership, and a need to care for him, but even more importantly loyalty and devotion. It was more powerful than anything he thought she could feel for him.
When he opened his eyes, she was smiling that gorgeous smile at him. He pulled her into a hot, claiming, consuming kiss that made no mistake in telling her exactly how he felt. She kissed him back with equal passion and unbelievably the beam within him strengthened even more. And he knew for certain that she was his.
She pulled away to look him in the eyes again. “Your mercy is not just for my own feelings about this place, Drocco. Some of the Omegas will come willingly if you negotiate. They are not as fooled as you think. They do not all trust the Mothers.”
Drocco frowned. “Some?”
Cailyn inched her shoulders up. “I don’t know how many.”
“The Lox are large, Cailyn. I have promised them all Omegas.”
“But isn’t it better to start with those who are willing to come and meet them?” She tilted her head to one side. “To do it gradually so everyone can adjust to the new circumstances. You could make a negotiation that would secure Omegas for all of your warriors, and none of them would feel forced.”
“Make a negotiation with who?” Drocco growled. “I do not trust anyone here.”
“Drooco, if you kill the Mothers, it will reinforce everything they have told Omegas about Alphas. You will lose any possibility of them coming willingly.”
“Naysa! What are you doing?!”
Something desperate rung out in Mother’s Azia’s cry that made Drocco and Cailyn turn to look.
One of the Mothers walked toward Drocco and Cailyn. A shield surrounded her, protecting her from the magic flying between Kuan and Rada and the other Mothers. She kept walking until she reached Drocco and Cailyn and stopped next to them just outside their shield.
Mother Azia called out again, but Mother Naysa ignored her.
“Mother Naysa,” Cailyn said, confused. “What are you doing?”
“This is the only way it will happen,” Mother Naysa said. “I am on the side of the Omegas, remember?” She looked specifically at Drocco. “They will have to release at least five hundred. If you are able to treat them well, more will want to leave.”
She reached a hand out and touched their shield. Her hand pressed against the solid weight of its magic. “She is powerful,” she murmured. “And smart.” She chuckled to herself. “Smart enough not to let me in.” She looked at Drocco and Cailyn again. “Protect her.”
Turning, she took a couple of steps away from them and face the Mothers. “This was never how we were supposed to exist forever,” she called out. “I hope you come to that realization.” She smiled at Mother Azia. “I love you, sister. Thank you for saving me.”
“Stop!” Mother Azia gasped. “Everyone stop!”
“Stop them,” Cailyn said sharply at the same time. “Stop your Talent-crafters.”
Drocco called out to Kuan and Rada, but it was too late. Naysa’s shield disappeared, and the magic soaring through the air blasted her off her feet. A number of sparks crashed into her body before she hit the ground and her limbs were almost disintegrated by the time the attacks stopped.
And there was silence.
Mother Azia screamed with such powerful anguish that Drocco could not believe it came from the cold, hard woman who had kept him prisoner. She ran toward the body, hysterical. At the same time, the entire environment that they were in began to flicker.
He turned to his Talent-crafters and realized they were waiting for instruction.
“Will you let me see her?” Cailyn whispered.
The tears in her eyes did not reflect the turmoil he could feel in her through the bond. He lowered her to the ground and her hand brushed his cheek before she headed to the body.
He signaled the Talent-crafters to stand down. They both bowed and then headed to him.
“Where are the rest?” he asked, his eyes remaining on Cailyn.
“They are back at the palace,” Kuan said, her voice low. “I apologize we took so long to get here, Emperor. We could not both get into the compound while also holding open the portal and protecting the warriors. Decisions had to be made, and your commander was adamant that we collect you.”
Drocco looked between them, unhappy with their report but understanding their dilemma. “What about Malloron?”
“He is at the palace too,” Rada explained. “He is our tether to get back.”
Drocco nodded. He looked over at his mate, now surrounded by the other Mothers who were all clearly distraught. Further in the distance, the village shook and flickered. A few Omegas farther away were coming closer to the spectacle before them.
“Stay close to me,” Drocco said to them. “We will be here for negotiations.”
***
“We need to lessen the load of the compound on the four of us that are left,” the hazel eyed Mother said sullenly. “That is what she meant.”
“So you can maintain what you already have without having to shrink it?” Cailyn asked.
“Yes. It will still be extremely hard, even if you take five hundred, but that is minimum.”
Drocco had no idea what half of the conversation was about, but allowed Cailyn to get the full understanding of the magical side of the arrangement. All he knew was that he would be returning to Lox Palace with five hundred willing Omegas. Apparently more than that wanted to come but Cailyn was firm about sticking to what the dead Mother had suggested, with the intention to bring more over in time. She was to be the liaison.
As they sat in a meeting room discussing the new agreement between the Lox Empire and the Omega compound, Mother Azia sat silently, staring out of the window. She had not spoken at all since the battle the previous day and Drocco didn’t expect her to. Whatever she suffered she had bought upon herself, and she had no one else to blame.
“What about my mother and the other real mothers?” Cailyn asked. She sat on his lap as he leaned back in his chair, his arm around her waist, firm against her bump.
The three Mothers at the table glanced at each other.
“What exactly would you like to happen with them?” one of the auburn twins said, her eyes narrowing. “They are not well enough to move to the Lands. They need specialist care.”
“Why?” Cailyn asked, carefully. “Why are all their minds deteriorating if their mission was using their bodies.”
“You have felt the connection a mother feels with her child, Cailyn,” the Mother continued, her tone and attitude suddenly shifting to a somber one. “It begins very early, almost from conception, and is strengthened by the presence of the father, which they all had. Those feelings are difficult to contend with when an Omega is on that kind of mission.”
Drocco felt Cailyn tense.
“We had to provide them with some relief,” the Mother finished.
“You adjusted their emotions and their memories,” Cailyn said, her voice hard.
Through their bond, the flower trembled, flickering with disgust and anger.
“They wanted it,” the other twin said. “They asked for it.”
“But you didn’t give them the option to stop,” Cailyn snapped.
“I did,” the other brown-haired Mother said, quietly. “I wasn’t supposed to, but I did offer. None of them took it.”
“Of course they wouldn’t,” Cailyn muttered. “You make being a spy so revered in this place—who would want to give up that status.”
Drocco leaned forward so his chest pressed against her back. He did not like the disgust and anger he was experiencing through the bond. He began to purr, tightening his arm around her.
The mothers watched them both, their eyes flicking from him to Cailyn.
Cailyn heaved a breath and as she exhaled, the flower calmed. “They can stay here if they need to,” she said. “But their daughters must have access to them.”
The first twin that spoke shook her head. “You cannot tell us how to run this compound, Cailyn. That would be chaos.”
The other twin placed a hand on her sister’s arm. “The Omegas all know their mothers are here. We cannot continue to hide them even if we wanted to, but we will do it our own way.”
Cailyn reluctantly nodded. “And what about other siblings? Did any of the spy mothers have boys, Alphas?”
“Yes, they live in the Lands. We have records if any Omega wishes to get in contact with them.”
Cailyn nodded. “Let’s discuss time frame and access to the compound.”
As the meeting finally came to end, with documents signed and dated on parchment imbued with protection and truth spells by both Lox Talent-crafters and the Mothers, they all stood to leave.
“I didn’t save her,” Mother Azia muttered, her voice low and hoarse. “She saved me.”
Everyone stilled and turned to look at her.
She remained staring out of the window. “She saved me so many times. She took everything from him that was supposed to be for me. The beatings, the rapes, the torture; she took it all.” Tears trickled down her face, and the brown-haired Mother began to weep. “I told myself I would do anything for her, that I would make everything all right for her. We were supposed to be in it together, but we weren’t.” She blinked rapidly, shaking her head slowly. “She always listened to me, she did everything I said. But when it came for me to listen to her… I didn’t.” She turned slowly to the remaining Mothers. “She told me to kill her bonded Alpha many times and I refused, thinking I would damage her. But now I wonder if she wanted to get out of this existence, this way of living. She was the only one of us to have soul-bonded. We should have taken her more seriously.” She turned her wet, gray eyes to Drocco. “I will never trust Alphas, but she was willing to. If you have any integrity at all, you will make sure that these Omegas are treated better than those of us who suffered and died at the hands of selfish and cruel Alphas.”
Drocco inclined his head in agreement but said nothing. He could not judge her experiences, especially considering his own past with Cailyn, but he would not be making any promises to her. She did not deserve them after the way she had treated him and endangered Cailyn and the baby.
He would endeavor to ensure that Lox warriors were more prepared to deal with their Omegas, not because of her or even Cailyn, but for everything the Lox stood for. For his mother and the vow he had already made for her. The agreement stated he would start with five hundred Omegas. He planned to eventually liberate all Omegas from this place, and if that were to happen he knew the first five hundred had to be treated well.
Drocco, Cailyn, and the Lox Talent-crafter twins made their way to the clearing where Drocco first arrived, accompanied by the twin Mothers. As the Talent-crafters created the portal, Drocco drew Cailyn into his arms.
“Are you well?”
Cailyn smiled at him. “You have asked me that numerous times every hour.”
“I just want to make sure you and the baby are well,” Drocco said, firmly. “That was a big ordeal and I didn’t realize the baby was maintaining the shield.”
“She seems to be doing fine,” Cailyn said, as she has said many times already. “Everything feels how it felt before.”
“Good.” Drocco pressed his lips against hers.
“The portal is ready, Emperor,” Kuan said.
Drocco sighed and released Cailyn. He turned to the portal to see Kuan standing on one side waiting for him, while Rada stood on the other.
“Are you ready?” he muttered to Cailyn.
She took a moment gaze around around the compound, and then met his eyes and nodded, her eyes bright, a relief beaming through the bond
Keeping his arm around her, Drocco led her through the portal and back to their Empire.