<h4>Chapter 264: Chapter 264</h4>


    [SAMANTHA’s Point of View]


    I had to do it.


    I couldn’t mess it all up this time.


    When Dominic and I came back to the Pack Manor in Silver Crescent, the first thing he did was to look for Devon and Diana, like he was so terrified that his intuition about Killian was right. As we reached the waiting area of the Manor, the first thing we saw was the children with Liam and Madison.


    The second they realized it was Dominic and me who stepped through the doors, the children swiftly ran towards us and embraced their father and me so tightly. Dominic rained kisses on the two and grabbed them into his arms.


    He looked so relieved to see his twins safe in his arms.


    At that moment, seeing Dominic’s love for the twins made me realize how desperate he was to keep us all alive from all the terrible things that were happening in the pack. The reason why he was so overprotective of me, Devon, and Diana. It wasn’t because he thought I was weak. Or he couldn’t trust that I could protect myself.


    He was so terrified to lose us; that’s why he was too cautious and paranoid at all times when he felt threatened by the enemy. And even Killian’s presence around me and the kids.


    Perhaps the next time he says no, I should try not to get too agitated and tell him that I had to do things by myself, just like I did in the cave.


    Killian, who was drying his hair with a towel, immediately approached me when he saw me. It looked like he had just bathed, as the scent of his bath soap started to waft inside the waiting room, making Liam and Dominic frown.


    “Sam! I am so d both of you got back safely! What happened?!” he asked as he looked at me from head to toe as if checking if I was badly injured.


    “I am fine.” I smiled at him, then nced over my shoulder at my husband and noticed the displeased look on his face as he observed Killian’s genuine concern for me. “Bete didn’t go inside the cave. But he sent his men and a messenger.”


    “A messenger?” he repeated, frowning as if he couldn’t believe that Bete hadn’t gone inside the cave for me. “I am d you are not hurt. I mean you and  Dominic. I had been thinking of going back there once I brought the kids here to the manor.”


    “There is nothing to worry about anymore.” I smiled at my friend and then caught my husband looking at me. He must have wondered why I didn’t tell Kian about Bete’s demands. But it was something I couldn’t discuss in front of the kids, and I gave Kian that kind of look, which he immediately understood.


    I asked Madison if she could take Devon and Diana to their room so the others and I could discuss what happened in the caves. And then I suddenly remembered Rey! The Queen’s guard!


    “Killian? Where is Rey? Is he here?” I asked, my eyes wide as I remembered the old man. “Is he okay?”


    Killian rested his fists on his hips and then sighed exasperatingly. “Well, the old man suddenly disappeared when we got inside the border. I looked at my back, and he wasn’t there anymore.”


    It sounded strange, so I frowned. “What do you think happened to him? Do you think he’s not allowed inside the borders?


    After saying that, I remembered the old men who guarded the ancient ces in the ck Forest. Lord Markis of the Wolf Tomb. The old man who guarded the Moon Wolf Spring and helped Dominic recover from all the lethal injuries he got from the Guardian Wolf.


    Could it be that Rey was one of them?


    “It doesn’t matter where he is,” Dominic uttered as he caressed the bottom of his chin and then slumped into the chair. “We have to make a n on how to stop Bete from killing the small pup. He knows that Samantha and I couldn’t just leave that poor werewolf to die, and Devon and Diana believe that Purple has a role to y in everything that is happening to the pack. We have to go to ck Forest tonight and make sure Samantha will be safe once she goes there to meet them and negotiate with them again.”


    “They want Samantha to go back there and bring the Moonlight Mirror?” Liam asked. So the n didn’t work.”


    “It worked,” Dominic replied, looking both frustrated and upset. “We had him. I just don’t understand why he jumped out of Devon’s arms when we ran away from the ck ws.”


    No one dared to talk again after we all heard how frustrated my husband was. He was right. I also didn’t understand why Purple did that. Why did he jump into danger? Was he trying to tell us that there was something we needed to do?


    We all decided to eat and get some rest to prepare for the night.


    But I had other ns.


    After everyone had their dinner, I set up all the things I needed and decided to leave the Manor alone. I was ready to jump out of the window when I saw a silhouette of a man standing below, like it were waiting for something.


    Then I realized it was Dominic.


    [Do you really think you can leave the Manor without me?]


    [Dominic, we already talked about this!]


    [Yes, we did. So let’s go.]


    [I have to go there alone!]


    [No, you don’t.] His hazel eyes were adamant when he red at me. [You can get angry at me. Or not talk to me for weeks. But I won’t let you go there alone, Samantha. I will go with you, and I will make sure you and Purple get back home. No more arguments. This is final.]


    *****


    “Do you have the real Moonlight Mirror now?”


    Back in front of the mausoleum of the Wolf Tomb, I red at Richard Bete, while in my hand was the Moonlight Mirror. Well, the fake one.


    Dominic said the first replica of the mirror had ws. But this one, he made it as perfect as the original one, and he believed that Bente wouldn’t suspect that it was fake.


    Hopefully.


    “Yes, I have it!” I yelled at him and showed him the mirror.


    Just likest night, Richard Bete was surrounded by Shadow Werewolves and the ck w. My heart was pounding in my ears the second I saw Purple in his human boy form inside a silver cage, looking so scared.


    ‘You know this is inevitable, Samantha. You are meant to sacrifice yourself for the betterment of all the Shifters in thisnd! Your destiny is already sealed! And no matter how many times you get rid of my daughter or me, we will stille back and end what we started!”


    My eyes widened. Daughter. Did he mean...


    The two giant shadow werewolves behind Richard stepped aside as if they were giving way to someone. And there, in their middle, walked a small woman. Half her body looked burnt. She appeared monstrous in my eyes, and I gasped. I thought my jaw fell on the ground because I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. All this time, I thought she was already gone! I thought she waspletely obliterated by that poisonous gas, which also almost killed Dominic, Killian, and me.


    “No. This is not real. You are not real!” I yelled, my voice shook as I stepped back,pletely terrified of what I saw. “You died!”


    “Well, you are wrong.” Olivia’s voice sounded like it came from the underground. Cold and dreading. “You are wrong because I came back to kill you!”


    She was too fast.


    Too fast for me to dodge.


    Her long ws pierced my side, blinding me with excruciating pain, and I almost fainted. She stood in front of me, her ws still in my torso, twitching it, and I screamed.


    “Your screams are music to my ears, Samantha.” Olivia smiled, the half of her burned face stretched as she tilted her head to re down at me with that mocking grin. “You have no idea how much I wanted toe back and drag you to hell with me.”


    “This is not you, Olivia,” I whispered to her. Hot blood gushed down the wound as I breathed more slowly. My body trembled as I felt her ws inside me, twitching. “I know you are just forced to do this by your father. I know you never wanted this.”


    “Silence! You don’t know my pain, Samantha!” Her eyes widened with pure anger and hate at me as she stabbed me deeper, and blood spurted from my mouth. “You have no idea how I prayed for the chance to get my revenge!”


    From behind me, I felt my husband’s presence as he jumped out of the tree where he was hiding. He roared when he saw Olivia’s w pierced in my body and aimed his w at her, forcing Olivia to retreat and jump away from me.


    “Samantha!”


    “I’m fine. I’m not dying!” My lips trembled when Dominic grabbed me before I fell to the ground. “We have to get Purple! We have to—”


    “Hey, you lost blood, my love. Try not to speak too much. Killian and I can handle it” he whispered to me and then kissed the top of my head. “Just stay here.”


    I couldn’t do anything but watch Dominic fight the shadow werewolves that started attacking him. But from behind the ck ws, who were guarding the cage where Purple was incarcerated, I saw Killian sneaking behind them, opening thetch.


    When he sessfully destroyed the padlock, he immediately grabbed Purple and jumped so high that theynded just behind me.


    “Y-you did it!” I eximed at Killian with a smile as blood dripped from the side of my lips. “You got Purple!”


    “I wouldn’t be able to get him if you and Dominic were not sessful in distracting them.” Killian smiled at me as he wiped the blood from the side of my face. “Just stay here and wait for us, Samantha.”


    I wanted to tell Killian that we should head back to Silver Crescent, but my wound still hadn’t healed yet because of the poison and the curse from Olivia’s ws.


    “Do you think you can run away from here? From me?!” Olivia yelled, her teeth bared at me.


    Olivia lunged at me. Dominic tried to stop her, but she was too powerful; when she pushed her away from me, my husband went flying from the other side of the camp.


    “Dominic!!!”


    “You will die here, Samantha!”


    When Olivia was about to stab me with her ws, Purple suddenly ran in front of me and produced a light that almost blinded everyone and made the shadow werewolves disappear like thin mists in the air.


    For a second, I thought I saw Olivia’s eyes turn back from glowing purple to their original crystal blue. The hatred in them faded, and all I saw was fear and regret.


    “Samantha...” her voice was soft and begging when she whispered my name.