Chapter 123
Chapter 123
I held the baby in my arms, feeling them tremble. She looked up at me, her eyes so trusting that my heart skipped a beat. So small, so tiny, and vulnerable. For a moment I couldn’t breathe, flooded with awe and amazed at how something so miniscule could survive such a surgical procedure. A nurse quietly took the child from my arms, a warm smile on her lips. Part of me is reluctant to let go of my child but another part of me recognizes that it’s necessary,
“Let me check her over Alpha Xander and then place her in the nursery. You um” she glanced over her shoulder while Regar and Navier stood quietly beside me. “You have enough to deal with right now. You can see her after you have” she coughed “concluded your business.”
She whipped the child out of the room as I nodded gravely, understanding what she was hinting at. I had unfinished business to attend to, but it would not take long, I vowed and then I could go back to my daughter, back to holding her and discovering everything that was so amazing about her. A princess, just like what Regan was going to give birth to. Two daughters. I was a lucky man. So why did I feel so broken, so defeated?
“She’s beautiful Xander” Regan’s voice permeates the silence and refocuses my attention.
Tears prick my eyes. The moment is bittersweet. Xavier places a hand on my shoulder. “She looks like you” he commented breezily
I want to laugh. I appreciate that they are trying to make me feel better. I glance at them with gratitude, even though there is nothing but sympathy on Regan’s face as she looks at me.
“Thank you” I murmur, unable to find the right words to express how I’m truly grateful to them both.. Xavier ducks his head. “Xander, you don’t have to be here for this” he glances at our mate “You either Regan. I can do this alone” he murmurs, a look of determination on his face.
I shake my head, refusing to allow him to do what I am meant to be doing. “No, I want to do this. It’s my way of saying farewell to a chapter in my life and embracing the future. I know it sounds silly” I trailed off, feeling as though there was a huge weight crushing my chest…
“Not at all” Regan’s voice is barely above a whisper. “I agree completely. I feel the same way” she confesses “just like when Heather passed. Only when I see it happen with my own eyes do I feel like I can breathe freely again.”
I nod, feeling inexplicably tired. After Regan’s near miss, we had become even more protective of her, refusing to leave her side for days, until she had finally begun to beg us to allow her to return to normal had been increased around Isabelle as though she might magically come out of her coma, but that had proven to be moot. As I looked at the girl, lying still on the hospital bed, her stomach now cut open in order to birth to the child she had been carrying, I couldn’t help but feel a moment of regret. So young and yet her actions had brought her to this. She resembled nothing more than an empty shell right now. An incubator for my child and one that was no longer of any use. It was a sobering thought. “Alpha Xander, Alpha Xavier, Luna Regan” the surgeon greeted us all respectfully, bowing his head “I am ready to finish this when you are.”
Nothing more needed to be said. We all knew the implications, knowing what was about to happen.
I glanced between my brother and my mate who nodded in agreement. I looked at the girl on the bed and hardened my heart. Never again would my mate be put through pain, torture, or grief because of her. Isabelle Ramona would finally be free but not in a way she could have ever imagined. It was time to let her go. The mother of my child would never get to meet her and part of me
migh
was hope for her that shas glad. So long as my child never grew up to hear of her mother’s terrible deeds, perhaps there
turn out to be different and learn to treat others with the same kindness that she received.
“Free her doctor,” I said tightly, looking away.
He nodded. We watched as one by one; she was unhooked from the machines. The machines were the only thing that allowed her to continue to cling to life. The doctor had sewn up Isabelle’s wound, a kindness granted by Regan who saw no need to further mark her body. We watched the monitor as her heart began to slowly lose its rhythm. I held my breath, but even though the heartbeat slowed, to our shock it did not die. The doctor looked equally perplexed. We had not anticipated that this might happen. We had all been certain that she would have been too weak to be able to recover or recuperate any of her strength. The doctors had been positive she would simply die once they had unhooked her. What the hell was going
on?
“Her heartbeat should have stopped on its own by now,” the surgeon said in surprise.
“She’s clinging on” Regan murmured, narrowing her eyes. “Even now, she continues to fight.”
She looked wretched. I glanced sharply at the doctor. “Do something” I ordered, feeling helpless and more than a little angry. Isabelle Ramona was like a cat with nine lives. Why couldn’t she simply just die? “What would you have me do?” the doctor said, spreading out his hands and looking us all in the eyes. “Even with your permission Alpha’s, mine is a profession that is meant to save lives, not end them. 1 agreed to take her off her life support not to cruelly kill her as she lies there unable to defend herself” he added, looking overcome with guilt.
to go
I could order him to do what I wanted. Xavier looked on the verge of doing that. Regan’s eyes are shiny, looking as though she’s on the verge of tears. I can’t put her through any more pain. I can’t allow Isabelle to continue to live. She had her chances to change and she chose the path of destruction anyway. I glance at the tray of instruments left by the surgeon as he stands there, looking helpless. Isabelle’s Hain heartbeat is beginning to grow stronger instead of weaker. It’s a sign she might even recover. I lick my lips. I won’t let that happen. I look at Xavier and see the same resolve on his face. Neither one of us is If Isabelle wakens, she won’t stop and now that she’s had her child, wing to go through all of this again. and she’s going to want her baby as well, ruining her future on top of hers. I have a responsibility towards my daughter. I have a responsibility to ensure the safety of my mate. I walk forward, my hand slowly reaching out and grasping the scalpel that is shining brightly beneath the lights. The instruments are made out of aluminum, to ensure the patient isn’t hurt like it would be with silver. I suck in a breath and then slowly exhale. I know what I have to do. It’s come to this. I won’t falter. I won’t fail my mate again. “Doctor you should leave this room while you still can” I instruct him calmly.f
My tone brooks no arguments. He either leaves or I throw him out. I won’t have him intervene with what I’m about to do. Isabelle Ramona doesn’t deserve to be saved.
If he won’t help us then he can leave us to do what is necessary. The doctor’s mouth opens and then slowly shuts. He looks at all of us and then slowly nods his head, backing out of the hospital room. I grip the scalpel tighter and move closer to Isabelle. My hand is gripping the knife so tightly that my knuckles are turning white. I raise the knife and then bring it down, putting it at the base of her throat.
“For all the times you’ve tried to destroy us” I hissed and then almost jumped as Isabelle’s eyes slowly fluttered open and she looked directly at me.
I hear Regan make a strangled sound from behind me. My hand shakes even as I continue to cling to my resolve. Isabelle’s eyes widen further, beseeching me. She opens her mouth to speak, but I don’t give her a chance. Before she can beg or plead for her life, before she can convince our mate to grant her mercy, I thrust the scalpel into her throat and slice across it as hard as I can, slicing through her windpipe, vocal cords, and even arteries, Isabelle making a gurgling sound as I do so. Blood pools out of the wound. I hear Regan suck in a breath while Xavier is silent. The monitor goes berserk behind me as her heart stops. It’s over. It’s finally over. Isabelle will never harm anybody again. I drop the scalpel, staring blankly down at the bed, listening as the sound of running footsteps begins to approach the room. My daughter is safe from her mother’s influence, but would I fail her as the years went past or would my resentment of Isabelle get in the way of raising her as I truly intended? Time will only tell.