Daughter of oblivion: Claimed by four alpha(s)

Chapter 249 - 248: I hate both of you...

The noise of the bar seemed to drop away.

His grip on the phone tightened. "What about her?"

"She’s here," Laila said, lowering her voice. "She’s back."

For a second, Theo didn’t breathe. Then he let out a short, disbelieving laugh. "That’s not funny."

"I’m not joking."

His eyes hardened. "Please, don’t do that."

"I wouldn’t lie about this," she said quickly. "She’s here. She came back late last night."

Theo stood up without realizing it, chair scraping loudly against the floor.

Kelvin looked at him sharply.

"You’re lying," Theo said, but there was no strength in it now. "We searched everywhere. There was nothing."

"I know," Laila replied softly. "She came back but, she didn’t want anyone to know yet."

His heart was pounding now as tears welled up his eyes."...Why?" he whispered.

"She wants it to be a surprise," Laila said carefully. "She doesn’t want the whole dramatic reunion before tonight. She wants everyone at prom. Especially you."

Theo swallowed hard. "She told you that?"

"Yes."

He dragged a hand over his face, pacing now. "No. No, this doesn’t make sense. If she was back, she would’ve called me."

"She wanted to," Laila said quickly. "But she just want everyone at prom."

Theo’s chest rose and fell rapidly as happiest bloomed through his chest.

"You’re serious?" he asked quietly again like he couldn’t believe what he was hearing.

"I swear," Laila said. "But you can’t tell anyone I told you. She’ll kill me. She wants it to be a surprise. Just make sure everyone shows up. Don’t let anyone skip it."

Theodore ended the call and slide his phone back into his pocket and whispered. "She’s back."

And for the first time in weeks, there was something alive in his eyes. The words were still ringing in his head when he shoved past Kelvin and bolted out of the bar.

The cold air hit him hard, but he didn’t slow down as he kept running deep into the woods. Gravel crunched under his boots as he crossed the road and plunged straight into the tree line. Branches scraped against his arms, thorns caught his shirt, but he kept running like something was chasing him.

He needed to inform Azrael first. He couldn’t imagine how happy the fool would be.

He ran as far as he could until he finally reached a cave.

It was the one place Azrael used to disappear to when the world felt too loud. When emotions were easier to bury than face.

Theo stumbled into a stop, his chest heaving, heart slamming violently against his ribs.

"Azrael!" he shouted, his voice tearing through the trees.

The echo came back to him, hollow and mocking.

He stepped forward, fists clenched so tight his knuckles burned.

This time his voice cracked "Azrael!"

Slowly a Azrael emerged from the cave with scattered hair and dirty body.

He lifted his head slowly as he looked straight into Argentis eyes. His eyes, normally so fierce, were raw and haunted. Pain radiated from him in waves.

"She’s back," Theo blurted, voice hoarse. "Athena... she’s back."

Azrael forze entirely. Like he totally forgot how to breathe. Then he looked at Theo like his words are lies he didn’t want to believe.

"You heard me," Theo said, stepping closer, voice trembling. "Laila told me. Athena wants everyone at prom. She wants you... she wants me, Eryx and Rhydric to be at the prom."

Azrael’s gaze flickered with both pain and confusion. "She’s back?" His voice was almost a whisper.

Theo nodded, choking on the words. "Yes... she is. She’s real. She’s here."

Azrael’s eyes went wide, disbelief and hope colliding in a stormy mix. "Oh my god... you mean that?"

Theo grinned, clapping him on the shoulder. "Yes."

Azrael’s chest heaved, adrenaline and emotion coursing through him. "Then... then we have to go. Now."

Theo laughed, the sound lighter than it had been in weeks. "Exactly. First we call Eryx and Rhydric. Then... we go get her."

Azrael nodded, determination sparking in his eyes.

For the first time in what felt like forever, the weight pressing down on him felt a little lighter, because Athena was back. And they weren’t losing her again.

Laila laughed, setting her phone down with a dramatic shake of her head. "Jesus... this is bad. He sounded so... happy."

Felicia groaned, holding her head in both hands. "This isn’t fair. I can’t even imagine what their faces are going to look like when they find out."

Alaric, who was leaning on the wall with his hand in his pocket, scrowled. "I can imagine. And it’s not going to be pretty."

Armand raised a brow, smirking slightly despite himself. ". It’s going to be murderous."

Leo who was sitting on the couch, grinning like the chaos amused him more than it should. "I’m just waiting for the fireworks. This is going to be priceless."

Levi, perched on the arm of the couch, shook his head with a sly smile. "Priceless? You mean terrifying. Eryx is going to explode. And Theo, I pray that guy doesn’t freeze us to death because, he’s always giving, snow king vibes."

Laila laughed again, tugging gently on Alaric’s hand. "Come on, we need to get going to the venue, before they get there before us."

Alaric, already dressed sharply in his suit, rolled his eyes and tried to pull back slightly, but Laila leaned close, her lips brushing his ear. "I told you... you don’t have a choice."

He exhaled through his nose, jaw tightening, but said nothing, letting himself be pulled along.

Across the room, Leo hooked his arm through Levi’s with a wide, cheeky grin. "My prince charming," he declared, leaning close.

Levi tilted his head, smirking, and pressed a quick, teasing kiss to Leo’s lips.

Felicia groaned loudly, burying her face in Armand’s chest, muffling her exasperation. "God... I hate both of you."

Armand just chuckled, shaking his head at her, while the others laughed, the energy in the room buzzing with excitement and chaos as they prepared to leave for prom.