CLAIMED - Fated to Two-Chapter 47: All for Torrin

All of a sudden,...

"The wardens are knocked out!" a frantic voice shouts from somewhere in the distance, making me freeze in place.

"Don’t move. Just trust me," Damian whispers.

Before I can react, he snatches the dagger from my hand, spins me around, and presses the blade against my neck. My breath catches in my throat as two police officers appear in front of his cell, flashlights trained on us.

How stupid of me to mess up now when I was so close!

"I’ll kill this woman if you take another step or attempt to draw your guns!" Damian hisses.

One of the officers stiffens. "How did that prisoner get into your cell?"

There’s a moment of silence as I can’t find an alibi to say.

"She and her warden were passing by when they saw me drugging my wardens. So I took her hostage while her warden managed to escape, knowing that you’ll come after me once you find out what I did," Damian answers, his voice steady, though I feel the slight tremor in his arm.

"Drugged? How did you even manage to bring drugs in here?!" the officer snarls. Then his gaze turns to me. "And you! What’s your prisoner number? Why are you still out of your cell at this hour?"

I lower my head, hiding my face so they won’t realize I’m not a real prisoner. Using my fist, I cover the number printed on my uniform’s chest, which could be traced back to the female warden or any innocent one that may cause them their job or, worse, their freedom.

On the other hand, Damian will definitely use this moment to escape. And I can’t allow that! But the dagger is too close to my neck. I can’t even flinch to fight back.

Damian steps backward slowly, and I mimic his movements, scared that he’d wound me if I refuse to follow him. Together, we exit the cell while the officers hesitate, calculating their next move.

"Even if you get out of your cell, you won’t get out of this building! The security outside is much tighter!" one officer warns.

We continue retreating until we reach a door leading into a dark, empty corridor.

Damian finally pulls the dagger away. I’m about to grab it back when hurried footsteps echo behind us, followed by a booming announcement from the IP paging system. "Prisoner 007, Damian Chandler, is escaping! He has an unidentified female prisoner hostage!"

Damian grabs my wrist, and we run through corridors, down staircases, ignoring the officers’ furious shouts to stop.

Then,...

Gunshots explode through the air. Lights blaze on all at once.

When the officers aim their guns at us with clearer vision, Damian doesn’t hesitate to shield me with his body.

Bang!

Following that gunshot, Damian cries out as blood spills from his shoulder.

I catch him, my hands instantly stained red. Fear ripples through me, "No, you can’t die yet. I should be the one to kill you."

"Here," he breathes, pressing the dagger back into my hand. "You only have a few seconds to wound me with that. After that, run to that door." He nods toward a corridor behind us. "It leads to the rear side of the building. There will be officers there, but can you take them down before they catch you? Can you use your ShadowBind?"

The ShadowBind! My eyes widen at the idea.

I stare at the officers who are now rushing down the stairs, and inwardly yell, "Stop!"

However,...

They keep closing in on us.

What’s the point of having this power if I can’t control it? If I can’t use it when it matters most?

My hands tremble. The dagger nearly slips from my grip.

"I’m sorry," I whisper. "I have to do this to save Torrin. The multi-eyed seer said so."

Damian smiles again and nods in understanding.

I gather my remaining courage, and close my eyes. My courage isn’t enough to pierce Damian’s heart so he can die fast. All I can manage is a slash across his tattooed chest. It isn’t deep, but blood wells immediately: the silver has kissed his flesh. He will stay alive, but only for a few days. And that’s enough. My mission is accomplished.

Even so, guilt crashes over me.

"Go," he says weakly. "I’ll stop them."

He forces himself upright and lunges at the officers the moment they reach him. Their guns clatter to the floor, skidding out of reach.

But,..

As I bolt out of the door at the end of the corridor, more gunshots thunder behind me. My knees nearly give out.

I wanna go back to make sure they didn’t kill Damian. If he dies from those bullets instead of the wound I caused, then I’ve failed.

But I can’t turn back. My safety and my freedom comes first.

Luckily, at the rear exit, I accidentally collide with the female warden.

"I heard the announcement. So I started looking for you immediately. Thank goodness we found each other here," she says breathlessly as she ushers me through the back gates, where Eric and the others are already waiting.

"Thank you," I say, gripping her hands. "What’s your name?"

"Cynthia," she replies with a tired smile.

"I hope I see you again, Cynthia. But in a better and peaceful situation unlike this," I say.

I climb into the backseat. And the car speeds away.

Eric and Beta Samuel ask what happened, and I tell them everything.

"I’m sorry," I admit. "After all the evil things Damian did to me, I still couldn’t bring myself to kill him the way I should."

"That’s why I gave you the silver dagger. So you wouldn’t hesitate too much. As long as you wounded him, he would still die," Eric reassures.

Once we’re back in the Forstveil Pack’s capital, I hurry inside the Alpha’s mansion to watch TV, desperately hoping that I won’t hear news saying Damian was killed by the police officers.

But,..

As I jog past the study, low moans reach my ears. I slow to a stop, my chest tightening, then turn back. Hesitantly, I push the door open. And my heart breaks again, worse than before.

Andrea is sitting on Alpha Torrin’s lap, her arms wrapped around his shoulders, while his hands rest firmly around her waist. They’re kissing passionately and intimately, their lips and tongues moving in hungry unison.

My wolf growls in both pain and rage, desperate to take control over my form to tear them apart. But I force her down, clenching my fists until my nails dig into my palms.

"How was it?" I ask calmly but there’s an edge in my tone.

They pull away from each other instantly, wiping their lips in a panic. Neither of them can meet my gaze.

Trying to shift the attention, Andrea points at my clothes. "Why are you wearing a prisoner’s uniform?"

"It’s none of your business," I reply coldly.

When I turn my glare back to Alpha Torrin, he finally speaks. "I’m sorry. It’s just that..." But he can’t finish.

After everything I went through tonight - almost getting caught, risking my life, just to bring back the Alpha Torrin I once knew, this is what I’d find?

He steps toward me, reaching for my hands, but I jerk away.

"Don’t touch me. You disgust me," I say flatly.

Without looking back, I turn on my heels and walk upstairs. I’m surprised that not a single tear falls.

Until,...

I lock myself inside my bedroom, the dam breaks.

I cover my mouth with my hand to muffle my sobs so no one outside can hear me falling apart.

If only I had pierced Damian’s heart earlier, none of this would have happened. Torrin would never kiss another woman, never, except me. It’s only a matter of time before he and Andrea make love. Once my wolf senses that, I swear, I’ll give up on him completely the same way I gave up on Lance before.

No matter how much I love him, I’ll never tolerate cheating. I could’ve cheated on him with Damian since he was also my fated mate. Though it’s hard to sever my bond with Damian, I still did and succeeded. That’s how much I value loyalty and faithfulness.

I force myself to calm down, before removing the prisoner’s uniform and handing it to Francheska.

"Burn it until there’s nothing left that could ever be traced back to me," I demand.

Francheska nods and sprints into action.

Later, I sit in front of the television, listening to the news about what happened at the United Alliance Prison. The news anchor reports the incident in detail: the hostage taking, the drugged officers, the escape attempt. She also mentioned the investigation and the search for an unidentified female prisoner.

Then,...

The air is knocked out of my lungs when the news anchor adds, "We’ve just received confirmation from the prison doctor: Damian Chandler has died due to gunshot wounds."

F.uck! I’ve failed. Everything I did tonight was meaningless. The real Torrin’s return, Eric and the others’ collective efforts, all of it wasted.

Nothing will ever be the same again. I’ll lose Torrin forever.