54: We'll protect you.
**Aife pov**
The day after the villager’s attack and Bane’s first chosen shift, I woke to the faint hum of the camp stirring outside. I sat up in the bed and looked around, feeling a little disorientated.
Slowly, I laid back down and sighed, closing my eyes as my hands reached out to rest on my swollen belly and my fingertips brushed over the tiny kicks I had felt just moments before. I tried to focus on the silence around me and the rhythm of my own heart, but my thoughts were already tangled around him.
Bane.
I shifted slightly, letting my gaze drift to where he slept, or at least appeared to be sleeping, on the other side of the tent. Even supposedly asleep, he radiated power and tension.
The monster inside him stirred, and while I couldn’t see it or hear Bane announce it, somehow I could feel the change in the air around me, like the presence inside him had more power than anyone imagined.
I swallowed and sat up again, pulling my knees closer, and hugging them to my chest. The decision had been gnawing at me for hours, maybe even days, and now that the morning had come, I could no longer pretend it would disappear.
I had to choose: stay in the camp with those who took me in as their own, return home with Bane and face the unknown, the monster, the life that waited with him outside these walls.
My fingers drummed against my legs as I thought of the stakes. The bond I shared with him had grown between us despite everything - love, blood, fear, hope - it screamed for me to follow him.
And yet, the camp, the lions needed me in a sense too. I wasn’t just his mate, I was a part of something larger that I didn’t choose but was terrified to abandon.
I let my hands fall over my belly, feeling the tiny pulses of life inside me, and my chest tightened. How could I abandon the camp when a child, the embodiment of hope, of the future, moved within me?
But then again, what was the use of protecting everyone else if I lost him, if Bane fell to the monster inside him and I wasn’t there to help him fight?
I stood suddenly and brushed down my clothing as I whispered into the quiet tent, “I can’t stay here, not if it means leaving him alone.”
The words hung in the air, heavy with fear and excitement. I felt the heat rise in my cheeks, urged by a mix of fear and longing.
I had always been decisive when it came to the pack, but when it came to him, to Bane, every decision fractured into a thousand shards of possibility and consequence.
He stirred at my movement, eyes opening just enough to notice me standing. “Baby?” Bane rasped in that heavy, low voice that was too rough from sleep.
I took a deep breath and steadied myself before I lost the nerve. “I’ve made a decision,” I said softly, stepping closer. “I’m going with you, we face this together.”
Bane’s dark eyes locked with mine, searching, questioning, almost unrecognizable in his vulnerability.
“Are you sure?” He asked and slowly stood up. “You don’t know what you’re stepping into. I can’t promise, hell, I can barely promise I’ll survive this. You could-”
“Don’t finish that,” I interrupted and reached out to grab his hand. “I don’t care what could happen. I’ve never been more sure about anything in my life. I belong with you, my place is with you..”
Bane let out a sharp breath and leaned back a little as the tension from his shoulders dropped for a good moment before he spoke, “it’s not just about me. The monster is unpredictable, it takes without warning. I can hold it now, most of the time, but-”
“I know,” I whispered, stepping closer until I could feel the warmth radiating off him. “And that’s why I’m going. Holding you is not just my duty, it’s my choice. My heart, my bond with you isn’t going to let me sit here while you fight alone.”
Bane’s gaze softened, but doubt still lingered, lurking in the shadows of his eyes. “You don’t understand,” he murmured, voice strained. “If I fail, if it breaks free while you’re near, I could lose you too. You don’t want to risk-”
“I do,” I said firmly, cutting him off before his fear could speak for him. “I want to risk it because I trust you, Bane. And if I’m going to bring our child into this world, I want him to know his father is a warrior, a protector, someone who fights for what he loves - even when the odds are stacked against him.”
A faint chuckle escaped his lips, though the sound was tinged with pain. “You make it sound so damn noble, so selfless.”
I tilted my head and smiled, letting my hand rest over his, fingers intertwining. “It’s not selfless, it’s love, silly. Pure, simple love. I don’t care about the danger, I care about you.”
The corners of his lips twitched, almost forming a smile, and he let his fingers curl around mine in a tentative grip. “You’re insane. And reckless. And I, Goddess, I shouldn’t have let you get this close.”
“Reckless?” I whispered, leaning my forehead against his. “Maybe, but it’s the only way I know how to live. I can’t sit in fear when the man I love needs me.”
Bane closed his eyes, exhaled, then opened them, focusing fully on me. “You’ree brave. Insane, yes, but also so brave and stubborn.”
I laughed at his words. “Do you want me to stop being stubborn?”
“No,” he said immediately, eyes darkening with an intensity that sent shivers down my spine. “I need it, I need you like this. But I also need you to be careful. The monster doesn’t care about our love. It only cares about control.”
“And that’s why I’m going with you,” I said and squeezed his hand.
His eyes softened, and for a moment, the storm inside him seemed to quiet down. “You have no idea what it means to hear that,” he whispered. “To feel that I’m not alone in this and I have someone willing to face it with me, even when it’s dark and terrifying.”
“You’re not alone. Never again. I won’t let you be.”
We sat like that for a long moment, holding each other, letting the silence settle around us. Finally, Bane pulled back but didn’t let go. “Alright,” he muttered. “You’re coming with me, but you need to promise me something.”
“Anything,” I said immediately.
“Promise me you won’t try to tame the beast before I’m ready. The monster is still there, it listens and learns. If you get too close too soon, it might react. Don’t let it touch you.”
“I promise,” I whispered. “I’ll stay careful, but I’ll also stay close enough that you know I’m here.”
He nodded, finally allowing a faint, tired smile to stretch across his lips. “You’re impossible.”
“And you love it,” I teased, brushing my fingers over his jawline.
“I do,” he admitted, voice so low it made my heart stutter. “More than I should.”
I laughed and leaned closer. “I love you too, and I’ll keep loving you, no matter what we face.”
Bane’s hand tightened around mine, his thumb brushing over my knuckles. “No matter what,” he echoed.
I rested my head on his shoulder, letting the warmth and steadiness of him wash over me. “Together,” I repeated softly. “And when this is over, we’ll build a life worth everything we’ve fought for. A family. A home. A pack that’s stronger because we survived the darkness.”
He tilted his head, pressing a kiss to the top of my head. “I’ll make sure we survive. You and our child, even if I have to fight the monster every single day for the rest of my life.”
“I’ll be right there, every step of the way. We’re stronger together. And I trust you, Bane, with everything I have.”
For the first time in what felt like forever, I allowed myself to let the tension slip and feel hope break through the fear. The storm inside him would always be there, but for now, for this moment, love and trust were enough to hold us steady.
And as I felt our child move again, tiny, insistent kicks that were more proof than words could ever offer, I whispered, “we’ll protect you. We’ll protect all of us. And we’ll survive.”
Log in with Google Account
Chapters
Favorite
Settings
