Filed To Story: Their Bullied and Broken Mate by Teri Petry
*GRETCHEN POV*
As we approached the cell house, I held onto Luke tighter. Mammon’s aura smothered the whole domain. Before entering the door to go in, I turned to everyone that was with me. “I know you all have concerns about the Luna being with us. Please trust me when I say that she will be fine. I believe it is Luna herself that Mammon wants an audience with. Mammon is the archdemon of greed, and when he doesn’t care how he comes about getting what he wants, he will usually communicate with a female before he goes to a man. Alphas, I need you and your Beta ready for anything. Mr. Carter, I know she is your sister, but you share similar insecurities and traumas. Mammon will feed off of that. It is best if you stay close to her, but not directly next to her. Mammon will say anything and everything to get under your skin and into your mind. So be prepared.” I explained.
I turned directly to alpha Liam and said, “Alpha Liam, he has already tried to get into your head. It’s up to you to find that strength inside you to ignore whatever he throws at you. Use your babies as strength, and your mate and brother as support.” I took him into a hug, and we all entered. Luke and I, hand in hand, took the lead while being directed by the beta to where to go. The smell of sulfur and fire permeated the air, and burnt my nostrils. I noticed the smell was affecting the Luna as well. It wasn’t long before we came face to face with evil incarnate. The man formerly known as Callum Star was unrecognizable. His face was distorted and scarred, and his spine was twisted, causing him to walk hunched over. I motioned for the Alphas and their family to stop, and Luke and I approached the cell.
“I know your name, demon. What I don’t understand is your mission. What is it you want with this man, and these people? What is your end game?” I called out to Mammon. He ran towards the cell wall and started to laugh maniacally. “You don’t ask questions here witch. My mission isn’t regarding you, and doesn’t involve you. My goals are my own, and none of your business,” he sneered. He turned towards Melian and pointed at her. “She, on the other hand, has what I desire. She carries what I need inside her soon-to-be swollen belly.” he taunted. I could see the rage building up in the alphas and I had to step in quickly. “Hush Mammon! You filthy beast. Taunting the alphas will only get you killed. Do you truly think any of us would allow you to touch the Luna or her children? Why do you desire them, knowing you will never achieve your end game?” I yelled.
He turned away from me and started to pace the cell mumbling to himself. Stopping in place, he said, “Old witch, you know better than any of us what Luna’s mother was, and who Luna truly is. Have you told her what her bloodline means? Have you told her what her children are? No, I bet you haven’t, or she wouldn’t have come here. She wouldn’t have put her babies in grave danger.” My blood ran cold at his last sentence. I whispered to Luke that we needed to bind the cell to silence him and stop him from spewing any more information to the Alphas and Luna. We instantly slit our palms and joined our hands, combining our blood. We raised them into the air and started to speak the incantation to seal and bind the cell. The louder Mammon got, the louder Luke and I chanted.
As the binding seal on the cell was coming to a close, Mammon started to rage and spiral out of control. Pounding on the glass until his fists bled. His curses grew more and more silent. Then, with a gust of wind, there was silence. Mammon was still out of control, but he was no longer yelling after realizing that his cell was bound. I heard a scream behind me, and turned to see Melian hovering over Liam screaming his name. I looked at his brother and told him to get him to the packhouse immediately.
Luke ran ahead of us to fetch my bag and meet us in the garden. Alpha Loki and the other men carried Alpha Liam to the center of the garden and laid him in the grass. Once Luke arrived, we started to place candles around him and lit them as we went. Once the candles were in place, I started spreading a mixture of herbs around his body. I placed crystals on his head and feet and then retrieved my jar of moon water from my bag. I poured it over the herbs and kept a little to wash his head with. I kneeled next to his head and placed it on my lap. I dipped my fingers in the moon water and started to recite a cleansing spell.
When we blocked Mammon from communicating with any of us, he must have been in Liam’s head. Once the seal was complete, it ripped him away from Liam, causing him to pass out. I continued reciting the spell until I could feel Liam’s mind become clearer and calmer. It wasn’t long before his eyes shot open and he let out a deep breath. He was confused about where he was or how he got there, and I just calmly spoke to him, assuring him that he was safe and no longer in danger. He broke out in tears and started asking for his brother and mate. They both rushed to his side and he held on to both of them tightly. Something had happened to Liam that shook him to his core, and I felt only Loki and Melian were the only ones who could comfort him right now. I stood up and moved to be by Luke’s side.
Observing the trio, I looked at Luke and said, “You have been mated into a special family, Luke. We are definitely going to need each other in this battle.”
Paternity Questions
*LIAM POV*
Standing there listening to this asshole spew his reteric was sending jolts of anger through my whole body. How dare he even think of mentioning my children, let alone think he was going to claim them. I would rip out his heart myself before that happened. The more he spoke the angrier I got, and then it happened. I could hear him in my head. Taunting me and showing me visions that would haunt me. First it was my wife, with her swollen belly, tied to a board being tortured by other demons that resembled her dad and brothers. Then there was a vision of my wife sitting by his side with our boys climbing all over him calling him ‘daddy’.
The last one was the worst of them all. It was a vision of my wife, my brother and our pups lying dead at my feet. Their blood was on my hands, and in the distance was the demon form of Mammon laughing at my loss. I felt wind surrounding my body, and as it swirled around me his taunting laugh grew louder. I felt like I was going mad, and then everything went blank and the laughing stopped.
I don’t know how long I was out, or what happened while I was out. I just remember my eyes popping open and seeing Gretchen’s face over me whispering some kind of spell. I felt calmer than I had in days, and in as many days, my mind was clear of chaos. All I could think about was Mel and Loki. I sat up and started to search for them. Sitting up, I was instantly dizzy, but my eyes still searched for the only two people I wanted to see. “Loki? Mel? Where are Loki and Mel?” I cried.
They were instantly by my side. I tugged them both into my arms and just let the tears flow. The relief that they were both OK and safe overwhelmed me with joy. “Hey brother, everything is good. You are safe with me and our wife. Our babies are safe. He’s trapped, and can’t get to us right now. Just breathe, deep breaths, we got you.” Loki comforted me. Mel held onto me like our lives depended on it, and that is all I needed from her. We sat there for almost an hour before I finally said anything coherent, and I finally told them that I wanted to go inside and check on Maddix. I needed to see my boy. I needed to see for myself that he was safe and well. Loki helped me up and I got my balance, and I still held onto him for dear life.
I snuck into the nursery, and went straight for Maddix’s crib. I softly stroked his head, and the feelings I felt for this little boy warmed my heart. He had been through so much in his short little life, and he didn’t even realize it. In all but blood, he was mine. Even if Loki didn’t want that responsibility, I would take it completely. Thankfully, my brother loves him as much as I do.
“Little man, you will always be loved and protected. No one will hurt you while daddy is around,” I whispered to him. Suddenly, a set of arms wrapped around my torso. “Did I just hear you call yourself his daddy?” she asked. I nodded and asked, “Yea, is that alright? I mean, I know technically he is your nephew, but I see him as my son. Do you want him to call you aunt Mel, or momma?” She was silent for a moment and I heard her sigh. “Ya know, I haven’t really thought about that. I probably should, considering you and Loki want to be his fathers, and we have no plans of revealing who his real father was. I feel more like his mother than his aunt, that is for sure. So, I don’t see an issue with him calling me mommy. We would just need to inform everyone else who knows me as ‘aunty Mel’ of our decision so that they don’t continue calling me his aunt.” she stated matter of factly. So that was how it would be. He was our son, not our nephew. Not in our hearts at least. I turned to Mel and kissed her lips, I took her hand and we left the nursery.
Both of us went to find Loki, and he was in our bedroom already. We walked in and on the bed was an array of snacks, pizzas and a tub of ice on the dresser filled with drinks. All of my favorites. “Thanks bro. This means a lot. Again, I’m sorry for being a dick.” I said to him. He started to laugh and said, “I would rather you be a constant dickhead, than not to be with us at all. We would be lost without you Liam. Both of us. You really scared me out there man. I’m just thankful it turned out well.” He gave me a fist bump and told me to sit my big ass down and eat. Mel sat between us, and we gave her the remote to the TV. I should have known when she clicked it to her favorite channel, and she got excited when she saw that it was a re-run of the show Golden Girls. The show wasn’t my kind of show, but it made her happy. I have to admit though, that old lady, Sophia, was a riot. We ate and laughed until Mel eventually passed out. Loki and I cleaned up and went to sit on the sectional. He poured us both a glass of whiskey and we sat and had a long-overdue conversation.
New Book: Returned To Make Them Pay
On her wedding anniversary, Alicia is drugged and stumbles into the wrong room—straight into the arms of the powerful Caden Ward, a man rumored never to touch women. Their night of passion shocks even him, especially when he discovers she’s still a virgin after two years of marriage to Joshua Yates.