Chapter Forty-Five

I looked at the house in front of me. I hadn't stepped foot in since before I was attacked by my aunt- who was controlled by the Defesta.

I looked behind me, to the man whose name I learned was Frank. He was standing in the same, guarded position I had seen him in, during the whole day. Getting a plane and not having any of my details was a bit tricky, but luckily there were quite a few werewolves working there at the time and they didn't ask too many questions.

I had asked Frank why we hadn't encountered any of Sarim's people in the airport and he had said that the airport was the one place they heavily guarded because this was the one route of escape they could have full control over.

As I turned my head back to the door, a loud crash thundered across the house. Frank came immediately and stood by my side. His body was rigid- ready to attack.

"I need you to stay outside for me." I knew that it was going to be a hard time convincing Frank the moment I saw the look on his face when I said those words.

"I need to be the only one in there. Otherwise, it might not work."

"What might not work?"

"It's just a theory but I need to try it out myself. If you are with me, it might not work."

"I made a vow to protect the King and his mate."

"And you did, and you will keep doing so if you just let me go inside." I craned my head to see Frank's mouth was pressed into a thin line and I knew that he wasn't going to budge.

"How about we have a safe word?"

"No." His response was quick and firm.

"Rotten Tomatoes."

"What?"

"Those will be my safe words. If I feel that Leon has become a threat to my life then I will say Rotten Tomatoes and that will be your cue to come and save me."

Even as I said those words, I knew that I was going to be harder than that. So many different scenarios ran through my head, but I kept replaying the one that I wanted to happen. I knew that there could be a chance that Frank might not be able to save me. Even if I might say those words, the Defesta might have got to be quicker. Maybe Leon was already gone, which meant that there was very little- if any certainty that I was going to survive. But, I needed to try. If not for Leon, then for myself. I wasn't going to let someone else die for something that I was born with. I was the reason Leon had the Defesta. If he died I wouldn't be able to forgive myself.

"Please, it's the only way. You need to let me in. You need to trust me." I grabbed a hold of Frank's hands' and held them loosely. It wasn't a romantic gesture of any sorts, it was just a friendly gesture to comfort someone.

"Please be safe and if you feel like your life is in danger, say those words, Ashley." His voice deepened at the end, showing me how serious he was. Giving him a small smile, I let go of his hands and turned back to face the door. Taking a deep breath I opened the door to the house I once called home.

Whenever I used to enter this house, there always used to be scent to it. I could never place it, but it made feel like home. Now, the only smell I was getting was of dust.

I walked quietly towards the living room. When I entered, I saw the couches were all torn into pieces and glass was everywhere from the broken coffee table. When I was that Leon wasn't in here, I walked to the kitchen. Still, there was no sign of him. As I climbed the stairs, I heard Leon's harsh breathing. I immediately knew where it was coming from- my room.

"I wondered how long you were going to take before you found me." Leon turned his head towards me with a smirk. I walked into the room nervously- taking into note of how everything was the same way I had left it when I left for university.

"You need to fight Leon. Don't let him take over your body."

"Tisk, tisk, Ashley. You never learn. Listen to me carefully, your Leon is gone. He isn't coming back." Leon- the Defesta puts his hand on either side of my body. His breath hits again my face.

"Unlike you, Leon will always be there for his mate." Before I could register what was happening, I felt my head being whipped to the side and hitting the wall from the impact of a slap. I blinked rapidly to make the years that had sprung into my eyes to go away.

"Is that all you have got, Defesta?" I felt a push against my chest. I tried to hold on to something, but to my avail, there was nothing. Slowly I was sliding down the wall.

"You are weak." Leon- the Defesta said, crouching down beside me.

"So are you." I felt another slap against my cheek, except this was the opposite one.

"You couldn't save your mate and now you want others to feel the same way as you do." I stared straight into Leon's eyes, hoping that I would see the warmth of them somewhere. But all I got was a cold stare that the Defesta was controlling.

"I know what you are doing and it's not going to work." I tried to control myself physically to not react to his words but inside, I was panicking.

"You are trying to spite me so that I will hurt you and then you think Leon can't stand watching you get hurt and not do anything so he gets enough power to get control of his body again." I felt the hammering in my head increase when I realised that he has figured out my plan.

"I am going to kill you. Quickly and simply." He stood up and walked towards the table, where he grabbed something. "And before Leon has a chance to react." He turned back around and stalked slowly towards me. My eyes widened when I saw the knife in his hand. I felt a rush of adrenaline go through me as I pushed myself from the ground and ran down the stairs. Leon- the Defesta's steps were quick to follow and before I knew it, the knife was against my neck.

"Please, don't do this. Think of your mate. She wouldn't want you to do this. Don't do this." I repeated the words, hoping it would get into his head.

"You know nothing of my mate." His mouth was beside my ear, allowing me to feel his breath.

"What was her name?"

"What?" Leon's- the Defesta's reply was quick.

"What was your mate's name?" A few seconds passed before he finally answered.

"Delia."

"Delia wouldn't have wanted to-" Before I could complete the sentence, the knife was pulled away from me. I turned around in bewilderment and saw Leon throw the knife onto the ground, causing it to slide towards me. I picked up the knife as I watched him. He seemed in pain, but no noise was coming from him. His mouth would open and close but not a single word came out. He must be fighting the Defesta, that was the only answer I could come up with the strange way he was acting. Eventually, he fell onto his knees, his arms were suddenly all over his body as if he checking everything. Slowly he lifted his face and met my eyes. The moment I saw the warmth in them, I knew it Leon and not the Defesta. I dropped the knife and ran towards him and put my arms around him. His whole body was trembling as he cried. I felt my own falling from my eyes.

The war wasn't over. But this was a step in the right direction. Now that Leon was back, we finally had a chance to beat Sarim and her army.

*____________________*
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