Chapter 51: Kidnapped By My Best Friend.
Lorali Pov | Thirty Minutes Before
The night sky looms above us, heavy and endless, the faint hum of distant music drifting from the glasshouse where the party continues without me. The gardens are alive with shadows, the moonlight spilling across the hedges and paths, painting everything in silver. Our footsteps crunch softly against the grass, and I feel the pull of Ella’s hand guiding me forward.
"Ella, where on earth are you taking me?" I ask, confusion twisting in my chest. The whole lot of them have been off since I met them again today after a very long time. And they have changed a lot, their mannerism is off and they are walking to urgency as if their life depends on it. All these changes don’t feel like ones that come because someone has a mate. It feels as if something deeper is happening here, something I don’t understand.
"We are getting you out of here," Ella announces suddenly, her voice sharp, as if nothing I say could ever change her mind.
I come to an abrupt stop, yanking my hand from her grip and pressing it against my chest. My heart pounds, my breath quickens. She halts too, flicking her head back toward me, her pink hair catching the moonlight like a flame.
"What’s wrong?" she asks, surprise flashing across her face at my sudden resistance.
"I... I can’t go with you," I say, taking a step back. The words taste bitter, but they’re true. As much as I want to run with her, to escape into the night like old times, I can’t. Not with the mark on my shoulder that has only recently begun to show signs of improvement. I can’t risk going far from Oracle. If I do, the pain surges will return, tearing through me, worsening the bond mark until it consumes me.
Ella’s eyes travel over me, searching for something. I feel exposed, as though she’s looking straight into my soul.
"What are you two doing? We don’t have all day, you know, we need to go now!" Cleo’s voice echoes from ahead, impatient. She’s stopped running, turning back to glare at us.
"Oh, I’m not coming! I’ll just be heading back now!" I shout, my voice carrying across the garden. Cleo’s face morphs into confusion, her brows knitting as she looks around, trying to make sense of my words.
"You want to stay in that pack and suffer? Have you lost all your brain cells?" Ella snaps her frustration boiling over. She suddenly grasps at my hair, her fingers digging in as though searching to see if I still had a brain. Her fingers find the bald patch I’ve tried so meticulously to hide beneath my bun.
"Oh my gosh, you’re balding, Lori!" she squeals, diving deeper into my hair, determined to find out how big that patch is.
I push her away, harder than I intend, and she falls back onto the grass with a thud, her white dress staining with dirt.
"Oh, sorry, I didn’t—" I begin, guilt rushing through me.
She cuts me off, raising her hand. "No, it’s fine. I’m fine. I shouldn’t have been in your hair like that, even if it did provide me all the information and proof I need. It confirms my suspicion that this pack is abusing you, mentally and physically."
"They are not," I lie, my voice trembling.
"Yes, they are," Ella insists, her tone fierce. "You probably can’t see it because you’re inside the picture, but all of us on the outside can see it. You look miserable. Even your fake happy smile is sad."
"I am happy. Very happy. Look, Torin even bought me this dress," I say, lifting my hands to show her.
Ella scoffs. "Oh please. You’re wearing a high‑collar, long‑sleeved dress in the middle of summer. Who does that unless they’re hiding something?"
Her words leave me speechless, my throat tightening.
"This is your chance," she continues, her voice softening but her eyes burning with determination. "We’ve arranged everything. You can leave all this behind. You don’t have to go back to Alma or get matched into another pack by the council. You can be free."
Free. The word echoes in my mind, heavy and intoxicating. I could give everything for that.
"Ella, I am happy. Seriously. I bonded, and I’m living out the life I’ve always dreamed of. I’m grateful that you’re all concerned for me, but please, just leave this matter." My voice cracks, tears threatening to spill.
Ella grasps my hand suddenly, lifting it to the moonlight. My nails catch the glow, torn and ragged from the scratching I’ve been doing lately.
"My nails always looked like this before I tore off the entire nail," she says, her voice trembling with emotion. "I was everything but okay or happy during those moments. I doubt you are as happy as you say you are."
I open my mouth to argue, but she cuts me off again, her words clear she was not going to leave the matter.
"No, I will not leave this matter. We left it for more than half a year, and this is what has happened. Any longer you spend in that pack, you’ll go crazy or die. So I have to intervene, whether you want me to or not."
"Ella, I’m fine. I’ve told you already, I want to stay." My shoulder throbs, the pain returning little by little. I need to get back to the party before she fills my mind with thoughts of leaving.
"I cannot tend to your wants right now, only your needs," she says firmly. "So forgive me for this. When you wake up, you’ll be far from all of this, with a new life and you can shout at me then."
Wake up? What does she mean by that?
Just then, I catch the tiniest whiff of a scent coming from behind me. Before I can turn around, I feel something cold and hard hit my neck. My vision blurs, my eyes grow heavy, and I stumble backward. My body collapses, but I don’t hit the ground, I fall onto something else, something that catches me.
I’m... I’m seriously getting kidnapped by my best friend.
1
Dammit.
My vision fades to black, my mind slipping into darkness, swallowed whole
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