Beneath the Alpha's Moon
Chapter 194: Don’t Leave

Chapter 194: Don’t Leave

Liam’s P.O.V.

I didn’t have time to process what happened. One moment, I was standing in the center of an angry crowd—everything felt like it was closing in on me—and then the next, the world seemed to collapse around me.

Darkness.

Weightlessness.

Cold air wrapped around me, pulling at my skin, and my stomach twisted like I had been turned inside out. My ears rang with a high-pitched hum, my breath catching in my throat. The world around me blurred into streaks of black and silver, like a storm caught in a bottle. My body didn’t feel like my own—like I had been stretched thin, unraveling into nothingness—

And then—

Solid ground.

The cold air hit me first—the familiar, damp chill of the cave, the one I didn’t think I’d see again. My vision swam as I tried to steady myself, blinking at the flickering glow of torches along the stone walls. The cave smelled like fire and pine, like her.

Mai still had my hand.

Her fingers—ice-cold, trembling.

My pulse raced as I tried to steady myself, realizing that, somehow, we had teleported.

"Mai!" I gasped, my voice shaking. I felt like I couldn’t breathe. "What just—"

"I didn’t mean to! I didn’t—" Mai’s frantic voice cut through the rush of blood in my ears, her grip tightening around my hand, pulling me closer to her.

She was shaking. Trembling, her silver eyes wide with panic. Her breath came in uneven bursts, and I saw the faintest sheen of tears threatening to spill from her eyes.

"Mai, calm down," I said, trying to steady myself, trying to focus on her. "You’re safe now. We’re safe here. No one’s going to hurt you."

But her body didn’t relax. Her fingers dug into my skin like she was afraid I’d slip away from her, like this moment of quiet was just a temporary illusion.

"Everyone hates me," she said softly, almost as though she were talking to herself. Her voice cracked, raw, and broken. "They always have. Since I was a child, they’ve seen me as nothing more than a monster." She turned her face away, but not before I saw the glimmer of despair in her eyes. "But that’s okay... I’m used to it. I always have been."

Her words felt like a large rock pressing my heart. Mai wasn’t a monster. Yes she had her many flaws but she wasn’t a monster. I had come to realize she just needed someone to understand her, that was all. I wanted to say something, to reassure her that she wasn’t, but she wasn’t finished yet.

"What I can’t take," she whispered, her voice suddenly dangerous, sharp, like a blade of steel. "Is them trying to take you away from me."

I froze. "Mai, no one’s going to take me away from you."

Her grip on my hand tightened to the point of pain, and I winced slightly, but I didn’t pull away. I couldn’t. Not now. Not when she was this close to breaking.

"I will never let them take you from me," she said, her voice low and lethal. Her silver eyes glittered in the dim cave light, the intensity of her words sending a shiver down my spine. "I don’t care what it costs."

For a moment, I was speechless. The weight of her promise, the desperation in her tone—it shook me to the core. I didn’t know how to respond. I didn’t know what to say to that.

But then, somehow, I found my voice.

"I’m not going anywhere," I said softly, as much for her as for myself. "Mai, I’m not going to leave you. Not now, not ever. I promise."

She didn’t let go of my hand. Instead, she nodded, her shoulders trembling as if the weight of everything she was feeling finally began to settle on her. It was too much, I could see that, and as much as I wanted to fix it, to make everything okay, I knew I couldn’t. Not by myself. Not when she was this broken.

I swallowed, trying to ease the tension in my own chest. "But, Mai, are you seriously going to lock me in here with you forever? I don’t think I can take being a prisoner for the rest of my life."

She didn’t laugh. She didn’t even smile. Instead, she looked at me, her expression dead serious. "If that’s what it takes."

I sighed, rubbing the back of my neck. "You can’t keep me locked up forever, Mai. You know that, right?"

"I don’t care," she muttered, her face hardening. "I don’t care what anyone says or does. If they’re going to take you from me, then I’ll fight. I’ll do whatever it takes."

"Mai," I said, stepping closer to her, gently cupping her face in my hands, my thumb brushing away a stray tear. "I’m willing to stay here with you. For as long as you need, no matter how many days it takes. But you have to promise me something. You have to promise me that you’ll be level-headed when you go back to your parents. When you talk to your father... please, don’t do anything rash."

She stared at me, her lips pressed into a thin line, her eyes searching mine for something—some kind of reassurance, I think. Slowly, she nodded, her fingers slowly relaxing their grip on my hand. But she wasn’t letting go. Not yet.

"I promise," she whispered. "But I don’t think I can do this without you. I need you with me, Liam. Always."

I nodded, swallowing hard. "I’m not going anywhere."

She looked away for a moment, her gaze drifting to the cave’s entrance, then back to me. "My parents... they’re part of the problem. They never told me what’s wrong with me. Why I hear those voices. Why I can’t sleep. They never helped me. I’m not even sure I belong with them." She clenched her fists at her sides. "If Ollie didn’t look so much like me, I would’ve thought I wasn’t related to them at all."

I felt my heart ache for her. "Mai, you’re normal. You’re not a monster. You just... you have to fight the voices. You can do it. And I’ll be here with you, every step of the way."

Her expression softened, her eyes filling with something—hope, maybe. For a moment, it was like the weight of the world was lifting off her shoulders, and I thought, maybe, just maybe, she believed me.

She pulled me into a hug, burying her face in my chest, her arms tight around me. "Thank you," she whispered, her voice muffled. "Thank you for not running away."

"I won’t," I said softly, my hand stroking her back as I held her close. "I’m right here. And I always will be."

For the next three days, we stayed in the cave. And, against everything I thought was possible, it wasn’t as bad as I expected. Mai was... well, Mai—intense, stubborn, but also kind and caring when she let her guard down. And, slowly, I managed to convince her to lower the invisible barrier she’d placed around the cave entrance.

We spent our days exploring the woods surrounding the cave. I never thought I’d see the day when I’d be running through the trees, laughing, racing Mai to the next tree stump like a couple of kids. We found a secluded pond and spent hours skipping rocks across its surface, watching the ripples spread out. She even tried to teach me how to fish with my bare hands, though it ended with us both covered in mud and laughing at the ridiculousness of it all.

We took walks under the moonlight, our steps soft against the earth, and sometimes, I’d catch her watching me with an intensity that made my heart race. Her gaze was so focused, so serious, like she was studying me. At times, I’d think we were on the brink of something—something that could’ve been... but then the moment would pass.

There was one evening, just as the sun was setting, where I almost kissed her. Our faces were so close, her breath warm against my lips, but then she pulled away, her hand resting lightly on my chest, as if she was trying to steady herself. Neither of us said anything, but the air between us crackled with unspoken words, a tension I didn’t know how to untangle. I just couldn’t explain what I was feeling.

On the third night, as we sat by the fire, her eyes softening with a kind of determination, Mai turned to me.

"I’m ready," she said quietly. "I’m ready to face them. But... I can’t do it alone. Will you come with me?"

I didn’t even have to think about it.

"Of course," I replied, my voice steady. "I’m with you. Every step of the way."

If anyone asked me when I got so attached to Mai, I wouldn’t have an answer. Somehow I just let my heart guide me, even though a small part of it alway reminded me of the pain she had caused me in the past.

And so, the next day, we headed back. I carried her on my wolf’s back, the forest passing by in a blur as we made our way home. Her arms were wrapped around me, her presence grounding me as I ran.

And when we reached the edge of the pack’s territory, I knew the real battle was about to begin. But this time, Mai Blackwood had me.