Awakening The Goddess: Book II

Chapter 5: 4357: Part I

Eriana

Buzz...buzz...buzz…buzz...

I reached for my phone off of the nightstand and I squinted at the bright screen. It was six in the morning and no one in their right mind would be texting me at this hour, but here I am with four messages from an unknown number all with the same text. 

4357

Fuck. Not again. The last time I got this message it was from Mya when she left home. I couldn’t believe that my aunt was still with that f*****g creep after all of this time and all of these incidents. I scrambled out of the bed as I called Mya. I wasn’t sure who was on the other line, but if she kept in contact with her sisters, she would know. 

The last thing I wanted to do was to go home and see my family today, but I wouldn’t let him hurt any more of these girls. Not today and not any day after. This will be my last time making this trip. There was nothing I could do when it was just Mya, but now? I could probably kick his ass myself, but I would let Derion handle that for me. 

I smiled internally as I thought about the sweet justice headed towards Sylvester’s dusty ass. Mya didn’t pick up so I figured she was at work. I would just stop by her job and pick her up on the way out. I sent her a quick text with a screenshot asking for more information and she responded promptly. It was her little sister who’d just turned fourteen a few weeks ago. I swallowed the bile that made its way up my throat. This man was truly disgusting and he kept going younger and younger every time. 

I took the world’s quickest shower after brushing my teeth and settled on a pair of black combat boots, jeans, and a t-shirt before calling Derion. His phone rang and rang until it went to voicemail which was unusual. 

I tried to mind link him, but still nothing. I knew he was near because I caught a faint whiff of his scent but something about him not answering when I called didn’t sit right in my spirit. 

I followed my nose and I found him outside of his office on the floor unconscious, his wings on full display, and his sword and shield lay sprawled beside him. I hadn’t seen him in this form in eons. I didn’t even know he remembered himself from then. He’s never mentioned it and I haven’t known him to succumb to the bloodlust since his first life. No alarms were going off, there weren't any signs of intruders, so why had he reverted to his former self? Why were his weapon and shield exposed? 

My heart thumped wildly in my chest as I ran to his side, careful not to step or kneel on his wings. I cradled his head and held my face to his to make sure he was still breathing. I felt his breath on my face and my heart soared. I just found him and I was not ready to let him go yet. 

I shook him gently and called his name, but he didn’t respond. I continued to try to wake him until his wings retracted and his sword and shield disappeared into thin air. I felt the sobs racking through my body as he laid before me, the scene too familiar for my liking. 

After a moment he began to stir and he murmured something I couldn’t understand. I leaned closer to him to try to hear him when I realized he was calling out for me. Not me of today, but for me of thousands of years ago. 

I couldn’t tell if he was waking or slipping further into this state. 

“Derion! Baby, wake up, please!” I pleaded. I tried to pass my own divinity through to him, but he was trapped in his own mind. There was nothing I could do to wake him besides what I was currently doing. His eyes fluttered slightly and my heart skipped a beat. He let out a series of groans but I knew he was trying to communicate. 

“Can you hear me, love?” I asked, my voice cracking as the tears ran down my face. 

“Yes,” he uttered huskily. His voice was hoarse and it looked like it pained him to speak. 

“Oh, thank the heavens,” I wailed as I hugged him as tightly as I could. I laid across his chest and let the sound of his beating heart soothe my anxieties. We just laid there in the middle of the hallway for a brief moment before he spoke again. 

“Hey.”

“Hey, you asshole,” I half sobbed, half laughed. “Are you okay, Derion? What happened?” 

He shook his head and grabbed my hand, letting his memories flow from his mind to mine. I watched as he began to collapse in the hallway from the pull he felt from inside of his office and the memories of a day long forgotten before mates were even thought of. 

“You used to be a real jerk, Montu,” I said as I rolled my eyes at him. I thought back to the days when he would slaughter men just for my attention then he would leave in the middle of the night after we’d have s*x. He tried to deny his feelings for a long time but I knew better. I caressed the side of his face and smiled down at him. 

“I’m sorry,” he said as he reached for me, I placed his hand against my face and I let the sparks and warmth seep into my body. 

“It’s ancient history, let’s get you off the floor. It’s not really a good look for an Alpha to be collapsed in his own home. We don’t want any more rumors floating around.” 

I did my best to help him up, as strong as I am, he still weighed a ton. He sat up and winced in pain as he moved around, trying to get his bearings. He seemed a bit wobbly and I couldn’t tell if it was from his morning training or from his aspect forcing its way to the forefront. As we walked to our bedroom, I filled him in on the situation with my family.

He listened quietly but I could feel the anger that rolled off of him. I started to wonder if maybe this wasn’t a great idea. I was angry too, but he was irate. His eyes flashed from black to gold and back to black several times before he tried to calm himself. I just hoped that this little trip wouldn’t trigger his bloodlust. 

“What does that message mean?” He asked finally. 

“Oh. On an old phone with a keypad, it spelled ‘help’. Mya and I would send it to each other when…,” I started to explain. He nodded his head in understanding as he pulled on a black t-shirt. A few minutes later we were downstairs in one of the SUVs with another one trailing us. On our way out of the pack lands, we picked up Mya from her job and started on our three-hour journey. 

I tried to calm Derion down the entire ride there by making jokes and being my weird self, and even though he smiled and I even managed to get a laugh out of him, I could still feel how angry he was. He hadn’t waivered in his emotions the entire time and when we pulled up to my aunt’s house, a feeling of uneasiness settled in the pit of my stomach. 

My entire family was here today which meant I would be seeing my own parents as well as Sylvester. We parked in an empty spot in the driveway and the second vehicle parked on the street. I stared at the old run-down house for a few minutes before I gathered my courage to go inside. Derion took my hand in his and kissed the back of my hand. 

“You don’t have to go in. I can handle this,” he said in a low voice. This was the first time the entire ride where anger wasn’t his guiding emotion. I looked at him and he was studying my face, trying to find even a bit of hesitation. 

“No, I have to. We have to,” I said as I looked back at Mya who had a far away expression on her face. I knew what she was thinking because I was thinking the same thing. She was replaying every piece of abuse she received inside of these walls. We hadn’t even seen Sylvester, but just knowing that he was inside was triggering enough to force those memories to the forefront. 

“Okay, whenever you’re ready, Sunshine,” Derion said as he rubbed his thumb over my knuckles. I looked back at Mya and she gave me a half-smile. 

“I should have asked Mara and Cree to come with me,” she said as she hugged herself. 

“I’m sure they can be here in a few minutes if you call them,” Derion responded. “They can fly faster than we can drive. I’m sure they’d be happy to stand by you.” 

“Yeah,” she said as she looked out the window. Before any of us could exit the truck, Mya’s little sister Karmyn ran out of the house with tears running down her face and a backpack full of what I could only guess were her clothes. 

Mya and I both jumped out of the truck and ran after her. Since I was faster than both of them, I caught up to Karmyn and she wrapped her arms around me and cried into my shirt. Mya hugged her from behind as she sobbed uncontrollably. Derion stood nearby, supporting us while giving us the space we needed. 

I tried to fight the tears but I couldn’t help myself with these raging pregnancy hormones. I heard some of my relatives who’d come outside shout to the people who were inside that Mya and I were here. Pretty soon, everyone was outside and they were all crowding around the four of us. 

Derion stood in front of me protectively when I heard Ashlynn calling out for us behind me. I hadn’t even known she was in the other vehicle, but to be honest, I wasn’t surprised. 

I saw my parents part through the crowd and I let go of Karmyn and Mya and stood beside Derion. My mother stood before me, looking me up and down as if I were a disgrace. 

“Mm, pregnant again I see but still no ring,” she huffed. 

“Yep and still a better parent than you,” I rebutted. She rolled her eyes at me and my father didn’t even bother to speak to me which was fine since I didn’t want to talk to them either. I felt myself begin to shake with anger and Derion held my hand, trying to calm me down. 

“Let me guess, this is your second ‘baby daddy’ and he’s some big shot drug dealer wherever you’re shaking up now. Is the baby even his or are you still sucking and f*****g anything that walks?” She asked as some of my relatives snickered in the crowd. 

“If I was sucking and f*****g anything walking, I’m sure that would have been a trait I got from you since Eddie here isn’t even my father,” I replied as I c****d my head to the side. Her eyes went wide and my father had a look of complete shock on his face. 

“Unlike you, Beatrice, I know who fathered my children and both of them are and will be well taken care of. I know that’s probably a foreign concept to you.” 

She stammered as she tried to come up with another insult but she fell short. Ah, another thing she was terrible at. 

“How dare you talk to me like that! I am your mother!” She yelled at me. 

“Girl, f**k you. Anyway, Karmyn is leaving with us. If any of you need to come with us as well, you’re more than welcome to. We have more than enough room for whoever needs to get away from that pedophile or your negligent and abusive parents,” I addressed the crowd, ignoring my mother. I saw a couple of my younger cousins shift uncomfortably and I knew they wanted to get away. Who could blame them?

“Don’t you f*****g ignore me, you slut,” my mother screeched as she tried to grab me by the arm. Derion smoothly grabbed her arm before pushing her backward. She stumbled but unfortunately, my father caught her before she could hit the ground. She clutched her arm and they glared at Derion as if he was in the wrong. 

“Don’t f*****g touch her,” Derion growled as he moved in front of me. He looked like he was close to shifting and I really hoped he could keep control in front of all of these humans. 

“Who the hell do you think you are?” My father’s voice boomed as he charged towards Derion. I looked up at him and he was… smiling? This wasn’t going to end well for either one of them. I knew I couldn’t step in front of Derion before my father attacked him because that would only make him angrier if we got hit. 

I panicked a little bit because I didn’t know what to do but Derion had complete control of the situation. He let my father land a blow right in the gut but he didn’t move a muscle. The look on my father’s face was almost comical. I heard the whispers in the crowd and I watched them as 

“If you’re done then?” Derion said, addressing my father and turning his back to him. “Where is Sylvester?” Everyone was silent all of a sudden. 

“You all just had so much to say, but now when it’s time to talk you’re quiet? Typical,” I said with a scoff. 

“MAE! SYLVESTER! COME OUT OF THE HOUSE!” I yelled. I knew they could hear me. After a few silent moments, we heard movement from the house and the front door opened. 

“Well, well, if it ain’t you two ungrateful wannabe man-stealing hoes,” my aunt called as the screen door slammed against the house. She staggered down the stairs and made her way to the rest of us with Sylvester trailing right behind her, smirking as if something was funny. I would definitely get the last laugh today though. 

“Well, well, if it isn’t my pedophile-loving auntie who can’t even look after her own children,” I responded as I put my hands on my hips. I was sick of this b***h already. She scoffed at me and rolled her eyes. 

“My man ain’t no pedophile. You lil’ hussies are just fast and tried to seduce him!” she said, defending that disgusting piece of s**t. 

“Why on earth would anyone other than you want to seduce...this,” I said, gesturing to Sylvester. 

“I don’t know, Ana, you seemed to like...,” he said, and before he could utter another syllable Derion’s fist collided with his face. If I would have blinked I would have missed it. He struck like lightning and the sound of his fist against Sylvester’s face was the thunder. I smiled as everyone looked on in horror while Derion pummeled Sylvester into the ground. 

My aunt tried to pull Derion off of him, but it was no hope and she only ended up hurting herself.  My mother grabbed my arm and pulled me towards the two men. 

“Make him stop!” She yelled at me. 

“Why? You didn’t make Sylvester stop,” I said nonchalantly. 

“Someone call the police! Call the police!” my aunt screamed at the top of her lungs as she sat on the ground, her face bloody from catching an elbow to the nose. I let Derion handle his business while Ash, Mya, and I escorted Karmyn back into the house so she could pack her things properly. She was in the same room that Sylvester used to bring me into and violate me after school. I couldn’t bear to walk in so I stood outside the door with Ash while Mya and Karmyn packed. 

“You okay?” Ash asked as she rubbed my back. 

“Yeah, I’m fine,” I said as I stared at the floor. “I’m glad you’re here.” 

She pulled me into a hug and the floodgates burst. I cried until I had no more tears left to cry. I cried for my younger self who was left unprotected. I cried for the other girls who had to experience the same thing I did. I cried for the lack of love that my parents showed me growing up and even today. I just… cried. 

After a few minutes I heard police sirens coming up the street and we walked back outside to see them handcuffing Derion. He was covered in blood and he was pleased with himself. I looked over at Sylvester’s body and I could see his brains splattered across the pavement. Micah walked over to them and after a brief conversation, they uncuffed Derion and apologized for inconveniencing him. 

The policemen stood off to the side, confused as ever, and called the coroner while my aunt cried over his body. My parents glared at me from the crowd while they all tried to comfort each other. They would surely be traumatized, but I was okay with that. After the coroner arrived Micah had another conversation with the policemen and my parents as well as my aunt was taken into custody. 

I don’t know what kind of pull Derion has with law enforcement here, but whatever they got, they deserved it. 

“So,” I said, addressing my family again. “Like I said before, does anyone else need to leave? I promise you will always be safe and we will always protect you. You’ll be free to be who you are and you can grow up in a safe and loving environment. No one can stop you from leaving.” 

Three of my other cousins parted from the crowd and decided to come with us. They opted to leave everything behind and start over with us and that was just fine with us.