Hidden Killers: Hunters in the Wind (Book 2)

36 - Adelaide POV

My eyes were dried out - I had no more tears left to cry as I sat in the waiting room of the new pack hospital.

After rushing Maeve here, they soon prepped her and sent her off for emergency surgery. That was when I broke down. When no one could see my resolve break, I cried for my sister.

She was so carefree and spirited. She was a bright light in our darkness. And now... I could lose her. Forever... and there is not a thing I could do about it.

"Adelaide..." A hoarse voice greets me. I look up to see Faye, worse for wear, staring down at me. Once Maeve had been taken into surgery, Faye had gone outside; you could hear the screams of anguish through the walls. "Have you told your mother?"

I sigh and run a shaky hand through my hair and down my face. "No..."

When I look at her again, she holds out a tissue for me. "You... need to..." She couldn't finish her sentence. Instead, she points at my hands and face.

Looking down, I can see that my hands are still coated in blood - Maeve's blood. Oh goddess! I started crying frantically as I darted off towards the toilets.

Smashing the door on the way in, I rush to the sink and stare at my reflection in the mirror. Streaks of blood were smeared on my face from where my hands had been.

The taps were blasted open as I wiped the blood off my face and hands, desperation setting in as I struggled to get it out of my nails.

"Come on, come on." I beg as my hands began to turn red from my scrubbing.

Two gentle hands clasp mine, slowing my movement before taking over the cleaning process. I look at Faye in the eye, a silent thank you passed between us for no words had been spoken.

Once the blood had been cleaned off, I pressed my hand to the mirror. Mother, please be in.

"Adelaide!? Why are you calling this late?" My mother responds through the mirror before she takes in mine and Faye's dishevelled appearance."What has happened?"

My sobs threaten to break to the surface, restricting me from speaking. My free hand pushes through the mirror, waving it at my mother, begging her to take a hold.

Without a moment's hesitation, she latches on and pushes her way through; Faye assists by grabbing onto my mother's arm once it comes through.

"Girls, what is the matter? Where are Maeve and Clarke?" My mother asks, panic setting into her voice.

Myself and Faye couldn't speak still. How do you say these words? We couldn't. It was too hard. Taking the initiative, I guide my mother out of the toilets and through the pack hospital, stopping outside the operating theatre. There was a small window, allowing people to view what was happening inside.

That is where my mother saw her worst horrors come true. Maeve lied prone on the operating table, breathing apparatus, amongst other things, ran out of her small figure whilst surgeons gathered around her chest.

"Who did this to her?" She says after a long silence.

"Hunters."

She goes for the handle, but purple light crackles around it, locking it shut. "Let me in, Adelaide."

"I can't." I keep my hand out. More purple light wraps around the door handle, securing it in place.

"Adelaide. This is not up for debate - let me in there now." Her voice was a mixture of anger and sadness as she turned her head towards me. Tears ran silently down her face as her eyes went colder.

"We are not allowed in, mother."

"BUT THAT'S MY DAUGHTER!" She roars, green light shooting out of her with rage. I managed to put up a shield around her so none of her magic caused any harm.

She uses all of her magical energy up before she crumples to the floor. I lower the shield and engulf her in a hug with Faye. Our cries fill the air as we stay motionless on the spot.

"Maeve!" Abby's voice rings out through the corridor as she bursts through the door. Taking in our group on the floor, she springs towards us before collapsing on the floor, too, joining us in our group hug.

"She is still in surgery." Faye informs her. I feel another presence hug me from behind - Clarke. Guess the motorcade has made it here.

"Do we know when she will be out?" Clarke asks but is met with shakes of the head. We all stayed there for a few minutes before Faye spoke up. "We were planning a family the other day."

"You were?" Myself and my mum responded in union.

Faye sadly nods her head. "We were going to see if we could merge our eggs together, and if that failed, Maeve was going to carry our children with a sperm donor."

I smile at her, though my smile doesn't fully meet my eyes. "You two will be amazing parents." Faye looks at the door and lets out a sigh.

My mother, on the other hand, tensed up through Faye's comment about children. "Mum, did you hear? You will be a grandmother soon."

My mother shifts her eyes nervously between Faye, Clarke, and I. This is odd. "Mum? You OK?"

"I.. uhhh..." She fidgets with her hands before turning to us. Our hug a distance memory as she removed herself from the middle and stood up, looking down at us with such sorrow. "You and Maeve can't have children."

"What do you mean?" We were all staring at her with confusion as myself and Faye rose to our feet. "Me and Maeve have checked, we are perfectly capable of carrying babies to term."

"Your wombs are fine, yes." She looks down at her hands, unable to meet our gazes. "But you two have drank a potion that prevents you from having children."

"How? I don't remember taking a potion?"

"It was masked... in your drinks... I added it..." My mouth gaped as I looked at my mum in horror.

"You are making me and my sister infertile?" She slowly nods her head. "Why?"

Raising her head, fresh tears fill her eyes as she looks at us. "You have grown up without a father for so long because of Hunters. Maeve is currently dying because of them." She looks through the window at Maeve before continuing. "This world is too cruel, and my family have suffered enough."

"So you prevent us from bearing children, taking away the joy that they bring to our lives, because of what happened to dad?"

My own tears begin to fall back down my face as I stare at my mother in bewilderment.

"Not just me. It was an agreement made by all of the Coven. The Coven Elders gave each of the young members of the coven the potion during social events to prevent them from having children." Her head snaps back towards me. "Hunters cannot hold us against our will if none of us are left."

"But, Auntie Kenna, you are letting them win by stopping your Coven from growing." Abby chimes in.

My mother turns away, watching the surgeons before she speaks again. "The decision has been made. I will not allow my grandchildren to become servants of evil."

My emotions finally betrayed me. I push past everyone and sprint out of the door, running across the grass until my legs give way. It was my turn for my screams to echo through the night. Not even when Clarke pulled me into his embrace on the ground could he calm me down.

I don't even recall how long I was screaming for. All I remember is my vision blurring before it turned to black as my voice went hoarse before extinguishing entirely.