Claimed And Marked By Her Stepbrother Mates - Chapter 437

Chapter 437: 437-The Pain In His Eyes
Helanie:

I tried to free myself, but he kept holding me tightly and wouldn’t let me go. I guess he was waiting for me to stop fighting because once I did, he finally started talking, and I could tell he had a lot to say.

“Not everything is about you, Helanie. Right now, my brother is in the hands of the Glims! And my priority is him—our priority is him,” he hissed, finally letting me go and rubbing his hands over his face. I realized those monsters had a name.

“But he came to—” I started, but Norman sighed again, exhausted.

“He didn’t come for you,” he finished, watching me closely. “He came for Maximus. He didn’t know you would be there, so don’t believe it was your fault. He was already on the run to take care of his brother. But then suddenly, he lost track of Maximus. I let Kaye follow Maximus and Emmet while I stayed in the mansion to help the ones getting caught in open spaces by the Glims.” He was much calmer while explaining now.

I went silent almost instantly after he explained. But I still felt like if I had been more careful, Maximus wouldn’t have come to save me, and Emmet wouldn’t have had to follow him straight into his abduction.

“Now wear this because we have a long road ahead,” he said, shoving his coat into my hands. And the moment our bodies touched again—without him being aggressive—I felt something twist inside me.

“Ugh!” I coughed, dropping to my knees.

“What is going on with you?” he asked, putting the coat over my shoulders. But it wasn’t the cold that I was feeling. My legs were hurting so badly.

“I’m in pain—” I let out a cry, feeling my bones breaking. My ankles twisted so visibly that Norman gasped and sat down, grabbing them to rub them.

“Maybe it’s the cold,” he muttered, confused.

“No—cold—wouldn’t—” I screamed as my lower body started going numb. Was it the cold? Or was it something else entirely? And then, the world around me went silent.

I could only hear water.

“Water—” I said.

“You want water?” he asked, but I couldn’t respond properly. I started crawling forward, even as he tried to stop me.

I pointed in the direction of the frozen river. “Water—follow—” I said, feeling my vision blur for just a few seconds. And in those few seconds, I saw the Glims taking Emmet along the river trail.

When my vision cleared, the pain was gone.

“They took him that way,” I pointed toward the river and then felt something deep inside me. “They’re taking him to the waterfall.”

I realized everything was basically ice now, so them taking him there was terrifying. Why? Why did they want Emmet so badly?

“Are you sure?” Norman asked as I started to get up. I saw his eyes widen when he realized my legs were suddenly fine.

“What the fuck,” he mouthed, but he instantly corrected himself when he saw me reading his lips.

“Let’s go then.” This time, he didn’t ask me to turn back because he could tell I wouldn’t listen.

We rushed forward, faster than we should have. I had been out in the cold the whole night, and my body was feverish too. But Emmet was my only priority at that moment. I had worn Norman’s coat because every few seconds, he would complain about me not listening and being stubborn. So, I accepted his coat just to shut him up. I understood he was worried, but I couldn’t fully process it at that moment. I was just annoyed.

We finally arrived at the spot—the frozen water, the waterfall, and the cave beside it.

“Are you sure they’re there?” he asked.

“I don’t think we’re going to find glims there. It stopped snowing, so I believe they’re gone. They will return when it starts snowing again,” I recalled my own observations from two nights in a row outside.

“Got it, then let’s go,” Norman said, rushing toward the cave.

I had a feeling he would be there, and guess what? I was right. We saw him outside the cave, lying on his back. Norman took off his shirt and ran toward his brother before me. He covered him and then lifted him over his shoulder, signaling for me to follow. I didn’t get a chance to check on him, but Emmet’s safety was the priority right now. And getting away from this place was just as important. Whatever reason the Glims brought him here was still a mystery.

While Norman carried him away, I stayed around for a few seconds, glancing quickly at the surroundings and inside the cave. That’s when I spotted something that made me step inside to grab it.

It was a pink pearl bracelet.

I picked it up and put it in my sweater pocket before making my way out, handing Norman his coat back so he could use it to cover Emmet properly.

I could tell he was curious about why I had gone inside, but we had to hurry and get Emmet home before the snow started again. It would be hard enough to fight those things while keeping Emmet safe.

Instead of going to the hostel, we arrived at the academy because we knew the other brothers were there. Norman laid Emmet down in the nurse’s room, and Kaye rushed to check his pulse and blood pressure.

At the same time, I turned to look at Norman checking on Maximus, who was covered in blood, injured, and wrapped in bandages.

He would have to transition again to heal. That went for everyone who was wounded.

“Maximus, are you okay?” I walked over to him steadily, feeling bad for him. But I could never forget how his lycan had risked its own life for me.

I wasn’t sure if Maximus would remember, but when he lifted his head and looked at me, I was shocked to see that he did.

“Well, I guess I’m not your priority anymore.”

I didn’t know what made him say that, but the way he spoke shattered me.