The Unwanted Bride Of Atticus Fawn

Chapter 69

The Unwanted Bride Of Atticus Fawn Chapter 69

~AUTUMN~

“The daughter of Azai Reign.” The overlords say in unison once more.

They’re all staring at me, their gazes digging into my skin. I held onto Atticus tighter, knowing I shouldn’t be afraid, but I was. I’m terrified of these people and what they could do to my family and me.

Atticus’s hands moved to my back as he pressed me tighter against him. If the overlords took me from him today, I wasn’t sure if I would ever be able to see him again. I fought back the tears as I buried my face against his neck.

“Your family doesn’t look surprised at her power.” Sir Vincent notes.

“Does this mean they knew about you all this time?” he asks. “Did they know that you were the daughter of the same sorcerer planning to kill all leaders so that he could become the only king?”

I inhale sharply. The evidence was already in front of them; they were waiting for me to confirm it, even though we all knew their minds were made up.

“No!” I defend them. “They didn’t know anything about me. Nothing. Even I didn’t find out until recently. They are innocent in all of this. How can they be guilty just because of my father? He was the one that caused so much distress, not them, not me. Why should we have to pay for something that he did?”

They don’t look convinced. They have already determined that we are all guilty. I would rather be taken in than see everyone here punished because of me.

“And you found out the truth after you were kidnapped?” The overlord asks me. “Is this true?”

They must already know who kidnapped me as well. I still had no clue who had told them. If it wasn’t Atticus’s parents that only left Anya, but she was here the entire time, how could she have been in two places at once? Was there someone else working with her that we didn’t know about? There is a chance she told them before she told the Fawns.

“Yes,” I confess. “Azai’s people kidnapped me. I still don’t know why they let me go. They have their reasons, but as I told them, I’m not going to be anything like my father. I will not hurt innocent people. I don’t want to be a ruler or their queen. I’m happy with my life; I don’t need anything else but the people I care about close to me.”

“If you don’t want to cause any problems for the people in your life, I suggest you come with us.” The overlord tells me. Atticus is still holding me, and I can feel him stiffen at his request.

“Don’t listen to him.” He whispers. “They are not to be trusted. We can get out of this. I promise.”

“What will you decide?” Sir Vincent asks. “Will you go with them, or do we have to hurt your family first?”

“No,” Atticus growls. “She isn’t going anywhere with any of you.”

“Your family, as well as Autumn’s family, has broken the rules. Are you aware of what we do to people who break our rules?” He asks him.

I close my eyes in frustration. They kept them in cells for years; some were even killed depending on how great their crimes were. It was a threat, and they knew it. They wanted to scare me, and it was working. Atticus doesn’t realize how much I would give up to protect him.

My eyes flash open, “if you hurt my family. I will destroy all of you.” I promise them. “You know what I’m capable of doing. Atticus is the only reason I’m able to be this calm. If you take him from me, I will become someone even worse than my father. This I can promise you.”

They chuckle, “even though you may have some of your father’s power, you don’t have enough practice to get rid of all of us. The best thing for you to do is to come with us willingly. We are also calm; we could have been much worse than this. We’re trying to handle this situation in a civilized manner. We can only hope that you will also do the same.”

It was a difficult decision to make. I didn’t want to leave Atticus without a fight. But I had no idea what these men were capable of doing. There were too many of them, and I knew they were prepared to kill if they had to. I was not okay with losing anyone here. I take one last look at Atticus, memorizing every feature on his face.

His forehead creased as soon as I opened my mouth to speak.

“Okay,” I whisper. “I’ll come with you willingly, but only if you promise not to punish my family and Atticus as well as his family. No one is to blame for any of this. If you punish them, I will not let it slide easily. If you let them all go without punishment, I will not cause any trouble.”

They slowly looked at each other, and it looked like they were communicating in their minds. I wasn’t sure if they could do that, but it was possible with how in sync each of them was.

The eldest overlord eventually nods, “Okay, you have a deal.” Copyright Nôv/el/Dra/ma.Org.

I breathe a sigh of relief, but Atticus does the opposite. His breathing is rough, and I can feel the wild beating of his heart. He’s not okay with my decision. He’s far from it.

“NO!” He hissed as he tightened his hold on me.

I lean into him and give him one last kiss on his lips. He held onto me as I kissed him aggressively, taking as much of him with me as possible.

“I’m not letting you go.” He growls into my ear. “You’re not going with them, Autumn. I’m not giving you to them.”

I buried my hands in his hair and pulled him tighter against me, “please don’t make this harder than it already is. It’s better this way. You can come up with a way to get me released; if we fight back, we can lose everyone that we love. You know that this is the only way for now.”

When he least expected it, I pushed him away from me hard. His eyes held a hint of betrayal as I walked over to the overlords, who wasted no time pulling me between them so that no one else could get to me.

“No!” Clarissa screams. “Don’t take her!”

There’s a lot of shouting afterward, but I can’t see anything as I’m shoved out of the house and into a waiting vehicle. I know Atticus will try and follow us. I know that he isn’t going to give up, but as long as they don’t hurt him, I will keep my promise to them.

. . . . . . . . . . .

~ATTICUS~

“ATTICUS!” Damon shouts as he tries to stop me from running after Autumn.

“AUTUMN!” I roar. “AUTUMN, PLEASE!” I couldn’t stop shouting her name.

How could she do this? How could she let them separate us? Didn’t she realize that it was more f*****g painful for me when she was not around? She was trying to protect me, but I could only be happy when I had her in my arms. Without her, my life was f*****g empty. Why didn’t she realize that I needed her to f*****g survive?

“Don’t go,” Damon warns me. “The last time you went chasing after her, you got into an accident. We almost lost you. You still haven’t recovered from it. Let’s all stay calm and think before we act carelessly and make this worse.”

Before he can say anything else, I’m already out of the door.

“ATTICUS!” They all shout. I didn’t care what anyone had to say; I wanted to get my wife back. I wouldn’t be able to go a day without knowing that she was safe.

I jumped into the first car I saw and revved the engine before racing out of the driveway. I would not let them take her from me. Weirdly enough, that one thought awakened a distant memory inside of me. It wasn’t the first time I had thought those words. My eyes narrow as I spot the vehicles taking her away from me. There were many of them, not just one, and I wasn’t sure which one they had her in.

I mashed the accelerator harder; I couldn’t lose her for a second time. I couldn’t fail her again. I had to save Autumn this time; I had to protect her.

I loved her. I loved Autumn so much.

Loving her, was another memory that was buried inside of me. I felt it all slowly coming back to me, making it hard for me to concentrate on the road.

I searched my mind for the rest. I wanted to remember her. I wanted to remember marrying her. I tried to remember every chance I got to touch and kiss her, every chance I got to see her smile.

Even though it bothered me, I wanted to remember the times I hurt her so I could make it up to her. I wanted to remember every memory as long as she was in it.

My eyes widen when I spot a figure flash in front of the car, and I mash the brakes hard. As the tires screech, so does my brain. I can hear a ringing in my head as my mind triggers the memories that were

buried since my last accident. I can see her now, Autumn, in her wedding dress. I can hear our vows. I remember placing the ring on her finger. I remember the night in the spring. I remember her kissing me on the boat in front of everyone. I remember loving every f*****g second of it.

I remember making her cry; I remember hurting her because of my mixed emotions toward Anya. I remember her telling me how much she loved me for many years. It was all there.

My memory of the accident was also back; a woman had run in front of the vehicle, she was the reason I’d lost control, and if I didn’t stop the car now, I’d be in another accident. I can’t risk losing my memories of her all over again. I couldn’t let that happen. I never wanted to forget Autumn, never.

I tried to regain control of the vehicle, but it had a mind of its own and was heading straight toward a tree. A f*****g big one.

“f**k f**k f**k!” I roar.

Why was this happening again? I can’t let it happen. I press down on the door handle and push it open; it goes flying as it hits a pole, and I don’t see it again.

Suddenly, there is a bright light, like a flash of lightning, and without warning, I’m pulled out of the car.

What the f**k was that?

I’m on the ground watching the car collide with the tree and go up into flames.

I’m not sure how I even managed to get out in time, to begin with.

I hear footsteps and examine my surroundings.

A man is standing in front of me; he looks my age, possibly younger. I’m not sure, not with my head still spinning. His hair is ash blonde, similar to Autumn, but his eyes are a crazy mixture of silver and black.

He looks cold and distant, dangerous also.

“Who are you?” I ask him. “Was it you that got me out of there so quickly?”

There is a slight pause as the car goes up into more flames. He doesn’t even flinch like he’s used to things like that.

“Cassius.” He answers. “My name is Cassius.”

“How—”

“It looks like you were chasing someone. You’re wasting time speaking to me.” He cuts me off.

I don’t get time to ask any more questions as he gets into his vehicle and speeds off. The pain in my head and the memory of Autumn and how much she loves me were enough to make me forget about him, at least for now.

I close my eyes. It was no use chasing after the overlords now. They are already far. I would never get to them in time, and even if I did, what could I possibly do with that many of them?

Damon was right; I had to reason.

If I wanted to save Autumn, I needed to devise a plan first. But I knew that I couldn’t do this on my own.

I had to seek help from just the right people, and I knew who to look for.

I dropped myself onto the road; every memory of Autumn was back.

f**k.

If I thought I loved her before, I realized that I loved her so much f*****g more now. The woman was the reason for my existence. I would do anything for her.

I can’t believe I ever forgot our time together. They’re the most precious memories of my entire life. Autumn has always been the woman for me, and it took me too f*****g long to realize it.

I had to get her back. I had to save my wife, my mate, my everything.