Chapter 36ISABELLAThe rest of the school day passed quickly in a blur of precious moments that I knew I would hold onto for weeks to come. The boys didn't head back to their class after lunch break was up instead, we spent the entire afternoon in the school's quiet garden, talking about everything and nothing while they took up every bit of attention that I could give them.Tommy told me about his latest art project, which happened to be a painting of our old garden that he'd been working on from memory, which was very remarkable of him. Sean showed me how he'd learned to tie his shoes properly, and he ended up showing me the steps three times to make sure I understood how proud he was of this new skill. I was so happy because he was never good at it before I left. He probably learned on his own after realizing Cassandra wasn't going to help him.These small milestones that I should have been there to witness firsthand, instead heard about secondhand during stolen moments at their
Chapter 35DAMONThe pieces clicked into place, as I realized what she was talking about and for the first time I was truly beginning to understand the relationship the three of them had going on that had left me perplexed all along.Isabella's fierce protectiveness of these boys, and her fear that her absence might be used by Max and Cassandra to make her the bad guy, the inability function properly when worried about them, despite the hell she went through in their parents hands, also it showed me just the twins full extent of their complete devotion to her, the way the school staff treated her like their mother—because in every way that mattered, she was their mother and I hadn't known that."So you raised them," I said, understanding just how it worked."From the beginning," she confirmed nodding her head as she gave more context. "Cassandra wanted nothing to do with them once they were born. She said they ruined her figure and interfered with her social schedule. So I fed them,
Chapter 34DAMON As we waited in the main hallway, for the teacher to bring out the students, I noticed the way other parents kept stealing glances at us.They seemed curious, like they were trying to piece together gossip they've heard. Isabella seemed oblivious to the attention, her eyes fixed anxiously on the corridor where the children would appear.I saw them first. Two small figures who were walking hand-in-hand with their teacher, their faces down in a way that shouldn't be possible.They looked tired, subdued, nothing like the energetic boys that Isabella had always talked about.Then Tommy spotted Isabella.He froze mid-step, his eyes widening with disbelief before he tugged frantically on Sean's sleeve. The moment Sean saw her, his face changed from sadness to pure joy."Mummy!" Sean shouted, his voice loud enough to echo through the hallway.Both boys broke free from their teacher's grip and ran toward Isabella, with the kind of desperate speed that showed that they were r
Chapter 33DAMON Isabella barely slept during nighttime after putting Lucas to bed. She has been tossing and turning beside me despite having taken the medication that should have helped her sleep.Every few minutes she would change positions, trying to find a comfortable way to lie that didn't hurt her wounds, and each small sound of discomfort she inadvertently made, made my wolf anxious, and worried beneath my skin.I had pretended to be fast asleep, not wanting to make her feel worse or awkward by drawing attention to her inability to rest, but every protective instinct I possessed was on high alert because I was worried about her, more than I let on. A bit of me was furious that Isabella still cared about what happened in that house despite the hell she had lived in, a part of me wished that she would not bother herself with those people but then again, she wouldn't be Isabella if she was heartless.But that didn't still change the fact that I was worried about her restlessness
Chapter 32ISABELLA"Mama keeps calling other boys," Lucas said immediately, turning to his father with a mixture of accusation and plea. "She's supposed to be taking care of me now that she is here and mine, but she's thinking about them instead."I felt heat rise in my cheeks as Damon's eyes shifted to me, studying my expression intensely making me feel like he could see right through me."I was just checking on Tommy and Sean," I said, feeling defensive despite knowing I had nothing to feel guilty about. "They called yesterday before the... incident that happened. They sounded scared and hungry, and I promised I'd make sure they were okay. I wasn't able to check back on them since I got attacked and I wanted to do so now.""And are they?" Damon asked, settling into the chair across from us. His voice didn't hold any anger or bad feelings. He knew who the kids were, they belonged to Max and he loathed him. But the kids were innocent in this case."I don't know," I admitted, my wor
Chapter 31ISABELLAThe late evening light was spreading its rays on everything - walls and halls through the windows as I made myself comfortable on the cushioned chair that was overlooking the gardens. My shoulder was still aching despite the pain medication, but being cooped up inside all day had made me restless and left with the need to do something.I guess my body still hadn't gotten used to doing nothing, just lazing around when I was used to working with a broken wrist back when I was in Max house.Damon had barely left my side since coming home yesterday, canceling all his meetings for the day and working from his home office so he could check on me every hour, and also give me space so as to not smother me. Elena had even successfully gotten Lucas to do something with her, instead of him hanging around and I was grateful to her. I doubted Lucas would enjoy sitting down beside me in silence for hours.Not that I was ungrateful, the attention that I have been receiving from