Chapter 1: The Calm

Chapter One : The Calm

We are often captivated by our own perceptions, creating our reality to be warped.

Ella looked down at her son and her heart swelled. She could look into his eyes a million times, it would still have the same effect on her. Her journey had been troublesome and tiresome but she prides herself in knowing that every moment created this magical one . Her hospital room was not fancy in the slightest, but to her tired soul it was heaven. The room bared no pictures on the walls. Besides a little roll table, IV pole and her bed, the room was empty. Minus her child who made the room feel completely full to her. So captivated by her newborn baby, Ella smiles in triumph.

“ I will always protect you Xavier,” she whispers as she holds on to him tight. A slight tap appears on the door and Ella darts her eyes in that direction.

“Come in,” she says meekly. A silent breath of relief escapes her as she realizes that it is just one of the nurses.

“Hey hun I need to do a quick checkup on you then will have to take Xavier for his,” the nurse kindly states to Ella. She nods in acceptance as the nurse walks to her bedside. Quickly checking the monitor, she scribbles down some numbers.

“Have you been able to use the restroom? Also I would like to check your pads just to see if the bleeding has slowed down,” and with those words the nurse continues her examination. Ella notices that she doesn’t seem to be too happy with what the pad is showing but the nurse doesn’t address the issue.

“I did get up and try to go to the bathroom, I left my output in the little hat thing like you guys had asked,” She answers the nurse's question. The nurse smiles and heads over to the bathroom, documenting the last bit of Ella’s check up.

“Well hun we are all done with yours, now time for the baby’s,” She smiles at Xavier in Ella’s arms. Forcing a smile upon her face, Ella hands the baby to the nurse. She truly hates this part the most. Irrationality gets the best of her in these moments. She tries to ease her mind by reminding herself that they are safe. No one knows where she is at and the nurses know how to keep him safe. Even if in her mind she believes the only person who can truly keep him safe is herself, she has to make sure Xavier is healthy before their trip.

“Don’t worry momma, we will be back in no time,” the nurse smiles at Ella as she heads to the door with Xavier. Ella watches them leave and her heart twists. She waits for a few moments, ensuring they are far enough away from the room; Ella begins to break down. She isn’t proud to admit, but the breakdowns seem to occur more frequently the past couple of months. The betrayal, fear, exhaustion, pain and heartache she holds heavy on her soul. She weeps quietly while replaying the memories that causes her woes.

“Dammit Ella keep it together, he needs you to be strong,” she tells herself between each sob.

Ella tries to calm herself down. The past is where it belongs and she must let it lie. If she lets her emotions cloud her judgement even for a second it leaves room for error. If she makes one irrational move, it can unravel the one thing she has vowed to protect, Xavier. Just like every moment that has led her to this point, Ella must stay calm, calculated and collected.

She looks around the room, trying to make herself stay grounded, but just like many times before the memory slips in with no remorse.

She remembers the first time she ever met him. Ella had reluctantly agreed in going to a night club after her friend pestered the topic for weeks.

“Come on Ella, all you do is study. It’s not healthy. You have been here for years and haven’t had one normal college experience.” Lilly begins to whine as she’s getting ready in a tight lime green dress. It’s not that Ella didn’t want to have fun, but she wanted to make the best for her life.

Ella grew up poor. Her Dad had left before she was even born leaving her mom to take care of her. Her mom tried her best but after bills it left them with nothing. She pushed herself in school to get straight As so she could get the scholarships that she needed. Ella had a couple of friends but stayed to herself for the most part. She didn’t want the distractions of a social life to deter her from her goal.

All of her work had paid off. Ella was able to get a full scholarship to Belmont University in Tennessee. For the past four years she has ensured to maintain her perfect gpa. She is so close to graduating and making something of herself. That thought alone has made every moment worth it.

Her dream since she was a little girl was to be an architect. She had always been fascinated with the beauty and stories behind buildings. One more year and she will be graduated. She had already been working as an intern and they had ensured her a position once she graduates.

“Helllloooooooo, Earth to Ella, “ Lily says exasperated. Ella snaps out of the past and focuses on what Lilly is saying. With a sigh she reluctantly agrees. The test isn’t for another week and Ella knows every inch of the material. Lilly’s eyes go wide with excitement, “OMG really? Ok hold on one second,” she rambles as she quickly heads to her closet. Within a minute she returns holding a dark purple off the shoulder dress. “This, you have to wear this Ella, it’s perfect,” she says excitedly.

Ella takes the dress with an exaggerated sigh. It truly was beautiful. It came just above her knees and fit her form perfectly. Ella looked in the mirror and was stunned. She had never worn a dress before, never having time to do anything but study. Lilly grabs a pair of strapped gold sandals and hands them to Ella.

“Now for the fun part,” Lilly says holding her make up bag. Ella rolls her eyes,

“Seriously Lilly that’s not necessary, I’m just going as kind of a back up if you need me,” Ella says.

“Nonsense Ella, this is your night to shine,” Lilly protested. Since she is finally getting out of her shell, Lilly vowed that Ella would have an entire metamorphosis for this evening.

After an hour of straitening and primping Ella starts to question why she even agreed to this in the first place. Before she can back out, Lilly shouts done and they are ready to go. Ella turns around to look in the mirror and her jaw drops. She hardly recognizes herself. Ella has been more than comfortable rocking a messy bun, baggy shirt and sweats for the past several years.

Well there’s no backing out now, Ella thinks to herself as she grabs her purse off the nightstand. Even though she has a pit of nervousness in her stomach, she also is a little bit excited. She has never done anything like this in her life. Heck what’s the worse thing that could happen she thinks to herself as they head out the door.

Ella didn’t realize this club was so far away. It had taken them an hour and a half to drive here. Looking down at her watch she sees it is already 11:30.

“Oh come on Ella, stop worrying about the time and just have some fun,” Lilly rolls her eyes as she grabs on to Ella’s arm. She pulls them to the front were the bouncer is and flashes him a killer smile.

“Hey there handsome, it’s a little cold outside, why don’t you let my friend and I head on in.” Lilly purrs at the bouncer as she rubs her hand on his chest. He practically drools at the sight of her, honestly who wouldn’t. Lilly was 5’7” long gorgeous tan legs, beautiful blue eyes and long blond hair that fell past her breasts.

The bouncer flashes Lilly a grin and opens the rope to let us in. People in line start protesting loudly as we walk into the club. Nervously checking her surroundings, Ella feels completely out of her element at the night club. She isn’t even sure what band is playing.

Apparently this is a popular place, it is flooded with people dancing and lounging around. She didn’t realize how loud one of these places could be. Lilly shouts something to Ella and vanishes. She has no idea what she said and just stands there stupidly feeling way out of her element.

She starts to regret her decision and thinks about heading home when Lilly bounces up to her with a pink mix drink and hands it to her. She has drank before but just a simple wine with dinners, nothing crazy. Ella drinks it down and after a few moments starts to feel that warm fuzzy feeling she has heard others talk about.

Before long she is drinking more and dancing to the beats. She can’t believe it has taken her this long to go to one of these places. Dancing and laughing with Lilly, she starts to feel free as she lets her buzz take control.

She shouts to Lilly that she’s going to get another drink, as she turns around she bumps into a man. He grabs her into an embrace and she swears she hears him whisper mine. As she looks up into his eyes electricity courses through her entire body. Ella wants to blame the alcohol for the feeling she’s getting, but something is telling her it goes much deeper than that….

After several moments she pushes it all to the back of her mind, something she has learned helps her cope through the days. Sitting there nervously waiting for Xavier to return, she stares at the clock. Each passing tick feels like minutes vs seconds. She knows he has only been gone no more than fifteen minutes, but the demons that play in her mind cause her anxiety to rise. Knowing she is overreacting Ella goes to push the call button, but before she can Xavier arrives back in the room.

The moment he is returned , her muscles begin to relax. He is wide eyed and content now, just as he was when he had left her side. She smiles down at Xavier and thanks the nurse.

“ He was the perfect little patient, remember if you guys need anything at all please don’t hesitate to use that call button,” she says politely before she walks out of the room.

Ella hasn’t pushed that button once. She hasn’t felt the need to bring others into the room more than they already do. They frequently are coming in and even chatting with her for a length of time. Not that she doesn’t enjoy having company, she just doesn’t want any loose ends on her part. She is trying to get through this night so she can continue on with her plans. The less people who know her, the better in the end.

Her exhaustion is increasing tremendously, but she is trying to fight it with all of her might. Between the beauty of her baby and the darkness of her dreams, she would rather focuses on the one in her arms. Ella know she needs the sleep to regain strength, and she vows she will try to get some, but first she wants to admire him for just a little bit longer. Xavier has olive skin, beautiful green eyes and the thickest black hair she has ever seen. She knows where he gets his looks from but pushes that thought back immediately.

“You are so beautiful Xavier. Mommy loves you so much my handsome prince,” Ella whispers as she kisses his forehead. Before she can help herself, Ella falls sound asleep with Xavier in her arms.

He can smell her. Like a drug he inhales deeply, each step causing her scent to get stronger.

“Sir this is a private area, you can’t be in here,” the nurse says. Snapping out of his euphoria over her words, his eyes blaze with anger. He knows she’s close and this woman stands here like a fucking barrier, denying him of what he wants.

“Sssir I’m sorry but the visiting hours are over, If you want I can leave a note for the patient.” She begins to ramble and stutter. Liam can sense the panic in her rising. Snapping out of his rage he looks to see where her intoxicating smell led him to. A sign hanging from the ceiling stuns him for a moment. Maternity Ward, is what it reads.

He looks around the hallway and his eyes fixate at the nurses desk. He knows damn well Ella is in here, but why? That is when it dawns on him. Ella is pregnant.

“You got to be fucking kidding me,” Liam roars as realization seeps through his body. Eight months, eight fucking months he has been trying to track down his mate and this is where his tip led him. Balling his hands into fists he starts to lose his control. He snaps his head to look at the nurse who is clearly scared of the man standing in front of her. He walks inches closer as the nurse cowers backwards. He is determined to see what room Ella is hiding in. With no remorse left in his composure he inches closer to grab the nurse. Right before he grabs her, he catches a glimpse of her reaching to her side. The bitch has a radio in her shaking hand. Fuck, the last thing he needs is a scene. Liam closes his eyes and tries to collect his barring.

“I apologize ma’am, I must have made a wrong turn,” he says. Backing away from the nurse, he continues to keep an eye on the radio she’s holding. Before she can reply to him he turns around and walks out of the ward. Liam hears the woman let out a deep breath as he walks away. He had sensed her fear the moment he looked at her.

He knows the nurse will be calling security so he tries to exit as quickly as possible. He hears someone walking down the hallway towards him. Liam immediately turns down a side hallway and curses under his breath. As he had suspected the nurse had called security.

“All clear this way,” he hears the officer say into his radio.

He dips through a set of doors before the officer turns down the next hall. Liam makes it to the emergency room. All heads turn in his direction as he passes the civilians in the waiting room. A security officer starts to rise in his chair, but Liam is too fast, he exits the building before he can be approached.

Liam grabs his phone after he exits the hospital and dials Carter’s number. “Hey man did you find her yet?” Carter asks all chipper when he answers. Carter has been just as anxious to get his Luna back as Liam. Without Ella around Liam has been a little testy to be around to say the least.

“Carter I swear to God I will rip you limb from limb for this shit, why the fuck did you not tell me the reason for her hospital stay,” Liam is seething with anger and he means every word he speaks on the phone.

“Whoa boss I swear, all the witch told me was her locator spell pointed to St. John’s Hospital. Is she ok? What happened to her? Do you think…”, Liam hangs up on Carter too pissed to answer any questions. He knows Carter is a good man, that’s why he picked him to be second in command. Carter has been by his side since he was fifteen, he is as loyal as they come. But at this moment Liam is blinded by pure rage.

“Fuck that can’t be good,” Carter mumbles as he looks at the disconnected call. He hasn’t heard Liam that pissed in a very long time. Replaying the short conversation in his head he came to the conclusion that Liam was more flustered then pissed. Sitting on the edge of the bed he starts to burst out laughing. Realization sinking in that Liam is going to have more than just Ella to keep him occupied. With that thought he crawled back in bed, pulling Amara up to his chest.

“You won’t escape so easily this time Ella I can promise you that,” Liam mumbles as he walks off into the dark. Liam got a hotel not too far from the hospital and debates for a moment going there to collect his thoughts. Surely she wouldn’t discharge in the middle of the night? Fuck it’s not worth the risk he decides. Liam gets into his car, he will stay right here until he can come up with a better plan.