His Lycan Luna Queen novel Chapter 14

AZALEA

Damian stares at me, his brow furrow in confusion, mirroring my own bewilderment. What does he mean? Who is Taylor? She is standing right in front of him, so why does he seem so perplexed?

“Hello, can someone tell me what the fuck is going on? Did you give me your whore name?” Damian demands, his voice laced with frustration. My breath hitches at the derogatory term he used for her, and yet she doesn’t back down from him. In fact, she snarls, spinning on her heel to meet his gaze with a fiery glare.

“I’m Taylor,” she snaps, her words dripping with defiance. “It’s my birth name. The name I go by now is my middle name.”

Damian takes an involuntary step back, his expression pained, as if her words had struck a nerve.

“And I want you to hand over my son before you drop him,” Taylor growls, extending her arms toward the air, a desperate plea in her voice.

“Not until I know you’re not going to run off on me again,” Damian retorts, his tone laced with caution. As I glance at the bundled-up toddler sleeping peacefully in Damian’s arms, I notice a smirk forming on Liam’s face. He exchanges glances with Dustin before chuckling under his breath.

“Give me my son, you prick, before I cut your balls off,” she snarls at him, pulling my attention away from Dustin, who I am still yet to release from my command. Using the mindlink, I send Trey a message telling him to get to Abbie and bring her here as soon as possible. A few seconds later, he darts back inside the castle as he rushes away from beside me.

“Whoa, whoa, hold on a minute. What the fuck is happening? Who is she? Why is she here?” Kyson interjects, his voice filled with confusion. Damian is the one to respond, his weariness evident in his voice.

“Tandi, Taylor, whatever you want to call her, she used to be one of the girls from the brothel,” Damian sighs, rubbing a hand across his face while still cradling the child. He winces as he rocks the toddler as if experiencing physical pain.

Damian huffs and looks rather exhausted, as if he has tried to explain this story to everyone a thousand times. “She is also my mate,” Damian says, scrubbing a hand down his face while holding the child closer and rocking him with one arm, wincing as he does so.

“Tandi, I don’t go by Taylor anymore. She died a long time ago,” Taylor says, and I get that. To me, Ivy feels dead, too. I understand that feeling all too well. Ivy, the person I used to be, is like a distant memory. I no longer identify with that name or the person I once was. The experiences of the past few months have transformed me into someone entirely different. Having experienced so much in the past few months, I don’t believe it will ever be possible for me to relate to the person I once was.

“I thought you were dead,” Abbie gushes, squeezing her tight, and I move closer. Taylor, who is now Tandi, reaches over, squishing us together as she embraces us. “How, how are you here?” Abbie says, placing her feet down as tears stream down her face. Kyson, Gannon, and Damian all just stand there gawking at us while we fuss over each other when Tandi turns to Damian and pins him with her glare.

“My son — now. I did what you asked,” she says, earning a look from Damian. But it is Gannon who nudges Damian to hand her son back.

“Give her son back. She looks like she bites, like an angry gremlin,” Gannon mumbles.

“She fucking does. She’s already bitten me twice while throwing a fit,” Damian growls irritably as he reluctantly relinquishes the child.

“You have a child?” Abbie gasps, peering into the blankets to catch a glimpse of the sleeping toddler in Tandi’s arms. Turning towards Gannon, she extends her arms, silently indicating that she wants to hold Tyson.

As Gannon passes Tyson to Abbie, the little boy squirms and reaches out for her. The sight of Abbie cradling her son, reunited with our long-lost friend, fills me with both relief for Tandi and Abbie and longing for the life I lost.