Alpha Alec's Redemption - Chapter 131: Chapter 131

I woke up the next day with the name Xena still bouncing around in my head. I didn’t get it. If Nyx had blocked our emotional connection, then how come I felt that fear? Why did that name affect me the way it did? And why would Nyx be so fearful of her sister if these were really remnants of emotions from her?
There were so many questions. So many theories that were driving me crazy. What had happened between them? The few memories I got, they seemed so close. They seemed to love each other. What made them change? Except for that one time when Xena pushed Nyx, there wasn’t any other incident. And isn’t it normal to squabble between siblings?
I’m outside, seated on a boulder, watching Aspen chase butterflies. Her joyful screams did nothing to distract me from my internal turmoil.
When it comes to Nyx, I’ve learned not to disregard whatever it is I feel. The fact that I felt fear when Xena’s name came to mind meant something. Did it mean that Nyx was afraid of her own twin?
What could have happened between them to cause Nyx to have that fear? Remembering the premonition, I sat up right. Hell, what could have happened between them to cause Xena to want to kill her own sister? I remember it clearly. Xena said that we should have picked the right side. What was that about?
The more I thought about it, the crazier I felt I was going. There was so much in Nyx’s past. So much that she has yet to talk about. So much I didn’t know. How is everything tied to Xena? Why is she making hybrids? How exactly powerful is she?
Given that Nyx and Xena are twins, they should be equally matched, right? So how is it possible for Xena to create a whole new species? I know for sure I can’t. So how is she able to?
And who exactly was Nyx's first human? I couldn't see the faces of the little girls, but I was going by what Nyx had already told me about having a twin sister. Another question: what happened to Nyx's first human? Are Nyx and Xena reincarnated? It would make sense, right? If Nyx is as old as I guessed, then the same goes for Xena.
Just then, I remembered Kaden. Didn’t I get the same feelings when Kaden’s name was mentioned? Just like with Xena, apart from fear, I felt hurt, pain and a bit of anger. What was that about?
As my mind ran through every possibility, a theory began taking root. Could there be a link between Xena and Kaden? But that would mean that both Nyx and Xena knew a demigod. How is that possible? Hell, I didn’t know demigods existed, so how did they know one?
When Nyx told me she knew Kaden, I just assumed that she knew him from texts, but what if that’s not the case? What if she actually knew him personally? Both she and Xena.
So does that mean the curse is also related to Xena? Is the connection between them the only reason Nyx is the one able to break it? And why couldn’t it be Xena, given she’s just as powerful or maybe even more?
My heart starts racing as the pieces start to fall into place. It was nothing but my rumblings. My theories, but why didn’t it feel so right? Why does it feel like the missing pieces were finally fitting into the puzzle?
“Mommy, look!” Aspen’s shout momentarily brings me back to the present. “I caught a butterfly.”
Her shout startled me. I had been so lost in my thoughts that I didn’t even realize it when she got closer to me.
“Isn’t it pretty?” she smiled, her eyes completely captivated by the colorful butterfly. “I won’t ever let it go. I’ll take care of it forever.”
“You can’t do that, baby,” I told her gently.
Her face falls down. She stares at me in confusion, her green eyes so much like Alec's, it hurts.
“But why? I promise to take care of it.”
I thought about it for a minute. I needed to explain to her in a way that she understood. Aspen, being the daughter of two alphas, meant that she was headstrong and stubborn. She will do what she wants as long as she thinks it’s right. It’s a character I’m trying to help her tame, because being an alpha means you have to have a nice head between your shoulders. You have to think things through, not using your heart but your head. Most of the time, Aspen does things going by what she feels.
“You love being outside, right?” I began and waited for her to nod her head. When she does, I continue. “How would you feel if I locked you inside the house and refused to let you out?”
She thought about it for a second, a cute little frown appearing between her brows. “Very bad.”
“Would it make you happy being inside all the time?”
“No.”
“That’s the same with this pretty butterfly. It loves being outside where it can fly around. If you lock it inside, it will be very, very sad. It won’t even want to eat or play with you. Is that what you want?”
She looked at me and then at the butterfly in her hand. Tears sprang to her eyes as she answered. “I don’t want her to be sad. I want her to be happy, like me.”
I smiled at her while running my finger down her cheek. “Then you have to set it free. Play with it outside, chase it, but don’t catch it. You also don’t want to hurt its wings, do you? Look at how weak they are.”
“I don’t want to hurt her wings.” Her tears are long gone as what I said finally sinks in. “I’ll let it go now.”
She doesn’t wait for me to say anything else, just skips away before lifting her hands in the air and letting the butterfly go. I watched as she continued chasing after them with a huge smile on her face.
Keeping my eyes on her to make sure she didn’t go too far, I stood up and stretched. My ass was going numb, having sat on that boulder for a while.
I feel him before I even see him. I used to know when Alec was around, but with the bond now active between us, that feeling has been magnified.
I don’t turn even when I feel him on my back or when he comes to stand next to me. Silence stretches between us. It wasn’t uncomfortable, but it also wasn’t weird.
I didn’t see him during breakfast even though I scanned for him. Which is just ridiculous if you ask me. Why? Why now? I thought I had moved on. I had destroyed the love I felt for him. Now, though, feelings I thought I’d buried have started emerging.
“You are a great mother,” he mumbled next to me, his voice a deep rumble that sent shivers down my spine.
I still. “Well, that’s so random, but thanks, I guess.”
“She looks so happy. So free,” he whispered. “I can’t believe I had almost ended her life. That I missed three years of her life.”
This time I couldn’t help but turn to face him. He faced forward. His focus was on Aspen, but even without seeing his face, I could hear the regret in his voice. I could hear the hate and resentment towards himself for almost ending her life.
I spent so much time using that to hurt him without realizing he was already hurting. There was no use in beating down a man who was already beating himself down. I was basically kicking a man when he was already down.
“I’m sorry,” he said, his voice barely above a whisper. “I’m sorry that I am a letdown. I let you both down and that’s something I’ll regret for the rest of my life. I should have treated you better. I should have tried to piece things together first. I should have seen past my anger.”
Before I could say anything, Aspen turned her head sharply as if she could sense her father. She screams with glee before running towards us. In a move that neither of us expected, she jumps into his arms.
“You came,” she beamed, wrapping her hands around his neck before she placed her head on his shoulder.
I could feel her happiness all the way to where I was standing. It radiated off her in waves and it filled the entire space.
I looked at the father-daughter duo and I couldn’t help but wonder, am I really doing the right thing keeping them separate or is it just my fears that are making me deny what’s clearly love between them?