The Sound of Heartbreak

She followed the sounds to the living room and taking a deep breath, she pushed open the door and walked inside. The scene that greeted her was not unusual but it still choked her up every time she had to witness it, it was the one thing that she hated the most about being here, but one of many that she couldn’t change.

Adrian was perched on the armrest of the couch while Alyssa sat on the couch beside him, her head resting against his chest as he she wept into his shirt, her anguished sobs filling the room and drifting into the hall outside. Layla moved to sit on the other end of the couch beside her and looked up at Adrian, whose face looked like it was carved from stone. His face was devoid of emotion but she could tell from the subtle clenching of his jaw and glittering intensity in his eyes that he was a seething mess of rage inside. Layla had witnessed this more times than she cared to remember and she felt a pang of guilt at the feeling of relief that, after tonight, she wouldn’t have to anymore, at least for a while anyway.

Alyssa was Blake’s mate but something had happened between them in the past that had made him hate her and he constantly found ways to hurt her, not physically, but ways that were just as painful as if he had used his hands on her. One of these was his fondness for taking other women to his bed knowing that because of the mate bond this would cause Alyssa indescribable pain, and this was just one such occasion. Adrian knew about it, of course, but being the Alpha, Blake knew that there was nothing that his son could do to stop him, and he exploited this shamelessly. Neither of them would get any sleep tonight and Layla prepared herself for a long night by making herself comfortable on the couch.

“You should get some sleep. You will be leaving tomorrow”, Adrian murmured, turning his gaze on her.

“I won’t be leaving until after the peace talks, there will be plenty of time for me to rest”, she replied, settling back against the cushions.

“Suit yourself”, he snorted, turning his attention back to his mother, “Why are you back so soon anyway? I thought you were sleeping over with Asha or did you two have another fight?”

“No…….I just had stuff to do so I came back early”, she shrugged, trying to appear nonchalant.

He chuckled wryly knowing that she was lying, he knew her too well and he was also aware of the numerous fights that she’d had with Asha throughout their friendship but eventually they would make up. Looking down Adrian saw that his mother had fallen asleep, a brief respite before the next bout of pain, his father’s carnal appetites were insatiable and this was only the beginning. Layla was already on her feet with cushions in hand to place under Alyssa’s head as Adrian prepared to stand. After making sure that she was sleeping comfortably they both made their way to the large kitchen down the hall, which was now empty as Adrian had dismissed everyone for the rest of the night. He regularly did this to provide his mother with some privacy during these incidents and because he would rather not have anyone witnessing what he considered to be a private affair.

Layla went straight to the fridge and began taking out stuff to make an omelet while Adrian started the coffeemaker and removed two mugs from a cupboard beside him. They moved around the kitchen with practiced ease as this was a familiar routine for them and they were comfortable enough in each other’s presence that they didn’t need to make conversation. A short while later, they were sitting down at the breakfast counter to eat when Adrian finally spoke while digging into the mushroom and spinach omelet that Layla had made.

“I will miss you Elle especially at times like this”

“I will miss you too but I’ll be back sooner than you think”, she said, smiling at his use of his pet name for her.

“I don’t think you will…….I feel like this is goodbye somehow”, he fell silent staring down at his empty plate.

“But where else would I go?”, she asked teasingly.

“You were never meant to be here to begin with and I don’t mean that in a bad way. It’s just…..I feel like you’re destiny lies somewhere else, not here”

“Ok now you’re scaring me, talking like I’ll never see you again”

“I didn’t say that, I’m sure that we will see each other again but I don’t think that this will ever be home again for you…….not that it ever was”, he muttered the last part under his breath and stood up to take his plate to the sink.

Layla carried her plate and followed him to the sink where she stood beside him and looked up into his eyes.

“You made this my home, you and Alyssa, and you will always be my family. Don’t ever forget that”

She placed her plate in the sink and put her arms around him as he hugged her back just as they heard Alyssa cry out from the living room. Adrian released her and stepped back but kept his hands on her shoulders.

“You don’t have to do this anymore, I won’t blame you”

Guilt washed over her again, worse than before, at hearing him voice what she had been thinking.

“We are family Adrian and family stick together. I’m not leaving you”, she said firmly.

He gave her a small nod and headed back to the living room while she remained in the kitchen a moment longer to compose herself. Adrian needed her now, she thought, and she was being selfish thinking of herself and her own feelings when he was going through so much right now. Taking a deep breath, she left the kitchen and walked back down the hall to the living room, prepared for the long night ahead.

As the early morning light slowly crept into the living room, two sleeping figures wrapped in blankets lay huddled on cushions on the rug in front of the fireplace. The fire had long since burnt out and only a few burning embers remained, glowing in the grate, which was now mostly covered in gray ash. From the top of one blanket peeked a mess of silken strands of silky auburn hair while the other blanket showed only tousled dark hair and a glimpse of broad shoulders.

Alyssa stood in the doorway clutching a cup of coffee as she watched her two children sleeping peacefully beside each other and a smile spread across her lips, lighting up her entire face. They meant the whole world to her and her heart was breaking at the thought of Layla leaving them. She loved and cared for like she was her own daughter and it wouldn’t be the same without her. She knew that Adrian would be affected just as much, they were so close that no one would have guessed that they were not related by blood at all.