Chapter 292: Remove The Choker
Rebecca’s POV
It had been four days since I arrived in Botswana, and two days since I sent that recording to Kaden.
I had genuinely believed the video would be enough. I thought once Kaden heard me admit that the kidnapping was fake, that I had lied about losing my memory, and that I had supposedly been sent to assassinate him, he would finally stop searching for me. Especially after I told him everything between us had been a lie—and that I was going to terminate the baby. I thought hearing those terrible things would shatter whatever feelings he had for me and make him hate me enough to move on.
But I had been wrong.
According to Kane, Kaden was still searching. He wasn’t as frantic or panicking as blindly as he had been during the first two days because he now knew I was safe and hadn’t actually been kidnapped by violent enemies. But he hadn’t stopped looking for me either.
Kane said Kaden refused to accept the recording. He was still insisting on finding me, driven by a stubborn need to see me face-to-face and hear those words directly from my mouth.
I let out a heavy sigh and wrapped my arms around myself as I stood beside the bedroom window, staring out at the peaceful landscape.
Outside, the afternoon sun stretched across Alpha Darius’s territory. From where I stood, I could see trees spreading into the distance and a few pack members walking along the road below. Everything here was completely different—the people, the scents, the weather. Even the atmosphere felt different from Kaden’s territory.
Maybe that was exactly what I needed.
Tomorrow, I would be moving into my own home. Alpha Darius had come by earlier to let me know that everything was prepared. Kane had arranged a private house for Stephanie and me away from the main pack settlement. There would be guards nearby, but they wouldn’t interfere with my life unless I needed them.
And money wasn’t something I needed to worry about either. Kane had made sure of that, leaving me with plenty of cash and access to card accounts under my new identity. According to Kane, I had enough money to live comfortably for at least the next three years without working.
Three years. Hopefully, by then, I would know what I wanted to do with the rest of my life.
For now, I just wanted peace. I wanted to raise my baby somewhere nobody knew me as Alpha Kelvin’s unwanted daughter, Helen’s murderer, Kaden’s breeder, Kane’s lover, or Ruby.
I wanted to simply be Rebecca.
The bedroom door clicked open behind me, and Stephanie walked inside with a warm smile. She closed the door before looking at me.
”Are you ready?” she asked gently.
My stomach immediately tightened. I knew exactly what she meant. My hand slowly rose to my neck, feeling the cold metal of the silver choker.
I had kept it on even after arriving in Botswana because I wanted to make absolutely certain we were safe before removing it. Alpha Darius had assured us that Kaden had no idea where I was, and Kane had confirmed that nobody had traced us here. There was no reason to keep wearing it anymore.
”Yes,” I whispered, turning away from the window. “I’m ready.”
Stephanie walked toward me. I reached into the small drawer beside the bed and pulled out the tiny silver key pin I had taken from Helen’s locket.
For a moment, I simply stared at it. This tiny thing. I had risked so much for it. I had gone into Kaden’s private room for it, lied, pretended, and done everything I could to get my hands on it. And now it was finally going to set me free.
I handed the key pin to Stephanie. “My hands are shaking,” I admitted.
She gave me a reassuring smile. “Then let me.”
I turned around and lifted my hair away from my neck. Stephanie stepped behind me, her fingers careful as she touched the back of the choker, searching for the tiny opening.
My heart started beating faster. “What if something goes wrong?” I whispered.
”We’re with Alpha Darius,” Stephanie reminded me softly. “And you can’t keep that thing around your neck forever. Especially with the baby.”
I closed my eyes, taking a steadying breath. “Do it.”
There was a tiny sound right behind my neck.
Click.
The heavy metal band unlatched. For a second, nothing happened. Then Stephanie carefully lifted the choker away from my skin.
The moment it left my neck, something exploded through my body. I gasped, my knees nearly giving out.
”Rebecca!” Stephanie grabbed my arm, but I barely heard her.
A sudden, powerful rush of energy flooded through every part of me, starting from my chest and spreading all the way to my fingertips. It wasn’t painful—it was almost overwhelming, like a force that had been trapped inside me for far too long had suddenly been released.
Then I felt it. A presence. Familiar, warm, and alive.
My eyes widened, and my lips began trembling. Deep inside my mind, a loud, joyful howl suddenly rang out. The sound was so clear, so bright, that my breath hitched in my throat. I instantly felt her presence—the warm, comforting bond that had been blocked for so long.
I covered my mouth. Laura? I called out in my head, my voice trembling.
Silence followed for barely a second.
Rebecca! I’m here! I’m back! Laura’s voice burst through the link, filled with overwhelming joy.
A sob tore from my throat. My legs gave out completely, and Stephanie quickly caught me, lowering us both to the floor. Tears instantly spilled over my eyelashes and poured down my cheeks.
”She’s here,” I cried, placing my hands over my chest as the sheer weight of relief washed over me.
Stephanie wrapped her arms around me from behind, hugging me tightly. “Your wolf?”
I nodded rapidly, sobbing quietly in the middle of the room. “Laura is here. I can hear her.”
For so long, there had been nothing. The choker had buried her so deeply that I could barely feel her. I had grown used to the horrible emptiness inside me, but now that she was back, I realized just how much of myself had been missing.
”Laura, are you okay?” I asked, wiping my wet cheeks. “Did it hurt you?”
I’m okay, Rebecca, Laura replied softly, her presence wrapping around me. I’m completely fine. We’re whole again.
I closed my eyes as another sob escaped me. I missed you.
I missed you too.
That completely broke me. I buried my face against Stephanie’s shoulder and cried. Stephanie held me tightly, rubbing my back while I let everything out.
For the first time in what felt like forever, there was no wall inside my mind. No silence. No emptiness. I could feel Laura, feeling her strength and warmth flowing through me again. And beneath it all, I could feel my baby more clearly too.
I placed both hands over my stomach. I felt whole. My wolf was back, my baby was safe, and the suffocating silver was finally gone. For the first time in so long, I finally felt like myself again.
Then, suddenly, the air inside the bedroom suddenly changed.
Laura immediately went still, growling defensively inside my head.
My head snapped up. A strange energy swept through the room, making the curtains flutter even though the windows were closed.
”Rebecca?” Stephanie whispered, her voice laced with fear as she pulled back from me.
I quickly pushed myself to my feet, stepping back and instinctively covering my stomach to protect my baby. A faint, shimmering light appeared several feet away from us, growing brighter by the second.
”Get behind me,” Stephanie said quickly.
Before either of us could move, the light collapsed, and a dark, shimmering portal tore open right in front of us before dissolving into nothing.
A woman was standing in the middle of the bedroom. She wore a long, elegant dress… dressed like a queen.
Stephanie grabbed my arm. “Who are you?”
The woman didn’t answer. She simply stared at me.
My heart hammered as I looked at her face. The fear instantly drained from my body, replaced by pure shock. Something about her was familiar—too familiar.
My eyes slowly widened. No. It couldn’t be.
My lips parted, but for several seconds, no sound came out.
”Mother?” I whispered.