MATED TO SERIES COLLECTION

51. LARA: GOODBYES AND REALITY

"You don't have to leave Silas. Can't you stay for a little while longer?" Valeria asked softly.

"We can't." Silas sighed loudly and turned towards her. "We've already had this conversation. We can't stay here any longer."

She moved forward and gripped his arm. I watched as she led him away and talked to him in low tones. I couldn't hear a thing she was saying to him but I could only guess. Silas wasn't as close with his family and after everything that had happened; I finally had the answer to a few of my questions. I knew exactly why he left home at such an early age.

"I thought you'd left already."

I turned around to find Avery standing close behind me. The smile on her lips was clearly for show. To anyone else it would look like we were having a friendly chat. I wasn't in the mood for her snarky remarks, so I turned back around and ignored her.

Avery of course couldn't take a signal. She moved closer and placed her hand on my shoulder. I winched when her warm breath fanned the side of my face. She was too close for comfort but I couldn't move away. Every time I made a move to step away, her hand on my shoulder tightened painfully.

"I heard something really interesting this morning," she whispered. "I heard that a certain someone cannot conceive without both her mates."

"What does that have to do with me?" I asked her.

She laughed and gave my shoulder a squeeze before she stepped around me to stand in front of me. Her smile had widened and her eyes were sparkling with something close to joy.

"It has everything to do with you, silly!" she said. "You see, you can never carry a baby full-term unless Ethan has contribution to you conceiving. Does that make things clearer, Lara?"

My breath got caught in my throat when her words penetrated my mind. Was that why I had lost our baby in the first place? I shook my head and took a step back from her. It wasn't true. It couldn't be true.

My eyes darted towards Silas who stood talking to David now. How much does he hate me now? What more was there left for us if I couldn't give him an heir without his brother? Why couldn't we do anything without Ethan? Silas turned then and caught my eyes. He showed no emotion, making it hard to figure out what he was feeling.

"He doesn't deserve you," Avery said, snapping my attention towards her. "Neither one of them deserve you. We were great together and it's only a matter of time before they realize that." She stepped closer and her smile dropped. "It's only a matter of time before he realizes what a mistake he made. You can never give him what he wants."

"Avery!" Ethan growled as he gripped her arm and ripped her away from me. "What the hell are you doing?"

She sneered up at him and ripped her arm free. "Telling her what you and your idiot brother should've told her."

Ethan's eyes snapped over to mine. His eyes instantly shot back to Avery. He growled something softly and then started pulling her away. She yelled and clawed at his hand but Ethan held tightly. I watched them until they disappeared from sight.

It couldn't be true.

When we left half an hour later, Avery's words were still playing through my mind. Ethan was driving us to the airport because neither David nor Devon could do that. Valeria was also busy. Silas could've hired a car but it was too risky. These days everything was too risky.

The drive to the airport went faster than it had when we arrived. This time we were boarding a private plane instead of a passenger plane. We'd be on our own all the way home. Would he tell me about what Avery had said then? Why hadn't he told me before? Why hadn't he told me the truth instead of making up the lie he had?