Chapter 41: Chapter 41

ADELIE

Death was looming over me. I managed to draw in a steady breath. “Did you see that?” I asked him.

“What?” He responded.

“I saw someone running,” I explained, glancing back to confirm, but there was nothing. I was certain I hadn’t hallucinated it; it was real.

“All I saw was you running and then falling. I didn’t see anyone else,” he said, kneeling beside me. “Was there someone here?” His voice was laced with concern as he examined my leg.

“I saw someone watching me, then they started running. I thought it was strange, so I chased them,” I clarified. My leg was pulsating with pain, but I knew it would heal in a couple of days.

“And I don’t think I could’ve injured my leg this badly from just a fall.” I was convinced that the person had done something to me. I wasn’t naive enough to imagine things.

There were countless powers and spells I was oblivious to. I just hoped no one was targeting me. After everything with Aldred, I was done with fighting.

I didn’t want to endanger the pack.

“You shouldn’t be walking alone, love,” he advised. “Others know about your power, and just because no one is after you now doesn’t mean they won’t be in the future.

“Please, be careful. The world can be a harsh place, be wary of who you trust.”

“I know. My mom spent her whole life teaching me that,” I replied.

My words came out more bitter than I intended. I loved my mother and was grateful for her protection, but she also kept many things from me.

Father didn’t respond to that. He just sighed. “You need to call someone to help you get back to your pack,” he suggested.

“I know,” I agreed, sighing. I didn’t want to impose on anyone, but I had no other choice.

“Why didn’t you come here with Kairos? I’ve seen you two here together before,” he inquired.

I stared at my hands. “We had a fight,” I confessed, causing my father to chuckle. “It was a serious one,” I added, but he didn’t seem to get it. He just kept grinning.

“Every couple has disagreements. It’s not always roses; thorns find their way into everything good. I think it’s quite thrilling,” he said, giving my hand a reassuring squeeze.

“I don’t want to fight with him. What kind of marriage will we have if we can’t agree on things? I want it to be perfect!” I complained, which only made him chuckle again.

“Love, marriage isn’t about perfection. It’s about understanding that perfection is an illusion, and through marriage, you get to discover its beauty.

“It’s not until death do you part. It’s until you can’t make rational decisions to continue loving,” he said, standing up and walking away, leaving me sitting there on the ground.

He knew my injury wasn’t fatal, but damn, it hurt.

I placed my hands on the ground, drawing energy from the roots and quickly applying it to my leg. Of course, it didn’t do much. My healing powers were limited to healing others.

When I tried to heal myself, it didn’t work because I absorb the pain of others to heal them. What pain could I possibly absorb from myself?

I still had those witch books stashed in my closet at home. I couldn’t recall anything from them because they were designed to be easily forgotten to prevent the knowledge from being passed down.

I needed someone to come to me, but I didn’t want to mind-link Kairos. He didn’t even know I was gone, and he already had too much on his plate. But in my delirium, I forgot about our mate bond.

~“Adelie, where are you?”~ he inquired, sensing my distress.

~“I’m okay, just twisted my ankle. I’m by the lake, the nearest one. Can you send someone to help me back?”~ I responded. I would have reached out to Nathan through the mind-link, but Kairos was already there.

He didn’t reply, but I knew he’d be on his way. In the meantime, I needed to gather some ingredients for a healing potion.

Ignoring the pain, I got up and found it easier to hop on one foot. I remembered a patch of wolfsbane nearby.

I couldn’t recall any specific recipes, but I knew wolfsbane was useful for injuries if used properly. I hopped over to the patch, using the trees for support.

The area was filled with purple flowers, some as tall as my waist. I gathered a bunch and tied them with a vine. I took a few more and sat down, wrapping them around my injured ankle.

Soon, I heard footsteps and saw Kairos approaching.

“What happened?” he asked immediately, concern etched on his face. He knelt down to examine my ankle, careful not to touch the wolfsbane. He looked at me questioningly.

“I fell,” I replied, not wanting to cause unnecessary worry.

He looked back at my ankle. “It’s pretty bad. It’s swollen,” he observed.

“I just need a doctor to set it right,” I said, trying to downplay the situation.

I was accustomed to pain. As a trained healer, I think I’ve become somewhat desensitized to it. I feel it, but I don’t wince or cry.

Kairos lifted me carefully, avoiding the flowers, and I held the flowers as far away from him as possible.

“I don’t like it when you disappear,” Kairos confessed, and I rested my head on his chest.

“I know, and I don’t like arguing with you,” I responded.

“Adelie, I want you to know that I do trust you,” he said, and that statement brought a tear to my eye, not the pain in my leg.

“I know, just not completely. And you don’t have to explain. That’s just how you are. Mia betrayed you, and maybe you’ll never get over that.

“It’s not about me or what I do. It hurts that you’ll always question my intentions. I don’t blame you for anything. Just trust me.”

Kairos’s heart was racing, and his breathing was rapid. “You don’t understand how good she was. She did everything for the pack, she helped everyone, and everyone loved her.

“And then, suddenly, she took everything away. Even my father did the unthinkable and helped Mia behind my back. I don’t know why or how she did it… but I just can’t…” he trailed off.

I finished his sentence for him. “You can’t risk losing everything again,” I said.

I understood him, but I felt torn, unsure if my understanding outweighed the hurt his words caused.

I hated that he had to doubt me, but I felt his pain remembering Mia’s betrayal. I was resolved to help him, to heal him.

Kairos carried me back to the pack hospital, where the doctor had to reset my ankle. Kairos stayed with me the entire time, holding my hand.

I couldn’t say that our disagreements made me love him any less, but they did cause pain and made me reconsider everything we’d been through and how we’d come so far, from him pushing me away to wanting me close.

I spent the rest of the day indoors because my leg was still hurting.

Kairos was swamped with work because managing two packs meant double the workload, and now I was taking up his time because of my injury.

He didn’t have to chase after me himself. He could’ve easily delegated that task to someone else. But I was relieved he didn’t. I craved his proximity, and it pained me to feel like we weren’t on the same team.

I was in love with him. I was certain of it. Regardless of his actions or words, my love for him would remain steadfast. That’s the power of having a soulmate.

You love your other half unconditionally, embracing their imperfections and scars.

I skipped dinner, but Helen kindly brought a plate up to my room, mentioning that the alpha was busy in his study. I found comfort in the solitude of my room now.

Kairos had the largest bedroom in the house. I used to find his room dark and dreary, but now I found solace in it, perhaps because I had filled it with plants.

Every table, every shelf was adorned with greenery.

Flowering vines had gradually taken over the walls. I wasn’t sure if Kairos enjoyed sleeping amidst such lushness, but I loved it, and he never voiced any objections.

The room boasted two large windows, providing ample sunlight for the plants.

I spent the day resting, and when I finally rose, I noticed it was already late evening, the sky beginning to darken. Something red by the windowsill outside caught my eye.

I got up and hobbled towards the window. Behind the glass, I found a piece of red paper.

I opened the window and picked it up. It was folded in half, but I could see there was something on it.

The paper had a peculiar scent. Not unpleasant, but odd, like a potent women’s perfume, the kind an elderly woman might wear, but high-end.

I unfolded it to reveal a white ink drawing of a wolf and a few words: ~Have you ever wanted to be something more?~

That was all. No signature, no other markings. It was odd, but it could’ve simply been a piece of someone else’s paper carried by the wind to my window.

I didn’t discard it, uncertain. What if it was a sign?

The door to my room opened, and Kairos entered, startling me slightly. I quickly concealed the note in my hand.

“Why are you up?” he asked, sitting on the bed, preparing to shower.

“I needed to stretch,” I replied hastily, returning to the bed.

“How’s your leg?” he inquired.

“Better.”

“That’s good,” he said, standing up to shower. I tucked the note into the bedside drawer. I didn’t give it much thought, but who knows?

Shortly after, Kairos emerged from the shower, his chest bare. I held my breath, trying to conceal my excitement.

He lay down next to me, his back to me, and I mirrored his position. He didn’t utter a word. We’d never had such a heated argument. I was unsure how to behave.

I buried my face into the blanket. “I love you,” I said, just loud enough for him to hear, but not loud enough to disrupt the quiet of the night. I didn’t hear a response, not even his breathing.

I began to lose hope.

“I love you,” he finally echoed. We lay there, back to back. We were both angry.

I felt him shift, moving closer, draping his arm around me and planting a soft kiss on my cheek. It made my cheeks burn—it made me yearn for him.

I turned to face him, gently caressing his cheek. He looked exhausted, overworked. I pressed a tender kiss to his lips, and he responded weakly, but I knew it was only because he was tired.

“Sleep,” I whispered, tenderly caring for him—my sanctuary, my universe, my home.