Chapter 14: Chapter 14

JASMINE

A sensation like my chest being torn apart seized me, leaving me gasping for air. The pain was so intense, I couldn’t speak or think—it was all-consuming.

Erik’s hands were on my shoulders, his eyes wide with fear. “Jasmine, what’s going on? What’s wrong?” His voice was thick with desperation, mirroring our shared confusion.

I tried to speak, but the words were choked by the pain. “The mate bond… It’s…” I couldn’t finish. The pain was too much. It was physical, emotional, unbearable.

“It’s breaking.”

Erik’s eyes grew wider, and he reacted instantly. He scooped me up and sprinted toward the pack house, his movements frantic. His arms, once my sanctuary, now felt alien as the bond’s strain tore through me.

“Hang in there, Jasmine. It’s going to be okay,” Erik whispered. His voice, usually so steady, wavered with doubt. I could tell he didn’t believe his own words.

As we burst through the doors, he called out for the one person who always had the answers. “Aaron!”

His voice was a distant echo over the waves of pain. I was vaguely aware of being laid on a couch in my father’s office. My world was a blur, narrowed down to the sharp agony in my chest.

“What happened?” Aaron’s voice pierced the fog as he rushed over. My parents were at my side, their faces etched with worry.

“She screamed out in pain, said it was the mate bond,” Erik explained, his grip on me tightening as if he could keep me grounded. But the panic welling up inside me told me everything I needed to know.

If I was feeling this pain, it meant Sebastian was in danger—or worse.

Then, as abruptly as it started, the pain ceased. It was like a wave crashing down and receding in an instant. Tears welled up in my eyes, and I found myself clutching Erik’s hand with one of mine, Aaron’s with the other, as if their touch was the only thing keeping me from collapsing.

“It’s Sebastian,” I managed to say between sobs, the words barely making it past the lump in my throat.

My father’s voice cut through the fog. “I’ll call Philip.”

I looked up at Aaron, seeking something—anything—to anchor me. His eyes met mine, filled with worry, and I knew. I could feel it in the bond, in the air between us.

They were both terrified. And that wasn’t a good sign.

As my father tried and failed to reach Philip, my heart pounded louder with each passing second. Erik and Aaron both tried to reach Sebastian, but there was no answer. The longer the silence stretched, the more the panic tightened its grip on me.

My mother brought me tea, but it did nothing to quell the storm inside me. My world felt like it was falling apart, the walls closing in with every second that passed without news.

And then, my father’s phone rang.

“It’s Philip,” he said, picking up quickly. “Yes, Jasmine felt it and…” His voice trailed off, his face darkening. My heart sank, my breath hitching in my throat as I braced for the worst. “Thank you for letting me know. We’ll do what we can.”

My father knelt in front of me, his hands squeezing mine as he sighed, the weight of his next words heavy in the air. “Sebastian was attacked. The witches—”

A scream ripped from my throat before he could finish. I didn’t need to hear the rest to know how bad it was.

“He’s alive,” my father quickly added, his voice somber. “But he’s unconscious. It was dark magic. They don’t know how to help him.”

My world spun. Everything seemed meaningless. I needed them—all three of them. I had Aaron and Erik beside me, but without Sebastian, it felt like part of me was missing. Incomplete.

“I’m going to him,” I declared, standing on shaky legs.

Erik was beside me in an instant, pulling me back. “No, Jasmine. You can’t go. It’s too dangerous. The pack’s still under attack. Sebastian wouldn’t want you walking into a war zone.”

Aaron’s jaw clenched. “We need to wait. He could wake up.” He shot a glance at my father, but no one had an answer. The uncertainty was suffocating.

Dark magic hadn’t been seen for years—decades even. We’d grown complacent, believing the threat had vanished. And now we were paying the price.

“Jasmine, if anyone could handle this, it was the Wolfhearts,” Aaron tried to comfort me, but his voice was shaky. “They’ll find a way to save Sebastian.”

His words didn’t soothe me. The harsh reality hung over us—Sebastian might not make it.

Time seemed to crawl, each second stretching into forever. My parents left the room to gather more information, to assist Philip and Thabata with their comatose son, but nothing could quell my growing fear.

Suddenly, my phone rang. My heart leapt as I saw Sebastian’s name on the display. I picked up, hope surging within me.

“Philip?” I questioned, puzzled when his voice, not Sebastian’s, echoed from the phone.

“Jasmine, I’m sorry. I needed to speak with you.” Philip’s voice was heavy, grave. I put the call on speaker, and Aaron and Erik’s eyes were glued to me.

“Our wizards have discovered a spell that might wake Sebastian,” Philip cautiously explained. “But we need your help.”

“Whatever it takes,” I responded instantly, not caring about the potential consequences.

“Jasmine, you need to consider this,” Philip cautioned. “The spell requires a significant amount of the mate’s blood—your blood. It’s risky. But, since you have two other mates, we could perform the same spell on you with their blood afterward.”

“I’m in,” I reiterated, without a second thought. There was no other option.

“No way.” Aaron’s voice was icy, determined. “You’re not risking your life for this.”

“I care about Sebastian too, but Aaron’s right,” Erik chimed in, his voice softer but equally firm. “It’s too risky.”

Their words, meant to shield me, only shattered my remaining strength.

I was in disbelief. I had a real opportunity to save Sebastian, and they were denying me that.

“She won’t do it. Find another solution,” Aaron declared, snatching the phone from my hand and silencing Philip’s voice on the other end.

My heart skipped a beat. Aaron had always been composed and logical. Seeing him like this—spiraling out of control—was heart-wrenching.

“You’ve got to be joking,” I exhaled, disbelief heavy in my voice. “He’s my mate! I need to save him. I can’t just stand by and do nothing!”

Aaron’s gaze hardened. “And you’re my mate, and I need to prevent you from recklessly putting yourself in danger—doing something impulsive, something ~foolish~.”

“~Foolish?~ You think saving Sebastian is ~foolish~?” I shouted, my voice breaking under the strain of my frustration. I had lost control a long time ago, but now…it felt like I was falling apart.

Aaron’s jaw clenched. His voice filled with a bitterness I hadn’t heard before. “Sebastian… He must’ve been trying to compensate for not being there when the attack happened, and now—he’s injured. He ~chose~ this. This is his fault, Jasmine.”

His words cut through me like a knife. ~His fault?~ No. I kept him away. I distracted him, pulled him from his pack, and now… now he might be gone because of me.

I swayed, each breath heavy with guilt, my wolf clawing and snarling within me, as wild and uncontrollable as the storm inside me.

Aaron didn’t let up, pressing further. “Let’s face it, Jasmine. This just shows how absurd this situation is. Three mates? Three alphas? How are we supposed to make this work? Unite the packs? And if an attack happens, what then? How do we protect everyone?”

His bitter laugh was like acid on my skin, each sound deepening the fractures within me. I could feel myself coming undone, my wolf desperate to break free. I needed Sebastian. I needed all of them. But right now, everything was slipping away.

“You think it’s a stupid idea?” My voice was shaky, barely audible as I forced the words through the pain. “You say that like ~I~ caused this. Like ~I~ chose this bond. The Goddess gave me three mates, Aaron, and She did it for a reason. This isn’t—”

“Don’t let your blind faith cloud your judgment, Jasmine,” Aaron cut me off, his voice harsh and cold. “You couldn’t choose between us—you admitted that yourself. Maybe the bond itself is flawed. Maybe this is just… ~a mistake~.”

~“A mistake?”~ His words felt like a punch to the gut. “You think ~we’re~ a mistake?” I looked at him, my vision blurring as tears welled up in my eyes. My legs buckled beneath me, and I crumbled to the floor, my body shaking from the raw pain ripping through my heart.

Aaron’s face was a mask of emotion, his eyes glistening, his lips pressed into a thin line. “I think… it might be,” he said, his voice strained, each word slicing deeper than the last.

My world shattered beneath me. The delicate bond we’d built—our entire universe—cracked and crumbled. I couldn’t breathe.

Erik’s arms enveloped me, lifting me from the cold, unforgiving floor, holding me as if I were made of glass. He carried me to the couch, cradling me in his lap, rocking me gently like a child in need of solace.

But his arms weren’t enough. As much as I wanted them to be, as much as I yearned for Erik’s embrace to ground me, my heart ached for the two men I’d lost. One stolen by a coma, the other pushing me away, tearing himself from me, leaving me empty.

If before I had felt numb, now I felt ~dead~.

I couldn’t eat. I couldn’t sleep. All I could do was cry.

Erik stayed with me, trying to lull me to sleep, whispering soothing words, but it was all in vain. I couldn’t stop the tears. My chest ached with a pain so deep, it felt like it would never fade.

Suddenly, I stood up, the urge to escape overwhelming.

“Where are you going?” Erik asked, worry etched across his face.

“I…I just need a glass of water,” I lied, avoiding his gaze. I couldn’t let him see the truth in my eyes.

Slowly, I descended the stairs, each step feeling like a heavy weight dragging me down. When I reached the front door, I paused for only a moment before slipping out into the night.

“Alpha Aurum, where are you going?” a guard stationed nearby asked, his eyes widening in surprise at my appearance.

“I need to clear my head. I’m going for a run,” I lied again, the words tumbling out in a rush.

He didn’t question it.

And then, I let her out—the wolf inside me, who had been clawing at my chest all day, begging to be freed. She surged forward, her power taking over, and I shifted.

The cool night air rustled through my gray fur as I hit the ground running, the earth beneath my paws thudding in time with my racing heart. Each step, each breath, drove me faster.

I didn’t need a map or a compass.

I was running to him. To ~Sebastian~.

I didn’t stop running. The guards didn’t hesitate to let me through, and when I reached Wolfheart’s pack, their sentries were still too disoriented from the attack to question me. They simply stepped aside as I sprinted past, my feet pounding against the earth as if my life depended on it—because it did.

The dense forest opened up into a wide clearing, revealing the pack house, dimly lit and eerily quiet, as if the world itself was holding its breath.

I shifted back to human form, stumbling as my legs trembled beneath me. Panic surged in my veins, but I forced myself to stay upright.

A guard silently handed me a robe. I wrapped it around my shoulders, barely noticing the cold fabric as I gasped for air, trying to steady my breath, my heart still racing.

Before I could even reach the door, it swung open. Philip stood there, his face lined with worry.

“Jasmine, where are the others?” His voice was calm, too calm, but the tension in his eyes betrayed him. He hadn’t expected me to be alone. He needed all of us, my other mates, to make the ritual safer.

“They’re coming,” I lied, the same lie I’d been telling myself all night. “Start the spell now. Please, Philip. We can’t wait any longer.”

His jaw clenched, his expression caught between duty and despair. He needed me for this to work—for Sebastian to have any chance at survival. But he knew, just as I did, that this wasn’t how it was supposed to go.

Without another word, Philip nodded, resigned. He led me inside, and the moment I crossed the threshold, the weight of everything hit me like a tidal wave. My breath hitched in my throat when I saw Sebastian.

Sebastian was lying there, so still, so pale. His once robust and commanding presence was now just a frail echo of the alpha I remembered. My heart was heavy, yearning to reach out, to feel the heat of his skin, to gaze into those piercing blue eyes that always sparkled with such intensity.

But now, he seemed so cold, so devoid of life.

His mother, Thabata, was standing next to him, her eyes brimming with sorrow. She turned to me, her gaze pleading for answers, for a glimmer of hope.

But I had nothing to offer.

“Do it,” I managed to whisper, my voice barely holding up under the crushing weight of desperation. I swallowed hard, the sting of unshed tears prickling at the back of my eyes.

“Please, Philip.”

Philip paused for just a moment before nodding in agreement. “Okay, but we need to move quickly.”

As they started to ready the spell, I stood there, shaking, my eyes fixed on Sebastian. Time was slipping through my fingers, faster than I could grasp, and all I could do was hope—pray—that we weren’t too late.