Chapter 29

AURORA

“I can’t make heads or tails of this. What the hell could’ve happened to her?”

Rin’s voice was the first thing I heard as I started to regain consciousness. He sounded close, but his tone was laced with worry.

His concern spurred me to fight the heaviness that was keeping me under. It was a struggle, but I was determined to wake up.

Jekia’s voice answered him. “It’s concerning, especially since it seems to be linked to the stone in her neck. Which elves helped you with that?”

“Kaleem and his wife, Fai. They’re the leaders of the Eastern glen. I’ve known them since I first arrived there,” Rin replied.

“Do you think they could’ve done something to her?” Rayne’s voice chimed in.

“I don’t know,” Jekia sighed. “We’ve had traitors before, but I can’t imagine any of the elves, especially those two, working against us. There haven’t been any real threats except for those under control, and there’s no sign that any of the elves are right now.”

“I highly doubt it. Kaleem and Fai have led that glen for years. The other elves would’ve noticed if something about them changed,” Rin said.

“Maybe, but I wouldn’t rule anything out yet,” Rayne said, his voice hesitant.

“We won’t, for now,” Jekia agreed. I heard footsteps moving away from the bed. “I want to look into something, so I’m going to talk to Emelio. I’ll be back to check on her soon. And no arguing while I’m gone. It’ll only stress her out more, and I know neither of you want that.”

~They’re still arguing~, I thought. ~Not that I’m surprised.~

I heard the door open and close softly. I fought to open my eyes. They felt heavy, but I refused to give in. I needed to wake up.

I needed to tell them I was okay.

Well, as okay as I could be. For some reason, the thought of telling them about the strange vision of the woman filled me with fear. It was as if I knew something terrible would happen to me, and possibly them, if I did.

I felt the bed shift slightly as I finally managed to open my eyes. My vision was blurry, but I could make out Rin’s figure. As my vision cleared, I saw him looking down at me, his face calm but his eyes filled with worry.

“You’re awake. Are you okay? Can you hear me?” he asked, his voice soft but urgent.

“I think so,” I whispered. My voice was barely audible, probably due to the strain of whatever had happened.

Rayne was standing on the other side of the bed, his expression mirroring his brother’s concern.

“Do you remember what happened? Mother said you tensed up and then passed out,” he said.

I shook my head slowly, deciding it was best to lie about some parts. The fear of telling the whole truth was still there.

“I’m not sure,” I said. “I remember my throat hurting really bad, then everything went dark.”

“It’s odd. No one could sense anything different with the stone when we checked it, even Emelio. But it must be the cause if it started hurting right before you passed out,” Rayne mused.

Rin wasn’t convinced. “It could be something else.” He ran his hand over my forehead, smoothing my hair back. “Aurora’s been through a lot, and coming here hasn’t been easy, even with my help. It’s possible that the stress of everything affected the stone and her body. I’ve heard stress can do that, especially to humans.”

“It’s possible, but I still think there’s more to it,” Rayne disagreed.

“Really, Rayne? Do you think they’d do something to Aurora and I wouldn’t notice? She’s my beta,” Rin argued.

Rayne stood his ground. “I won’t argue with you in front of her, but you know your connection to her isn’t complete yet. She has to fully awaken as a beta before that happens, and she’s not strong enough yet, no matter how much you care about her.”

I had to awaken as a beta? Did that mean I wasn’t really one yet?

“She’s fine as she is. I promised her I’d take care of her and that’s what I’m doing. There’s no need for more,” Rin said.

That told me a lot. Lana and Jekia were right. Rin was keeping things from me about being a beta because he thought he could protect me on his own.

“Are you kidding me, Rin?!” Rayne exploded. “You can’t keep her helpless forever! She has a right to become what she needs to survive and thrive here, just like our mother!”

Rin glared at him. “We’re not arguing about this, especially not here! Aurora needs to rest!”

It was a clear deflection, but I let it slide. I was still feeling drained from whatever had happened, and I didn’t have the energy to get involved in their argument, even if it was about me.

An idea suddenly struck me. Maybe I could get them to part ways for a bit, and have a one-on-one with Rayne. Perhaps I could convince him to back off for a while until we could sort things out.

“Hey, Rin,” I called out. “Could you fetch me some water? My throat’s still a bit scratchy.”

Rin fell for it, just as I’d hoped. “Sure,” he agreed softly, planting a quick kiss on my forehead. “I’ll be right back. Just rest here. Rayne will keep you safe.”

I nodded, watching him exit the room. I didn’t miss the warning glance he shot at Rayne.

Rayne waited until Rin was out of earshot, then moved to sit beside me on the bed.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” he asked.

“I think so. Just a scratchy throat. That’s all,” I reassured him.

“You know you don’t have to hide anything here. Even if Rin doesn’t like it, you need to be honest about how you’re feeling and what’s happening to you. You could be in real danger if you don’t,” Rayne advised.

His voice was gentle, his eyes kind. This was the Rayne I’d first met in the field, the caring luna dog who had befriended me. His presence did soothe me a bit.

“I don’t know what’s happening, Rayne. It feels like something is trying to pull me away,” I admitted.

“What do you mean? What’s trying to pull you away?” Rayne asked, puzzled.

I shook my head. “I don’t know.”

Rayne leaned in closer. “You must remember something. Mother said it was like you were seeing something before you fainted. What did you see?”

A strange sensation washed over me as he leaned in. It wasn’t a fainting spell. More like an electric pulse coursing through my body.

I noticed Rayne stiffen, but he didn’t pull away. My throat warmed as I locked eyes with him, and I could have sworn I saw them glow a bright gold. My throat heated up even more, and all I could think about was how I wanted him on my side, how I could manipulate him to get what I wanted.

Wait. What was this? Why was I thinking this?

Rayne’s eyes returned to normal, but he stayed close, tracing a finger down my cheek and over my neck. He then leaned in to whisper in my ear.

“Perhaps I will take you from him. He is a fox after all, and no fox can ever be a proper alpha to such a beautiful woman.”

His words, his tone, sent a chill down my spine. I knew this wasn’t Rayne speaking.

“Rayne…,” I began.

He quickly pulled away, standing up. “I’m sorry. I need to handle something, and Rin should be back any minute. You can also call on Vishu if you need anything before that. Just try to rest.”

I closed my eyes as he planted a quick kiss on my lips, then exited the room. My heart pounded as I tried to make sense of what had just happened. I touched my throat where the stone was. Nothing felt out of the ordinary now, but I was certain it had something to do with Rayne’s sudden change in demeanor.

But I was also scared to tell Rin about any of this. He might jump to the conclusion that Rayne should stay away from me, and that could lead to more conflict between them.

My thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the door opening. I looked over to see Rin entering the room with a glass of water. He looked surprised to find Rayne gone.

“Where did Rayne go? I asked him to stay with you!” he fretted as he approached me.

“He said he had something to take care of, and that you’d be back soon. He also said I could call Vishu if I needed anything. He didn’t say how, but I guess I could tug on one of her webs,” I explained.

“That’s true. Any of us can do that. But you shouldn’t have been left alone. What could have been so urgent that he had to leave?” Rin grumbled.

“I don’t know, but it’s okay. You’re back, and you keep saying that the palace is very safe,” I reminded him as he helped me sit up.

Rin had to concede a bit. “Yes, I did. I’m just worried about what happened to you, and I don’t think you should be alone yet.” He handed me the glass of water. “Here. This should soothe your throat.”

“Thank you,” I replied, taking a small sip. The cool water did soothe my throat. I hadn’t realized how parched I’d been, though my voice was still weak as I spoke again. “Please don’t be mad at Rayne. I really am okay, and you’re here now. It’s not a big deal.”

“I suppose not, and I’ll let it go for now if that’s what you want. Besides, you’re my main concern. I’m still reeling from not being able to prevent this and worrying that someone’s done something to you behind my back,” Rin confessed.

He was being sincere. I could see it in his eyes. But I knew it was time to speak up. I’d been avoiding it for too long, and Lana was right; even if Rin got mad at me, he’d eventually get over it if he loved me. His overprotectiveness wouldn’t help me here, especially if this was what I was beginning to suspect.

“I know you are, but you’re only one person. Well, fox. You can’t prevent everything. That’s why I should try to make myself stronger too, even if it’s just mentally,” I suggested.

Rin disagreed, but not as vehemently as I’d expected.

“You don’t have to toughen up any more than you already are. If you weren’t mentally strong, you wouldn’t have survived in this world, let alone with me. Even though I try my best to be good to you, most humans wouldn’t be able to handle having a fox as their alpha, especially one with my lineage.”

“Do you really believe that?” I asked, tilting my head in confusion.

“I’m certain of it.” Rin paused, exhaling deeply as if he was steeling himself to say something difficult. “You’re not weak, Amore. You were strong even before you landed in this world. Your parents were cruel to you, so much so that you stopped speaking, but you still fought to live, even running away from them. That takes a lot of courage, especially when you can’t speak. Then you ended up here, about to be sold, and I didn’t treat you much better.”

“That’s not true. You’ve been kind to me,” I argued, wishing my voice sounded more confident. This ordeal had left me struggling to speak up, and I hoped it wouldn’t be a permanent change.

Rin looked down, his ears flattening and his eyes closing. “I want to treat you like the princess you deserve to be, but I didn’t even start things right between us.”

I was even more confused. “What do you mean?”

“I lied to you. I could’ve just made you that foxfire ring and claimed you as my beta, but instead, I told you that you’d have to sleep with me to do that. Even when you hesitated, I kept pushing until you gave in. I put you in situations I never should have,” Rin confessed.

Well, he wasn’t wrong. I knew that what he’d done to me in those first two days wasn’t right, even if I’d tried to justify it by saying he was an alpha. Coming here had only confirmed how wrong it all was, though I confess I was still trying to look past it. I’d agreed to be with him because I wanted to know what it was like. I wanted to know what it felt like to give myself to a lover and defy what my parents had always preached.

But above all, I wanted to convince myself that a guy could love me.

“I know what you did, and I won’t deny that you made me uncomfortable at first. But I’ve always liked you, and you weren’t really cruel to me, even if you did push those things. Nothing will change how much I want to stay with you. I just want to start building myself up like I should’ve been doing all along. I want to be worthy of being a beta, and of being yours,” I told him.

“But you are worthy of that!” Rin insisted, finally looking at me again. “You’re you, and that’s all that matters. I gave you back your voice because I knew you’d want it and need it. I’ve also agreed to stay here with you because I know it’s a safer place for you. All you need to do is stay with me!”

He was being incredibly stubborn about this, but I wasn’t going to back down. I needed to do this if I wanted to stay with him, and I knew now that it was what my heart desired most.

“I know that’s what you want, and I want it too. I want to stay with you more than anything. But if you want me to have what I need, then help me get stronger. I’m not going to leave you, Rin, and I’ll still depend on you. I just want to be more than just some human girl that you care for,” I responded.