Chapter 180

Kayla

I rushed to Emma’s side. Blood pooled beneath her, staining the straw-covered barn floor a sickening crimson. Jade dropped down across from me with a gasp.

Marcus was there an instant later, his face twisting with anguish when he saw his sister. He shouldered past us and scooped Emma’s limp body into his arms.

“She’s breathing,” he said. “I’m taking her to the hospital.”

Nicholas, still bleeding from multiple wounds, managed a nod. That was all the permission Marcus needed. He turned and bolted for the door, Emma cradled against his chest, her head lolling lifelessly.

“I’m going with them,” Jade announced, already running after Marcus.

The barn fell into an uneasy stillness after they left, broken only by the sound of ragged breathing and low groans of pain. Henry stirred in Ava’s lap, his eyelids fluttering as consciousness gradually returned to him. Ava bent over him, murmuring soft reassurances as she stroked his hair from his forehead.

“Where—” Henry croaked, disoriented but alive.

“Shh,” Ava whispered. “You’re safe now. But you shouldn’t have tried to fight, you foolish old wolf. You could have been killed!”

I looked around at the aftermath of the battle. By now, multiple Bluemoon warriors had arrived, having heard the scuffle. William and my father had been forced back into their human forms, both subdued and bleeding. Liam lay nearby, unconscious but breathing. The one traitorous warrior remained motionless where he’d fallen, and I gulped, looking away.

Nicholas struggled to his feet, grimacing with the movement. Blood soaked through his torn clothes, but his eyes were just as determined as ever.

“Round them up,” he ordered. “Lock them in the cells. I want two guards assigned to each of them at all times. Stagger the shifts.”

With nods, the warriors got to work. They bound William’s and my father’s hands, then hoisted them to their feet. Both men looked diminished somehow, stripped of their power and arrogance. My father didn’t even glance my way as they dragged him past.

When they reached Liam, Noah delivered a swift kick to his ribs. “Wake up, brother.”

Liam groaned, his eyes rolling open. Recognition dawned on his face, followed quickly by defeat as he realized his circumstances.

“Take this one back to Nightshade,” Nicholas commanded. “Double the guard this time. No one speaks to him without my direct authorization.”

My body felt suddenly heavy, the adrenaline draining away and leaving nothing but bone-deep exhaustion in its wake. My legs trembled beneath me, threatening to give out at any moment.

But it was when I turned to Nicholas that my exhaustion turned to terror. Nicholas was leaning heavily against the wall, one hand clutching a large gash in his abdomen. He was starting to slump, trying to stay upright to no avail.

“Nicholas!” I cried, rushing over to him. “Nicholas, are you alright?”

“I… hm…”

He grunted, trying to keep himself up, but began to slide down against the wall. With my heart leaping into my throat, I called for help, ripping off my sweater and shoving it against his wound. Nicholas was half-conscious, his head lolling.

Thankfully, several pack medics arrived within moments to tend to both Nicholas and Henry. They whisked them away to the infirmary, and Ava and I followed, our fingers intertwined.

…

The following morning, the sunlight streamed through the windows of the infirmary, casting a golden glow across the white bandaged covering Nicholas’s body. He was alive… and healing. The doctors had said the worst of his wounds was the one on his abdomen, but the rest were mostly superficial.

Finally, after an entire night of sitting by his bed, Nicholas began to stir. “Hey,” I whispered, feeling his hand twitch in mine. “You in there, asshole?”

Nicholas cracked one eye open. “How sweet of you, firecracker.” His voice was hoarse, ragged, but it made me laugh nonetheless.

Sitting up in the cot beside Nicholas, Henry was awake, currently eating the infirmary’s famous jello. He had been allowed to leave for hours, just sustaining a minor concussion and a bruised rib. He just really liked the snacks here.

“Morning, sunshine,” he said, waving his plastic spoon at Nicholas, who scrunched up his nose and tried to sit up. I shook my head and gently pushed him back down.

He swallowed around a very dry throat. “How long was I out?” he muttered.

“All night,” I said. “You lost a lot of blood.”

His eyes traveled over me, as if cataloging the fact that I still had all my limbs. “Are you hurt?”

I shook my head.

“Emma?” he croaked.

“Still in surgery the last I heard,” I replied, my throat tightening. “Marcus and Jade are with her. She had internal bleeding.”

Nicholas nodded, his jaw clenched. Then his gaze found mine again, softening. “You destroyed the compass.”

It wasn’t a question, but I answered anyway. “I had to.”

“You made the right choice,” he said, squeezing my hand. “We might never find Luporath now, but it doesn’t matter. What matters is that Bluemoon is secure, the relic is protected, and we caught the traitors.”

I swallowed hard, remembering the moment I’d crushed the compass beneath my boot. “I didn’t think I had it in me,” I admitted. “My father said the relic could help me—could make my wolf emerge.”

Nicholas’s eyes darkened. “I know. I’d be a liar if I didn’t admit that I wanted to find it for that very purpose.” His gaze flitted to my belly, and his hand moved to touch me. I covered his hand with my own, feeling the warmth of his palm press into my stomach.

“We’ll find another way,” I whispered. “I’m not terminating the pregnancy. There has to be some doctor, something, anything that can help. Relics be damned.”

He looked up at me, the gold in his eyes flickering, but nodded. “If that’s what you want, then I want it, too. We’ll figure it out together.”

We sat in silence for a moment, both lost in our own thoughts. Then Nicholas spoke again, his voice stronger now. “We need to release statements about what happened. Everyone should know about William Straud’s treachery.”

I nodded. “All the territories will see the guild chairman who focused on his selfishness rather than the good of the people.”

We spent the next hour planning our next steps. Nicholas insisted on getting up despite my protests, arguing that the pack needed to see him strong and in control. I helped him dress, my heart clenching at each barely concealed wince.

Once he was settled in his Bluemoon office, writing up a statement for the guild, I slipped away. There was something I needed to do. On my own.

The cells were located beneath the main Bluemoon house, a collection of sturdy iron chambers designed to contain even the strongest wolf. Two guards stood at the entrance, straightening as I approached. One of them began leading the way without a word, not even needing a command to know my intentions.

I followed him down the narrow corridor, the tray of food in my hands shaking slightly. My father’s cell was at the end, separated from the others. Through the bars, I could see him lying on a cot, no longer high on silverbite, looking weak and diminished once more.

I waited for the guard to retreat out of earshot, then stepped closer to the bars. “I brought you food.”

My father turned his head slowly, his eyes finding mine. For a moment, I caught a glimpse of the man I remembered—not the monster who had betrayed and murdered, but the father who had once loved me. But then his gaze hardened, and the illusion shattered.

I slid the tray through the slot in the door, watching as he made no move to take it.

“I want to know what truly happened to my mother,” I said firmly. “I deserve to know.”

He stared at me for a long moment, as if weighing his options. Finally, he pushed himself up to a seated position, wincing at the effort. I was struck by how old he suddenly seemed—old and broken and small.

“I almost killed her,” he finally said. “We had a fight over Luporath. She refused to give me the location, said she’d die before she let it fall into the wrong hands.”

My stomach clenched.

“The fight escalated,” he continued hollowly. “I was… I was so angry. I grabbed her throat—” He made a strangling motion with his hands, then dropped them to his lap. “I choked her, Kayla. I choked her until she stopped fighting, until her face turned blue.”

Tears burned behind my eyes, but I refused to let them fall. Not here. Not in front of him.

“I stopped before I killed her,” he said, as if that somehow absolved him. “I came to my senses and let go. But something broke in her that day. When I saw her next, she had taken a poison pill and killed herself.”

The world tilted beneath my feet, and I had to grab the bars to steady myself. My beautiful, kind, sweet mother… I couldn’t bear to think of her final moments, filled with such fear and despair.

“I believe she left the journal and the compass for you,” my father added quietly. “She knew you’d find it someday. Protect the relic. Protect it from me.”

I turned away, no longer able to look at him. Tears blurred my vision as I took a step toward the door.

“So you’ll keep your own father in a cell,” he called after me.

I paused, my back still to him. When I spoke, my voice was cold and final. “Just as you keep my mother in a grave, Father, I’ll ensure this cell becomes your tomb.”

And with that, I left.