Chapter 104: Chapter 104

Adelie

Death was pacing in my study. “The death wish might be your cure, provided you’re not completely gone.”

“Dad, what’s the risk for the baby?” I asked.

He cleared his throat. “If we’re talking about Christopher, he can’t possess an undeveloped soul. But if you don’t survive, well, that’s self-explanatory.”

“And what are the odds of that happening?”

He shrugged. “I’m not sure how my part in you will react to him. Possessions like these are rare, not enough data to study.”

I nodded. I was fully aware of the risks, but I was determined. “I’d regret it more if I didn’t try.”

My father came over and hugged me. Just like when I was a child, he held me tight, his hand resting on the back of my head.

“My brave little soldier,” he sighed deeply.

“I often wished you weren’t as stubborn and brave as your mother. But then again, who else would I want you to take after? You are exactly who we raised you to be.

“You are exactly who you were meant to be.”

He let go of the hug and looked me in the eyes. “I don’t have many choices to be proud of, but I am proud of you.” He kissed my hand gently and left, disappearing as he always did.

I left the study and went to where the remaining members of my pack were, their bags in hand. They looked different.

Fear was etched on their faces, a fear I had never seen before. A fatigue that I thought only came from a full day of training. But this was born out of uncertainty.

They were unsure of what was happening. What would become of their belongings? Only a few dozen of them stood before me.

The vampires hadn’t been seen in our pack since this chaos began. They didn’t care about us. Even though they had promised to protect us in exchange for a safe haven, they had disappeared.

I had no clue where they had gone or if they would ever come back.

And I looked different too. I was afraid to look in the mirror. My long waves were now braided. My dresses hadn’t seen the light of day. Now, I wore cargo pants and heavy boots.

“They might come back. It’s not certain that they won’t,” Esty said about the vampires. Her words stirred something inside me. Her choice of words. They planted dangerous thoughts in my mind.

I didn’t say anything to them. I just started walking, and they followed. I expected them to shift and run ahead since the walk wasn’t far, but they didn’t.

They matched my pace even though they were stronger than me.

Alpha Archibald and Luna Delilah were already waiting for us. I understood why Archibald didn’t want to involve his pack in this.

But it did make him seem cowardly, something I never thought I’d see in him.

“Welcome to Silver Moon’s. We’re delighted to have guests in our pack.” Archibald gestured to a man standing next to him. “My Beta will show you to your quarters.

“Feel free to make yourselves at home. I’ve instructed my wolves to be helpful and answer any questions you might have. And don’t hesitate to ask me or my Luna.”

He finished his speech, and the Beta led my pack away, chatting with them as if it was just another visit.

And my pack didn’t even say goodbye. They didn’t even look back at me.

“Adelie,” Archibald said as I noticed Delilah giving me a once-over, as she always did.

“I promise to make them feel welcome and provide the best my pack can offer,” he said, smiling. I believed he wanted the best for them, but I didn’t want him to overdo it.

“It’s just temporary,” I assured them.

Delilah, as always, had to interject. “You can’t be sure of that,” she snapped at me.

“From what I’ve heard, no one from where we just came from…” she gestured vaguely behind us, “has any clue what’s going on.

“You, of all people, should know that. But…” she gave a dismissive shrug, “apparently not.”

Thankfully, Archibald intervened. He murmured something to her that I couldn’t quite catch. Her face remained impassive, but she fell silent.

“Good luck to all of you,” he said. “May the moon goddess bring justice to those who’ve been wronged.”

I nodded in response. Delilah was clearly enjoying this. Even now, she struggled to suppress a smirk. She relished my failures.

I returned to the pack house.

I spotted the pack doctor leaving the prison. “John,” I called out, and he altered his course to join me.

“What’s going on?” I asked, noticing the syringes he was carrying. They were different from the usual medical needles. These were metallic, resembling instruments of torture.

“He was sedated earlier when Christopher returned. I came to see if he needed another dose, but he’s back to normal,” he explained.

“Luna…” he began hesitantly. “If I may…is there nothing we can do to save Alpha?”

I didn’t want to deceive him. He was wise enough to see through any lies. He was trying to help, but I couldn’t risk revealing too much.

I had confided in Kairos, but I wasn’t sure how safe that was. “John, he’s cursed… The only one who can lift it is the one who cast it,” I told him.

“And we have no idea who that might be?” he asked. I shook my head.

He sighed heavily. “Well, good luck tomorrow…in saving the world from evil, at least.”

He was about to leave when I remembered something Death had told me. “Hold on. Do you know if anything…” I struggled to phrase my question without sounding too odd.

“Anything unusual happened on the day Alpha Kairos was born? Maybe a visitor, or an event… Anything at all, no matter how insignificant?”

“I had just moved here when Alpha was born. I didn’t even know everyone yet.” He shrugged. “Nothing comes to mind, except the pack’s joy at the birth of the Garcia heir.”

I was glad I hadn’t gotten my hopes up. “Alright. Thanks anyway,” I said, feeling a pang of disappointment that my question had led to a dead end.

How was I supposed to investigate the day of his birth without the ability to go back in time?

“But I can give you the contact information for the woman who delivered him.” He pulled out a piece of paper and a pen.

He jotted something down and handed me the note. “You should be able to find more in Alpha’s records. If anyone would know anything, it would be her,” he suggested.

“Thank you,” I said. I started to turn away, then looked back at him. “For what it’s worth…I’m sorry this is happening to the pack and to your home,” I told him.

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “We all are. There’s nothing you could have done.”

“Maybe I could have,” I muttered, staring at the ground.

“Perhaps,” he agreed softly. “Maybe we all could have done something, maybe not. Sometimes, hard times last longer than we’d like.”

I sniffed and straightened up, forcing a smile. “Well then, let’s hope this is just a phase.”

I thanked him and headed for the prison. The guards at the entrance bowed their heads in greeting as I approached.

I moved past them, heading inside where two additional guards were keeping watch over him.

“Is he okay?” I asked Damian, one of the guards, without hesitation.

Kairos glanced up from the book he was engrossed in. It was the same one I’d seen him with earlier, but the bookmark hadn’t progressed much.

“He’s back to himself,” he replied.

“Give us some privacy. I’ll call when I need you,” I instructed them.

The guards exchanged glances. “You said never to leave, no matter what.”

Did they think this was some sort of test? “And now I’m telling you to go,” I retorted, holding out my hand for the key.

He pulled it from his pocket and handed it over before they exited. I made sure to listen for the sound of the door closing securely.

Kairos looked at me, his expression still miserable. But he seemed a bit better. “You look…almost…human,” I commented.

He gave a small smile. “I hope you’re not into zombies. That’s a lot of effort,” he quipped.

I shrugged. “Guess I’ll have to wait until tomorrow then,” I replied, coaxing a chuckle from him.

“On that note, if we want this to work, we need to make it look like you’re on death’s door.

“That means, I need to figure out how to hurt you enough that you don’t die instantly, but sort of…linger,” I explained, using the key to unlock the doors.

Kairos jumped up in surprise. “What are you doing?” Panic was creeping into his voice, but I continued unlocking the doors. “Adelie. You shouldn’t be here.”

I stepped into the cell, and he retreated until his back hit the wall. “Move away!”

“You were just sedated. He won’t be back for a while,” I countered.

“We can’t be sure of that.”

“If he comes back, I’ll know,” I assured him.

“How? He’s known for deceiving people. You don’t even know who you’re talking to right now,” he retorted, anger flaring in his voice.

“I know it’s you,” I responded.

“I don’t want to hurt you. Back off!” he repeated.

“I can defend myself,” I tried to reassure him.

“No, you can’t,” he yelled. “Get out!”

I continued to approach him, slowly closing the distance while he remained rooted to the spot.

He stayed where he was, his gaze locked on mine. I quickly pulled the dagger from my belt and positioned the tip under his chin, causing him to sharply inhale as the metal lightly pierced his skin. “Or what?” I challenged.

He froze for a moment, then his hand shot up, knocking the dagger to the floor.

The sound of the dagger hitting the floor echoed around us as he spun me around, trapping me with one arm and his hand around my throat.