Chapter 114: Chapter 114

Adelie

The air was thick with anticipation as everyone armed themselves. Kairos, in particular, was loading up. He knew that once the silver coursing through his veins stripped him of his wolf abilities, he’d be left defenseless.

“What should I pack?” I asked him.

His gaze fell on the dagger hanging from my belt. “That’ll do,” he said, even though everyone else was arming themselves to the teeth.

“You’re already the strongest among us,” he added, noticing my concern over my lack of weaponry.

Once everyone was geared up, we set off towards Archibald’s pack. I could see the anger simmering in Kairos, the eagerness to shift. But he made sure to match my pace, ensuring I could keep up.

“What if…what if Archibald isn’t the one who cursed you?” I asked, unable to shake off the nagging doubt.

“Isn’t he still a traitor?” he retorted, his gaze fixed ahead. “He knew everything and still deceived me. He looked me in the eye when I came to fetch you from his pack. And Mia…”

He paused, turning to look at me. “I killed her because she was a threat to my pack. I killed her when I should have killed him. He did that to Mia.

“Even if he didn’t curse me, he hurt her. And back then, she was my mate. She was a part of me that I killed, forcing me to live in agony.

“She may be gone, Adelie, but just like you’re my mate now, she was mine then. I won’t let anyone harm my mate!” With that, he resumed walking.

Despite the gravity of the situation, his words made my heart flutter. I was his mate. Despite everything, I was his mate.

We arrived at the pack’s territory, where everyone was already tucked in for the night. The silence was deafening.

We made our way to the Alpha’s study, noticing the lights were still on. He was burning the midnight oil. Kairos turned to address the group.

“I’ll go in with Luna Adelie. I’ll mind link if we need backup. If too much time passes without any word from me, or if you hear screams, use your best judgment.”

His gaze landed on Maeve. “You’re in charge. They’ll only attack on your command,” he said, not waiting for her approval. She nodded in agreement.

Without wasting another moment, Kairos stormed into Archibald’s study. He didn’t bother knocking. Archibald immediately rose from his desk, his eyes weary and hair disheveled.

The room was dimly lit, casting long shadows.

Seeing him now, it was odd. I’d never considered the possibility of them being brothers. They didn’t resemble each other.

But if someone were to say they were brothers, I wouldn’t doubt it. They shared certain features.

“What’s the meaning of this?” Archibald demanded.

Kairos took a few measured steps closer. “I’ve been having trouble piecing together my family tree. I was hoping you could help,” he said, causing Archibald’s face to darken.

Archibald straightened up, smoothing his hair. “Why are you here?” he asked again, ignoring Kairos’s previous statement.

I could see his dismissive response was getting under Kairos’s skin.

“I have some questions. Like, why didn’t you tell me any of this? What are you planning? What do you want?

“And if you have the time, why did you curse me, brother?” The last word was spat out with a hint of revulsion.

“Did you enjoy leading the strongest pack there was?” Archibald asked, his demeanor as calm as ever.

“Who wouldn’t want to lead something that was rightfully theirs? I would have loved it, Kairos. But you were handed everything that was supposed to be mine.”

His voice escalated as he spoke about the pack. As the eldest son, he should have been the Alpha. “Everything was snatched from me to be given to ~you~. And for what? You didn’t earn it.”

Kairos’ anger flared. “How dare you say I didn’t earn it? Did you? You cursed me and Mia. You drove her to madness. You’ve brought ruin to our pack!”

“I gave you a chance to prove your worth. To show you could withstand the heat. But you couldn’t. You failed, as you always do,” Archibald retorted, finally turning his gaze to me.

“I’ve watched you, Adelie. You’re powerful. Powerful, but too naive to comprehend. I tried to offer you the opportunity to join me. We could have led together. We could have achieved greatness.

“We could have been rulers. I believed in you. If only Kairos hadn’t filled your head with his lies.”

With that, he simply sat down. His anger was palpable, yet he remained composed. “How did you find out?” he inquired.

“I don’t think that’s relevant,” Kairos retorted. “What’s important is that I have a few days left, and if I can’t survive, I’m taking you down with me,” he growled.

I kept my focus sharp, ready to use my powers if necessary.

What if Archibald’s guards were just outside the door? And what about my pack? What if they were already engaged in battle, or worse, already captured?

Archibald leaned back. “Go ahead,” he said, his eyes glazed over.

I was utterly baffled. He showed no fear. No remorse. It was as if he had been anticipating this.

Kairos shot me a glance. He was just as clueless. For a moment, we all froze.

Until Archibald smirked. “I’m giving you what you want,” he declared.

“Why?” Kairos questioned. “Why surrender so easily when you’ve dedicated your life to my downfall?”

Archibald leaned forward, resting his elbows on his desk.

A smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. “I did no such thing. But you did.

“Because, Kairos, you deceived me. Didn’t you?” Archibald asked Kairos.

“You led me to that weapon room, didn’t you?” he probed.

Kairos tensed. I was completely lost.

“You made everyone believe you were a saint in disguise, but perhaps it’s the other way around.

“You tricked me into taking the dagger from the weapon room. You directed me to your room. You told me to hold the dagger, no matter how much the silver hurt my wolf.

“My hands started bleeding. All over the dagger. And I still went into your room,” he recounted. What kind of sick game was this?

“And you snatched the dagger from my hands, stabbed it into your leg, and then you screamed for help.”

“He’s lying,” I told Kairos. He had to be, right?

Tears streamed down his face. “Kairos, it’s not true,” I insisted.

“I remember,” he admitted, looking at Archibald. “The kids told me… They said I would be Alpha if you were gone. They made me think I should kill you…and I…I don’t remember why I listened.”

I recoiled in shock as he continued. “They…they gave me poison to give to you. I couldn’t do it. I…I tried, but when I was about to, I ate it instead. I fell terribly ill.

“I couldn’t kill you. But I didn’t want you to be Alpha. They would never let me be Alpha with you being the oldest.”

His words began to falter.

“You tried to kill me when I was a kid. More than once. I despised that. I was convinced you’d discard me. Others…they said you would once you became the Alpha. I was terrified…”

“You manipulated the situation and made everyone believe I was the culprit again. I had improved, but you convinced them I was insane. You planted the idea that I was a monster. And you never confessed. “

This implied that others had a strong dislike for Archibald. Why did they detest Archibald so much? Why were they encouraging Kairos to murder him and guiding him towards it?

I couldn’t let this continue. It was tearing Kairos apart. “You still cursed him and Mia,” I stated, standing up for Kairos.

“I did,” Archibald admitted. “I made them all forget. Now Kairos remembers. I wanted him to suffer for his actions. I didn’t intend to annihilate all of the pack, but it happened.

“For that, I’m sorry. But I’m not sorry for making Kairos suffer when he ruined my life. He made my parents fear me.” Now Archibald was weeping in agony.

I couldn’t comprehend it. “You…you were so gentle,” I said, and why did it feel like he was still so gentle now?

“I didn’t intend any harm to your pack or mine…but things spiraled out of control. We all desire something, Adelie. I just wanted Kairos to pay for his actions.”

Kairos remained silent, so I asked. “How do we break the curse?”

He gave a small smile. “You already know how,” he replied. Was it to kill him?

He had a mate. A pack. He was kind. But he had cursed Kairos.

What was I supposed to do? “Kairos,” I called out to him.

He was quiet, as if he was in a daze. “Kairos,” I repeated, louder this time. I approached him and slapped him across his face to snap him out of it. It worked.

This hadn’t unfolded like anything we had anticipated. I was at a loss. Kairos wasn’t guilty. His actions were wrong but Kairos hadn’t cursed Archibald.

He had deceived and usurped the title from him, but he didn’t afflict him with a curse. But Kairos had done a terrible thing to Archibald, turning everyone against him.

And I was still defending him. He was just a kid back then, and then his memories were wiped. Would he confess when he grew up?

Would he admit his mistakes, if he even knew?

Was Archibald still kind? Was Kairos not kind anymore?

I noticed that Kairos was mind linking someone. “What?” I tried to ask him.

“None of this adds up, the pack, the territory…the location. I remember, but…he couldn’t have established a pack like that so quickly…it…” Kairos was just mumbling.

I didn’t understand what he meant, but we needed to act. We couldn’t just leave. Kairos couldn’t. He would die.

“Burton will be at the door, waiting for the signal,” he said.

“I am so sorry, Adelie,” he said to me, then walked towards Archibald. Was he surrendering? Why was he apologizing?

Instead of surrendering, though, he reached Archibald and plunged a dagger into his chest, causing him to collapse. “Burton,” he called, and Burton immediately rushed in, holding a small box.

Kairos collapsed to the ground in an awkward position and started to convulse, his body casting shadows. Burton bent over him. He took a large needle and thrust it into the center of Kairos’ chest.

I screamed, my voice cracking. What was he doing? I tried to push Burton away, but he left on his own.

Kairos was still on the ground. “Kairos,” I whispered. I begged for him to be alive. He had to be alive.

Kairos’s eyes fluttered open. He was still breathing. My heart pounded in my chest. “It wasn’t real,” he murmured. His words left me puzzled.

A cough echoed from where Archibald had fallen.

Kairos was okay. But Archibald was on the brink of death, and our questions remained unanswered.

“What did you do to Mia?” I demanded.

“Why do you care?” he rasped back.

“You manipulated her. What did you tell her? Why did she trust you? She didn’t realize she was endangering the pack,” I accused, as blood trickled from his mouth.

“She wasn’t supposed to die. She didn’t know what she was doing. Why did you do this to her?”

He remained silent. “You’re dying. Why not tell me? Satisfy my curiosity. You’ve got nothing left to hide, nothing left to prove.”

His gaze landed on me. “I’m dying anyway,” he echoed. He gripped the dagger lodged in his chest and yanked it out.

No! I needed answers. I reached out to heal him. I had to know. But a firm grip yanked me back, lifting me off the ground.

I wriggled free, only to find it was Kairos who had pulled me away. “I need to know.” I tried to rise, but Kairos pressed his hands on my shoulders, keeping me grounded.

“You don’t need to know anything,” he snapped. “I need to know…but I can’t.” His eyes bore into mine. “If you find out, then I’ll find out. I can’t know more than I already do.”

“But…,” I was lost. His words made no sense to me.

“Adelie!” he yelled, but his anger quickly subsided. “Please don’t,” he pleaded.

Burton returned. “Christopher is captured. If you heal him, Kairos will be okay,” he informed us.

With that, Kairos stepped back from me. I had a chance to save him. The curse was lifted.

I was a healer. It was my nature to help those in pain. But I chose to help Kairos in his pain… That’s why I stayed put, not moving until Archibald was beyond saving.

Kairos didn’t want to know the truth. He knew it would cause him pain. The truth would hurt more than knowing he had killed her while she was under Archibald’s control.

Because he knew Mia hadn’t turned evil overnight. She was manipulated.

It was easier to believe she was evil than to face the truth: that he had killed his mate while she was under a spell.

Kairos bolted from the house and I chased after him. I was taken aback to see everything engulfed in flames. Red fire was everywhere, people fleeing from their homes. They were clueless about what was happening.

And the moment we stepped out of the house Archibald was in, it burst into flames.

“Did he attack?” Maeve inquired immediately.

“We were ready to leave,” they replied. “We thought you might need our help.”

Had we just killed an innocent man? I was consumed by guilt. A horrible, gut-wrenching guilt. Kairos looked just as tormented.

“Who did this?” Esty questioned.

I glanced at Kairos.

Archibald was dead, and with his death, all the houses were ablaze. The ground was parched, resembling a desert.

Kairos spoke beside me. “I remember… This wasn’t a real pack. When we were kids, we used to play in the forest near our pack. We pretended to be alphas. We had our own little world.

“He had a pretend mate named Delilah. He…recreated our childhood village. The land was imaginary. A fantasy. He had purchased a fantasy land.

“Most of the people weren’t real. His mate wasn’t real. The ones who joined later were real, but the rest were just phantoms living on the land.”

“That’s impossible!” I exclaimed.

“Impossible,” Kairos murmured.

I turned to Esty. “I...I can’t explain it,” she admitted, her own confusion mirrored in the faces of the others who were supposed to fight.

Kairos was pale, his eyes distant. “Kairos…” I tried to reach him, but he was lost in his thoughts.

Tears were falling around us, people watching their lives crumble. The real ones were looking around, their faces etched with confusion.

They deserved to know the truth. I started towards them, but Kairos beat me to it. It surprised me that he was still aware of his surroundings.

He approached the group of onlookers. “Please, come to my pack. We can offer you shelter,” he offered.

“Who’s responsible for this?” a woman sobbed.

“We’ll find out, but right now, you need to be safe. Please, let us protect you while we locate your Alpha,” he assured them.

He was lying. Why? He shot us a warning glance. We were to keep silent about what had transpired.

I noticed Burton had already slipped away without a word, but the rest of us stayed, offering comfort to the terrified and shocked survivors as their homes were consumed by flames.

They noticed the absence of many, but there were no cries for help. No screams from the burning houses. No frantic escape attempts.

They didn’t realize they weren’t real. Only a few were left. The rest were just illusions…