Chapter 96: Chapter 96

Kairos was standing in front of me, bathed in a soft glow. His eyes were a deep shade of pink, the veins surrounding them a stark purple. His hand was clenched around the door handle, trembling as he battled with his inner demons.

Droplets of saliva fell from his mouth. “Get out!” he hissed, his words freezing me in place.

“Go away and never return!” he bellowed. “Please…please don’t make me find you and hurt you!” he choked out. It was Kairos. My Kairos.

He let me go, but I knew it was only a temporary reprieve.

Kairos handed me a finely crafted silver knife. I stared at him, confused. “Only you can plunge this knife into me,” he declared. His words left me breathless.

“I won’t allow anyone else to do it. When the time comes, don’t hesitate.” He guided my hands around the handle, his fingers covering mine.

“And if I cause you pain, make sure it hurts me more.” His grip on my hands was firm, yet his hands were shaking uncontrollably.

He was aware of the risks, and so was I. Despite the harshness of his words, I didn’t protest. Even if I had wanted to, I was speechless, contemplating the state of our lives.

I made up my mind. Regardless of the circumstances, I would have to make the decision for him.

Life had taught me to appreciate the present moment, because there were so many moments worth fighting for and looking forward to.

I withdrew my hands from his and studied his discolored face and almost unrecognizable eyes. I didn’t know when I would see him next…or even if…

I exited through the garden. I was aware that guards or pack members could be lurking around. I took a deep breath and as soon as I stepped outside, I created my escape route.

I descended into a hole in the ground where tree roots had formed a safe tunnel beneath everyone.

I only stopped when I ran out of energy. The roots were obstructing my path, draining my strength.

I emerged in the middle of the woods and immediately collapsed onto my stomach.

Without wasting any time, I rested my forehead against the ground, drawing energy from the earth.

My heart rate had slowed down from the earlier adrenaline rush, but now my hands were trembling.

I saw Kairos. He was his true self. He looked exhausted and terrified. I had thought Christopher was too powerful to let Kairos break through, but I knew Kairos was still there.

I just had to figure out how to bring him back.

“Esty,” I whispered to myself. I needed her assistance. I couldn’t return to the pack. Esty was my only hope.

I got up and ventured deeper into the woods. “Esty!” I called out. She had once told me that she could sense when she was needed or summoned.

I continued walking and calling for her. I never doubted that she would show up. And when she finally did, she ran straight towards me.

“Sweetheart, what happened to you?” she inquired. “You smell like death!”

“I need your help,” I managed to say.

“I can see you need me to clean you up. Where have you been?” she asked.

“I don’t know how much time we have,” I replied. I was hoping Christopher wasn’t plotting something.

But I was concerned about what was happening to the pack.

“You can tell me everything on the way to my house,” she suggested, starting to walk.

We strolled through the woods together as I recounted the events. She didn’t interrupt me even once.

We arrived at a modest house in the middle of nowhere. She guided me inside, where the air was heavy with the scent of burnt sage and the room sparkled with crystals and stones.

Her house was cluttered with objects. There wasn’t a single empty space.

I noticed her daughter hiding in the shadows, but she remained silent, not even speaking to her mother.

Esty led me to a bedroom. I wasn’t sure if it was hers, but this room was different from the rest of the house. It felt more ordinary, brighter, less cluttered.

She rummaged through the closet, pulling out a selection of clothes: black pants, boots, and a jacket.

I shook my head, urgency creeping into my voice. “Esty, this is serious. I don’t know the situation at the pack, but I need to ensure everyone is safe.”

Her amusement was evident in the face of my concern.

“You have time,” she assured me. “Right now, I need to consult the gods, see if they can guide me in helping you with Kairos. You can’t face him alone. He will kill you.”

I found myself questioning if Kairos’ body could actually end my life. If he would still be lost to his madness when he watched me draw my final breath…

Esty gave my cheek a comforting pat. “Freshen up. The pack would prefer to see their leader looking his best,” she advised before exiting the room.

Despite Esty’s reassurances, I couldn’t shake my sense of urgency.

I quickly made my way to Esty’s study. She was engrossed in a book, but her cheerful demeanor faded when she noticed me. “Can you help?” I asked.

She wrapped her arms around herself, pacing the room slowly, avoiding my gaze. “Being wrong is one thing. Like when I believed I could restore your wolf.

“I can accept being wrong, knowing I at least made an effort,” she confessed. I struggled to find any silver lining in her experience.

I was the one who’d shattered her belief, and I paid the price with my own body, losing my wolf in the process.

“But to be utterly deluded about the things I say and hear is something I never want to experience. And yet…I was exactly that when I overlooked all the signs.”

“What are you talking about?” I asked, confused.

“Christopher Price,” she muttered, seemingly to herself. “I told you Maeve had connections with him. Then a vampire informed you that Kairos is possessed by Christopher.”

“I wanted to confront Maeve. I wanted to hear what she knew about him.” But I had been imprisoned before I could reach her.

“Beings like Christopher Price…their souls are locked away for good. My ancestors worked tirelessly to ensure he remained confined,” she attempted to explain, but I was struggling to understand.

“But he can still be summoned…Irene said he was summoned.”

“~Summoned~ seems too gentle a term for Christopher. Someone must be incredibly ruthless and heartless to even consider bringing him back.”

Her eyes held a flicker of emotion, her hands clenching as she described the fury someone must have harbored.

“To resurrect him, someone had to spill the blood of fourteen different species of human creatures.”

Esty’s voice was filled with awe. “And once he’s free, he exists to feed off others, either killing them or simply moving on to the next.”

“How is that possible?” I asked. At that moment, I wasn’t considering how to permanently eliminate him, but my emotions were driving me to ask how to liberate Kairos.

“I’m not sure, but someone who has been possessed and then freed would know,” she said, studying my face. I was still struggling to connect the dots. “Your Beta has the answer.”

She paused, waiting for my reaction.

“She was possessed by Christopher Price?” I asked, and she nodded. “But…she saw Kairos. She was the only one who actually witnessed him in this state.

If she once experienced it, how could she not recognize it?” I asked. I didn’t want to know, but I needed to know to save Kairos.

“She knows,” Esty confirmed, “but it would be interesting to hear why she didn’t tell you sooner.”

Did she despise me so much for making her my Beta that she withheld this information? That she didn’t care to assist the Alpha she pledged to serve?

“I need to return to my pack,” I declared. I didn’t have time to ponder this revelation, but I needed to act immediately. I needed to find Maeve and question her. She was the only one who knew.

Esty approached me, her eyes determined. “You won’t be going solo. I’ll be right there with you. You could use some backup in a place where you’re not exactly a favorite.”

I couldn’t dispute that.

“Thanks, Esty,” I said, struggling to recall if I’d ever expressed gratitude to her before.

“Does this mean I’m off the hook?” she asked, a playful smirk on her face.

“That depends on whether I can save my pack.”

“And what about Kairos?” she questioned. “Maeve managed to escape her possession. What makes you think he can?”

I felt my nostrils flare in response to her words. “I really appreciate your optimism when it comes to my love life,” I retorted, my voice laced with bitterness.

She often looked at me as if I was too innocent for my own good. “Once you’ve been hurt enough, you stop expecting happy endings.

“You keep anticipating tragedies until you’re surprised enough times to start feeling hopeful again. And this cycle never stops. You’re always expecting one or the other.

“And honestly, the happiest people are those who don’t expect anything at all.” She spoke as if she had nothing to lose, yet her eyes told a different story.

“Are you happy?” I asked, momentarily caught up in the raw honesty of her words.

She gave me a sweet smile. “A miserable one.”

Esty adjusted my jacket collar, then positioned me so we were both looking into the mirror.

“A true warrior fights as if they have everything to lose. Regardless of the size of the battle, always expect the unexpected.”

I watched her reflection in the mirror. “But that’s the thing about sacrifice. What or who are you willing to protect?”

Her hand moved to my stomach, applying a slight pressure that took me by surprise. As her hand stayed there, my mind slowly registered what she was implying.

“You’d be surprised how priorities shift when you realize there’s another heartbeat beneath yours.”