âWhat do you mean by that? You know I canât hide anything from Zaia, I will tell her!â I exclaim as he stands up and I stand up myself, blocking his path as I push him back, but he doesnât even budge.
âI mean what I said, If you donât do as I say, it will only hurt Zala. So keep this between us because Iâd rather she be angry thanâ¦â
âThan broken?â I finish, glaring up at him accusingly, my heart thundering with anger.
Sheâll break if I donât!
âYes, I will get you the antidote, and you are not to tell Zaia where it came from.â He replies quietly.
I swallow.
Heâs going to do exactly what I know is Zaiaâs deepest fear.
Heâs going to join them⦠the Sableâ¦
No. No. âNO!â I shout.
He glances upwards, clamping a hand over my mouth, his eyes blazing.
âThe children are asleep.â He says coldly. âYou have no option. Tell Zaia and she will only become weak. They need to know and believe that I have chosen without an incentive to become one of them⦠Zaiaâs reaction needs to be genuine.â
Thereâs an urgency in his voice as if he needed me to understand that.
âThis is for my little girl. Sheâs barely lived⦠she deserves to experience life to its fullest. She doesnât deserve to be pulled away from this world so soon. Do you understand?â
He releases my mouth, but Iâm unable to reply.
I know what he meansâ¦
She wonât live long⦠we all know that even if Zaia is trying her bestâ¦
Sia⦠our little princessâ¦.
âI canât lie to her.â I plead once more, but thereâs no power behind my words any longer.
I understand himâ¦
AREE âYou will.â His eyes flash as his alpha command rolls off of him. I frown and although I feel strong enough to defy it to an extent, it still weighs upon me. âIâll leave it to you to decide what you will doâ¦
but remember this can cost Sia if anything happens to my little girlâ¦.
He leaves his threat open, and I know I canât risk it.
I too have found nothing. We do need the antidoteâ¦
Iâm about to reply when we hear the door open and instantly, we both step away from one another.
âAnyone there!â Atticus shouts, and 1 quickly rush to the hallway.
âValerie!â Zaiaâs panicked voice comes just as I round the bend and the sight of both her and Atticus supporting a bloody Jai makes my heart stop.
Fear washes over me and for a moment, time stands still.
No.
âJai!â I rush to his side, cupping his face. His eyes flutter, sweat coating his forehead as he looks at me through halfâclosed eye eyes.
Please be ok!
Heâs bleeding a lot, thereâs a makeshift bandage around his chest and waist and itâs drenched in blood.
âWhy didnât you take him to a hospital?â I ask, my heart thumping..
âWe were followed,â Zaia explains, helplessly.
âYou can do this,â Sebastian says to me and I nod despite the fear inside. I donât have much here!
âBring him to the dining table!â I command. âI need clean water, bandages and I need to stitch him up!â
rush to get some supplies, my heart beating as everyone rushes to get me what I need..
Goddess! Let him be ok!
I return to his side as they bring everything I need.
âHow did he get hurt? What happened?â I ask as Zaia stands beside Jaiâs head, her aura swirling around her as if sheâs concentrating on something. Sebastian is watching her intently, but sheâs too focused on what sheâs doing.
âHe was shot, and as you can see, a wolf managed to get his claws into him,â Atticus says, running his fingers through his hair.
Sebastian rips open Jaiâs shirt for me fully and I begin wiping the blood so I can take a better look.
My breath catches in my throat as I stare down at the three deep gashes along his flank, but there are also two other wounds.
Focus Valerie, Jai needs you to be in a proper mindset right now. You are the only one who can help him!
âI will need to remove the bullet first,â I say, having no other option, the table is already a bloody mess.
âI donât have anaesthesia, give him something to bite down on.â
Sebastian puts a thick strip of cloth in Jaiâs mouth. I pull my gloves on and begin probing for the bullet, making Jai groan.