Chapter 86
Elara's POV
The wolf hit us mid-jump.
I felt its weight crash into my back. Heard Victoria scream. Then we were falling.
I twisted in the air. Grabbed Victoria's arm. Pulled her close.
We hit the ground hard. My shoulder took most of the impact. Pain shot through my arm but I didn't let go.
"Run!" I shoved Victoria toward the trees. "Go!"
She stumbled. Caught herself. Started running.
I rolled to my feet. The wolf landed where I'd been a second ago. Its claws tore into the dirt.
Two more shapes dropped from the wall behind it. All three wolves spread out. Cutting off our escape routes.
My mind went cold. Calculating.
Three adult werewolves. Fully shifted. Victoria exhausted. Me still recovering from the shoulder injury.
Success rate if I fight? Maybe thirty percent. And that's if Victoria doesn't get caught in the crossfire.
The lead wolf growled. Low and threatening. Its eyes fixed on me.
I backed up slowly. Putting myself between the wolves and Victoria. She'd stopped running. Was leaning against a tree. Her legs shaking so bad she could barely stand.
"How do we..." Her voice cracked. "We can't outrun them."
No. We couldn't.
I looked around. Found a thick branch on the ground. Picked it up.
Not much of a weapon. But better than nothing.
The wolves started circling. The leader stayed in front. The other two moved to flank us.
I felt my muscles tense. My body remembering. All those fights in the north. All that training.
If I was alone I could break through. Take out the fast one on the left first. Use the momentum to—
The leader lunged.
I shifted my weight. Ready to dodge. Ready to—
A black blur slammed into it from the side.
The impact sent the wolf flying. It crashed into a tree trunk with a sickening crunch.
I froze.
A massive black wolf stood where the leader had been. Amber eyes glowing in the darkness. Shoulders almost as high as my chest.
Kael.
I didn't expect him to actually come.
The two other wolves backed up. Growling. Uncertain.
Kael didn't growl back. Didn't need to. He just stood there. Radiating pure Alpha dominance.
The air felt heavier. Like the pressure before a storm.
I grabbed Victoria's arm. Pulled her back. Away from the fight.
"What—" she started.
"Quiet," I whispered.
I watched Kael. Studied his movements.
He didn't waste energy on threats. Didn't circle or posture. When the wolf on the right tried to rush him, he simply moved. Fast. Precise.
One strike to the jaw. The wolf's head snapped back. It hit the ground hard. Didn't get up.
The third wolf hesitated. Then tried to run.
Kael caught it in three strides. Slammed it into the ground. Pinned it there with one massive paw on its throat.
The wolf thrashed. Clawed at the dirt. Then went still. Submitted.
Kael held it another few seconds. Making sure. Then let go.
The whole thing took maybe twenty seconds.
The leader was getting back up. Shaking its head. Blood dripping from its muzzle.
It took one look at Kael. Then howled. A long, retreating call.
The other two wolves scrambled to their feet. All three of them limped back into the forest. Fast as they could move with their injuries.
Kael watched them go. Didn't chase. Just stood there until the sound of their footsteps faded completely.
Then he shifted back.
Bones cracking. Reshaping. I looked away. Gave him privacy.
When I looked back he was human again. Breathing hard. No shirt. Jeans torn at the knees.
He turned toward us.
"You okay?" His voice was rough. Deeper than usual.
His eyes went to Victoria first. I saw the concern there. Brief but real.
"We're fine," I said quickly. "Thanks for—"
"I don't need you to save me."
Victoria's voice cut through mine. Cold. Sharp.
I looked at her. She was staring at Kael. But not meeting his eyes. Looking past him. Through him.
Kael's expression froze.
The concern in his eyes died. Replaced by something flat. Empty.
"I just..." He started. Stopped. His hand had been reaching toward her. Now it dropped to his side. "I heard the alarm. Thought you might—"
"I said I don't need you." Victoria pushed off from the tree. Stood straighter. "I had it handled."
She didn't. We both knew she didn't. But Kael didn't argue.
He just nodded. Once. Stiff.
"Right," he said. "Of course."
The light in his eyes dimmed. Not angry. Not hurt.
Just... resigned.
Like he'd expected this. Like he always expected this.
I felt something twist in my chest. Watching him. Watching the careful blankness settle over his face.
This wasn't the first time she'd done this. Wasn't even close.
This was a wound that had scarred over. Opened. Scarred again. So many times that he didn't even flinch anymore.
He just accepted it.
Victoria turned away from him. Looked at me instead.
"We should go," she said. "Before more of them come back."
I nodded slowly. Still watching Kael.
He'd already started walking. Back toward the road. Not looking at either of us.
His shoulders were tight. His hands clenched at his sides.
But his face stayed blank. Controlled.
I'd seen that look before. In the north. On soldiers who'd learned that feeling nothing was safer than feeling everything.
The crack in my chest widened.
This was worse than I thought. Deeper than just a mother who left. This was years of rejection. Years of reaching out and being pushed away.
Years of learning that the person who should love you most... didn't want you.
And Kael had learned to swallow it. Hide it. Pretend it didn't matter.
But I'd seen his eyes. Just for a second. Before he locked it all down.
I'd seen the hurt. Old and familiar. Like an ache he'd lived with so long he didn't remember what it felt like to be without it.