Chapter 66 Chapter 66

Chapter 66 Chapter 66
I descended the stairs one measured step at a time, the wood cool and slightly gritty under my bare feet. 

The house had emptied. Selena sat on the long couch near the fire, a stem of dark wine balanced between her fingers. 

Jon stood by the window, shoulders square, watching the black shapes of trees beyond the glass.  

When are these people going back to their house? now I can’t even move freely because they are watching me.

The air smelled of woodsmoke and the faint metallic tang of old blood still clinging to my bandages.

I crossed the room without slowing and reached for the front door, hoping they won’t have time to react. 

The handle was cold iron under my palm. Before I could turn it, Selena’s voice cut across the space, low and even.

“You are not going.” I didn’t even say anything yet, what if I was going to get some air outside? Bloody witch.

I kept my hand on the latch. “I need to stand with him. I can’t sit here while I don’t know what’s happening out there.”

She set the wine glass down on the low table with a soft click. “You are wounded. Those bandages need changing, the cuts need cleaning before infection sets in.”

“The only infection I will have will be in my heart if he dies and I was sitting here with you sipping wine.” My fingers tightened on the metal. 

Breath moved in and out of my chest in short, controlled pulls. The gauze around my ribs pulled tight with every inhale, a dull pressure that radiated outward. 

“That’s not funny,” Selena said, I gritted my teeth to stop a groan of pain from escaping my lips. “I wasn’t trying to be funny.”

“If he dies, he will have died as an honourable man-“

“Please stop, he will not die because I am
going out there to make sure that it doesn’t happen that way.” I said trying the door again, I know she’s the one who has the locked with her powers.

I can see by her upright position that she is too alert.

“He’s my mate. I won’t leave him to fight alone, I need to go.”

“No.” The word landed flat. I turned fully toward her. 

She remained seated, one ankle crossed over the other, the deep green of her cloak pooled around her legs. 

The firelight caught the silver strands in her hair and the steady rise and fall of her breathing. 

Jon had not moved from the window. Outside, the wind pushed against the glass with a low, continuous moan. 

“You know that he would want you to be safe and those bandages checked.” Selena said still staring into the fire. 

You may be correct Selena but let’s not focus on that, I need to know that he is still okay.

I stepped closer to the door again and twisted the handle. It did not turn. 

The lock held firm, the mechanism silent and absolute. I pushed harder, shoulder leaning into the wood, but the door stayed shut. 

My pulse thudded once, hard, against the side of my throat. I looked back at Selena, it’s surely her. 

She lifted the wine glass again and took a slow sip, the liquid dark against her mouth.

A short breath left me through my nose. I walked to the nearest chair and dropped into it, spine straight, hands resting on my thighs. 

Selena turned her head toward me, eyes reflecting the fire. “Good choice.” she got up, came back with a first aid kit in hand and started taking the bandages off on my arm.

“I will find you a powerful instructor,” she said. “Someone who can teach you to control what moves through you before it begins to control you.”

The words hung between us. I did not answer, I don’t need help. I just need the door to open.

The front door opened by the two men who had once stood outside my door as bodyguards. The same door that I just tried to open and it didn’t budge.

Their boots scuffed lightly against the floorboards. Both carried the same blank expressions they always wore, except they had a few bruises too.

I stood before they could speak. “No.” My voice stayed level. “They failed. I will not have them again. I do not need them.”

Jon’s jaw shifted once. “This is not about what you want, these men risked their lives for you.” The two men remained silent, eyes fixed somewhere past my shoulder. 

“And still I was taken on their watch.” I said. “What matters they will come back stronger and they don’t die.” He said, I looked at him caught off guard by the immortal part but that's not the point.

I kept my gaze on my father until he gave a short nod and gestured them back toward the door. “We will talk about this, Ayla.”

A sudden burst of sound reached the house boots on the porch, the heavy drag of something large, low voices speaking in sharp tones. 

The front door opened. Cold night air rushed in, carrying the sharp scent of blood.

Alex stepped through first, shoulders broad beneath a torn shirt, dark hair matted at the temples. Two of his men followed, supporting a third figure between them.

Branden’s head hung forward. Blood darkened the front of his clothes and streaked his face. 

One eye had already swollen shut. They released him at Alex’s nod, and Branden crumpled to the floorboards with a dull, heavy sound. His breath rattled wetly in his chest.

For some reason my heart clenched seeing him like this even though we both know he deserves it.

Alex straightened. His eyes found mine across the room and held. The firelight carved hard lines along his jaw. 

He spoke once, voice rough from the fight. The look reassured me I made no mistake by choosing him.

“We need to make sure he never comes back into our lives.” I looked down at Branden. 

His fingers twitched against the wood. Blood pooled slowly beneath his cheek, the iron scent rising strong enough to coat the inside of my mouth. 

My own breathing stayed even, but my hands had curled into fists at my sides, nails pressing crescent marks into my palms. 

The bandages around my ribs pulled with each slow rise of my chest. I knew exactly what Alex meant.

I stepped closer until the toes of my bare feet nearly touched the edge of the blood. 

Branden’s remaining open eye tracked the movement. I drew a full breath, tasting copper, and spoke the words clearly enough for every person in the room to hear.

“I, Ayla, reject you, Alpha Branden , as my mate.” The final syllable left my tongue and the air in the room seemed to thin. 

Somewhere outside, a single wolf howled once and fell silent. Branden’s body jerked once against the floor, a low sound tearing from his throat. 

I did not look away as they picked him up and dragged him away from me. I knew what waited outside. 

Alex would not leave Branden breathing. The certainty settled low in my stomach, a cold weight that did not move.