Chapter 25 I will find a way
~Kael's POV~
“That is not the reason I sent for you,” I said to Elder Rowan, wanting him to stop circling around the matter of Brenda. She was the least of my problems and the very last thing I wanted to waste my breath on.
“I know. It is about the witch,” Elder Rowan said with a slow thoughtful nod.
“How did you know that?” I asked, my brows pulling together as I studied him. His accuracy unsettled me more than I cared to admit.
“You have been acting differently ever since she made an appearance,” he said, watching me with those sharp eyes that never missed anything. “I have heard certain things, Kael, and I have seen certain things, although I trusted that you would handle it on your own. And if you ever reached the point where you could not handle it, I knew you would eventually reach out.”
He continued speaking, but only one part of what he said clung to me and refused to let go.
“You have heard and seen things?” I asked quietly.
“Yes,” he replied. “I have heard people whisper that she has bewitched you, and I have seen how the wounds you received in the forest the day we rescued her vanished in a way no normal healing could explain. Everyone believes she did something to you in the car. That is the rumor circulating. I chose not to bother you with it, not until you were ready to talk, and I believe you are ready now. So tell me what is going on.”
I let out a long tired sigh. “You will not believe it.”
“Try me,” he said simply.
“I think she is my mate,” I said finally, letting the words fall into the room like a heavy stone dropped into still water.
The expression that crossed his face was almost unbelievable. Fear flickered there, real fear, and that alone made my stomach twist because Elder Rowan was not a man who frightened easily. If he had been born an alpha, he would have led Ironfang with an unshakable iron fist. But fate made him my father’s beta, and he wore that role with strength and loyalty.
“What?” he breathed out.
“I told you that you would not believe it.”
“How did that happen? She is a witch and she is wolfless. What could possibly make you think she is your mate?” He shot out the questions rapidly, his disbelief tightening around every syllable.
It was time to let the truth breathe. So I told him everything. Every detail, every reaction, every strange moment with Lyra that I could not explain. I watched his face shift slowly as the truth settled inside him.
When I finished, he remained silent for a while before finally fixing his steady gaze on me.
“You think she is using magic to influence the reaction?”
“I honestly do not think so. Rudy does not think so either. But there is no harm in being absolutely sure.”
As soon as I said it, Elder Rowan gave a slow nod of understanding, followed by a faint smile.
“I will get the key,” he said, and without waiting for a response, he rose and walked away.
I knew exactly where he was going. I also knew exactly which key he spoke of. It was the key to the private room that had remained locked for years, untouched by anyone. I handed that key to him myself long ago and made him swear never to open the room unless the situation was dire and we had no other option.
Inside that room was a device that detected magical activity inside a werewolf’s body. After I developed immunity against witchcraft, the device had been used repeatedly on me to ensure that no magic clung to me after encounters with dark witches.
The procedure was excruciating, but some twisted part of me had grown addicted to the pain it inflicted. I eventually forced myself to stay away from it before the addiction became something worse.
Elder Rowan eventually returned with the key in hand, and together we walked in silence to the sealed room. We called it the blank room because of the emptiness and hollowness it inflicted on me after every session. It stripped everything away until only a numb shell remained.
We reached the thick iron door, and I stepped aside while he unlocked it. The hinges groaned as if protesting their sudden awakening after years of disuse. Dust and cobwebs covered every corner of the room, clinging to the walls like shadows refusing to leave. Despite that, the important device had been carefully covered before the room was sealed, and that had preserved it.
Elder Rowan moved toward it and removed the protective covering. As soon as the metal surface glinted in the dim light, a strange feeling washed over me. Nostalgia mixed with dread. Familiarity mixed with something darker.
“Are you ready for this?” he asked. His voice was calm but laced with concern.
I took my time before giving him a slow nod. “I am.”
“You have not forgotten how this affects you, right?” he asked. His voice lowered slightly, as if the room itself listened.
Of course I had not forgotten. “It weakens my wolf completely, and I will need at least twenty four hours to recover.”
“So I ask again,” he said quietly. “Are you sure you want to do this?”
“Yes,” I said.
“All right,” he replied.
He moved to the machine and switched it on, and I approached it while the hum of the device filled the room. It was a slender metal structure, cold and clinical, with a place for my bare feet and bare hands. It always felt like stepping willingly into an execution, but I positioned myself without hesitation.
“Do not do this, Kael,” Rudy whispered from within me. His voice was strained, almost pleading.
“I am sorry, Rudy, but this is for both of our good,” I said silently. “This will prove if you are right or wrong.”
I placed myself fully on the device. Elder Rowan activated the function, and immediately the pain surged through my body in violent waves. It forced a groan out of my chest before I could stop it. The pain was familiar, yet after such a long time, it felt sharper, more invasive, more unforgiving. It lanced through every bone and muscle, tearing through every layer of strength.
The device scanned me from head to toe. It felt like an eternity even though it lasted only a few seconds. When the scan ended, I stepped away, gripping onto my remaining strength to keep myself standing. My knees trembled, my vision swayed, and when I searched for Rudy, he was gone, just as he always was after sessions in this room.
Elder Rowan studied the results. He lifted his gaze to me. “There is no witchcraft activity in your body.”
I drew in a long breath and released it slowly, waiting for my heartbeat to settle.
“Then I have to find a way to bring her wolf to life,” I said quietly. “I just do not know where or how to begin.”
“I will find a way,” Elder Rowan said with quiet certainty. He stepped closer and tapped my shoulder gently. “Leave that to me.”