Chapter 40 Collapsed
~Kael’s POV~
Lyra ate nothing the night before. The next morning came with dull gray light slipping into the pack grounds, and she still refused to eat. She did not even speak to the person who carried her food into the room. She only repeated that the only person she was willing to take food from was Taren, and that she would starve rather than accept a single bite from anyone else.
I ignored her and went about my business, although her behavior lingered in my mind more than I cared to admit. Something strange clung to the air whenever I passed near her quarters. Her scent, that intoxicating and overwhelming fragrance that had clouded my judgment and pulled at instincts I hardly had control over, was fading rapidly. It was diminishing by the second, disappearing like mist under sunlight. The change was so unnatural that every instinct I had screamed at me to investigate, but I forced myself to ignore it. I convinced myself that her stubbornness and hunger strike were the only problems here.
The day dragged with a heaviness that made every hour feel twice as long.
When night finally fell, I was rounding up my work, trying to shake the unease growing inside me, when the door to my office opened and elder Rowan stepped in.
Relief washed through me immediately. His presence eased one part of the worry that had been clawing at me for two days. He was supposed to return yesterday according to our agreement, but he took an extra day. His arrival told me there was finally going to be an explanation for all of this.
“You took three days instead of two. What kept you so long?” I asked after he settled into the chair across from mine. His shoulders sagged slightly as he released a slow breath.
“It was a necessary extension, and I had to turn off my phone because the use of cell phones was completely prohibited in the village,” he explained. His voice carried exhaustion, and I could see deep lines of fatigue etched into his face. “It was a miracle that I was even able to meet the only person who knew anything about her condition.”
I could see he needed rest, but I needed answers even more, so I pushed forward.
“So what did you find out?” I asked.
He nodded, as if he had already rehearsed the report in his mind.
“Her wolf was hidden to protect her from the shadow pack and from the devout worshippers of the void wolf. She truly is the only one whose blood can bring back the void wolf. There is no doubt about that anymore. But this is where it gets twisted.” His face tightened into a deep frown that mirrored the tension rising in my chest.
A cold heaviness settled over me. I knew I was about to hear something I would hate.
“The witch I met said that if at any point she had fallen into the hands of the shadow pack, then we should be certain that we are already on the losing side. The shadow pack would be one step ahead of us, because they would have taken blood from her to begin the process of resurrecting the void wolf.”
My jaw clenched hard as the image of her bloodied body flashed through my memory. The sight of all the blood on her clothes and body the day we brought her back suddenly made cruel and painful sense. Elder Rowan, however, was not done.
“She said the only way we have a chance is by ensuring that her wolf is awakened. And the only way that can happen is if she fully embraces her true self. I did not understand her completely, so I asked if she could help. She said the only way she could help would be if we released the girl to her, because she would never step foot in Ironfang even if her life depended on it.”
Elder Rowan opened his mouth to continue, but a knock interrupted him.
“Come in,” I said.
The new warrior I assigned to deliver food to Lyra stepped into the office with a troubled look on his face.
“I am sorry to interrupt, Alpha, but there is a problem with the lady’s room.”
I assumed he was about to complain that Lyra was refusing to eat again, but the report he delivered was nothing I expected.
“The door will not open no matter how many times or how much I try,” he said. Confusion clouded his face as if the situation defied every law he understood.
“What do you mean the door will not open?” I asked. The door had no mechanism that allowed it to be locked from the inside. It should have been impossible.
“I don't understand how it is possible either, Alpha. I have tried several times, but something is keeping it shut from the inside.” His voice shook with uncertainty.
I reached for my phone to check the live view of the room, fully expecting to see Lyra pacing or ignoring him. But what I saw instead tightened every muscle in my body.
Lyra was lying on the floor, completely unmoving. There was no visible injury on her body, yet seeing her collapsed in that position struck me with sudden and fierce panic.
“Is something wrong?” elder Rowan asked, noticing the dread spreading across my face.
I was already on my feet before my answer even left my mouth.
“Yes. I think something is wrong with her,” I said, already rushing out of the office. Questions slammed into my mind as my footsteps echoed down the corridor.
Did she faint because she refused to eat?
Did she collapse from exhaustion?
Was this connected to her fading scent? Was something happening inside her that we could not see?
Every question sharpened my panic as I hurried back to my quarters with elder Rowan and the warrior running after me.
I needed to reach her. I needed to get that door open. I needed to know if she was still breathing.
And with every step I took, the fear rose higher.