Chapter 187

Chapter 187
Logan’s POV
I pulled my hand back. Blood dripped from my claws onto the deck.
Kai's body went limp. Collapsed completely onto the broken wooden planks.
My hand shifted back to human form. Kai's blood covered my fingers.
I'd killed him. Avenged what he'd done to Valencia. But it didn't fix anything. I felt nothing. No satisfaction. No guilt. Just emptiness.
I crouched down and searched Kai's body. Found the small leather pouch at his belt.
My bloody fingers opened it.
The Heart of Rubia lay inside. The massive ruby gleamed in the early morning light. Valencia's blood still stained the gold band.
I pulled the ring out carefully. Held it up.
This cursed thing. We'd crossed an ocean for it. Passed through magical barriers. Valencia had walked through fire for it.
And in the end, it had done nothing. Given her no control. No power.
Just been stolen by a traitor who'd used her love against her. I closed my fist around the ring.
I stood up and looked around the deck. The Sea Wolf was drifting. No one at the wheel. The sails caught the wind at wrong angles.
I ran to the helm and grabbed the wheel. Spun it hard.
The ship began to turn. Slowly at first. Then faster as I adjusted the sails.
I pointed the bow toward Ravencrest Island. The sky was getting lighter. Dawn was coming. But would Valencia live to see it?
Through the mate bond, I felt almost nothing. "Hold on," I whispered. "Please hold on."
The ship moved too slowly. The wind wasn't strong enough. The current fought against me.
I wanted to jump overboard and swim. But that would be even slower.
So I stood at the wheel. Covered in blood. Gripping the Heart of Rubia in my left hand. Steering with my right.
Valencia, I sent through the mind link. I'm coming. I have the ring. Just hold on a little longer.
No response. Just that faint, dying flicker.
The mate bond was almost gone.
The Sea Wolf finally reached the stone dock. I didn't wait for the ship to fully stop. I jumped onto the dock while the vessel was still moving.
Sir Aldwyn stood at the edge of the beach. His face was grim. Behind him, several guards waited with torches.
"Did you get it?" Sir Aldwyn called out.
I held up my left hand. The Heart of Rubia gleamed in the torchlight. Blood still stained the gold band.
"I got it," I said. My voice was rough. "Where is she?"
Sir Aldwyn's expression darkened. "The medical wing. Logan, you need to prepare yourself."
"Prepare myself for what?"
Sir Aldwyn didn't answer. He just turned and started walking quickly toward the fortress.
I ran after him. My boots pounded against the stone steps as we climbed. The guards followed behind us.
"How bad is it?" I demanded. "Tell me."
"Master Theron has been working on her for the past hour," Sir Aldwyn said. He didn't look at me. "He managed to extract most of the silver from her wounds. But the damage was severe."
"Is she alive?"
"Yes. Barely."
We reached the top of the cliff and entered the fortress. Sir Aldwyn led me through corridors I'd never been in before. Down a long hallway lined with doors.
He stopped at the last door on the left. His hand rested on the handle.
"Logan," he said quietly. "She's lost a tremendous amount of blood. Even with the silver removed, her body isn't healing properly. Master Theron said her organs were damaged too severely."
My stomach dropped. "What are you saying?"
Sir Aldwyn finally looked at me. His blue eyes were filled with sorrow.
"He said there's nothing more he can do. I'm sorry."
The words hit me like a physical blow. I stumbled backward slightly.
"No," I said. "No, that's not possible. She's a dragon shifter. She has supernatural healing. She can't just die from stab wounds."
"The silver poisoning was too severe. It prevented her body from healing quickly enough. By the time Master Theron extracted it, she'd already lost too much blood."
"Then give her more blood. Do a transfusion."
Sir Aldwyn shook his head. "We tried. Her body rejected it."
I wanted to scream. To punch something. To shift and tear this entire fortress apart.
Instead, I just stood there. Numb.
"How long does she have?" I asked.
"Master Theron estimates maybe another hour. Two at most."
An hour. Two hours. That was all the time I had left with her.
Sir Aldwyn opened the door. "I'll give you privacy."
I walked into the room. The smell of blood was overwhelming. Even stronger than it had been in our bedroom.
Master Theron stood beside a bed in the center of the room. He looked exhausted.
Valencia lay on the bed. She was so pale she looked almost translucent. Her chest rose and fell with shallow breaths. Bandages covered her shoulder, her ribs, her thigh, her abdomen. All of them were stained red.
Her right hand lay on top of the blanket. The bandage around her index finger was soaked through with blood.
I walked to the bedside slowly. Each step felt like moving through water.
"I've done everything I can," Master Theron said quietly. "I extracted the silver. Cleaned and stitched the wounds. But the internal damage is too extensive."
"Leave us," I said. My voice came out flat.
Master Theron nodded. He gathered his supplies and left the room. The door closed softly behind him.
I stood beside the bed and looked down at Valencia. Her purple eyes were closed. Her face was peaceful. Like she was just sleeping.
But I could feel the truth through the mate bond. That flickering light was almost gone. Just the faintest spark remaining.
I pulled a chair close to the bed and sat down. My hand reached out and took her left hand. It was cold.
"Valencia," I whispered. "I'm here. I got the ring back."
I looked down at the Heart of Rubia in my other hand. The ruby gleamed mockingly. All of this for nothing.
I wanted to throw it out the window. But I couldn't. Because maybe it could still help somehow.
With trembling fingers, I reached for Valencia's right hand. The one with the missing finger. I had to try. Even if the ring had failed before.
I carefully slid the Heart of Rubia onto her middle finger. The ring fit.
I waited. Watching. Hoping.
Nothing happened.
The ruby just sat there. Not glowing. Not reacting.
"Please," I said to the ring. To whatever consciousness supposedly lived inside it. "Please help her. She passed your trial. She's the chosen one. You're supposed to give her power. You're supposed to help her control the dragon."
Still nothing.
My vision blurred with tears. They spilled down my cheeks before I could stop them.
"She's dying," I said. My voice cracked. "Don't you understand? She's dying and you're just sitting there doing nothing."
The ring remained silent. Dead.
I lowered my head until my forehead rested against Valencia's hand. The one wearing the ring.
"I'm sorry," I whispered. "I'm so sorry I couldn't protect you. I'm sorry I left you alone. I'm sorry I didn't realize Kai was a threat."
The tears came faster now. I couldn't stop them.
"You deserved better than this. You deserved a family. A home. Peace. Not this. Not being murdered by someone you trusted."
My shoulders shook. I'd never cried like this before. Valencia was everything. My mate. My Luna. The only person who'd ever looked at me and seen something worth loving.
And I was losing her.
"Please don't leave me," I begged. "Please. I can't do this without you. I don't want to do this without you."
The mate bond flickered weaker. Dimming like a candle in its final moments.
I lifted my head and looked at her face. Memorizing every detail. The curve of her cheekbones. The shape of her lips. The way her brown hair spread across the pillow.
"I love you," I said. "I'll always love you. In this life and whatever comes after."
Her chest rose. Fell. Rose again. Each breath weaker than the last.
I squeezed her hand gently. The one with the ring.
And then something happened.
The Heart of Rubia began to glow. Faint at first. Just a soft red light emanating from the ruby. Then brighter. The glow intensified rapidly. Within seconds, the entire ring blazed with brilliant red light.
I jerked back in surprise. The light was so bright I had to shield my eyes.
"Valencia?" I said.
The red light spread from the ring. It flowed up her arm like liquid fire. Across her shoulder. Down her chest. It wrapped around her entire body.
Valencia's body began to rise. Slowly at first. Then faster. She floated up from the bed. Her arms spread out to her sides. Her hair lifted around her head like she was underwater.
The red light intensified even more. It became almost blinding. I had to turn my face away.
"What's happening?" I shouted.
The door burst open. Sir Aldwyn rushed in with Master Theron behind him.
"Dragon God above," Sir Aldwyn breathed.
Valencia floated three feet above the bed now. The red light pulsed around her like a heartbeat.
Heat filled the room. Just warm. Like standing near a fire.