Chapter 14
Elvira
He stopped right in front of me, his jaw tight.
“Elvira,” he said again, softer this time. “Come with me. Now.”
The hallway felt longer than usual.
Alpha Jaxon didn’t say a word as he walked ahead, silent and composed. I followed behind him, trying to keep my breaths steady, even though my heart felt like it was going to burst through my chest.
I had disobeyed him. He told me not to leave the room, and I did. That alone was enough to make my skin prickle with unease. I didn’t know what kind of punishment awaited me, but something told me it wouldn’t be anything I could prepare for.
When we finally entered his chambers, the scent of sandalwood hit me, his scent. It clung to the air, grounding yet intense. The door shut behind us with a soft but final thud.
“Sit,” he said, gesturing toward the seat across from him.
I nodded quickly, my hands trembling as I moved. The chair was plush and cold against my legs as I sank into it. He sat across from me, his elbows resting lightly on his thighs, fingers interlaced, and his eyes, those icy, storm-like eyes never left mine.
The silence was suffocating.
I bit down on the inside of my cheek and glanced anywhere but him, at the velvet curtains, the stone fireplace, the shining candles, but always, I felt his gaze, unwavering, unblinking.
He was watching me. I felt like prey.
I clenched my hands into fists on my lap, trying to stop them from shaking. My chest tightened with every second that passed, as if the very air had turned to pressure. Then, without warning, he reached forward and took my palm into his.
I stiffened.
His hand was large, warm, but somehow still controlled, like everything else about him. I braced myself, waiting for a scolding, or worse. But instead, his thumb brushed lightly over the back of my hand.
“Elvira,” he said softly, and I swear it was the gentlest I’d ever heard him speak. “I need you to be honest with me with what I’m about to ask you now.”
My lips twitched, my body on edge. Fear pulsed under my skin.
“What’s that?” I asked, barely managing to keep my voice steady.
“Promise me you won’t lie to me,” he said, his voice firmer now.
I hesitated, then nodded. “I won’t.”
He paused, eyes boring into mine like he was already trying to extract the truth before I could speak.
“Could you… in detail… tell me what happened the day before your ceremony?” he asked.
The world stilled. My body locked up at his question.
Of all the things he could’ve asked, this was the one I feared the most. The memories still linger at the edges of my mind. My throat closed, and I struggled to breathe, to form words. But they wouldn’t come. Not because I wanted to lie, but because I wasn’t ready to reopen that wound. Not yet.
My hand instinctively pulled from his grip. He didn’t fight it.
“I…” I started, my voice cracking. “I don’t want to talk about it yet.”
He said nothing, only tilted his head slightly as if reading the truth off my skin.
“Thinking about what happened that day,” I continued, “always brings tears to my eyes. I need a little time.”
That’s when I felt it, the warm brush of his thumb on my cheek. Startled, I realized I’d been crying. I hadn’t even noticed the tear falling. My brothers always mocked me for this. They hated when I cried, and said I liked to play the innocent. Said I used my tears to escape blame.
“I’m sorry,” I muttered, swiping at my face with the back of my hand. “I didn’t mean to…”
“Don’t apologize,” he said quietly. “You can lean on me, Elvira. If you want to cry, I don’t mind.”
I blinked.
That... wasn’t the response I expected. Not from him. Not from a man who always seemed colder with each day. I turned to look at him, really look at him, trying to find the truth in his expression. But his eyes gave nothing away. Still as cold. I let the silence linger, though it no longer felt as sharp as before.
Eventually, he stood and walked to the mirror. A large armchair sat beside it, it's dark leather gleaming beneath the candlelight. He gestured for me to come over.
I hesitated but obeyed. He moved behind me, and to my surprise, his fingers gently gathered my hair. I sat still, not daring to breathe. His hands worked with unexpected ease, separating my curls, weaving them carefully into a braid.
A memory flashed—Mom, humming softly as she braided my hair by the river, tucking in a sunflower at the end to "make me look like a princess." I’d always laughed and called her silly, but I wore it anyway, because she loved it. For a moment, I allowed myself to feel it again. Love. Warmth. Safety. But it didn’t last.
Because then my mind began to wander. How many other girls had sat here? How many had let him braid their hair?
Yeah, Elvira. Don’t feel too special. You’re not the first.
Before I could stop myself, the words tumbled out.
“I heard a lot of girls lived with you before.”
Silence. My stomach twisted instantly with regret. Me and my big mouth. The gentle pull on my braid stopped.
“Where did you hear that?” he asked.
I froze. “Luna Celina said something about the last girl.”
There was a beat of stillness before he responded.
“I see. Her name was Veyra,” he said finally. “It’s a long story. She tried to poison me once. Disappeared after that.”
Veyra? The name echoed in my mind. It felt familiar. Too familiar. But I buried the thought before it could rise. Not unless I was sure.
“Oh,” I replied, unsure of what else to say. “That’s why you thought I was a spy?”
He let out a small breath, more like he was talking to himself than to me.
“About that… Deric said you were a spy.”
Deric?
I turned slightly, frowning. “Alpha Deric said that?”
He didn’t reply. His silence spoke louder than words. A strange tightness coiled in my stomach.
“Don’t think about it too much,” he muttered, as if brushing it off. “I guess it was a misunderstanding.”
A misunderstanding? Something didn’t sit right. My mind told me something is wrong somewhere. Why would Alpha Deric say that about me? What did he know? Is he hiding something?
I couldn’t keep it in anymore.
“What’s your relationship with Alpha Deric?” I asked. “I mean… how do you two know each other?”
He paused again. And this time… he didn’t speak. Not immediately. His fingers stilled on the last section of my braid, his eyes now locked on his reflection in the mirror. His jaw tightened just slightly.
Then, finally, he said:
“Elvira… there’s something you need to know about Deric.”