Chapter 41: Shadows Between Us

Chapter 41: Shadows Between Us

Ella’s POV

The night refused to rest long after I’d left him, the scent of blood clung to my skin; it was sharp, metallic, impossible to forget. I had scrubbed my hands until they stung, until the water turned pink, but I could still see the red on my palms every time I blinked.

Alex’s blood, It haunted me.
I sat on the edge of my bed, staring at the dying fire. Outside, voices rose and fell, guards reporting, footsteps echoing, the low growl of wolves pacing the walls. They were searching for whoever had broken the peace of the academy grounds. Searching for Darius.

But all I could think about was Alex.
Was he still bleeding? Did he make it somewhere safe? Had they found him before he could hide what happened?

The silence pressed down on me until it felt like a scream. My body moved before my mind could argue.

I threw on my cloak, slipped out the door, and vanished into the shadows.

The corridors were nearly empty now. Only a few guards patrolled, their boots thudding dully against the stone floors. I kept to the edges, hugging the walls, my heart pounding so loudly I was sure they could hear it. The air was colder than before, heavy with the scent of smoke and iron.

When I stepped into the courtyard, the world felt wrong.

Too quiet. Too clean. Someone had already washed away the blood, but the air still hummed with violence; that sharp, invisible tension that came after claws and teeth and fury.

I followed his scent.
It was faint, buried under the pine and ash, but I’d know it anywhere; that strange mix of strength and warmth that somehow always made me feel safe, even when everything else was falling apart.

The trail led me to the old training hall. The doors were slightly open, creaking softly in the night breeze.

Inside, the moonlight spilled through a cracked window, silvering the dust in the air.

And there he was, Alex sat slumped against the far wall, one arm draped over his knee, his other hand pressed against his ribs. His shirt was half torn, soaked through with blood, and his eyes; half-golden still stared blankly at the floor.

For a moment, I just stood there, the sight of him stealing my breath. He looked wild, broken, yet still somehow untouchable.

“Alex,” I whispered.

His gaze lifted slowly, as if the sound of my voice pulled him back from somewhere far away. His face softened, then hardened again. “You shouldn’t be here.”

“You said that already,” I murmured, stepping closer. “And I didn’t listen then either.”

He huffed out something that might have been a laugh. “You’re going to get yourself in trouble.”

“I’m already in trouble,” I said softly. “You’re bleeding.”

He looked down at his side, grimaced. “It’s nothing.”

“Stop saying that,” I snapped. “You nearly collapsed earlier. You think I didn’t notice?”

He didn’t answer. The silence stretched between us until I couldn’t stand it anymore. I moved closer, kneeling beside him. The heat coming off his body was wrong; too much, like his wolf was still fighting inside him.

“Let me help you.”

“I told you…”

“No healers, I know,” I cut in. “So let me help. You don’t have to do this alone.”

His jaw tightened. “Ella…”

“Please.”

That one word cracked something in him. He looked away, and for a moment, I saw it, the exhaustion, the pain, the heavy, raw guilt behind his eyes.

Without waiting for his permission, I pulled a small pouch from my cloak and took out the salve I’d stolen from the infirmary. When I reached for him, he tensed but didn’t move away. His skin was burning.

“Hold still,” I whispered.

The first touch made him flinch, but then he exhaled slowly, leaning his head back against the wall. I cleaned the blood carefully, my fingers brushing over his ribs, his shoulder, the rough line of a cut across his jaw.

“You shouldn’t have to do this,” he murmured, his voice low and rough.

“I want to,” I said simply.

He let out a quiet breath. “You’re too kind.”

I met his gaze. “You say that like it’s a flaw.”

He didn’t answer. His eyes; that strange, gold-tinged brown held mine too long, too steady. There was something in them I couldn’t name. Something wild and lonely and dangerous all at once.

After a long moment, he spoke again, softer this time. “He wanted me to lose control.”

“Darius?”

He nodded. “He knows exactly how to push me. He said things I… can’t forget.”

“What things?”

“That I’ll always be like him,” Alex said bitterly. “That no matter how hard I fight, I’ll end up just like him; cruel, bloodthirsty, cursed.”

I shook my head. “He’s wrong.”

His gaze dropped to the floor. “You don’t know that.”

“Yes, I do.” I swallowed hard. “You’re nothing like him, Alex. You fight because you care. He fights because he doesn’t.”

For a heartbeat, he didn’t move. Then, quietly, he said, “You shouldn’t care this much.”

“Too late,” I whispered.

His head tilted slightly, his expression unreadable. “You keep saying things you shouldn’t.”

“Then stop making me want to say them.”

That pulled a faint, broken smile from him, just a flicker, but enough to make my chest ache.

“You’re impossible,” he said.

“So I’ve been told.”

He watched me work for a while, the silence stretching between us again, but it wasn’t heavy anymore. It was warm, fragile, like something new trying to form.

When I finished wrapping the last of his wounds, I sat back, studying him. “Better?”

He tested his shoulder, wincing. “I’ve been worse.”

I smiled faintly. “That’s not the comfort you think it is.”

He leaned his head back again, his eyes half-closed. “You should go before the guards change shift. If they find you here…”

“I’ll go when I’m sure you’re okay.”

“Then you’ll never leave,” he said quietly.

I hesitated. “Maybe I don’t want to.”

That made his eyes open again; slow, careful, burning. “Don’t say things like that, Ella.”

“Why not?”

“Because I might start believing them.”

My heart stuttered. For a second, the world held its breath.

He looked away first, muscles tight, voice low. “Get some rest. You’ve done enough.”

I wanted to argue, but I didn’t. I just nodded, stood, and hesitated by the door. “Alex?”

“Yeah?”

“Next time you see Darius…” I paused, meeting his eyes. “Don’t fight for revenge. Fight to survive. I don’t care what it costs, just… come back.”

Something flickered across his face; pain, maybe, or something too deep to name.

“I’ll try,” he said softly.

And somehow, I knew he meant it.

When I left the hall, the moon was sinking behind the trees. The first whispers of dawn brushed the sky.

But even as I walked away, I could still feel him, his warmth, his scent, the quiet storm he carried inside him.

And for the first time since taking Lyra’s place, I was afraid of what that meant.

Because if Darius came back, this time, it wouldn’t just be Alex he wanted to break.

It would be us.