Chapter 62 CHAPTER 62

Chapter 62 CHAPTER 62

Tessa’s POV

The dream was warm and golden.

I was standing in a meadow, the grass soft beneath my bare feet, the sun warm on my face. Wildflowers swayed in a gentle breeze, their petals brushing against my legs like silk. In the distance, I could hear the sound of laughter—bright and carefree, the laughter of someone who had never known fear.

I turned, searching for the source, and saw a figure standing at the edge of the meadow. Tall. Broad-shouldered. His features were obscured by the golden light, but I knew him. I would have known him anywhere.

"Dmitri," I called, my voice carrying across the meadow. "Dmitri, wait—"

He turned, and I saw his face. Not the beast. Not the monster. The man. The man who had held me in the carriage, who had promised to protect me, who had looked at me like I was worth saving.

He smiled, and the warmth of it spread through me like sunlight.

"Tessa," he said, and his voice was soft, familiar, filled with something that made my heart ache. "You came back to me."

"I never left," I said, moving toward him. "I was always here. I was always—"

The dream shattered.

I woke with a gasp, my eyes flying open, my heart pounding. For a moment, I didn't know where I was. The world was too bright, too warm, too unfamiliar. I blinked, trying to focus, and slowly the details came into view.

Morning light filtered through the canopy of leaves above me, golden and soft. The air was cool and clean, carrying the scent of damp earth and fresh grass. Birds were singing somewhere in the distance, their songs a gentle counterpoint to the rustle of leaves in the breeze.

I was lying on the ground, a rough blanket draped over me. The mud beneath me had dried, leaving me stiff and aching. But there was something else—something that made my heart lurch.

I wasn't leaning against the beast's side anymore.

Panic surged through me. I sat up abruptly, my eyes searching the clearing, my breath catching in my throat. Where was he? Where was Fenrir? Where was—

And then I saw him.

My breath stopped.

He was standing a few feet away, his back to me, his massive frame silhouetted against the morning light. He was human—fully, completely human—and he was trying to pull a robe over his shoulders.

I stared, my mind blank, my heart hammering.

His back was a canvas of scars. Long, raised lines that crisscrossed his skin like a roadmap of violence. Some were old, faded to silver. Others were newer, still pink and angry. I could see the muscles shifting beneath his skin as he moved, powerful and defined, a testament to the strength that lay beneath the surface.

I couldn't look away. Couldn't breathe. Couldn't think.

My body was reacting in ways I didn't understand. Heat flooded my cheeks, spread down my neck, settled in my chest like a warm weight. I felt like I was in a daze, like I was watching a dream unfold in front of me.

He pulled the robe over his shoulders, the fabric settling into place, and turned.

Our eyes met.

I felt the world tilt, shift, rearrange itself around the simple fact of his presence. He was alive. He was human. He was here, standing in front of me, looking at me with those golden eyes that I had thought I would never see again.

"Dmitri," I breathed, and the sound of his name was a prayer.

He moved toward me slowly, his steps careful, his eyes never leaving mine. When he reached me, he didn't speak. He simply knelt, lowering himself to the ground until he was at eye level with me.

I stared at him, my heart pounding, my throat tight. I didn't know what to say. Didn't know how to process what was happening. He was here. He was here. And he was kneeling in front of me like I was something precious.

"Are you alright?" he asked, his voice rough with emotion. "Tessa, are you—are you hurt? Did I—did I hurt you?"

I shook my head, tears pricking at my eyes. "I'm fine," I managed. "I'm not hurt. I'm—I'm fine."

He let out a breath, his shoulders sagging with relief. And then, to my shock, he reached out and took my hand in his.

"Tessa," he said, and his voice was thick with emotion. "I don't know how to thank you. I don't know how to express what you did for me. You pulled me back from the brink. You saved me from—from becoming something I could never come back from."

I stared at him, my heart swelling. "I didn't—I just—"

"You gave me a name," he continued, his eyes meeting mine. "Fenrir. The beast accepted it. He—I—accepted it. You saw me at my worst, Tessa. You saw the monster I become, and you didn't run. You didn't scream. You reached out and touched me, and you brought me back."

Tears were streaming down my face now, hot and overwhelming. "I didn't know what else to do," I admitted, my voice breaking. "I was so scared. I was so scared, but I couldn't—I couldn't just let you—"

"You were brave," he said, his voice firm. "Braver than anyone I've ever known. You faced a monster and you didn't flinch. You reached out and you touched me, and you brought me back from the darkness."

I shook my head, unable to accept the praise. "I just—I don't know how it happened. I don't know why the beast listens to me. I don't—"

"It doesn't matter why," he said, squeezing my hand. "What matters is that it does. What matters is that you were there. What matters is that you saved me. All of me. The man and the beast."

I stared at him, speechless, overwhelmed. He was kneeling in front of me, holding my hand, thanking me like I had done something extraordinary. And maybe I had. Maybe, just maybe, I had done something that no one else had ever been able to do.

"I just did what felt right," I said finally, my voice soft. "I couldn't let you destroy yourself. I couldn't let you destroy everyone. I—"

I stopped, unsure how to continue. But he understood. He nodded, his eyes filled with something that looked almost like wonder.

"You gave the beast a name," he said softly. "Fenrir. It's a powerful name. A fierce name. He likes it. I like it. It's—" He paused, searching for the right word. "It's fitting."

I laughed, a small, watery sound. "I thought it suited him. He's powerful and fierce and—and beautiful, in a way. In a terrifying way."

"The beast is beautiful?" he asked, a hint of amusement in his voice.

"The beast is terrifying," I corrected, smiling through my tears. "But he's also—he's not what I expected. He's loyal and protective and—and he let me touch him. He let me name him. He—" I paused, my smile fading. "He trusted me."

Dmitri was quiet for a long moment, his eyes searching mine. And then he spoke, his voice soft and sincere.

"Thank you, Tessa. For everything. For giving the beast a name. For trusting me. For saving me. For being brave when I couldn't be."

I opened my mouth to respond, but no words came. I didn't know what to say. I didn't know how to express the emotions that swirled inside me—gratitude, wonder, something deeper that I wasn't ready to name.

He rose to his feet slowly, his hand still holding mine. For a moment, we just stood there, our eyes locked, the morning light streaming around us.

And then he released my hand, taking a step back. "I need to check on Kastiel and the others," he said, his voice shifting into something more businesslike. "There's a lot to do—wounded to tend to, supplies to organize, a journey to plan."

I nodded, suddenly aware of the distance between us. "Of course. I understand."

He turned to leave, but paused at the edge of the clearing. He looked back at me, and something in his expression softened.

"I'll be back," he said. "I promise."

And then he was gone, striding toward the camp, leaving me standing alone in the morning light.

I pressed my hand to my chest, feeling the rapid beat of my heart. The warmth of his touch still lingered on my skin, a phantom sensation that I couldn't quite shake.

He's back, I thought, a smile spreading across my face. He's back, and he's himself. He's himself, and he's alive, and he—

I didn't finish the thought. Couldn't. The emotions were too big, too overwhelming, too much to contain.

But I knew one thing for certain.

I would never forget this moment. Never forget the way he had looked at me, the way he had thanked me, the way he had knelt in front of me like I was something precious.

It was a moment I would carry with me for the rest of my life.