Chapter 67 CHAPTER SIXTY-SEVEN | COWARD

Chapter 67 CHAPTER SIXTY-SEVEN | COWARD

CHAPTER SIXTY-SEVEN | COWARD

RONAN

The room was small and dark, barely enough space to breathe. Aspen lay on a narrow bed pushed against the wall. Her face looked pale and too still. The air smelled of herbs and smoke, thick and bitter.

I stood at the foot of the bed. I didn’t know where else to stand.

Brian and Rachel were behind me. I could feel them there without turning.

The healer moved slowly, her hands hovering over Aspen like she was afraid to touch her. Her eyes were sharp and old. She smelled exactly like the room.

“She has witch lineage in her blood,” the healer said.

The words didn’t land at first.

“What?” Rachel whispered.

I felt my knees weaken. I grabbed the edge of the bed without thinking.

“Witch?” Brian repeated. “That’s not possible.”

The healer glanced at him. “It is,” she said. “And it’s strong.”

My head started spinning.

“That day,” I said quietly, “when they tried to electrocute her—”

Rachel looked at me. “She didn’t react,” she said slowly.

“She should have,” I added. “Anyone else would have.”

The healer nodded once. “Magic protects its own.”

My hands shook. I clenched them into fists.

“So that’s why,” I muttered. “That’s why nothing works on her.”

Rachel stepped closer to the bed. “Does she know?” she asked.

The healer shook her head. “No.”

That made my chest hurt even more. Obviously, she didn’t know.

Brian ran a hand through his hair. “This can change everything, Ronan.”

“I don’t care what it changes,” I snapped. “She’s still Aspen.”

The healer finally touched Aspen’s wrist. “She needs rest,” she said. “Her body fought something older than her mind understands.”

“Will she wake up?” I asked.

“Yes,” the healer replied. “But she’ll feel it—the confusion, the lost memory that’s finding its way back to her.”

“We’ll stay,” Rachel said immediately.

The healer looked at us all. “Not in here. She needs a quiet environment, right now.”

I didn’t want to leave; even my feet wouldn’t move.

“She’ll be safe,” the healer added in a softer tone.

I nodded even though I didn’t believe it.

We stepped out into the hallway. The door closed behind us, and it just felt wrong—like leaving her there was a mistake.

Rachel exhaled hard. “I’m surprised,” she said. “But not shocked. I always knew she was different.”

Brian leaned against the wall. “Is this why Alettoi wants her?”

The question sat heavy in my heart. I swallowed. “I don’t know,” I said honestly. “But if he knows what she is…”

Rachel cut in sharply. “Then he’s not going to stop.”

I stared at the door blankly. “Then neither will we,” I said.

Brian pulled me aside, motioning toward the corners just beyond the hut. “Ronan, I need to tell you something in private,” he said, his voice low and steady.

I followed him a few steps, keeping an eye on the hut door where Aspen lay resting. My heart tightened just thinking about leaving her alone, even for a moment.

“One of my men found the location of the Red Ones,” Brian whispered, urgency sharp in his tone.

I froze, my eyes widening, pulse spiking. “You’re serious?”

Brian nodded. “Yes. And we need to move tonight.”

I shook my head quickly. “Tonight? But Aspen…she’s…” My words caught in my throat.

Brian placed a hand on my shoulder, firm but calm. “Rachel can stay with her. She’ll keep watch and make sure she’s safe. That’s the best way to do it.”

I exhaled slowly, finally nodding. “Yeah… you’re right. That is the best idea.”

I ran a hand through my hair, trying to steady myself. “But how are we going to do it? We don’t even know how many of them there are, or what traps they might have set.”

Brian smiled faintly, just enough to annoy me. “We will follow the tracker. That’s all. Once we find them, we set the ambush—make it clean and quick. Simple.”

I frowned. “Simple?” I muttered. “You call walking into their territory and risking our lives simple?”

“Better now than later,” he said calmly. “If we wait for a perfect plan, we might never catch them. Right now is the chance to catch them red-handed.”

I sighed heavily, feeling the weight of responsibility settle on my shoulders. “You make it sound like we don’t have a choice.”

Brian tapped my shoulder again. “We don’t. They’re on the move already. There’s no turning back. Tonight is it. We will attack tonight.”

I clenched my fists, looking toward the hut where Aspen rested. “I just… I can’t imagine leaving her behind like this,” I said quietly.

“You won’t be leaving her,” Brian said. “Rachel will be there. She’ll watch over her. She knows what to do if anything happens.”

I nodded, reluctantly accepting it, though a knot of anxiety remained in my chest. “Fine. But I want to go back to school first. If our absence is noticed, it’ll cause problems.”

Brian tilted his head slightly. “Makes sense. We can go back. Lay low until midnight. I’ll wait for you at the hut. Then we move out together.”

I exhaled and ran a hand down my face. “Midnight it is. I just hope… I hope nothing goes wrong before then.”

Brian gave me a small nod, a silent acknowledgment of the risk. “It’s going to be fine,” he said, though I knew he wasn’t lying to himself. He trusted the plan, but I couldn’t stop thinking about Aspen and how risky this was.

“She’ll be fine,” I muttered to myself, trying to convince myself of my racing thoughts. “She has to be.”

“Brian…” I called slowly, raising my eyes to meet him.

“Yes?” he answered, curious.

“I don't want to sound like a coward, but are you sure we don’t need a plan?”

“Okay…you sound like a coward, Ronan.”

“Brian…”

“Have you forgotten what these people did to you?” he yelled, “Or to your new woman, if you think I didn’t notice?”

“What are you saying?” I asked, shocked, taken aback.

“You think I didn’t notice your affection for Aspen?”

“Ronan, what is he talking about?” Rachel’s voice sounded behind me, and I felt my heart beating in different directions.