Chapter 181 Chapter 181
Violet
Then she was gone, the door closing softly behind her, leaving me alone with Elijah's unconscious form and the weight of everything I'd just learned.
I sank down into the chair beside his bed, my legs finally giving out. My hands were still stained with his blood, the metallic smell mixing with the herbal scent of Aurelia's medicines.
I looked at him, at this man who'd been beaten for protecting me, who'd defied his father repeatedly despite knowing the consequences, who'd said he felt "everything" for me just hours before being tortured.
Aurelia's words echoed in my mind. The rosy picture you have in your head... it's not going to happen.
Maybe she was right. Maybe love wasn't enough in a place like this, with people like Alaric in charge. Maybe the kindest thing I could do was leave, let Elijah heal without me, let him become the cold, emotionless heir his father wanted.
But as I sat there watching him breathe, watching his chest rise and fall with careful, painful precision, I knew I couldn't do it.
I couldn't walk away, couldn't abandon him to this nightmare. I couldn't let Aurelia's fatalistic view of love become my reality too.
Even if it destroyed us both.
I reached out and took his hand, the one that wasn't bandaged, and held it gently. His skin was cool to the touch, but his fingers twitched slightly at the contact.
"I don't know what to do," I whispered to his unconscious form. "I don't know how to save you from this. I don't even know if I should try. But I can't just leave you. I can't."
Somewhere in the manor, a clock chimed midnight. The wedding was tomorrow. Nicole and Nate would exchange vows in front of hundreds of people, and I'd be standing there as maid of honor, pretending everything was fine.
And after that... I had no idea what happened after that.
All I knew was that I was in far deeper trouble than I'd ever intended. My feelings for Elijah were tangled and complicated and probably doomed. Staying near him would cause more pain, but leaving felt impossible.
I laid my head down on the bed beside him, still holding his hand, and let myself cry.
Silent tears soaked into the blankets, as I prayed to the Moon Goddess for the first time in forever, asking for guidance and a way out of this mess.
“They are going to kill me! Help!”
I heard that voice of the woman clearly in my head.
“No, go away. I know your tricks.”
I shouted back in the void, not knowing where exactly was she or I. All I could see was pitch black around me.
There was no light, no life, nothing except that voice hounding me like a hammer hitting a nail, driving it into my skull.
“You have to come to me. You are mine.”
“No, I am not your puppet. I know how many people you killed. Leave me alone!”
Instead of begging me to help, that voice started laughing cruelly.
“You will still come to me. You will still help me, bleed for me!!!”
I squeezed my eyes shut, placing both hands on my ears to drown out that noise.
But I could still hear her pouding heavily, the sound echoing in my skull.
Afraid that she would really come get me, I pushed myself back and felt something poking in my back.
Absentmindedly I reached behind and felt a strong wooden leg.
And then the sound returned, but not of fierce pouding.
I groggily asked my brain to shut up and stop dreaming, some part of me still wanting to stay asleep but the other willing to get up and end it.
Still half asleep, I heard the sound of gentle knocking again and was suddenly flooded by a bright light around me.
Forcing myself to move was the wrong idea because pain immediately shot up my neck and back.
I slowly raised a hand to shield my eyes and look around. For a moment, I couldn't remember where I was or why every muscle in my body protested movement.
Then I fully opened my eyes and saw Elijah's bandaged back, the white gauze stark against his skin in the early morning light filtering through the curtains, and everything came rushing back.
I'd fallen asleep on the floor, my upper body draped across the edge of the bed, one hand still tangled with his. My other arm had gone completely numb from the weight of my head.
The knocking came again, more insistent this time.
"Just a moment," I croaked and carefully extracted my hand from Elijah's, noting with relief that his fingers had held mine through the night. Some unconscious part of him had known I was there, had held on. I smiled at that.
Pushed myself up from the floor with a groan, I opened the door, and found one of the manor's maids standing there, her eyes widening slightly at my appearance.
"Miss Violet," she said carefully. "Lady Aurelia sent me to inform you that she's on her way. She asked that you... prepare yourself."
Before I could ask what that meant, I heard footsteps in the hallway.
Aurelia appeared, looking as perfectly composed as always despite the early hour. She wore an elegant day dress in pale blue, her hair styled in an intricate updo, her makeup flawless. It seemed like she'd gotten a full night's sleep instead of spending it treating her son's wounds while her husband fucked other women.
She carried the same wooden box from last night, along with what looked like additional supplies wrapped in cloth.
"Thank you, Marie," Lady Aurelia said to the maid. "That will be all."
The maid scurried away quickly, and Lady Aurelia walked past me into the room without waiting for an invitation, moving immediately to Elijah's bedside.
I closed the door and followed her.
"How is he?" Aurelia asked, setting down her supplies and reaching out to check Elijah's forehead for fever.
"The same," I said, my voice still rough. "He didn’t wake up all night but his breathing seems steadier."
Lady Aurelia nodded, already unwrapping the cloth bundle to reveal more bottles and jars.
"The sedative should be wearing off within the next few hours. He'll be in considerable pain when he wakes, but he'll survive with the healer’s care."
She said it so clinically, like she was discussing a patient rather than her own son. But I noticed the way her hands trembled slightly as she opened one of the bottles, the way her eyes lingered on Elijah's face for just a moment too long.
"I spoke with Alpha Alaric this morning," Aurelia continued, beginning to carefully peel back the bandages we'd applied last night. "I convinced him to allow the pack healer to treat Elijah properly with potent medicines and pain management. We can't have him missing the big event today looking like he went through a war."
I was still processing her words, my sleep-fogged brain struggling to keep up. "Big event?"