Chapter 107 107
Fabrice POV
Things were growing stranger by the hour.
And Aurélie… Aurélie was acting strange.
She’d been avoiding Damien like the plague yet at the same time, she’d made certain he received medical care, insisting he be treated properly so his body could heal.
She wouldn’t admit it, but she cared.
How could she not? She had always been compassionate, someone who found beauty even in broken things.
Or at least… she used to.
Learning that Geneviève was solely responsible had shattered something fundamental. Aurélie would be blaming herself blaming the last four years she’d spent forging alliances rooted in revenge, all aimed at Damien. She had been so certain he was the true enemy.
Her soul had darkened for no reason.
And I suspected that realization hurt her more than anything else.
Lucas had called me as he was leaving the Bloodnight pack. He wanted to warn me Florence was coming, and Geneviève had admitted everything. I hadn’t told Aurélie.
Part of me knew she might have refused them entry outright.
And now, finally, I understood why she had never truly let Damien go.
She was stubborn.
But so was he.
“Is she okay?” Damien asks quietly, his gaze never leaving the door Aurélie had just disappeared through.
“I’m not sure,” I reply, focusing on his back as I inspect the wounds, ensuring no trace of the bullets remains.
“You’re not sure?” he scoffs. “What the fuck does that mean? I thought you knew her better than anyone.”
“I do,” I say evenly. “But since you dropped the bombshell about Geneviève, she’s been overthinking everything.”
Just like now.
It felt as though she was holding back something volatile anger, grief, resolve. Wherever she’d gone, it wasn’t without purpose.
I hook Damien up to a rehydration drip and take a seat beside the bed, watching the fluid begin its steady work. Best not to leave him unattended. He was still classified as having an infection and I didn’t fully trust him.
Or his reasons for being here.
I remove my glasses and rub my eyes. I was exhausted. I needed help an assistant, a midwife, anything. The pack’s growing popularity was a good thing, but it meant the hospital was constantly full. Especially with expectant mothers.
“This setup is impressive,” Damien says after a moment, his eyes scanning the room. “Did you plan the hospital?”
“More or less,” I reply. “Aurélie negotiated access to cutting-edge medical equipment. She’s an exceptional Alpha she’s not weak.”
“I never said she was,” he snaps, blue eyes darkening.
“Then why are you here, Damien?” I ask plainly. “I need to know your motives.”
“I’m here to make sure the pack’s security is solid.”
“Of course it is,” I retort sharply. “She’s a brilliant Alpha. Not a pushover.”
“Correct me if I’m wrong,” he counters, “but the last time I was here, I got through the borders using a bramble bush. Perhaps things aren’t as secure as you believe.”
“She wasn’t under threat until Geneviève kidnapped Dominique,” I say firmly. “Now that her identity is exposed, I’ve strengthened the borders even further. There’s a balance to strike between living securely and living like a military base. We account for trespassers.”
I wasn’t going to let him undermine Aurélie’s work.
Yes, we’d had intruders before but most were accidental, quickly escorted away. If Geneviève had simply left the Alpha of Darkvale alone, security would never have been questioned in the first place.
He hadn’t meant to put Aurélie in danger.
But he had.
Remaining hidden behind an alias had protected her in ways brute force never could.
“I wonder what bothers you more,” Damien says quietly. “That her identity has been revealed… or that you can’t keep her to yourself anymore.”
His eyes flash dark blue.
And that brings me back to my question.
“Why are you really here, Damien?” I press. “I’ve protected Aurélie and the children for four years and done it well. If you’re here to rebuild something with her, to redeem yourself, then do it for the right reasons.”
He remains silent, listening.
“She was broken when she left,” I continue. “That decision nearly destroyed her taking her child away from his father, abandoning a pack she had grown to love. She did what she did because she believed she had no other choice.”
I take a breath.
“She knew from the beginning that Geneviève couldn’t be trusted. That she manipulated you against your own mate. If you want to make things right, remember this it took months just to keep Aurélie breathing.”
My voice tightens.
“She was barely alive. It wasn’t until Dominique and Delphine were born that she truly came back. They saved her. Before them, she was living dead.”
I stand, meeting his gaze.
“So don’t do anything that risks sending her back to that place. If you can manage that, then we won’t have a problem.”
I turn away.
The warning has been delivered.
Whether he heeds it or not… all I can do is protect her.
Protect them.