Chapter 339 339
Sabine POV
It took a full thirty-minute shower under scalding water before I began to feel even remotely clean.
Dominique had been ushered straight into his own shower earlier, his small arms wrapped around me without understanding what coated my clothes, my skin what I had carried back with me. The innocence of it nearly broke me.
Even as I stood towel-drying my hair, my thoughts refused to let go of the image burned into my mind.
Aurélie.
The baby in her arms.
I couldn’t think of anything else.
She had been pregnant.
The realization hollowed me out.
What kind of person abandons someone who is carrying a child?
I paced the bedroom, bare feet whispering against the floor as I worked myself up to going downstairs. My chest felt tight, my emotions tangled and raw. I wanted no, I needed to see the children again, to hold them, to feel something familiar and grounding.
But I was out of my depth.
If Damien and Aurélie wanted to punish me, I wouldn’t stand a chance. I wasn’t a fighter, not like them. Wasn’t that how the werewolf world worked? Challenges. Dominance. Submission.
I set the towel aside and stared at my reflection.
My hair clung to my head in a damp, chaotic mess, like a wet bird’s nest. I’d scrubbed too hard, dried too roughly my hands betraying the storm inside me.
A soft knock sounded at the door.
“Sab?” Aurélie’s voice followed, gentle, cautious.
She stepped inside before I could answer.
Her arms were empty now, but her presence still filled the room. She was just as breathtaking as the first time I’d ever seen her. You’d never guess she had just given birth no strain in her posture, no exhaustion in her eyes. There was no anger in her stance. No tension.
She looked… happy to see me.
“Aurélie…” My voice wavered. “I didn’t know. I swear I didn’t know you were pregnant. I’m so sorry.”
Tears burned behind my eyes, my lower lip trembling despite my effort to steady it.
“Shh,” she murmured, stepping closer and taking my hands in hers.
“You saved me, Sab.”
I shook my head immediately. “No. I caused it. I left you there by the lake. I wasn’t thinking clearly. I should have stayed. I should have been braver.” My voice cracked as months of buried guilt surged forward. “I’m so sorry.”
The tears finally came.
“You pulled me out of the lake,” she said gently. “Dominique told me. You saved my life.”
She squeezed my hands, her voice warm, reassuring.
“We didn’t bring you home to punish you. Or to make you relive the past. We brought you home because you belong here with us. With your family.”
She was only a few years older than me, yet there was something deeply maternal in her tone. She reached up, tucking a loose strand of hair behind my ear, then pressed a soft kiss to the top of my head.
“I promise,” she said quietly, “no more talking about the past.”
I followed her downstairs, my legs still unsteady, into the kitchen. She poured me a glass of wine and suggested I explore the house before dinner.
I took her up on it.
I wandered down quiet corridors, peeking into closed rooms until I reached the main living space.
It was vast.
Large potted plants filled the corners, lush and vibrant. Cream-toned furniture was arranged thoughtfully, multiple seating options spread around a massive central coffee table. The room alone could have swallowed three farm caravans whole.
The contrast made my chest tighten.
For six months, I’d lived small. Simple. Cozy.
And here my family lived with space in abundance.
I sat on one of the sofas, my gaze drifting to the coffee table. It was sleek, modern lined with subtle buttons. Curious, I pressed one.
The center split open.
I yelped, jumping back as it revealed a chilled drinks compartment.
I was just reaching for another button when footsteps thundered in.
Didier stormed into the room, Caroline struggling to keep up with him.
“The sister of the Alpha King,” he spat, fury etched across his face. “And here I thought you were just human.”
“Didier, calm down!” Caroline grabbed his arm, trying to pull him back.
“How do you do it?” he demanded, eyes blazing. “How do you keep your wolf hidden?”
“I’m half human,” I said quietly. “My father suppressed my wolf so I wouldn’t be found.”
The truth hit him hard. His anger drained instantly, replaced by something worse.
Disappointment.
“You lied to us,” he said.
“I didn’t lie,” I insisted. “I hid. Just like you did. I found out about you both but I couldn’t let you know about me. I couldn’t risk it.”
“You didn’t trust us?” His gaze slid away, then back.
“It wasn’t that,” I said desperately. “If I told you, I would’ve put you in danger. Added to everything you already carry.”
“Danger?” he snapped. “Goddess, Sab, I would have protected you. I trusted you. I told you things private things.”
“And I would never betray that,” I said firmly. “Never.”
He ran his hands over his face. “To think of everything we’ve done… and all this time, I had the King’s sister standing beside me.”
“What things?” Damien’s voice cut in lightly from behind me.
I spun around.
He was sitting where I’d been moments earlier drinking my wine.
“Ignore me,” he said with a smirk. “Please, continue. Relive exactly what you’ve all been up to for the last six months.”
“My lord”
“You’re safe here, Didier,” Damien said calmly. “You and your sister.”
“If I had known she was your sister”
“Did you know I had a sister?” Damien interrupted, rising to his feet.
“Well… no.”
“Then why would you assume she was?” Damien stepped forward. “Stay for dinner. Stay the night. You’re safe here I promise.”
He placed a hand on Didier’s back, warmth in the gesture.
“It seems I owe you a thank-you,” he added. “For keeping her safe.”
And with that, he guided Didier from the room.
Leaving me standing there caught between the past I’d fled and the family I’d never truly lost.