Chapter 19 Elara's POV
Everything hurts.
My head throbbed with a dull, constant ache. My body felt heavy and weak, like I had been asleep for years instead of hours. The bright lights of the medical room made my eyes water.
But I was alive. And according to Damian, so was my baby.
"You need to rest." Damian said, adjusting the pillow behind my head.
"Your body has been through significant trauma."
I looked at him, the one familiar face in this strange place. "Tell me again. Please. I'm trying to understand."
He sat down in the chair beside my bed. "You are in the Blue Moon Pack territory. This is one of the largest wolf packs in the region. The guards at the border recognized your scent. Apparently, you worked here before you disappeared."
"As a servant." I said, trying to remember. Trying to feel something. "In the kitchen."
"That's what they told me."
I looked around the room and cleaned the white walls. Medical equipment monitors beeping steadily. And in the corner, standing perfectly still, was the man Damian had called Kaden.
The Alpha.
He was watching me with an intensity that made my skin prickle. His eyes were dark, his jaw clenched tight. He looked like he was in pain, though I couldn't understand why.
"Why is he here?" I asked Damian quietly.
"He has been here since you arrived. He was... concerned about you."
"Why would an Alpha be concerned about a kitchen servant?"
Damian hesitated. "That's something you will need to ask him."
I didn't want to ask him anything. I wanted him to leave. His presence made me uneasy in a way I couldn't explain. Every time I looked at him, I felt something twist in my chest. Something that felt almost like recognition, but not quite.
Like my body knew him even though my mind didn't.
Kaden finally moved, stepping forward from his corner and I immediately tensed.
"Don't." I said, my hand instinctively going to my stomach.
He stopped immediately, his hands raised slightly. "I'm not going to hurt you."
"I don't know you, I don't know anyone here except Damian." My voice came out shakier than I wanted.
"Please just... stay over there."
Pain flashed across his face, so raw and real that I almost felt bad, almost.
"Elara," He said, and the way he said my name made something in my chest ache.
"You are not safe in the general medical wing. There are too many people coming and going. I want you to move to the private wing of the pack house. My quarters. Where I can make sure you are protected."
"Your quarters?" I stared at him.
"No. Absolutely not."
"It is not a request for your safety."
"I'm not going anywhere with you!" My heart was racing now, the monitors beeping faster.
"I don't even know who you are!"
"Kaden, you are upsetting her," Damian said, standing up.
"Her blood pressure is spiking. You need to back off."
"She's in danger," Kaden said, his eyes never leaving mine.
"Someone attacked her and left her for dead until we know who and why, she needs to be somewhere secure."
"Then put guards outside the medical wing," I said. "I'm not staying in your private quarters. That's insane."
"The medical wing isn't secure enough where my quarters are. No one gets in without my permission, no one can hurt you there."
"You could hurt me there.” I shot back.
The words hung in the air. Kaden looked like I had physically struck him.
"I would never hurt you." He said quietly. "Never,.I swear."
"You are a stranger. Why should I believe anything you say?"
Damian put his hand on my shoulder. "Elara, I know you are scared. But he is right about one thing: you are not safe here; this is a public facility anyone could walk in."
"You will be there too, right?" I asked him desperately.
"You won't leave me alone with him?"
"I will be there," Damian promised. "I'm your doctor. I need to monitor your condition anyway wherever you go, I go."
That made it slightly better. Slightly.
Kaden pulled out his phone and made a call. "Prepare the guest room in my private wing. I want it ready in fifteen minutes. Medical equipment, IV stand, everything she needs."
He paused. "And I want guards posted at every entrance. No one gets in without my explicit permission."
He hung up and looked at me. "You will have your own room. Your own space. I won't bother you unless absolutely necessary. But you will be safe, that's all that matters."
I wanted to argue more and wanted to refuse but the truth was, I was terrified. Someone had tried to kill me. Had beaten me and left me in the forest to die. And I couldn't even remember who or why.
Maybe Kaden was right. Maybe I did need protection. Even if the person offering it made every instinct I had screamed danger.
An hour later, I was being wheeled through hallways in a wheelchair. I was too weak to walk on my own, which frustrated me. Damian pushed the chair while Kaden walked ahead, his posture rigid and tense.
The pack house was enormous. We passed dozens of people, wolves who stopped and stared as we went by. I heard whispers.
"Is that her?"
"The omega who went missing?"
"Why is the Alpha taking her to his quarters?"
Their stares made me want to disappear and made me feel exposed and vulnerable.bFinally, we reached a set of double doors. Kaden unlocked them and pushed them open.
The space beyond was stunning high ceilings. Large windows overlooking the forest are expensive furniture. This wasn't just a room, this was a luxury apartment.
"The guest room is through here.” Kaden said, leading us down a hallway.
He opened another door and I saw a beautiful bedroom. A large bed with clean white sheets. A private bathroom. Medical equipment set up in the corner everything I might need.
"This is too much." I said quietly.
"It's not enough." Kaden replied. "But it's what I can offer."
Damian helped me from the wheelchair to the bed. I sank into the soft mattress with relief.
My body was exhausted.
"I will be in the room next door." Damian said. "If you need anything, just call and I will hear you."
"Where will you be?" I asked Kaden, hating that my voice sounded so small.
"My room is on the other side of these quarters. You won't even know I'm here." He moved toward the door.
"Get some rest, you are safe now."
He left, closing the door quietly behind him.
I looked at Damian. "I don't trust him."
"I know but I will be here. I won't let anything happen to you or the baby."
The baby pressed my hand to my stomach. Still flat, still showing no signs of life growing inside. But it was there. My baby was there.
"Thank you." I whispered.
"For everything save me for staying."
"You don't need to thank me. Just rest."
I closed my eyes, exhaustion pulling at me. Within minutes, I was drifting off.
I don't know how long I slept. But I woke to the sound of shouting.
"Where is she?"
A woman's voice. Angry. Sharp.
"Ma'am, you can't go in there. The Alpha gave strict orders-"
"I don't care what orders he gave! Get out of my way!"
My eyes flew open and the shouting was getting closer coming from outside my room.
"I'm calling the Alpha right now-"
"Call him! I want him to see this!"
The door to my room burst open.
A woman stood in the doorway. She had beautiful blonde hair, perfectly styled, expensive dress, and flawless makeup. But her face was twisted with fury.
Her eyes locked on me, and the hatred in them made my blood run cold.
"You." She hissed.