Chapter 23 Elara's POV
The memories came in fragments sharp and painful like broken glass cutting through my mind.
A bedroom strong hands holding me gently. A voice whispering promises. My body trembles with fear and anticipation.
"I'll be gentle. I won't hurt you."
The scene shifted the morning light to the same bedroom. But everything was different now. Cold wrong.
"This was a mistake."
Pain exploded in my chest, a bond I couldn't see shattering into pieces.
"I, Kaden Blackwood, Alpha of the Blue Moon Pack, reject you, Elara, as my mate."
No. No, please.
The pain intensified like my heart was being ripped from my chest like every nerve in my body was on fire.
"Please don't do this. Please."
But he was already walking away leaving me broken and bleeding on his bed.
The memories fractured further running through the forest. Crying so hard I couldn't breathe pain there was so much pain.
Then darkness fists, boots, voices laughing.
"Make sure she doesn't wake up."
I screamed.
The sound tore from my throat as I jolted awake, my body thrashing against the sheets. The pain was real. The memories were real. Everything was real and it hurt so much I couldn't breathe.
"Elara! Elara, it's okay you are safe."
Hands on my shoulders it was gentle but firm. Holding me steady as I fought against nothing.
"No! Don't touch me! Don't-"
"It's me. It's Damian, you are safe, you are in the pack house, nobody's going to hurt you."
Damian's voice cut through the panic. I focused on it, used it to anchor myself to reality. Slowly, my vision cleared.
I was in bed. In the room Kaden had given me. The lights were dim and Damian was there, his hands on my shoulders, his face tight with concern.
"That's it, breathe, just breathe."
I tried to follow his instructions, but my chest was too tight. The memories were still there, still fresh, still cutting me apart from the inside.
"It hurts." I gasped.
"Everything hurts."
"I know. I'm going to give you something for the pain to hold still."
He moved to the IV, adjusted something. Within seconds, warmth spread through my veins, dulling the sharp edges of the agony.
But it didn't touch the pain in my chest. The pain that had nothing to do with my injuries.
"I remembered." I whispered. "I remembered something."
Damian's expression shifted. "What did you remember?"
Before I could answer, I noticed movement in the corner of the room. A shadow of someone else was here.
My eyes focused and I saw him.
Kaden.
He was sitting in a chair near the window, perfectly still except for his hands, which were clenched so tightly on the armrests that his knuckles were white. His eyes were fixed on me with an intensity that made my skin prickle.
The memories crashed over me again. His hands on my body. His voice in my ear. The way he'd held me that night.
And then in the morning the rejection of the pain.
"You," I breathed, and the word came out like an accusation.
Kaden stood slowly, like he was afraid of startling me. "Elara-”
"Stay away from me." I pressed back against the headboard, my heart racing. "Don't come near me."
He froze. "I won't. I'm staying right here. I just-"
"You rejected me." The words burst out before I could stop them. "I remember. You rejected me."
The room went silent. Damian looked between us, his jaw tight.
Kaden's face went pale. "Elara, I-"
"You were in my bed. We had just-" I couldn't finish the sentence. Couldn't say the words out loud. "And the next morning you told me it was a mistake and you rejected the bond."
"Yes." His voice was barely a whisper. "Yes, I did."
The confirmation hurt more than I expected. Some part of me had hoped I was wrong, that the memories were confused or twisted.
But they weren't.
"Why?" I asked, and my voice broke. "Why would you do that?"
"Because I was a fool because I was scared. Because-" He stopped, running his hands through his hair. "Because I made the worst mistake of my life."
"A mistake," I repeated numbly. "That's what you called it, that's what you called me."
"No. Elara, please, that's not what I meant-"
"Then what did you mean?" I demanded, anger cutting through the pain.
"You slept with me, took my virginity, made me trust you. And then you threw me away like I was nothing!"
"I know I know what I did and I would give anything….anything to take it back."
Tears were streaming down my face now. "You can't take it back, you can't undo what you did to me."
"I know that too." His voice was thick with emotion. "But I can try to make it right. I can try to-"
"Make it right?" I laughed, and it sounded broken even to my ears.
"How? How do you make this right? I'm carrying your child and I don't even remember why I let you touch me in the first place!"
Kaden flinched like I had struck him.
"The baby is his?" Damian asked quietly.
I had forgotten he was there, forgotten anyone else existed except me and Kaden and the terrible weight of what he'd done.
.
"Yes," I whispered. "The baby is his."
Damian's hand found mine, squeezing gently. "Okay that's okay we will figure this out."
"How?" I looked at him desperately. "How do we figure this out?"
"One step at a time. First, you need to rest. Your body is still healing. The stress isn't good for you or the baby."
"I can't rest. I can't stop thinking about-" Another wave of pain rolled through me, this one sharper than before.
I gasped, doubling over, my hand flying to my stomach.
"Elara?" Damian's voice was sharp with concern. "What's wrong?"
"It hurts my stomach, something's wrong."
Damian immediately started checking me over, his movements quick and efficient. "Where exactly? Show me."
I pressed my hand low on my abdomen. "Here. It's cramping like before."
I saw Damian's expression change and saw the worry he tried to hide.
"What is it?" I asked, fear creeping in. "What's wrong?"
"It might be nothing but stress but we need to monitor it carefully." He adjusted the monitors beside my bed.
"Try to stay calm. Getting upset will only make it worse."
But I couldn't stay calm, not with Kaden standing there looking like his world was ending.
Not with these broken memories cutting through my mind, not with my body cramping and the possibility that I might lose this baby.
This baby I didn't remember conceiving but already loved more than anything.
"Damian." I whispered, reaching for him. "I'm scared."
He took my hand immediately. "I know but I'm here. I won't let anything happen to you."
His presence was solid and real safe; he had been the one constant through all of this. The one person who'd protected me, cared for me, stayed with me.
The one person I could trust I held onto his hand like a lifeline. And I didn't look at Kaden at all.
Kaden, who was still standing there. Kaden, who I could feel watching me with those intense eyes. Kaden, who'd rejected me and broken me and destroyed whatever we might have had.
The cramping eased slightly and I took a shaky breath.
"That's it," Damian said softly. "Just breathe. You are doing great."
"Don't leave.” I begged.
"Please don't leave me alone."
"I won't. I promise. I'm right here."
"Damian," I said his name again, needing to hear it, needing to anchor myself to someone who wouldn't hurt me.
And in the corner, I heard the sound of a chair scraping against the floor.
Then footsteps then the door closing quietly.
Kaden had left.
And I felt nothing but relief.