Chapter 112 ARCHIE'S WOLF
(Adam's POV)
Life must really hate me; it keeps throwing me around, from one confusion to another.
I can’t feel myself… I can’t feel my body. It’s like I’m floating, or maybe sinking. I don’t even know which one is worse. Everything is… numb, quiet, and empty.
I don’t know where I am.
It’s dark here.
Not the kind of dark where you just turn on a light and it goes away. This is… thick. Endless. Like I’m standing in the middle of nowhere and nowhere is all there is.
Where is Kael?
I could’ve sworn… I could’ve sworn he came for me.
I remember his voice. I remember him holding me. I remember him saying he loves me.
So where is he?
Why am I here?
“Archie.”
My head snapped up.
I turned quickly, my eyes searching the darkness. “Hello?”
Nothing… there's no one. Just silence pressing against my ears.
Then suddenly, the voice came again.
“Archie.” Clearer and closer this time.
I turned again, slower this time, my chest tightening.
And then I saw… a wolf.
A huge white wolf, sitting on all fours, its body still, its eyes locked on me.
I blinked. Once… twice. My brain tried to catch up.
“That’s… not Kael’s wolf,” I muttered under my breath.
Or is it?
I leaned forward slightly, squinting. “Ryn?”
The wolf didn’t move, didn’t react, didn’t speak. Okay. Great.
So I’m definitely losing my mind. What's going on? What happened to me?!!
“Who—what are you?” I asked, my voice coming out weaker than I expected.
The wolf’s mouth moved… “I am you.” but it's like I'm hearing the voice in my head.
“…What?”
“I am you,” it repeated calmly. “I am your wolf.”
I stared at it.
My wolf?
That doesn’t make any sense.
“That doesn’t make any sense,” I said out loud.
“I am what makes you complete,” it continued. “Without me, you are incomplete. And without you… I have been incomplete and crippled for years.”
My chest tightened.
Years?
“I couldn’t cross the barrier to reach you,” it said. “But thanks to mate… I can reach you now.”
Mate.
That word made something in my chest twist.
“Mate?” I asked quickly. “Kael?”
The wolf tilted its head slightly.
“Kael? Who is Kael?”
My stomach dropped.
“What do you mean ‘who is Kael’?” I asked, my voice rising. “He’s my mate.”
The wolf’s gaze didn’t change.
“He told me his name is Vance.”
Everything in me went cold.
“What?” I whispered.
“I felt him earlier,” the wolf said. “He gave me his mark and called me his mate.”
No.
No, no, no.
“I can’t feel him now,” it continued. “Tell him to come help me.”
I shook my head slowly.
This is wrong.
Everything about this is wrong.
“I… I don’t know what’s happening,” I said, my voice trembling. “I don’t know if my eyes are broken or my ears are broken or my entire brain is just… gone.”
The wolf didn’t react, it just watched me deal with the confliction in my head.
“What do you need help with?” I asked, forcing my voice to stay steady.
“I cannot get up,” it said simply. “I am crippled. My powers have been drained.”
My chest tightened again.
“I thought I died and got stuck in darkness,” it continued. “But I am alive. Just unwell.”
There was something in its voice. Something weak… and very tired.
“Mate can help.”
I shook my head immediately. “No. No, Vance is not—”
“Mate,” the wolf repeated.
“Kael is my mate,” I said firmly. “Not Vance.”
“I do not know Kael.”
I turned away from it, dragging a hand through my hair.
This is insane.
“I’m pregnant,” I said suddenly, my voice shaking. “I’m carrying Kael’s pup. Can you feel that?”
Silence.
Then—
“Vance is mate.” I clenched my fists. “I don’t know Kael.”
“Stop saying that,” I snapped, turning back to it. “You’re me, right? Then why are you saying things that don’t make sense? If you're me, you— aren't you supposed to know OUR mate?”
The wolf didn’t answer that.
“Help,” it said instead.
My shoulders dropped.
“Tell mate to help.”
My head felt like it was spinning.
“Mate… Alpha.”
Alpha.
The word echoed strangely in my head.
“Alpha…?” I muttered.
“Alpha,” the wolf repeated.
“Alpha…” I whispered again.
And then—
Something pulled. Hard.
Like something grabbed me from inside and yanked me out of that darkness.
I gasped. My eyes flew open.
Warmth.
Heat.
A scent I knew instantly.
Kael.
I didn’t even think.
I pushed my face straight into his chest, breathing him in like I needed it to survive.
He smells like safety… like home. Like everything I needed.
But then—
I felt a sharp, uncomfortable pain… my lower abdomen ached.
And then heat followed it, spreading and burning me up in ways I can't really explain.
My body reacted before my brain could catch up.
I moved, pressing closer to Kael.
I felt myself grind against him slightly and—
A sound slipped out of me.
A soft moan.
My eyes widened immediately.
Oh God.
No.
No, no, no.
Kael’s body tensed.
His hand was on my back instantly, moving slowly, soothingly.
“It’s okay, baby,” he said softly. “You’ll be fine.”
I tried to speak. I really did.
I wanted to say something normal, something that made sense.
But all that came out was—
“A…Alpha…”
I swallowed hard, my face heating up in embarrassment.
What is wrong with me?
“I’m here,” Kael said gently.
My body didn’t listen to me.
It kept reacting… kept wanting.
It was frustrating, painful, and confusing.
I felt tears build up before I even realized it.
Why am I crying?
I don’t even know what’s happening.
“Hey…” Kael’s voice softened even more.
His arms shifted, pulling me up into a sitting position.
Then he started rocking me, back and forth, slow and steady.
“You’re okay,” he murmured. “You’re strong. You’re doing so well.”
I shook my head weakly.
No, I’m not.
I’m a mess.
“I—” My voice broke. “I can’t—” I wanted to tell him I'm not okay, that I don't feel okay, but I couldn't say anything coherent.
“It’s okay,” he said quickly. “You don’t have to say anything.”
I clenched my fists against his shirt.
My head was a mess. My body was worse.
The pain. The heat. The pull.
God, the pull.
It didn’t make sense.
He was already holding me, but it still felt like I needed to get closer. Closer than this.
Like this wasn’t enough. Like nothing would be enough.
I pressed into him again, my breathing uneven.
“I don’t know what to do,” I whispered, my voice breaking.
Kael’s hand moved up to my hair, stroking gently.
“You don’t have to do anything,” he said. “Just stay with me.”
“I feel…” I stopped, my face heating again. “I feel weird.”
“I know,” he said softly.
“It hurts,” I admitted, tears slipping down my face.
“I know, baby.”
“And I—” I swallowed hard. “I want… I don’t even know what I want.”
Kael’s arms tightened around me slightly.
“It’s okay,” he repeated. “You’re not making sense because your body is overwhelmed. It’ll pass.”
I buried my face in his chest again.
“I hate this,” I mumbled.
A soft breath left him, almost like a quiet laugh.
“I know you do.”
I stayed like that, clinging to him, crying quietly, trying to breathe through it… but that pull didn’t go away.
It just sat there. Heavy, and frustratingly persistent.
Like something inside me reaching for him in a way I didn’t understand.
“I feel like…” I hesitated, embarrassed. “Like I want to crawl into your skin or something.”
Kael stilled for a second.
Then his hand resumed its slow movement on my back.
“That’s the heat,” he said quietly.
“It’s annoying,” I muttered.
That earned a small, soft huff from him.
“Yeah,” he agreed gently. “It can be.”
I sniffed, wiping my face against his shirt.
“I’m sorry,” I whispered.
“For what?”
“For… being like this.”
His hand stopped.
He pulled back slightly just to look at me.
“You don’t ever have to apologize for something you can’t control,” he said, his voice firm but soft.
I looked away.
“I feel stupid.”
“You’re not,” he said immediately.
I didn’t argue. I didn’t have the energy to.
My head dropped back against his shoulder.
“I don’t like not understanding what’s happening to me,” I admitted quietly.
“I know,” he said. His hand moved to hold mine. “But I’m here,” he added. “You’re not going through it alone.”
I squeezed his hand weakly.
“What the hell is this heat? What's causing it?” I asked, looking up at his face even though my sight had blurred.
“It's similar to my rut.” Kael replied. And I managed have my head think about the word ‘rut’... It's when he turned into a lustful beast… and we had this crazy sex frenzy.
“So it'd help if you fuck me?” I asked, and I felt him instantly tense up.