Chapter 212 ~No Good Reason~

Chapter 212 ~No Good Reason~
Darius's POV

I watched Aria as she left the infirmary, her steps quick and purposeful, her eyes fixed straight ahead like she was determined not to look back at me even once. It was the first time I'd interacted with her, if the brief, awkward moment could even be called that, since the night in my office. And to be completely honest with myself, I had expected our next meeting to play out a little differently. Not necessarily warmer, I hadn't allowed myself to hope for that much, but I'd at least imagined she might offer me a word or two rather than sidestepping me entirely and walking out without a backward glance.
Still, I understood it. She needed more time to sort through everything going on between us. I held onto that reasoning now, watching the door swing shut behind her, and tried not to let the small sting of it settle too deeply.
Dominic let out a deep sigh from somewhere behind me, and I turned to find him watching me with an expression that hovered somewhere between amusement and genuine curiosity. "Did you have a reason for coming over, Darius?" he asked, his tone light enough on the surface, though his eyes stayed fixed on me a beat too long to be entirely casual.
It took me a moment to compose myself properly. When I finally found my voice, I cleared my throat and made a turn toward his office instead of answering him. Dominic followed without question, and once the door had closed behind us and we were finally alone, I got straight to it.
"It's about Tyson," I said.
Dominic's brows lifted slightly, surprise flickering across his face. "Tyson? The rogue leader? What about him?"
I found a seat across from his desk and settled into it, taking a moment to gather my thoughts properly before continuing. "He's scheduled to leave soon," I informed him. "I need you to take care of his injury before he goes. His throat, especially. It doesn't look like it's healing properly."
The confusion on Dominic's face quickly sharpened into a frown. "Right, and why on earth do you think I'd agree to that?" He looked at me like the request itself had come from somewhere entirely foreign to him, like he genuinely couldn't fathom the reasoning behind it.
"Because I'm asking you to," I said. "And because I don't think it's right to send him off in that condition. With the rumors already following him, I doubt whatever pack takes him in will bother treating him properly once he arrives. If anything, they'll assume he deserves to suffer through it."
Dominic scoffed outright. "As they should. Those rumors happen to be the truth, and not exactly flattering ones at that, so frankly, I'm inclined to agree with them on letting him suffer as much as he possibly can." He crossed his arms, studying me like I'd lost some essential piece of my judgment somewhere along the way. "Why on earth are you extending this kind of mercy to a man like that? You know exactly what he's capable of, Darius. Don't you think he's better suited staying here, under proper supervision, where we can actually keep an eye on him?" He dropped into his own seat across from me, waiting for an answer he clearly expected to disagree with.
"His transfer isn't up for discussion," I said, keeping my voice level. "He'll be sent out as planned. All I need from you is to attend to his injury before he leaves."
"You seem to have conveniently forgotten everything he put you and Aria through."
"I haven't forgotten a single part of it," I said, my jaw tightening slightly at his words. "But Tyson's situation is complicated, more complicated than either of us initially assumed, and I'm trying to do the right thing instead of ignoring it. I need you to just do as I've asked and trust my judgment on this."
Dominic studied me for a long moment, his expression unreadable, before his shoulders finally dropped in resignation. "Alright," he said. "I'll take a look at him later. I just hope you know what you're doing, because from where I'm sitting, this looks like you're extending trust to exactly the wrong person again."
I let that comment pass without responding to it directly. I nodded instead, and I should have left it there, should have simply thanked him and made my way back out, but something kept me lingering a moment longer, an inquiry sitting on the tip of my tongue that I wasn't quite sure how to phrase properly.
Dominic leaned back into his chair, watching me with growing curiosity. "You know," he said eventually, "I find it a little odd that you came down here yourself to deliver this request. Couldn't you have sent someone to relay the same message?"
I pressed my lips together. Honestly, I had planned on having Tony handle exactly that but I'd caught sight of Aria heading toward the infirmary earlier, and something in me hadn't been able to resist following after her, even knowing full well that showing up unannounced probably wasn't the wisest decision I could have made. Since I was already here regardless, I'd decided I might as well relay the request about Tyson in person while I had the chance.
"I was nearby," I said simply, offering nothing further.
Dominic clearly didn't believe a single word of that explanation, his expression making it plain enough, but he let it slide without pushing further. I rose to leave, grateful for the reprieve, but before I could step fully out the door, his voice stopped me one last time.
"Aria has decided to resume working here," he offered.
I turned back to look at him, and caught the amused glint dancing behind his eyes, like he'd known all along that that was the information I needed.
"That's nice." My tone was even and betrayed nothing of what I felt stirring in my chest.
I left shortly after that, a feeling of satisfaction settling into me as I made my way back down the hallway. I found it genuinely reassuring that Aria was starting to feel comfortable enough to fall back into something resembling her old routine, piece by piece.