Chapter 22 Chapter 22
Chapter 22 Chapter 22
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Aveline’s POV
It was still there.
That feeling.
Low in my chest.
Like something had settled inside me and refused to leave.
I could feel it now more clearly than before—no longer faint, no longer distant. It wasn’t pain exactly. It was worse than that.
It was awareness.
Like something was watching me from the inside.
I stood there, frozen, my fingers digging into my palms as Reiel’s words echoed in my head.
It won’t stop until it’s finished with you.
My breathing grew uneven.
No.
No, I wasn’t going to let that happen.
“I’m not afraid of it,” I said, though my voice didn’t sound as steady as I wanted it to.
Reiel’s lips curved slightly, like he could hear the lie beneath my words.
“You should be.”
“I’m not,” I snapped, lifting my chin.
He studied me for a moment, his eyes sharp, calculating.
Then he chuckled softly.
“That stubbornness,” he said. “You really are your mother’s daughter.”
Something in me snapped at that.
“Don’t talk about her,” I said coldly.
His expression didn’t change, but I saw the flicker in his eyes.
Interest.
Amusement.
“Still protective,” he murmured. “Even now.”
My chest tightened painfully.
“Where is she?” I demanded. “You said she was here.”
Reiel didn’t answer immediately.
Instead, he turned slightly, walking past me like this conversation meant nothing to him.
“Safe,” he said finally.
“That’s not an answer.”
“It’s the only one you’re getting.”
My hands curled into fists.
“I want to see her.”
He stopped.
Slowly turned back.
And smiled.
“No.”
The word hit harder than I expected.
“Why?” I demanded.
“Because,” he said calmly, “you haven’t earned it.”
Rage burned through me instantly.
“Earned it?” I repeated, my voice rising. “You dragged me here, forced me into a marriage, threatened her life—and now I have to earn the right to see my own mother?”
“Yes.”
The simplicity of his answer made it worse.
Cold.
Cruel.
Final.
I took a step forward before I could stop myself.
“You don’t get to decide that.”
“Oh, but I do.”
“Try me,” I challenged.
The moment the words left my mouth, I felt it.
That shift.
That thing inside me—
It moved.
Sharp.
Sudden.
My breath caught.
Reiel noticed.
Of course he did.
His eyes darkened slightly, interest sharpening.
“There it is,” he said softly.
My stomach dropped.
“What—”
The pressure in my chest tightened.
Like something was pulling again.
Stronger this time.
My hand flew to my chest.
“What is this?” I whispered, panic creeping into my voice.
No one answered.
Fenrir stepped closer.
“Aveline.”
I shook my head.
“No… it’s… it’s worse,” I said, my voice trembling now.
The feeling spread.
Not pain.
Not exactly.
But something close.
Something that made it hard to breathe.
Hard to think.
Like something was trying to reach through me.
“Make it stop,” I whispered.
Fenrir’s hand closed around my wrist.
Firm.
Grounding.
“Look at me.”
I tried.
I really did.
But my vision blurred slightly.
The world tilting just enough to make everything feel wrong.
“It’s getting stronger,” I said.
Reiel watched quietly.
Too quietly.
“You’re resisting,” he said.
I snapped my head toward him.
“What is happening to me?”
“You’re fighting something you don’t understand.”
“Then explain it!”
His gaze held mine.
Steady.
Unmoving.
“You were chosen.”
The words sent a chill down my spine.
“I didn’t choose anything,” I said.
“No,” he agreed. “It chose you.”
The pressure in my chest tightened again.
A sharp inhale left me.
“Why?”
Reiel tilted his head slightly.
“Does it matter?”
“Yes, it matters!” I snapped.
He watched me for a moment longer.
Then—
“Because you’re strong enough to survive it,” he said.
I let out a bitter laugh.
“Or die trying?”
His silence answered that.
My stomach twisted.
“This is insane,” I whispered.
“No,” he said calmly. “This is power.”
“I don’t want it.”
“That doesn’t change anything.”
My breathing grew shallow.
I could feel it spreading now.
That presence.
Not just in my chest anymore.
Everywhere.
Like it was settling deeper.
Claiming space.
I hated it.
I hated the way it felt.
The way it made everything seem… distant.
Unreal.
“Aveline.”
Fenrir’s voice cut through it.
Stronger.
Closer.
I forced my eyes to focus on him.
He was right in front of me now.
Closer than before.
His grip on my wrist steady.
Grounding.
“Stay with me,” he said.
I swallowed hard.
“I’m trying.”
“Try harder.”
I almost laughed at that.
But I didn’t have the strength.
The pressure flared again.
And this time—
It hurt.
A sharp, burning sensation spread through my chest, making me gasp.
“Ah—”
Fenrir’s grip tightened.
“What’s happening?”
I couldn’t answer.
I couldn’t think.
It felt like something was pulling at me from the inside.
Tugging.
Demanding.
“Make it stop,” I whispered again, my voice breaking.
Reiel stepped closer.
Finally.
“You need to stop fighting it,” he said.
I shook my head weakly.
“No…”
“Yes,” he said. “That’s the only way.”
“I’m not giving in to something I don’t understand.”
“Then it will break you.”
My chest tightened painfully.
“I don’t care.”
“Liar.”
The word cut deeper than anything else.
Because part of me—
A small, terrified part—
Knew he was right.
I did care.
I didn’t want to break.
I didn’t want to lose myself to something I couldn’t control.
But I didn’t want this either.
I didn’t want any of this.
“Enough.”
Fenrir’s voice was sharp now.
Dangerous.
Final.
Reiel’s gaze flickered to him.
“You’re interfering.”
“I’m stopping you from pushing her further.”
Reiel smiled faintly.
“She’s doing that to herself.”
Fenrir stepped forward.
Putting himself fully between us now.
Blocking Reiel from my view.
“She’s not your experiment.”
Reiel’s smile didn’t fade.
“Everything is an experiment.”
“I’m not letting you use her.”
Reiel’s eyes sharpened slightly.
“And how exactly do you plan to stop me?”
The tension snapped.
Just like that.
Thick.
Dangerous.
Unavoidable.
Fenrir didn’t answer immediately.
But I felt it.
That shift in him.
Subtle.
But there.
Like something darker had surfaced.
“You don’t want to find out,” he said quietly.
Reiel held his gaze.
Then—
He laughed.
Soft.
Amused.
“I think I do.”
My chest tightened again.
But this time—
It wasn’t just the thing inside me.
It was the tension between them.
The way the air felt charged.
Like something was about to explode.
“Stop,” I whispered.
Neither of them moved.
“Please… stop.”
The pressure inside me flared again.
Harder.
Stronger.
And suddenly—
I felt it.
Clear.
Sharp.
A direction.
My breath caught.
“What…” I whispered.
Fenrir’s head turned slightly.
“What is it?”
I swallowed hard.
“It’s pulling me.”
“Where?”
I hesitated.
Because I didn’t want to say it.
I didn’t want to admit it.
But—
“I know where my mother is.”
The words came out barely above a whisper.
Silence followed.
Heavy.
Immediate.
Fenrir’s grip on my wrist tightened slightly.
“How?”
I shook my head.
“I don’t know,” I admitted. “I just… know.”
Reiel’s expression shifted.
For the first time since this started—
He looked surprised.
Not by much.
But enough.
“Well,” he said slowly. “That’s new.”
My heart started racing.
“I can feel her,” I said, my voice trembling now. “She’s here. Somewhere in this place.”
Fenrir’s eyes darkened.
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
No hesitation.
No doubt.
I was sure.
And that terrified me.
Because I didn’t understand how.
Or why.
But I felt it.
Clear as anything.
A connection.
A pull.
Like a thread tying me to her.
Reiel stepped closer again.
Slow.
Measured.
“Interesting,” he murmured.
I snapped my head toward him.
“You didn’t expect this.”
“No,” he admitted.
“Then stay out of my way.”
His lips curved slightly.
“That’s not how this works.”
“It is now.”
The words came out stronger than I expected.
Stronger than I felt.
But I didn’t care.
I was done standing still.
Done waiting.
Done being used.
“I’m going to find her,” I said.
Fenrir looked at me.
Really looked at me.
Like he was trying to understand what had just changed.
Then—
He nodded.
“I’m coming with you.”
I didn’t argue.
Didn’t hesitate.
“Good.”
Reiel watched us.
Quiet.
Thoughtful.
Then—
“Go ahead,” he said.
We both paused.
Suspicion flaring instantly.
“That easy?” Fenrir asked.
Reiel shrugged lightly.
“I’m curious.”
Of course he was.
This was entertainment to him.
A game.
“Don’t interfere,” I said.
His smile widened slightly.
“No promises.”
Of course not.
I didn’t wait any longer.
I turned.
Following the pull.
That strange, unsettling pull inside me.
Each step felt heavier than the last.
But clearer.
More certain.
Like I knew exactly where I was going—
Even if I didn’t understand how.
Fenrir stayed close beside me.
Silent.
Watchful.
And behind us—
I could feel Reiel’s gaze.
Heavy.
Persistent.
Watching every move.
We walked through the halls.
Past guards.
Past servants.
Down corridors I had never seen before.
The deeper we went—
The quieter it became.
The air colder.
Heavier.
My heart pounded harder with every step.
“She’s close,” I whispered.
Fenrir’s jaw tightened.
“Stay behind me.”
“I’m not weak.”
“I didn’t say you were.”
But he still moved sl
ightly ahead.
Protective.
Instinctive.
We reached a large door.
Dark.
Heavy.
Guarded.
Two sentinels stood in front of it.
They straightened when they saw us.
“Alpha Fenrir,” one of them said.
“I need this door opened.”
They hesitated.
And that was all it took.
Fenrir’s gaze darkened.
“Now.”
They didn’t argue again.
The door opened slowly.
Creaking.
Loud.
The sound echoed into the darkness beyond.
A cold breeze hit my face.
Carrying something faint.
Something familiar.
My breath caught.
“Mother…” I whispered.
And then—
I stepped inside.
The door closed behind us.
The darkness swallowed everything.
And from somewhere deep within—
A weak, broken voice echoed.
“Aveline…?”