If only sleep could heal

If only sleep could heal


Samantha’s POV

I was still lost in thoughts when a nagging voice in the back of my head tipped me off that Asher would probably be searching everywhere for Camila. I should update him.

I quickly reached for my phone, the screen lighting up to reveal five missed calls from Josh. Poor boy. He must be wondering if I was okay.

“I need to call Asher first,” I muttered, scrolling through my contacts until I found his name—saved, of course, as Alpha King. Yeah, you read that right. That’s exactly what I saved the devil’s name as.

The phone rang several times, but he didn’t answer.

I sighed in frustration. “That sly fox… Don’t tell me he’s not even worried that Camila isn’t back yet? Unbelievable.”

With an annoyed groan, I tossed the phone onto the couch. “Damn you, Asher,” I muttered under my breath.

My gaze drifted back to Camila. She looked so peaceful sleeping, but something about the way she clutched her hands to her chest caught my attention. I squinted and leaned closer, only to notice she was holding something in her grip. It had blood stains on it too.

My heartbeat quickened. What could that be?

Carefully, I knelt beside her, about to unwrap her fingers when my phone suddenly rang.

Alpha King.

I snatched it up and swiped to answer. “Good evening,” I greeted, pressing the phone to my ear as I stood up.

“Have you heard from Camila?” Asher’s deep voice thundered through the speaker, sharp and commanding as always. Arrogance itself. Honestly, I regretted greeting him at all.

“She’s with me,” I replied, biting my lower lip to keep my irritation in check.

“Give her the phone; I need to speak with her.”

“She’s asleep,” I said flatly. “That won’t be possible.”

There was a pause before his tone softened. “Why did she go to you in the first place? I mean, I wasn’t angry at her because of the scandal. We already settled everything. If she wanted to spend time with you, I wouldn’t have minded—as long as she told me.”

I froze, blinking in disbelief. Wait… what was that? Was the almighty Alpha King actually showing concern? Impossible.

“I’m sorry about that,” I said, swirling my tongue over my teeth with amusement. “It was more of a last-minute decision, so she couldn’t tell you. I’ll ask her to call you once she’s awake.”

He exhaled. “Take care of her then.”

“I will.”

When the call ended, I stood there staring at the empty space in my living room as I tried to read meaning into everything he had just said.

Is Asher really starting to care about Camila?

The way he spoke… it wasn’t his usual cold tone. There was something that seemed like concern—genuine concern—in his voice. That’s a good thing, don't get me wrong.

But then, what happens when he finds out that his own father was the one who killed Camila’s parents?

My stomach twisted. Will he choose her? Or will he side with his father? That decision… would definitely tear him apart.

I sat back on the edge of the couch, propping my chin in my hands as I studied Camila’s face again. She looked so fragile, clutching that blood-stained item like it was her last lifeline. How did she get tangled in all this? My goodness.

If only her mother knew what her final words would cause. If she’d known that revealing that secret would push Camila into this spiral of grief and revenge… I’m certain she would have kept it buried forever.

My phone buzzed again, pulling me from my thoughts. This time, it was a message—from Josh.

‘Babe, are you okay? I’ve been trying to reach you.’

I stared at the message for a few seconds, my mind shifting from Camila’s troubles to the one person who always managed to make me feel grounded. Josh truly cared about me—sometimes too much.

I typed back quickly.

‘Yes, love. I’m good. Camila came by.’

Barely three seconds later, his reply came through.

‘Thank goodness you’re fine. Is Camila okay? Did something happen between her and Asher?’

A small smirk tugged at my lips, though it wasn’t a happy one. I didn’t even know how to explain it to him. What happened to Camila tonight wasn’t something words could easily capture—it was trauma, raw and deep. I didn’t want to repeat it, not while she was lying here in front of me.

So I typed back carefully.

‘It’s nothing serious. She just needed to clear her head a little.’

His next message popped up almost immediately.

‘Okay, but why didn’t she tell—’

Before I could read the rest of it, the message was deleted.

I frowned. What was he about to say?

‘Tell?’ I texted back.

A moment later, his response came.

‘It was a mistake, sorry.’

Something about it felt off, but I didn’t press it. I was too drained to read between the lines tonight.

‘Okay,’ I replied. ‘Josh, I really need to go to bed now. You know, work tomorrow.’

He sent back a single message.

‘Goodnight, princess.’

A small smile touched my lips as I replied, ‘Night, love.’

That ended our conversation.

I dropped my phone onto the coffee table and exhaled. My mind was a storm of thoughts—Asher, Camila, Josh, the bloody thing in Camila’s hands… Everything was tangled together until I didn’t know what to focus on anymore.

I glanced again at the couch. Camila shifted slightly in her sleep, murmuring something I couldn’t make out. My heart softened just by watching her sleep.

Tonight felt too much like the old days—back when we’d fall asleep together on the couch after crying over something we couldn’t fix. Only that this time, there was no laughter, no wine, no funny gists… just the weight of everything that had gone wrong.

I walked into my bedroom and pulled out a neatly folded duvet from my wardrobe. It was time to sleep.

I carried it back to the living room and draped it over myself as I lay on the other couch.

Snapping my eyes shut, I exhaled softly, hoping that the next day will be so much better and that Camila finds her peace somehow. Anyhow.