Chapter 71 Chapter 71
_Leah's POV_
I swallowed and began. The words felt rusty in my mouth, but once I started, they flowed like a broken river finding a path.
“I was born to a princess,” I said. “My mother was a princess, of the Emerald Pack. She left the crown and married a common man. They raised me quietly. When I was small, they suddenly died. I remember nothing of them. I then remember staying at the BloodMoon pack. I don't know how I got there. Kayden and the others always treated me badly since I was an omega. When he learnt that I was his mate, he rejected me and threw me in the cellar. Tariq then came and saved me. I thought that he was kind."
"He told me lies but I trusted him. I read his phone once and found messages. He had someone saved as ‘honey’ and he lied about it. I found a chest in Tariq’s place. It had his diary. In it, I read that he had planned to marry and sacrifice me to lift a curse. He even waited all these years until I got my wolf at eighteen. He had been waiting. He planned it since long ago. Susan—she knew about me and my mother. She helped him. She gave him her potions. She planted the spell to keep me under control so Tariq could use me.”
I could feel the Seer’s face tilt. The torchlight sharpened the lines on her skin.
“You found the diary,” she said. It was not a question.
“Yes,” I said. “I read it. I saw how he wrote that he would marry me and then kill me on the full moon to end his curse. The witch, Susan, plotted with him. Selena tricked Kayden to reject me. Selena works for Tariq. It all fit together like the teeth of a gear.” I was breathing hard. “I thought that Kayden was my enemy. I thought Tariq was my savior. It was all a lie.”
The Seer was quiet for a long moment. She folded her hands and looked at the moon as if the answers might hang there.
“You have told the truth,” she said finally. “The pieces are dark, but they are true. Tariq has used others. He has paid a price to bind them. Susan is a weaver of foul threads. She is a witch, and she has no love in her craft.”
My anger flared hot and sharp. I wanted her name, Susan’s face, to burn in my memory forever. My fingers curled against the blanket.
“Will he come for me?” I asked. The question was small and loud all at once.
The Seer’s eyes found mine. “Yes. He will do everything he can to get to you. He is desperate. He has a curse that claws at him like hunger. He will not stop until he believes he has what he needs. You must assume he will return and that he will bring more than men with him.”
A coldness ran down my spine. I had been trying to believe I was safe. The truth crashed through that faith like hard rain.
“You need to be cautious,” the Seer said. “More cautious than you have been. You must not go alone. You must guard your movements. You must trust few. But there is another truth. You must stay where the blessing grows. The mate-bond with Kayden is the key to your power. If you remain beside him, your strength will grow. It will push the dark out. It will protect you more than any wall.”
My breath hitched. The words felt like a blade and a balm at the same time.
“I do not want to be close to him,” I said before I could stop myself. The confession was a small wound which opened up suddenly. “Not after what he did. I cannot forget how he treated me.”
The Seer’s face did not move. “I know,” she said. “But the law of your sacred blood was written by a woman who loved without self. She blessed you so your gift would answer love. It answers to the mate-bond. That is why closeness is necessary.”
Athena stirred like a sleeping thing inside me. Stay away, Leah, she whispered. You were hurt. I still remember how he had rejected us. His eyes were so cold and held no remorse.
He saved you, I answered inside my head. He bled. He spoke truth. He knelt in the moonlight. He bled for me.
Then let him prove it, she said, softer now. But do not forget the teeth beneath the smile.
The Seer rose and turned to go. At that moment Kayden re-entered the room with the doctor behind him. The doctor had his stethoscope and a small light.
He pressed the stethoscope against my back and listened. He checked my eyes with the torch. He tapped gently at my wrists.
“You seem stable,” he said after a moment. “Her pulse is steady. Her breath is good. Pupils react. She should be fine physically.”
I felt relieved. My muscles loosened. I had been so afraid my body would betray me again.
The doctor did not stop there. He looked at Kayden and then at me. “If Alpha Kayden had not been here and acted, if he had not taken her out, risked the ritual and bled for her, she would have slipped away in the night. His actions kept her tied to the world.”
Kayden’s face became like the color of dawn. He did not expect praise. He glanced at me and back down. I watched his cheeks heat in a way that made my chest stumble. Was that a blush? My throat felt odd.
Athena made a small sound in my mind and called it cute. You saw that? He does not wear color like that often.
I shut my wolf down with effort. This is not about blushes, I told myself. Do not forget what happened to you.
Still, the warmth of the moment lodged into me. Kayden had bled. He had knelt in front of his pack and admitted his shame to the moon. He had spoken my name aloud and bound himself to me. Those things mattered now.
“I owe you my life,” I said to the doctor. He nodded and left a chart by the bed. The Seer lingered by the door. Kayden moved closer.
“Do you want to go rest?” he asked. His voice was careful.
“Yes,” I murmured. “I need to sleep. I am tired.”
I pushed the blankets aside and swung my legs down. My knees wobbled. Kayden offered his arm and I took it out of habit and because I felt safer with him. We walked slowly down the corridor.
When I reached my room I paused. The Seer’s words kept beating at the inside of my skull like a drum. Tariq would come. Susan was his secret weapon. My gift was linked to the mate-bond. The answer was simple and terrible.
“You should stay close to Kayden,” the Seer called after us softly. “But be wise. Stay on your guard.”
I nodded. Kayden looked at me and I saw the weight on his shoulders. He had offered his body, his pride, and his name to save me. He had risked them all.
I stepped into my small room and shut the door. The lock clicked and the sound was final. The room felt smaller than before. I slid down until my back hit the door and hugged my knees.
Athena prowled behind my ribs. She was restless. You do not trust him fully. That is wise. Use the gift. Use him. Let him be your shield for now. But watch his scent and keep your own edge.
My hands trembled. I had two truths living in my chest. One said run and hide. The other said stay and face all the challenges. Kayden’s presence made me stronger and scared me at the same time. The Seer had given a path. It was not gentle.
I pressed my palms to my eyes and tried to breathe. The bed was empty beside me. The house was quiet and full of whispers. Outside, the moon rode high and cold.
When I let my eyes open again, the world felt sharper. I would do what I must. I would keep watch. And secretly, I would watch Kayden too. I would see if his heart had truly changed.
For now, I wrapped myself in the comfort of my blankets and the thin truth that I was alive. That was enough to hold on to tonight.