Chapter 35

Chapter 35
An Alpha’s Devotion (Kael’s POV)

I didn’t wait for permission.I didn't take permission to do what I wanted and wouldn't start today.The second she whispered those words—I’m scared of who I’m becoming—I crossed the room, took her trembling hand, and pulled her into my arms. She didn’t resist. Her body folded into mine like something collapsing under weight it had carried too long.In that moment, I knew how worried she must be to willingly come apart in my arms But her power still hummed in the air.

It clung to her skin like wildfire barely tamed, and I could feel it beating under her ribs, this raw, unshaped force just waiting to be unleashed again.She wasn’t safe. If someone could sneak a knife into her room without getting caught, it was clear that she wasn't as safe as we once thought.Not from whoever left that blade. Not from the power awakening inside her. And sure as hell not from the questions clawing their way out of her past.

“I’m not letting you sleep here tonight,” I said, guiding her out of the shattered room.“Kael—”“My wing. Now.” My voice left no room for argument. “Let me protect you… Selene.”I shoved past Darius and Clara pulling Alice with me. Her step faltered.I regretted it the moment her name passed my lips, but I didn’t take it back. Her silence cut through me sharper than any knife.She didn’t speak again until we reached the heavy door at the edge of my private wing. The guards bowed but didn’t ask questions. They knew better.The door clicked shut behind us, sealing the outside world away.Alice looked around. “I’ve never been in here.”“I don’t let people in.”

She turned slowly, taking it in—the stone fireplace crackling low, the shelves of old books, the weapons on display, the dark windows that faced the forest. My world. Every inch of it felt too still with her in it. Like it had been waiting.I didn’t give her time to get comfortable. I crossed to the bookshelf near the far wall and ran my hand along the spines until I found the one I needed—an old, leather-bound thing worn with age and silence.I pulled the book down. The shelf clicked.A panel in the wall shifted open, just wide enough for us to slip through.Alice stared. “What is this?”“A promise,” I said simply.

The archive was carved from stone, hidden deep behind my chambers. No light except the soft golden glow of the lanterns lining the walls. No sound but the quiet thud of our boots.She followed me wordlessly as I moved to the center.A pedestal waited there—circular, low, surrounded by shelves stacked with protected scrolls, tomes, and relics no one else alive had laid eyes on. But only one thing mattered tonight.The journal.It sat at the pedestal’s center. Bound in red leather. Ancient. Intimate.She didn’t ask whose it was.Her eyes found mine as I picked it up, my fingers almost reverent. “She gave this to me the day before she died,” I said, voice quieter than I intended. “She told me not to open it until I was ready.”“And when did you?”

“Three days after I buried her.”I opened the journal and began to read. “The sky is different here. Too wide. Kael says it reminds him of our first home, but all I see is how far we've come from it. There’s something inside me, something not right. The Moonshade feel closer now, even when I’m alone. Especially then.”Alice stood completely still, listening.I turned the page.

“Kael watched me today like he already knew I was losing it. He didn’t say it, but I could see it in his eyes—he’s preparing himself. Preparing for what I might become. And even now, I love him for it. Because I would’ve never survived this long without that kind of love. The kind that burns, not fades.”I stopped. My throat tightened. But I kept going.

If he kills me, I’ll forgive him. Because Kael loved me enough… to kill me.”My voice caught. I hadn’t meant for it to. But there was no hiding the crack in my tone. The silence that followed pressed heavy between us.Alice reached out and touched the edge of the journal. “She knew,” she said quietly. “She knew what was coming.”“She felt it before we did,” I replied. “I tried to stop it. The corruption. The change. But she was already too far gone.”Alice looked up at me, her voice barely a whisper. “Did you love her? Enough to do it?”I met her eyes. “Yes.”The word dropped between us like a blade.“I didn’t want to,” I added. “But it wasn’t about want. It was about what was right. What she asked me for. I gave her that choice. I honored it.”Her gaze held mine longer this time.“And what about now?” she asked. “That love you had for her… does it still live in you?”I didn’t lie.“I don’t know,” I said. “Because I never stopped craving her.”Her breath hitched.I stepped closer.

“I look at you and it’s like I’m standing in the ruins of everything I buried. And yet… it’s different. You’re different.”“Am I?” she whispered.I cupped her cheek. Her skin was warm, flushed. Her pulse thrummed under my fingertips. She didn’t pull away.“I don’t know who you were,” I said softly, “but I know who you are now. And I see you, Alice. I see what’s breaking inside you… and what’s fighting to be free.”

Her hands curled into the front of my shirt, fists trembling. “Kael…”“I’m not asking you to be her,” I murmured. “I’m just asking you to let me stay.”The air between us shifted. Heavy. Fragile.I leaned in.Close enough to feel her breath. Close enough to taste the moment right before it shattered.But just before our lips met—she pulled back.One step.

Two.Her hand dropped from my chest.Her voice was a whisper, but it cut straight through me.“You loved her,” she said. “But I’m not her.”