Chapter 31
Joy’s POV
The air between us turns leaden as Callum’s silence stretches taut. My confession–the weight of that fated bond we share–hangs over us like a blade, waiting to fall. I hate how small it makes me feel, this begging for scraps of his affection when every instinct screams to walk away. But love makes fools of us all, doesn’t it?
“Look at me,” I demand, my voice fracturing under the pressure. “I’m your mate. Doesn’t that mean anything to you?” The words taste like ashes, bitter and dry, a desperate plea thrown into a void.
His gaze remains fixed on some distant point, as if I’m not even here, unraveling before him. As if my very existence no longer matters. “I know what you are,” he finally says, each syllable measured, cold as ice. “I couldn’t protect my last girlfriend. You really think I’d risk failing someone again?”
A humorless laugh escapes him, low and jagged–more like a wounded animal’s sound than any human expression. “I loved Liora. What if she’d been the one? What if this…” He gestures vaguely between us, “is just the universe’s cruel joke?”
The realization strikes like a physical blow, knocking the wind from my lungs. That’s why he’d asked about my wolf’s name with such intensity. Liora. The name reverberates in my mind, stirring something deep within. I can feel her–her presence, lingering like a shadow in the corners of my consciousness. A mournful whimper echoes through our shared bond, and I flinch.
“Christ,” I breathe, my throat closing up. It feels like swallowing glass, each shard piercing deeper. Without another word, I turn on my heel, needing space, needing to breathe. I need to leave him to his doubts, to his pain. Let him watch me walk away for once.
My bedroom door crashes against the frame with satisfying violence. Three minutes. That’s how long my composure lasts before the dam breaks and the flood of emotions I’ve been holding back surges forward.
“Joy!” Mom’s voice rings through the silence, high–pitched with that particular shrillness reserved for my transgressions. The twins‘ answering wails fill the air like an irritating symphony. She appears in the doorway, scanning the room for any damage to her precious walls rather than noticing the destruction written across my face.
“Your father and I need you to watch your siblings tonight.” Her words are sharp, final, not a request- never a request.
A hysterical laugh bubbles in my chest. “I can’t. Not tonight.”
The lecture begins on schedule–my selfishness, my ingratitude, the litany of my failures as a daughter. But something inside me snaps, a crack in the dam that has been holding everything back.
“I met my mate today.” The words fall from my lips like stones, heavy and unyielding, shattering the
silence between us.
All at once, her demeanor shifts. “Oh, honey,” she coos, arms outstretched in sudden maternal concern, but I step back as if burned.
“You’d have known that hours ago if you ever actually saw me,” my voice cracks, the edges jagged and raw. “Why did you even have more children if you couldn’t be present for the ones you already had?”
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<Chapter 31
Her mouth opens, then closes. For once, the great lecturer has no rebuttal.
“Funny thing,” I continue, my voice rising with each word, the dam fully broken now. “I used to dress in the most ridiculous outfits just hoping you’d notice. That you’d say something–anything–to prove you were paying attention.” A bitter smile twists my lips. “Even your shouting just now–part of me hoped you’d finally ask if I was okay.”
The silence that follows is more devastating than any argument. I close the door gently this time, the soft click of the latch more final than anything I could say. Then I slide down its length until the floor catches me, my knees drawn up to my chest. Only then, in the sanctuary of solitude, do I allow myself to truly fall apart.
Aurelia’s POV
The new chambers they escort me to dwarf my previous accommodations. Where before I was kept like an afterthought, now servants move with purposeful deference, as if each step they take is part of an intricate dance orchestrated to make me feel… important.
“His Grace wishes you to wear this tonight.” The attendant presents the gown like a sacred offering, its delicate fabric shimmering even in the dim light.
“But I haven’t even worn yesterday’s gift,” I protest, my fingers hovering uncertainly above the exquisite material.
A knowing smile plays at the woman’s lips as she extends the garment further. “His Grace desires only your comfort.”
As I accept the dress, a folded slip of parchment flutters to the floor. The attendant pointedly looks away, but I can’t ignore the sudden, palpable shift in the air.
The brief message burns itself into my mind:
I’ll be watching for you tonight.
-X
Heat floods my cheeks, my pulse quickening–until the entire castle shudders beneath some tremendous impact. The women react instantly, forming a protective circle around me as dust rains from the ceiling.
“What in God’s name-” I gasp, my heart racing with confusion.
“The outer defenses,” a guard barks from the hallway, her voice tense. “We’re breached.”
This is no rogue incursion. The very stones tremble with the promise of war, the tension crackling through the air as though the castle itself is preparing for battle. My stomach drops, the sudden change in the atmosphere suffocating.
The attendants look to each other, fear pooling in their eyes, but they remain still, almost too calm for what is clearly an emergency. The weight of their silence only deepens my own rising panic.
“How long do we have?” I ask, trying to steady my breath.
“Not long, My Lady,” one of the servants whispers. “We must prepare.”
The sound of boots stomping down the hallway reaches my ears. Someone is coming, but I’m not sure
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if it’s salvation or another threat. The sudden realization that I have no control over the situation hits me like a wave, drowning me in uncertainty.
The tension breaks when another rumble shakes the castle. This is no mere attack–it’s an assault. An invasion that will change everything.
