chapter 23
1043 Words
AVELORA
I choked out a gasp, my hand clutching the nearest thing to me. My lungs burned as soon as fresh air filled them.
"Avelora." The voice registered somewhere deep in my head.
"Alpha," I called out. His grip on my arm was firm and comforting.
"f**k, I thought I lost you." His pupil flashed a deep shade of gold as he pulled me closer to him, his hold on me was strong but his hands were trembling.
"Are you okay?" he asked after turning on the light.
"I'm okay."
My head was still spinning, my throat felt like I’d swallowed glass, but at least I was alive.
"What happened?" he asked again. He pulled away slightly, checking my face to ensure I was really there. I searched his face for signs of lies and pretence.
"Just a dream." I wanted to tell him everything. I wanted someone I could be totally honest with, but I hesitated, he could leave me at any moment.
I searched the room for nothing in particular, shifting ever so slightly in his embrace. He had entrusted me with his greatest secret, told me about his wolf being unstable. Compared to that, my dreams or nightmares were insignificant.
I swallowed, hoping and praying I don't eventually regret this "Have I ever told you why I never had a friend in my pack?"
His eyes flashed again, his jaw tightening before he shook his head.
"I've had these dreams since I was five. It’s always the same thing, the same recurring voice telling me what to do."
He was focused, listening with an intensity I didn't think he could ever waste on me.
"As a child, I didn't know what was right or wrong. The voices were the only things leading me. My mother was always working to keep us fed and my dad was never around." I bit my lip before continuing. "I listened to everything the voices said until the dreams began to blur into reality. One day, the voice told me to push a kid."
I clutched my hands together, squeezing tightly.
"The voices had never told me to do something like that before. But since I thought it was just a dream, I thought it would be normal. But it wasn't. I woke up, and it had actually happened." I avoided his eyes. "They saved her, but she couldn't walk anymore. All the kids avoided me after that. It didn't stop at that, the voices kept giving me terrible instructions and I couldn't refuse them because it kept on threatening to leave me if I did. I became an outcast."
His hand wrapped around mine, squeezing reassuringly.
"When the academy scholarship came up, I had no choice. I couldn't stay there."
"It isn't your fault," he said firmly.
"I kept telling myself that, but it was. And on the night of the coronation, when I met your mother, I discovered something." I finally met his eyes. "The voice... it was your mother."
His eyebrows knitted in confusion. He shook his head. "No. I don't think so. Have you ever met her before? Maybe when you were younger and your subconscious just registered the voice it heard?"
Honestly, I expected more. Perhaps denial or defence, just not this.
"It was her. I confirmed it at the Tree of Life." I stood up in a hurry, the idea flashing in my head . "In this dream, the voice told me everything started at the tree."
He stood up after me, his expression wary. I started pacing. If it all started there, I needed to go back. I needed to touch it again to know exactly what was going on.
"Alpha, take me to the tree. Now."
"No," he refused immediately.
"I need to know what it’s trying to tell me!" I countered, frustration bubbling up. Why did the dreams stop when I moved in with him only to start again now?
"No. If you've forgotten, the last time you touched it, you almost died. You drowned on air, Avelora. Don't think I missed that."
"Luckily, my death won't really affect you," I snapped.
"What do you mean by that?" He ran his hand through his hair, looking exasperated.
"I mean I am going there whether you want me to or not. If death is the only way to get answers, then so be it." I grabbed my jacket off the armchair and stormed toward the door.
"Avelora," Khyrix called out. "You can't get out of the school gates without me."
I bit my lip. Damn them and their nepotism. I turned back, trying to appeal to whatever 'good nature' he had left. "Please..."
He hesitated for a second, his gaze sweeping over me before finally agreeing "Fine. Let's just go."
I heaved a breathe of relief.
I didn't care why he accepted, I just trailed after him. we walked past the guards in a heavy silence. They didn't even dare to question us. The journey to the tree was quiet, the air between us thick with things unsaid.
When we finally reached the clearing, Khyrix stopped me. "Can you hear me out for one second?"
"Why are you even bothered by my decision?" I asked. He looked taken aback, no answer coming as he took a step closer. "Are you bothered that you'll have to find a new mate?"
There was barely any emotion on his face as he delivered in that monotone and robotic voice that communicated nothing. "Listen to yourself. Do you think I would be here with you in the middle of the night if all I cared about was the agreement?"
"Then why are you here?" I pushed, waiting for him to be sincere. I wanted him to say he was my friend. I wanted to mean something.
"Because I care about all my subjects," he said finally.
I rolled my eyes. "Alright then. You'll have one less subject to deal with if the tree decides to take my life."
"Wait..."
I didn't wait. I stepped up to the massive, glowing bark and pressed my palm against it.
Darkness consumed me as chills ran through me leaving my body out of my control. My head snapped backwards and I fell to the ground.
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