Chapter 21
1037 Words
Chapter 21
ZIRAEL
"It's not your fault, Mummy," Aida said, her small arms wrapping around her mother's neck. "You do your best. That's all that matters."
The unconditional love and forgiveness in the child's voice, the way she comforted her mother even while bleeding and in pain, was more than I could take. I felt something shift inside me, a protective instinct that went beyond simple outrage at injustice.
Beside me, Lucerion was no longer growling. Instead, he had gone completely still, his pale eyes fixed on the mother and daughter with an intensity that told me he was feeling the same pull I was. We had both been affected by this human woman and her child in a way that defied logic or reason.
"We should intervene now," he said quietly, his voice carrying none of its usual playfulness. "Before they try to make it back on their own."
I nodded, stepping out from the concealment of the trees. The sound of our approach made Avaline's head snap up, her eyes widening with terror as she recognized us. She immediately tried to position herself between us and Aida, despite her own injuries and the child in her arms.
"Stay back," she said, her voice hoarse but determined. "Whatever you want, whatever game you're playing, leave my daughter out of it."
The fierce protectiveness in her tone, the way she was willing to face down two predators she knew she couldn't defeat, made something in my chest tighten with respect and something deeper.
"We're not here to hurt you," I said, keeping my voice calm and non-threatening as I raised my hands to show I meant no harm. "We saw what happened. We want to help."
"Help?" she repeated, her voice filled with bitter disbelief as she clutched Aida closer. "Creatures like you don't help humans without expecting something in return. What do you want from us?"
Lucerion moved forward slowly, his movements careful and deliberate so as not to spook her further. "Right now? We want to make sure your daughter receives proper medical attention for that head wound."
"And then what?" Avaline demanded, her eyes darting between us as she tried to gauge our true intentions. "What happens after you 'help' us? What will you demand as payment?"
The cynicism in her voice, the complete lack of trust in any offer of assistance, told me everything I needed to know about how this pack had treated her. She had learned the hard way that kindness always came with a price, that nothing was ever given freely.
"There is no payment required," I said firmly, taking a step closer. "Your daughter is injured, and she needs help. That's all that matters right now."
Aida stirred in her mother's arms, her small voice weak but determined. "It's okay, Mummy. They helped me before. They gave me food and healed my bruises."
Avaline's eyes widened with shock as she looked down at her daughter, then back at us. "You... you helped her?"
"Earlier this evening," Lucerion confirmed, his voice gentle. "She stumbled into our room while fleeing from a servant who was beating her. We fed her and used my healing abilities to treat her injuries."
I could see the internal struggle playing out across Avaline's face – the desperate need to trust someone warring with years of learned caution and betrayal. Her arms tightened around Aida as if she could physically hold her daughter safe from all the dangers of the world.
"Why?" she finally asked, her voice barely above a whisper. "Why would you help us? We're nothing to you. Less than nothing."
"Because no child should suffer the way she's been made to suffer," I said, the truth of the words resonating in my chest. "And no mother should have to watch her child be abused while being powerless to stop it."
Tears began streaming down Avaline's face again, her carefully constructed walls beginning to crumble under the weight of genuine compassion. "I don't know how to protect her anymore," she admitted, her voice breaking with despair. "I've tried everything, but nothing works. They'll never let us leave, and they'll never stop hurting her."
"Then let us help," Lucerion said, kneeling down so he was at eye level with both mother and daughter. "Let us give you what your pack has denied you – protection, safety, and a chance at a better life."
"I don't understand," Avaline said, confusion mixing with her fear and hope. "Why would you do that for us? What could we possibly offer you in return?"
I exchanged a glance with Lucerion, seeing my own complicated feelings reflected in his pale eyes. We were both powerful creatures who had lived for centuries without forming attachments to mortals, yet here we were, ready to upend political alliances and risk diplomatic incidents for a human woman and her child we had known for less than a day.
"You don't need to offer us anything," I said finally, my voice carrying the weight of a promise. "All you need to do is trust us enough to let us help."
Avaline looked down at Aida, whose small face was pale from blood loss and exhaustion. The child's eyes were starting to glaze over, and I could tell she was fighting to stay conscious. The head wound was worse than it initially appeared, and she needed immediate medical attention.
"Please, Mummy," Aida whispered, her small hand clutching weakly at her mother's torn dress. "I'm scared."
That simple admission seemed to break whatever remaining resistance Avaline had been holding onto. She looked up at us with eyes full of desperate hope and terror, a mother at the end of her rope with nowhere else to turn.
"Okay," she said, her voice trembling. "Okay. Help us. Please."
Lucerion moved forward immediately, his hands gentle as he carefully examined the gash on Aida's forehead. "It's deep," he said, his voice tight with concern. "She's lost quite a bit of blood."
He brought his fingers to his lips again, gathering saliva before carefully applying it to the wound. I watched as the bleeding slowed and then stopped completely, the torn skin beginning to knit itself back together under his touch.
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