Chapter 4
812 Words
A sob escaped my throat.
Both my hands immediately wrapped around my stomach, it was an irony, the father did his best to end me and the child gave it's all to keep me alive.
"My little wolf..."
Tears streamed freely down my face.
"You saved me..."
"I'm so sorry..."
"My precious baby..."
For several minutes neither of us spoke.
He simply allowed me to cry.
Eventually, Braham rose from the bed and crossed the room.
Glass bottles clinked softly as he prepared fresh herbs, crushing bitterroot and moon-thistle together before pouring steaming water over them.
The familiar scent filled the room.
He returned and carefully lifted the cup to my lips.
The medicine tasted bitter, burning all the way down my throat before warmth slowly spread through my aching body, easing the relentless pain that had gripped me since I'd awakened.
"You lost enough blood to drown a wolf," he said quietly.
"You remained unconscious for three days."
His shoulders sagged.
Then he spoke.
"He believes you're dead."
The words settled heavily between us.
I stared at the cracked ceiling.
Dead.
Rowan thought he had killed me.
Strangely, the realization didn't hurt nearly as much as I expected.
Instead, something inside my chest loosened.
For the first time since the dagger pierced my body...
I could breathe.
"When Rowan believed you were dead" he continued "he had your body thrown into the eastern cellars like discarded rubbish."
His jaw tightened.
"If I had arrived even an hour later..."
He didn't finish.
He didn't have to.
I already knew.
After a long silence, I finally whispered,
"Why?"
He looked at me.
"Why did you save me?"
His answer came immediately.
"Because someone should have."
"You are not a weapon, child."
"You never were."
His tired smile appeared for only a moment.
"At least... not to me."
I lowered my eyes.
"Rowan used me."
"So did Celeste."
"They lied to me."
"They made me believe Marcus was a cruel Alpha who had stolen Rowan's birthright."
"They convinced me innocent people were suffering under his rule."
"I believed them..."
My voice cracked.
"I helped them because I thought I was saving Whitecliff."
Another tear slipped down my cheek.
"I handed them everything."
"I know," Braham said softly.
He adjusted the bandage wrapped around my head before continuing.
"Rowan hungered for the throne from the moment he understood what it meant, he never tried to hide his ambition."
He paused for a moment
"He told anyone willing to listen that Celeste would become his Luna the day he became the pack's Alpha leader."
"But Marcus stood in his way."
"As the firstborn son of the former Alpha, Marcus was the rightful heir."
"Rowan knew he could never take the throne honestly."
"So he chose deception."
He looked at me sadly.
"And you..."
"...became the perfect piece in his game."
Coldness spread through my body.
I slowly lifted my eyes to his.
"You knew."
The words came quietly.
"You knew what Rowan truly was."
"You knew what he wanted."
My voice hardened.
"And you let me walk straight into his trap."
Silence settled between us.
For the first time since I'd known him, Healer Braham looked genuinely wounded.
His hand slowly slipped away from mine.
"You truly believe I would watch an innocent child destroy herself and do nothing?"
There was no anger in his voice.
Only disappointment.
Only pain.
Guilt stirred inside me.
Part of me wanted to believe him.
But another part remembered Rowan's smile as he plunged the dagger into my body.
Trust had nearly cost me my life.
I couldn't give it away so easily again.
Braham seemed to understand.
He let out a weary sigh that sounded as old as the mountains surrounding Whitecliff.
"You have every reason to doubt people now."
He pulled a small wooden stool beside my bed and lowered himself onto it.
"But I swear upon the Moon Goddess herself..."
"I played no part in Rowan's betrayal."
He folded his weathered hands together and looked into the darkness, his eyes growing distant with memories that he now clearly understands.
"If you're willing to listen..."
"I'll tell you everything I know."
"And how two boys who once loved each other as brothers became enemies."
He took a slow breath and began.
- Writer
