Chapter 17
1744 Words
"Hold still," I said through gritted teeth.
Kael hissed as I pressed a cloth soaked in Lyra's medicine onto the cut on his side. The wound was bad, deep claw marks that had torn into his skin. Blood kept leaking out even while I tried to clean it.
“You’re really bad at this,” he muttered.
“You’re really bad at staying still.” I tied the bandage a little tighter than I needed to. He flinched. “There. Finished.”
“Your bedside manners are terrible.”
“You’re lucky I’m helping at all. This whole thing is your fault.”
He turned to me. "My fault?"
“You knew those wolves. That Garrett guy.” I moved to clean my own wounds, the bite on my shoulder hurt with every movement. “He knew you. He knew your father
Kael's expression darkened. "That's not something I could have predicted."
“But you knew there were people out there connected to your past. You should have told me—”
“Told you what, exactly?” His voice got louder. “That my father was well-known? That he trained half the warriors in the northern territories before he died? That his name still follows me everywhere I go?”
I looked at him, frustrated. “Yes. That would have been helpful to know.”
He suddenly stood up—and almost collapsed. I grabbed his arm quickly to steady him.
“Sit down,” I told him firmly. “You’ve lost too much blood.”
“I’m fine—”
“You’re not fine. Neither of us is. Sit. Down.”
To my surprise, he actually listened.
I knelt beside him and checked the bandage again. Blood was already seeping through the cloth.
“It needs stitches,” I said softly. “But I don’t know how to do that.”
“I do.” Kael reached into his pack and pulled out a small kit. “Thread. Needle. Lyra made me bring it… just in case.”
“You know how to stitch wounds?” I asked.
“My father made sure I learned how to treat injuries, his and mine.” Kael said, threading the needle even though he was clearly hurting. “But I can’t reach my side. You’ll have to do it.”
My stomach dropped. “I’ve never done this before—”
“There’s a first time for everything.” He put the needle in my hand. “Make small, even stitches. Pull tight, but not too tight. And try not to faint.”
“That’s not very comforting.”
“It wasn’t supposed to be.”
It took me three tries to get the first stitch right.
My hands were shaking. The needle kept slipping. Kael’s blood made it even harder.
But after a moment, I found a steady rhythm.
Kael didn’t make a single sound, but I could see how tight his jaw was and how hard he was gripping his knee.
“Almost done,” I whispered.
“Take your time. I’m not going anywhere,” he said.
Despite everything, I almost smiled.
When I tied the final stitch, my hands were shaking badly and I felt a little sick.
“There,” I said. “It’s not perfect… but it’s done.”
Kael looked at the stitches I’d done. “Better than I expected. Maybe you could be a healer someday.”
“I’d rather just stop people from getting hurt in the first place.”
“Fair choice.”
He slowly got up, and this time I didn’t stop him. He walked to the water supply and began cleaning the rest of his wounds, the scratches on his arms, the bite on his thigh.
I turned to clean my own injuries. The bite on my shoulder hurt the most, but it was already healing faster than normal because of my wolf.
“Your shoulder looks bad,” Kael said, watching me.
“It’ll heal.”
“Let me see it.”
“I’m fine—”
“Selene.” His voice was firm, leaving no room to argue. “Let me see it.”
I turned so he could check the wound. His fingers were gentle as he touched around it.
“It’s deep. But you’re right, it’s already closing. Your healing is incredible.” He stepped back. “Still, we need to keep it clean. You don’t want an infection.”
I nodded, suddenly feeling drained.
“We need to talk about what happened,” Kael said quietly.
“I know.”
“They found us. That means this den isn’t safe anymore.”
“I know.”
“And Garrett will return. With more wolves. Stronger ones.” He sat down, looking worn. “We have maybe a day. Two if we’re lucky.”
“So we leave.”
"And go where?" he asked, looking straight at me. "We're hurt, we barely have supplies, and now they know we're somewhere in this area. No matter where we run, they'll follow our trail."
"Then what do we do?"
Silence filled the space.
Neither of us had an answer.
"Tell me about Garrett," I said at last. "How do you know him?"
Kael didn’t answer right away.
"He trained under my father. He was one of the strongest warriors we had." Kael’s voice was calm, almost too calm. "When our pack was attacked, Garrett was there. I thought he fought with us."
"What changed?"
"After the battle… when I was hiding in the ruins… I saw him." Kael’s jaw tightened. "He was talking to the Council enforcers. Laughing with them." His hands curled into fists. "He betrayed us. He told them everything—our defenses, our patrols, our weak points.”
Horror washed over me. "He betrayed your pack?"
"For a promotion. For favor with the Council."Kael’s voice was sharp with anger. “And now he’s after you. He probably sees it as another chance to impress them.”
"I'm sorry."
"Don't be. It's not your fault my father trained a traitor."
"But—"
"Selene." He looked at me, and the pain in his eyes was deep. "I don't want to talk about this anymore. Not tonight."
I understood. Some pain was too heavy to bring back up.
“Okay,” I said quietly. “Then let’s talk about what we’re going to do next.”
We spent the next hour trying to make a plan.
Our choices were few.
Stay and defend the den, which would probably get us killed or captured.
Run and hope they couldn’t track us, but Garrett was too skilled for that to work.
Or do something completely unexpected.
“We could go back,” I said suddenly.
Kael looked at me like I'd lost my mind . “Back where?”
“To the camp. The rogue camp.” I leaned forward despite my sore ribs. “Garrett and his wolves are here. That means they’re not there. Maybe the attack already happened. Maybe it’s done.”
“Or maybe it’s still happening, and we’d be walking straight into a massacre.”
“Or maybe they need us.” I met his eyes. “Maybe hiding was the wrong choice.”
“Selene—”
“I know what you’re going to say. That I’m not ready. That I’ll get myself killed. That I need more training.” I stood up, ignoring the pain in my body. “But I just fought off five trained warriors. I scared them. That has to mean something.”
“It means you were lucky they didn’t know what you could do.”
“Then we use that. The surprise.” I started pacing even though it hurt. “They think I’m just a frightened girl hiding in the forest. They’re not expecting a Shadow Wolf coming straight at them.”
“That’s crazy.”
“It’s bold.”
“It’s suicide.”
“Maybe.” I stopped and looked him in the eyes. “But I can’t keep hiding, Kael. I won’t. Not when people I care about might be dying.”
He looked at me for a long moment.
“You’ve changed,” he said quietly.
“Is that a bad thing?”
“No. Just… different. A week ago, you would never have suggested something this risky.” He gave a small smile. “I don’t know if I should be proud or scared.”
“Why not both?”
He let out a short, painful laugh. “Yeah. It can be both.”
“So?” I asked. “What do you think?”
He went silent, thinking.
“I think we’re both too hurt to make smart choices right now,” he said at last. “Let’s rest. Heal as much as we can tonight. And at sunrise, if you still want to go back…” He sighed. “Then we’ll go.”
Relief rushed through me. “Really?”
“Really. But Selene?” His face became serious. “If we do this, there’s no going back. We’ll be choosing to fight. To stand against the Council and anyone they send after us.”
“I know.”
“And you’re sure?”
I thought of Zara. Lyra. Maya. Old Thomas. All the wolves who had taken me in when I had nothing.
“I’m sure.”
Kael nodded slowly. “Then we rest. And tomorrow… we start a war.
That night, neither of us slept well.
Every little sound made us jump. Every shadow looked dangerous.
I took the first watch, even though I was hurt, sitting near the entrance with shadows wrapped around my hands like weapons.
Kael’s words kept running through my head: Tomorrow, we start a war.
Was I ready for that?
I didn’t know.
But I knew I couldn’t keep running. Couldn’t keep hiding while others fought for me.
My wolf stirred under my skin.
“We’re stronger now,” she said. “We proved it tonight.”
“Are we strong enough?”
‘We’ll find out.”
Not exactly comforting.
But it was honest.
I looked back at Kael, tossing and turning on his bedroll. He had chosen to help me. To protect me. To risk everything for someone he barely knew.
I wouldn’t let that be wasted.
Whatever happened tomorrow, we’d face it together.
And maybe—just maybe—we’d make it through.
- Writer
