CHAPTER FOUR
1644 Words
WHAT AWAKENS
Elara could not breathe properly.
The warmth in her chest had not gone away. It spread slowly, like something waking up after a long sleep. Her fingers trembled where they pressed against her dress. Her legs felt wobbly. She wanted to sit down but could not. She felt… alive, but strange. Pulled. Unsteady.
The hall outside was silent. Everyone had stopped moving. All eyes turned toward her now. The air seemed heavier, tighter.
Kael stood up so fast that his chair scraped against the floor. The sound echoed in the quiet room, but no one cared. His eyes were locked on her face. He could see the confusion there. The fear. And something else. Something new.
His wolf stirred fully, like a storm awakening.
“She knows.”
The thought wasn’t in words; it was in sharp, electric pulses that Kael felt deep inside.
“Elara,” he said quietly, keeping his voice low.”Are you okay?”....“Can you stand?”
She nodded, even though her legs felt weak. She pushed herself up slowly. A servant moved forward to help her, but Kael lifted a hand.
“I’ve got her,” he said. His voice was firm, quiet, and calm. That alone caused a ripple of surprise around the room.
Kael stepped closer. Not touching, just close enough for her to feel his presence. The warmth in her chest pulsed instantly.
She looked up at him. Eyes wide.
“What is happening to me?” she asked.
He hesitated. The wolf inside him urged him to act, to claim, to pull her close.
Not here, Kael thought sharply.
“This is not the place,” he said instead. “We’ll talk privately.”
The elder cleared his throat, clearly uneasy. “Alpha, perhaps—”
“I said privately,” Kael interrupted. No one argued.
He placed a light hand on her back, careful and controlled. Another wave of warmth surged between them. She gasped softly. Kael felt it hit him like a strike to the chest. “Control yourself”, he told the wolf.
The walk down the corridor felt longer than it should. Elara focused on putting one foot in front of the other, but every step throbbed in her chest. Kael’s hand never left her back.
Once they reached a private chamber, he closed the doors behind them. The noise of the keep fell away. Silence returned.
She stopped walking, breathing unevenly. “Please,” she said quietly, “tell me what’s wrong with me.”
Kael turned to face her fully. He looked tense, like he was holding himself together by sheer will.
“Nothing is wrong,” he said.
She shook her head. “It doesn’t feel like nothing.”
He took a slow breath. “There is a bond between us,” he said carefully. “It has… been stirred.”
“A bond?” Elara frowned. She truly did not understand.
Kael’s wolf growled low, deep, satisfied. Yes. The bond chooses. She is ours. Do you hear it, Alpha?
Kael swallowed, feeling a flash of anger at the elders, at fate, at everything that had led here.
“You are my mate,” he said finally.
The words hung in the air.
Elara’s chest tightened. “No,” she whispered, giving a fake smile “That’s not possible.”
“Not always,” he said softly. “Sometimes the bond stays quiet, especially when one side resists it.”
Her lips parted. “Wait am sorry…. Let me understand what you just said clearly….You resisted this?”
“Yes,” he admitted.
Her chest grew heavy, not warmth this time, but something heavier. Confusion. Hurt. And something like disbelief.
“So you knew,” she said, “and you didn’t care to tell me.”
Kael’s jaw flexed. “This marriage was meant to be political. I intended to keep it that way.”
She let out a short, breathless laugh. “Even though I’m your mate.”
“Yes,” he said.
Silence fell between them. The bond pulsed, sharp and insistent.
Elara wrapped her arms around herself. “So what now?” she asked. “What does this mean for me?”
Kael looked away briefly. “It means things will become more difficult.”
“For who?” she asked.
“For both of us,” he replied.
Her eyes softened slightly, but there was a hint of hurt. “You speak like this is a problem to manage.”
“Because it is,” Kael said.
She shook her head slowly. “I didn’t ask for this,” she said quietly.
“Neither did I,” he admitted.
The bond pulsed again, stronger this time. She gasped, clutching at the wall. The pull was sharp, demanding.
Kael reacted instinctively. He closed the distance between them a little, just enough to offer support. The wolf inside him roared, with excitement…. Mine!!!
Elara felt the pull even more sharply. Her heart raced. Her body wanted to lean toward him. She looked up, eyes wide with confusion and fear.
“Kael,” she whispered. “Why does it feel like this?”
“Because the bond is awaking ,” he said.
“And what happens when it fully wakes?” she asked.
He did not answer immediately. His wolf did.
“You will not be able to lie to her anymore.”
Kael released a little of the tension in his shoulders. “That is something we will discuss later. For now, you need rest.”
Elara watched him. “You’re avoiding the question.”
“Yes,” he admitted.
She straightened. “I don’t like being kept in the dark, especially about something that involves my body.”
Kael nodded. “I understand.”
“Do you?” she asked quietly.
Kael hesitated, then spoke more honestly than he intended. “I am trying not to ruin you.”
Her breath caught. “That’s a strange thing to say.”
“It’s the truth,” he said.
She studied him, noticing the slight cracks in his calm. Fear, Not of her, but of what he might do or what might happen if he fully acknowledged the bond.
“I don’t feel ruined,” she said softly. “I feel… pulled.”
Kael’s throat tightened. “So do I,” he admitted.
The bond pulsed deeper, slower this time. It was steady now, insistent.
Kael stepped back. “You should return to your rooms. I will assign guards.”
“I don’t need guards,” she said.
“You do now,” he replied.
She sighed. “Will this feeling stop?”
Kael shook his head. “Not anymore.”
Her eyes widened. “So this is my life now? A bond I don’t understand. A husband who doesn’t want it?”
“That is not what I said,” he replied.
“It’s what you show,” she answered.
She turned to leave before he could speak. Kael watched her walk down the corridor, steady despite everything. His wolf followed, senses sharp, aware.
She is stronger than you think.
“Yes,” Kael whispered. “And that’s the problem.”
That night, Elara lay awake. She could feel him. Not his thoughts. Not his words. Just presence. Distant, but real. A quiet pull she could not ignore.
It scared her.
And somewhere deep inside, something answered back.
The bond pulsed again. Stronger, Sharper,Immediate.
She pressed a hand to her chest. The warmth flared suddenly, hot and quick. Her eyes flew open. She gasped, sitting upright.
“Kael!!!”
The thought came without effort. Her chest tightened. Her fingers trembled.
A knock sounded at the door. Firm, insistent.
“Elara,” a male voice called.
Her heart jumped. Pain, fear, and anticipation mingled.
“I’m fine,” she said quickly. “Please, go.”
There was a pause.
“I can feel that you’re not,” he replied.
Her breath caught. “You shouldn’t be able to feel anything.”
“But I do,” he said.
Silence stretched.
“May I come in?”
Elara hesitated. Every instinct told her yes and no at the same time.
“I…” she swallowed. “Fine. You can come in but keep your distance”
The door opened slowly. Kael stepped inside. He did not move closer at first. He stopped just inside, careful, giving her space.
“You shouldn’t be awake,” he said quietly.
“Neither should you,” she replied.
He nodded once. “Fair.”
Her eyes flicked to him. “You said the bond is waking. What does that actually mean?”
Kael exhaled slowly. “It will not fade again.”
Her chest tightened. Her heartbeat thundered. “So it only gets stronger.”
“Yes,” he said.
The wind moved outside the windows. Somewhere, a door creaked. Footsteps faded and disappeared.
Inside her, the bond pulsed suddenly. Strong. Relentless. Immediate.
She pressed a hand to her chest again.
It was not painful, but it demanded attention.
Kael was near, but the pull of him seemed impossible.
Something whispered in her mind:
Whatever this bond is… it will not let you walk away.
Elara shivered, clutching the sheets.
And somewhere far off in the keep, horns began to sound.
The sound was faint at first, but growing.
The next morning would bring more than the sunrise.
A voice came in “Alpha” and then There was a knock on the door ….
“There are some funny movements on the border”
Kael flung the door open and shut it almost immediately.
“What do you mean there are some funny movements?”
“I want two guards at your Luna’s door immediately! I have a bad feeling about this”
- Writer
