Chapter 4
1558 Words
Rurik
We reached Astral before dusk.
The girl didn't say a word the entire way. Not when we crossed the borders, not when we reached the trees that lined the borders, and not even when the Pack began to stare.
And they did stare.
“This is her?” Lonan, one of the Pack cubs, the one who had desperately pleaded with me the night before with tears in his eyes to get the healer muttered under his breath.
His mother's health was failing, and it wouldn't be long before death snatched what was left of her breath.
I couldn't bear to tell the distressed boy that there wasn't much the healer could do, I nodded instead, unable to meet his eyes.
Now he stared at her like a contradiction he couldn’t quite make sense of, his gaze unflinching and openly observant.
Many more of my Pack wolves lined the path, with looks similar to Lonans.
"It has to be." Someone answered.
“She doesn’t look like much. Are healers supposed to be this young?"
"What do you think happened? She's covered in blood..."
I ignored them, letting my focus remain on the girl who walked ahead of the group, with Herman and Jules flanking her on both sides.
They were there to keep her from running. For some reason, I suspected she would.
Haira was already waiting when we entered.
She always was.
Her arms were folded before her chest and her eyes flicked over our group once, sharp and assessing.
“You’re late."
Haira had to be the only wolf that existed within this Pack that could snap at me in that manner, and rightfully so.
She'd raised me, filling in the role of my mother for so many years. I respected her as much as I loved her.
“I had reason, Heira." I replied.
She stared at me a second longer, then her gaze shifted to the girl, then narrowed.
"...That’s her?”
I glanced at her too. "Yes."
Heira stepped forward slowly, her gaze taking on the soft look that I was familiar with.
"Lift your head, child."
The girl didn’t move. She didn't even react to what Heira said. It was as though she was lost in her own world and as if nothing in the world could garner her attention.
Heira tried again, softer this time.
“Let me see you.”
Still, nothing.
The girl gave no reaction.
Cassian exhaled sharply, “She’s been like this the whole way.”
“Silent?” Heirs asked.
“Silent,” he confirmed.
Heira studied her a moment longer, then sighed, signaling Herman and Jule to step away from her.
"I wouldn't expect less. Poor girl looks like she'll collapse any second."
Except she hadn't. Even after walking such a long distance, she held herself upright.
Sure, her steps had faltered a few times, but she had kept moving, as though falling wasn’t an option she would allow herself.
It didn't escape me.
Before long, Heira had her cleaned up, or at least she tried to.
The mud and dried blood had been wiped from her face, revealing fair skin underneath.
I supposed she had opposed the change of clothes, because she was still wearing the same ones. My eyes drifted to the dark stain of blood that had spread across most of her outfit, soaking into the fabric in uneven patches, but I said nothing.
“She’s injured,” Heira muttered, reaching out to grab the girls arm. She didn't resist, and Heira began to wrap it with careful, practiced motions, using a bandage she’d had brought out beforehand.
"Thankfully, it's nothing fatal." She said, a note of relief slipping into her voice.
Cassian leaned against the door, looking into the room with a steady, unreadable gaze. "We did the count. Eight wolves dead. All but her."
Heira paused her motion and shot him a look. "And?"
Cassian straightened. "I don't like coincidences."
Neither did I.
I stepped forward, planting myself right in front of her. Heira stepped to the side to give me more room.
“Look at me.” I commanded.
Her head lifted, slowly. Her first reaction since I found her.
Light brown eyes, the shade of warm honey stared back at me, devoid of emotion and thoughts.
When standing before me, most wolves lowered their gaze. She didn't.
“What's your name?” I asked.
"Lei...Lyra."
Her voice was soft, smaller than I expected.
Cassian snorted. “Finally, a word."
I paid him no attention. I just watched her.
She did the same, staring unblinkingly at me.
Heira took a step forward. "Maybe we shouldn't question her yet. I think she's just frightened."
I didn’t take my eyes off her, even as I nodded in response to Heira.
“We’ll talk later.” I said to the girl.
She didn’t argue, didn't agree. Instead, her gaze remained fixated on me.
My jaw tightened but I said nothing either. I just turned and walked out.
*********
Night fell, and with it...expectation.
“She’s been prepared,” Cassian said as we walked towards my room. “Or so we were told.”
I didn’t respond.
Prepared, trained and conditioned. I'd heard enough about the healer sent to me.
Greta had said she was obedient and compliant, as much as she was useful.
The girl looked far from obedient but I decided not to judge based on her appearance alone.
Cassian walked ahead of me, pulling the door open before I reached it.
"She's inside," he said.
I nodded once in acknowledgment then stepped in, closing the door behind me.
The rest of the world was shut out behind the door. I spotted her immediately, standing near the center of the room, just as still as before.
She stirred when I walked in, turning slightly to face me.
I hesitated briefly then stepped into the room. "Still quiet, I see."
No response came from her, and silence stretched on, heavy and unrelenting
I spoke again, watching her closely. "I'll assume you understand why you're here."
Finally, I got a reaction. Small, but still a reaction.
She blinked, slow and deliberate, like my words had never truly registered in her mind.
"Do you know why you're here?" I continued.
Still, no response came from her.
I took a step forward.
Her voice stopped me in my tracks.
"I'm not going to have s*x with you."
“What did you say?”
Her eyes flickered, like she was weighing something dangerous, then her voice came out stronger.
“I’m not going to be your breeder.”
The words settled between us like a challenge.
I took another step forward, slower this time. “You don’t get to decide that.”
Her lips pressed into a thin line of defiance. “Watch me.”
The switch in her was sudden, too sudden for me to catch up with. Just as second ago, I was wondering if she suffered from speech impairment or some sort of selective mutism.
Something tightened in my chest. This wasn't right, nothing about her was.
My voice dropped and I tried to sum it up as shortly as I could. “You were sent here. You belong to this Pack now.”
Her breath hitched, then sharpened.
In a clipped tone, she said, “I don’t belong anywhere.”
My eyes widened a fraction, the words landing harder than expected.
Didn’t Elira tell her?
The wariness in her gaze spiked and her eyes darted across the room, as though she was seeking something to use against me.
Alarmed, I closed the distance between us in two strides and grabbed her wrist.
Her reaction was immediate.
She jerked violently, trying to wrench free, her other hand coming up to shove me, but I caught that too, pinning both wrists in one hand.
“Let go of me.” She snarled.
For a second, I considered doing so but then, I negated the thought.
“I’d suggest you calm yourself.”
“You’re in my territory,” I added frigidly. “You follow my rules.”
Her breathing turned even more uneven and she wrestled with my grip.
“I said…let go…”
Her voice broke, and that was the moment everything shifted.
Her body went rigid, and her eyes…
They were dual-colored. I’d seen it earlier but now, they were even more striking.
However, it was the look in them that made me hesitate.
There was a brokenness that ran far too deep.
“Don’t…” she whispered.
The word barely existed.
Suddenly, she shoved hard against me, barreling into me with her small frame. “Don’t touch me.”
Her scent spiked violently. I caught a whiff of fear in the air.
No. It wasn’t just fear. There was something else woven into it, something my instincts couldn’t quite decipher.
I frowned, tightening my grip as she started to struggle harder. “Stop…”
She struck without warning.
A broken, guttural sound tore from her throat as her body surged with sudden, unnatural strength. Her claws slid out, sharp and fast, slicing across my forearm as she ripped one hand free.
Before I could react, she launched a violent attack towards me, teeth snapping inches from my throat.
I didn’t reach fast enough, and her teeth sank into my flesh.
- Writer
