Episode 9: Protection Or Prison
1218 Words
The door slammed shut behind Selene.
The sound echoed through the room like a warning.
Or a promise.
Silence followed.
Heavy.
Uncomfortable.
I didn’t move.
Didn’t breathe.
Because Kael was still standing there.
And the look in his eyes—
It wasn’t calm.
It wasn’t cold.
It was something darker.
Controlled anger.
“Are you hurt?”
The question caught me off guard.
I blinked.
“No…”
My voice came out quieter than I intended.
He stepped closer anyway, his gaze scanning me like he didn’t quite believe it.
“Did you touch it?”
“The vial?” I shook my head. “Not really—it reacted before I could.”
His jaw tightened slightly.
“Good.”
The single word carried more weight than it should have.
I glanced at the dark liquid still hissing on the floor.
“What was it?” I asked.
Kael’s expression hardened.
“A suppressant.”
I frowned.
“That’s what she said—”
“Not the kind you think.”
His voice cut through mine.
Sharp.
Final.
“That wasn’t meant to stabilize you,” he continued. “It was meant to shut your power down completely.”
A chill ran down my spine.
“Temporarily?”
Silence.
My stomach dropped.
“Kael…”
He didn’t answer.
Didn’t need to.
Because the truth settled in my chest like a stone.
Permanent.
She wasn’t trying to help me.
She was trying to erase me.
I wrapped my arms around myself, suddenly cold.
“She would’ve killed me.”
“Yes.”
No hesitation.
No denial.
Just truth.
Something inside me twisted.
“And you let her walk out?” I asked, my voice tightening.
Kael’s eyes flicked to mine.
Dark.
Dangerous.
“You think this is over?”
A pause.
Then—
“No.”
The way he said it made something in me shift.
Selene hadn’t won.
Not yet.
But this…
This wasn’t finished.
Not even close.
Kael stepped closer again, his presence filling the room.
“You’re not to be alone again.”
I stiffened.
“What?”
“You heard me.”
His tone left no room for argument.
My chest tightened.
“I’m not a prisoner.”
“No,” he said.
A beat.
“Not yet.”
The words hit harder than anything else he’d said.
Not yet.
“So that’s your solution?” I snapped. “Lock me up where no one can touch me? Control everything I do?”
“It’s called keeping you alive.”
“It feels like control.”
“Because it is.”
I froze.
He didn’t even try to deny it.
Didn’t soften it.
Didn’t pretend.
“You think I want this?” I demanded. “You think I enjoy feeling like I don’t even own my own life anymore?”
His gaze didn’t waver.
“This isn’t about what you want.”
“Of course it isn’t,” I muttered bitterly.
Because when had it ever been?
My life had never really been mine.
Not in my old pack.
And apparently…
Not here either.
“I can handle myself,” I said.
“No,” Kael replied immediately.
Anger flared.
“Yes, I can—”
“You almost killed someone.”
The words slammed into me.
Hard.
I flinched.
Because I couldn’t argue with that.
I had lost control.
More than once.
And people had gotten hurt.
But still—
“That doesn’t mean I can’t learn,” I said quietly.
His expression shifted slightly.
Not softer.
But… less sharp.
“Then prove it.”
My breath caught.
“What?”
“Control isn’t something you talk about,” he said. “It’s something you show.”
A pause.
“You want freedom?”
I nodded slowly.
“Then earn it.”
The words settled between us.
Heavy.
Challenging.
And for the first time…
I didn’t feel like I was being pushed down.
I felt like I was being tested.
“Fine,” I said.
My voice steadier now.
“Then teach me.”
Something flickered in his eyes.
Approval?
Maybe.
“Tomorrow,” he said.
Of course.
Always tomorrow.
Always later.
“Why not now?” I asked.
“Because right now,” he said, stepping closer again, “you’re still shaken.”
“I’m not—”
“You are.”
His voice dropped.
Lower.
Quieter.
More dangerous.
“And if I push you too far tonight…”
A pause.
His gaze darkened.
“You’ll lose control again.”
My breath hitched.
Because deep down…
I knew he was right.
The energy inside me still hadn’t fully settled.
It lingered.
Restless.
Unpredictable.
And if it surged again—
I didn’t know what I’d do.
Or who I’d hurt.
Silence stretched between us.
Then—
“Get some rest,” Kael said.
I let out a small, humorless laugh.
“After everything that just happened?”
“You’ll need it.”
I looked away, my mind still spinning.
Selene.
The vial.
The warrior.
The power.
None of it made sense.
None of it felt real.
And yet—
This was my reality now.
I turned back to him slowly.
“One question.”
His gaze met mine.
“Ask.”
I hesitated.
Because I wasn’t sure I was ready for the answer.
But I asked anyway.
“Why me?”
Silence.
Longer this time.
More deliberate.
“You said you chose me,” I continued. “That you knew something. That I was… different.”
A pause.
“Why me?”
Kael studied me for a moment.
Like he was deciding how much to say.
Or how much to keep hidden.
Then—
“Because you survived something you shouldn’t have.”
My brows furrowed.
“What does that mean?”
He didn’t elaborate.
Of course he didn’t.
Instead—
“You’ll understand soon enough.”
Frustration rose again.
“You keep saying that—”
“And you keep asking questions you’re not ready for.”
The words stopped me.
Because maybe…
He was right.
Maybe I wasn’t ready.
Or maybe…
He just didn’t trust me with the truth yet.
Either way—
It left me in the dark.
Again.
Kael turned toward the door.
“I’ll have guards posted outside,” he said. “No one enters without my permission.”
“And if I want to leave?” I asked.
He paused.
Just for a second.
Then—
“You won’t.”
The door opened.
Then closed behind him.
And just like that…
I was alone again.
But this time—
It didn’t feel like silence.
It felt like something waiting.
Watching.
I sat slowly on the edge of the bed, my chest tight, my thoughts racing.
A threat.
A weapon.
A mystery.
I didn’t know what I was.
Didn’t understand what was happening to me.
But one thing was becoming painfully clear—
Everyone around me was preparing for something.
Something bigger.
Something dangerous.
And somehow…
I was at the center of it.
My fingers curled slightly as that familiar energy stirred again beneath my skin.
Quieter now.
But still there.
Still watching.
Still waiting.
And for the first time…
I wondered—
Was Kael really protecting me?
Or was he preparing me…
For something I wouldn’t survive?
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