Chapter five
1158 Words
Elara stared at the small card resting on the bedside table.
Kaden.
She had almost thrown it away the day he gave it to her. At the time, she had seen no reason to keep the number of a man she barely knew.
Now, it felt like the only door left standing.
She picked it up, tracing the neatly written digits with her thumb before reaching for her phone.
“This better be worth it,” she murmured under her breath.
The first ring came almost immediately. The second stretched longer than she expected. By the fourth, she was convinced he wasn’t going to answer.
“…Hello?”
His voice was low, rough around the edges, carrying the unmistakable tone of someone who didn’t appreciate unexpected calls.
Elara straightened instinctively.
“It’s Elara.” There was a long silence before the voice on the other end spoke up.
“I know who it is,” Kaden finally replied. “I don’t save numbers I don’t intend to remember.”
She swallowed, “I need your help.”
He paused again before as if thinking it through “I already helped you.”
“You don’t understand.”
“No,” he said flatly. “I understand perfectly. Adelaide told you the truth, and now you’re overwhelmed. Give it a few days. You’ll think more clearly.”
“That’s not why I’m calling.”
“Then why are you calling?”
Elara tightened her grip on the phone. “I’ve made my decision.”
“And?”
“I want to destroy the Blackwoods.”
Silence greeted her words. This time, it lasted long enough for her to wonder if the call had dropped.
When Kaden finally spoke, his voice had turned colder. “No.”
Her brows knitted together. “No?”
“I won’t help you chase revenge.”
“Kaden…”
“I’ve seen what revenge does to people. It eats them alive until they can’t remember why they started.”
“You haven’t even heard me out.”
“I don’t need to.” His answer came without hesitation.
“Find something worth living for, Elara. Don’t make the Blackwoods the center of your life.”
Before she could respond, the line went dead. Elara slowly lowered the phone, staring at the dark screen.
Then, with a determined breath, she tapped his contact again.
If Kaden thought one refusal would stop her…
He had severely underestimated how much she had already lost.
The phone rang twice before the call connected.
“What?” Kaden didn’t bother hiding his irritation.
“You hung up on me.”
“I did, and?”
“And I’m calling back.”
A quiet sigh drifted through the receiver.
“Either you’ve lost your mind, or you don’t know when to quit.”
“I’m not hanging up until you hear me out.”
“You assume I’ll stay on the line.”
“I assume you’re the kind of man who wouldn’t have given me your number if you never intended to answer.”
He met her with silence but Elara took it as permission to continue.
“I’m not asking you to fight my battles.”
“You just said you wanted to destroy one of the most powerful family in the werewolf kingdom.”
“I said I wanted to bring them down.”
“And how exactly do you plan on doing that?”
“I don’t know.”
The admission came easier than she expected.
“I don’t have connections. I don’t have power. I don’t even know where to begin.”
“Then you’ve answered your own question.”
“But I know someone who does.” More silence “Kaden… I don’t need you to hand me revenge.”
“I need you to teach me how to stop being helpless.”
His breathing was slow and even. She imagined him pinching the bridge of his nose, already regretting answering her second call.
“You think learning to fight is enough?”
“No.”
“You think strength alone will bring down the Blackwoods?”
“No.”
“Then what exactly are you asking for?”
She closed her eyes. “A chance.”
His scoff crackled through the speaker.
“A chance?”
“They spent years deciding who I was before I ever had the opportunity to decide for myself. They broke me because they knew I couldn’t fight back.”
Her voice steadied with every word.
“I won’t ask you to avenge me. I won’t ask you to risk your life for mine.”
She inhaled slowly. “But teach me … teach me how to survive, how to think, how to become someone they’ll never see coming.”
The line fell quiet once moreLong enough for doubt to creep into her chest.
Then Kaden spoke.
“You really won’t let this go.”
“No.”
“You’ll keep chasing this with or without me.”
“Yes.”
A humorless chuckle escaped him.”mmm…stubborn.”
“I’ve been called worse.”
“I can imagine.”
Another stretch of silence followed. Finally, he exhaled.
“If I say yes…” he started Elara’s heart skipped “…you don’t get to question my methods.”
She frowned. “What do you mean?”
“I mean exactly what I said. You follow my rules. Every one of them.”
“And if I don’t?”
“Then I walk away.”
“What kind of rules?”
“You’ll find out when you get here.”
“Get… where?”
“My estate.”
Her brows shot up.
“You’ll stay here for as long as your training lasts.”
“What?”
“I won’t waste my time traveling across the kingdom to babysit someone who’s determined to throw herself into danger.”
“I’m not asking you to babysit me.”
“No?.” His tone remained calm. “That requires time, discipline, and complete obedience.” He continued before she could interrupt. “You leave without permission, we’re done, ignore an order, we’re done, hide anything from me, we’re done, and if at any point I believe revenge matters more to you than staying alive…”
His voice turned dangerously quiet.
“…I’ll personally send you back to Adelaide.”
Elara looked down at the phone in her hand, the conditions were suffocating, but so was the thought of remaining exactly as she was.
“When do I come?”
A faint smile touched Kaden’s voice.
“I’ll send someone for you tomorrow morning.”
The call ended.
For the first time since her rejection, Elara realized she wasn’t stepping toward revenge. She was stepping into a life that would demand everything she had.
- Writer
