Rejected By Fate, Bound By Blood

Chapter 9: A Soul Pulled Back

zarek

"Vaelora... Vaelora."

She wasn't responding.

She had passed out cold.

I pulled the cloak covering my wound.

It was unbearable, but at least it had healed.

And the wolfsbane hurt like a b***h, but it was something I could tolerate.

I lifted her off the ground and got on my horse.

I held her close, riding.

We weren't far from my territory anymore, and that was something I was grateful for.

I rode for almost an hour.

Then immediately, my horse moved through the shield that covered us from the rest of the packs.

It felt like I could finally breathe.

I carried her down and rushed straight inside.

Elara was already there like she had been waiting for me.

"Please," I said. "I need you to help her."

She followed behind me as I took her straight to my quarters.

I placed her on the bed, and for a moment, I could hear her heartbeat slowing down, and it was scaring me.

"What happened?" she asked.

"We don't have time for questions.

I need you to heal her.

She's dying, can't you see?"

Elara fell to her knees and lifted both her hands over Vaelora.

She began saying a lot of things that I didn't understand, and I just stood there watching and hoping that whatever she was doing worked because what I had witnessed tonight, the amount of power she commanded, it was nothing I had ever seen in my entire life.

And Elara was a powerful witch.

That was an undisputable fact.

But when it came to her, I wasn't sure if Elara could even stand a chance.

She kept saying those enchantments, and I watched as she began bleeding slowly from her nose.

Immediately, I pulled her off the ground.

"You need to stop."

"No!" she screamed, pushing me so hard across the room.

She went back on her knees and continued the spell.

She was screaming as she said the words I didn't understand.

The room suddenly became windy, and the curtains were flying.

It was like she was killing herself just to heal Vaelora.

And that wasn't what I asked for.

I never wanted her to do any of that.

The wind was too strong, and I couldn't move toward her.

After a moment, everything stopped.

And I heard a sneeze.

It was from vaelora.

Elara was on the ground, almost unconscious.

I ran to her side.

"I'm fine," she said as she tried to push herself up, trying to sound very convincing.

But I wasn't buying into it.

Not even a little bit.

"Why the hell would you do that?

Did you want to kill yourself?" I snapped.

"I needed to do it."

Those were the only words she said.

"What the hell is wrong with you?"

"Damon, look at her."

She pointed to Vaelora body.

"She would have died if I didn't do what I did.

Was that what you wanted?

To see her die?

Because her soul was slowly slipping away from her body, and I had to pull it back in."

"Oh..."

"Yeah."

"Elara," I said in a gentle voice.

"I know you did what you thought was necessary, but next time don't do it.

Do not put your life at risk ever again.

I care about you too much to lose you."

She smiled.

"You're not losing me," she said reassuringly.

"But I didn't believe it.

"I am not going anywhere.

I will be right here.

Whenever you need me, I will come."

I turned my gaze to Vaelora, who I could swear I heard a sneeze from not long ago.

"Why isn't she conscious?"

"She will be.

Just give her time.

Her body went through something very, very unbelievable, and she needs time to heal."

I began pacing slowly around the room.

I should have done something.

I shouldn't have stood there and watched them murder her brother and her father right in front of my eyes.

That was a cowardly move, and I wasn't a coward.

I was not supposed to just stand there and watch her get taken.

That wasn't the promise I made to Julian.

I felt Elara's hand on my shoulder.

"Is everything alright?"

I shook my head.

"Nothing is alright," I replied.

"Worried?"

"Eryndor is dead."

"What?"

She looked surprised and slowly took a step back.

"What the hell happened to him?"

"He was executed by the council.

They killed not just him but also his son.

I am even more surprised that they hadn't ordered for her death."

I turned to look at vaelora's body on the bed.

She looked so peaceful.

And way too young for everything she was going through.

It was too much for someone as young as her.

She looked so small.

And even with everything, she was still effortlessly beautiful.

"Are you sure we are doing the right thing?" Elara asked, not looking at me but at Vaelora.

"Yes, we are," I replied with so much certainty, even though I wasn't sure.

This girl could literally be the end of us all, and I would still find a way to convince myself that I was doing the right thing.

I slowly lowered myself beside her on the bed, just watching her.

I lifted my hand slowly to tuck the hair on her face behind her ear.

"Be careful," Elara whispered.

I could see how afraid Elara was of her.

What Eryndor had told us was enough to make anyone afraid.

Even me.

But I wasn't.

She didn't seem like someone who could even hurt a fly.

And thinking about how the person who was supposed to be her mate, who was supposed to protect her, humiliated her in front of the entire crowd, it made me want to go back and rip his head off his neck because she didn't deserve any of it.

"Don't you think we should leave her and I should go attend to your wounds?" Elara asked.

But I was too carried away to even respond to her.

I had even forgotten that I had been injured.

"No need," I replied vaguely, without even looking at her.

vaelora's eyes snapped open, and she immediately sat up.

"Where am I?”