Finally….
“Do you remember anything at all about what happened?” Lucas asked, his tone now more urgent.
I furrowed my brow, trying to recall any details that might shed light on the incident. But the memories were hazy, fragmented, like pieces of a puzzle that didn’t quite fit together.
“I remember… a struggle,” I began slowly, trying to piece together the disjointed images in my mind. “There were people, or maybe creatures-I’m not sure. They restrained me, and I think I heard them talking, but the words were unclear. Something about a ‘child,’ ‘strategy,’ and ‘defeat.’ But that’s all I can remember.”
Lucas frowned, clearly not satisfied with the limited information. “Those words… they don’t make much sense on their own. But they could be clues to something bigger.”
He began to pace the room, his mind clearly working through the possibilities. I watched him, feeling a strange mix of emotions. Despite our recent conflicts, there was something comforting about having him here, sharing the burden of this mystery.
“I need to consult with the elders,” Lucas finally said, stopping to face me. “They might know something about these markings or the words you overheard. In the meantime, I want you to stay here and rest. The healer will continue to monitor you.”
I wanted to protest, to insist that I could help with the investigation, but I knew Lucas well enough to recognize that look in his eyes. He was determined to handle this himself, to protect me in his own way, whether I liked it or not.
“Alright,” I agreed reluctantly, though the thought of lying in bed while others searched for answers didn’t sit well with me. “But please, keep me informed. I need to know what’s going on.”
“Of course,” he said, his expression softening again. “You’ll be the first to know as soon as we learn anything.”
With that, Lucas turned to leave, pausing at the door as if he wanted to say something more. But then he shook his head slightly and walked out, leaving me alone with my thoughts.
As soon as he was gone, the room felt colder, emptier. I lay back against the pillows, trying to shake off the lingering unease that clung to me. The healer returned to check on me, her expression professional but kind.
“Are you feeling any better?” she asked as she took my pulse, her touch gentle and reassuring.
“A bit,” I replied, though my mind was still racing with unanswered questions. “Do you think those markings will come back? Or were they just… temporary?”
The healer shook her head, her brow furrowed in thought. “It’s hard to say. I’ve never seen anything like this before. But I’ll be keeping a close eye on you, just in case.”
I nodded, feeling a bit reassured by her words. But as she left the room to prepare more herbs, I couldn’t shake the feeling that something was very, very wrong. This was no ordinary attack, and I had a sinking feeling that whatever had happened to me was only the beginning of something much larger.
I closed my eyes, trying to rest as Lucas had suggested, but sleep wouldn’t come. My thoughts kept returning to the words I’d overheard: child, strategy, defeat. What did they mean? And who were the people-or creatures-who had spoken them?
And then there was the matter of the markings. If they had been the result of some kind of dark magic, as Lucas seemed to suspect, then why had they disappeared so suddenly? And why had I been the target in the first place?
My head throbbed with the effort of trying to make sense of it all. But no matter how hard I tried, the answers eluded me, slipping through my fingers like sand.
Hours seemed to pass in a blur of restless thoughts and half-formed memories. Eventually, I must have drifted off because the next thing I knew, I was waking up to the sound of soft voices outside my door. I sat up, rubbing my eyes, and strained to listen.
“… still no sign of the attackers,” I heard Lucas say, his voice low and tense. “But we’ve put the guards on high alert. Whoever did this won’t get away with it.”
A second voice, older and more gravelly, responded, “This is dark magic, without a doubt. But its origins are unclear. We’ll need to consult the ancient texts to find out more.”
There was a pause, and then Lucas spoke again. “We can’t afford to wait too long. If they come after Ashley again…”
“We won’t let that happen,” the older voice interrupted, firm and resolute. “But you must prepare yourself, Lucas. This may be only the beginning.”
Their voices faded as they moved away, leaving me with a chill that had nothing to do with the temperature of the room. Dark magic. Ancient texts. And the possibility that this was only the beginning. What had I gotten myself into?
I lay back down, pulling the blankets up to my chin as if they could somehow protect me from the looming threats. But deep down, I knew that no amount of blankets-or guards, for that matter-could shield me from whatever was coming.
All I could do was wait. Wait and hope that Lucas and the others would find the answers before it was too late. Because if they didn’t… I wasn’t sure I wanted to know what would happen next.
I remained in the infirmary for about three days before the nurse finally let me be discharged. The mating season was slowly coming to an end, and I honestly didn’t feel like I really connected with my mates as much as I would have wanted us to. I looked at myself in the mirror as soon as I got into my bedroom. The place looked exactly how I had left it three days ago when I was supposedly abducted.
I looked over at the dress I had specially picked out for the morning right before going to bed, and it was still neatly resting on the hanger where I had left it. I honestly couldn’t forget the purpose for which I had brought it out. All through that day, I just couldn’t stop thinking about how Lucas and Simon had me right there and then in the car. It was such a wild experience that I wouldn’t be able to forget in a lifetime. I mean, so many people have crazy sexual fantasies, with making out in a car being one of them. I, for one, however, never had any of them in mind. Yet, I still ended up experiencing one which I extremely loved; the thrill of the moment was simply something I wished to live out again.
Furthermore, the goal of my outfit choice was basically to make Simon and Lucas completely fall in love with me again so that we could have another adventurous time together like we had before. However, things didn’t go the way I had wanted them to, and plans changed. Now, we are here! All I could do was just stare at my dainty reflection in the mirror. I looked pale and malnourished, almost unrecognizable, in fact. The bones around my neck were already so visible, and my hair stood with so much frizz. My wolf didn’t feel too good; I could hear her whispering it to me, the softness of her demeanor a clear contrast to how she would always relate to me before.
It hadn’t occurred to me that I was hungry, or let’s just say my brain hadn’t registered it yet. It was not until my stomach cried out that it suddenly dawned on me that the last meal I had actually eaten was about three days ago. I looked at my pale and tired-looking self in front of the mirror one more time, and the only thing that just kept coming to mind was how in the world I was able to regress so much within the short span of three days. All it took was an ordinary number of three days to have me looking this miserable, months after coming into the mansion. Whereas I was able to survive weeks being completely starved and overworked back at Alpha Klaus’ pack house. I guess I had started getting used to the beautiful and less stressful lifestyle that came with being in the mansion, and now my tolerance level has reduced to such a low extent.
“Well, I guess I was a bit too high on survival instincts back then. I obviously can’t compare how things were back then to now,” I said to myself, chuckling out loud as soon as I heard my stomach grumble once more. The timing with which it happened made things so funny since it had seemed like my stomach was giving a response right back to what I had said.
I was about to leave the bedroom to get myself something to eat in the kitchen when the door to my room opened. Obviously, I didn’t need anyone to tell me that it was Madam Mortica who had walked in. After all, she was the only one who didn’t care to have the courtesy of knocking before entering my bedroom. Even the witch herself would always knock, even if it was just two times, before inviting herself in, whether I had asked her to or not.
“Well, well, well, look who we have here, up and alive,” she began, and I shook my head as I rolled my eyes at her usual drama.
“What’s that supposed to mean, Madam Mortica? Were you expecting me to die?”
“Oh, come on, of course not, but then again, you were unconscious for about three days, so it’s something to talk about.”
“Hm, I see. Well, thank you then,” I said, averting my attention to the tray of food she had brought in. Honestly, I didn’t care what she had to say; all I really wanted was to have the food she had with her. She continued going on and on about how quiet the house had been without me being there to create a scene and all that, but I honestly didn’t care. All that was going through my mind was just when she would finally decide to shut up and hand me the food. Thankfully, she finally stopped and then handed me the nice, warm bowl of chicken noodle soup with rice and veggies on the side. As soon as I took the tray, I carefully placed it on my lap and immediately started eating. She looked at me in disgust, but did I really care about it? Not at all! I just continued eating, and she left not too long afterward.