Calvin’s POV
Floating.
I had been floating in an endless abyss, trapped in a cold, inescapable void where time had no meaning. Darkness stretched infinitely around me, swallowing me whole. I had accepted it. Accepted that this was the end.
Until suddenly, light-blinding and consuming-burst through the void, piercing through the thick darkness.
Pain followed.
A sharp, unbearable ache spread through every inch of my body. My lungs burned as if I had been drowning and had just surfaced for air. My fingers twitched. My chest rose with a shuddering breath. My eyelids felt impossibly heavy, but I forced them open, my vision blurry and unfocused.
I blinked, adjusting to the overwhelming brightness, and slowly, the world around me came into view.
I knew this place.
The dark wooden ceiling. The familiar scent of home.
My bedroom?
Confusion gripped me. This isn’t right. I was dying. No-I died.
Was this some sort of hallucination? A cruel trick played by my subconscious before my soul faded for good?
A voice broke through my dazed thoughts.
“Alpha!”
I turned my head-or at least, I tried to. My body felt sluggish and unresponsive, but I managed to shift just enough to see a familiar figure standing near my bedside.
Franklin.
His eyes widened in disbelief, as if he couldn’t trust what he was seeing. Then, without hesitation, he spun around and shouted, “Doctor! He’s awake!”
Footsteps echoed down the hall, and within seconds, a woman in a white coat rushed into the room. My sluggish mind barely processed her presence before I felt cool fingers press against my forehead and the firm but gentle grip of her hand checking my pulse.
Everything was happening too fast. My senses were still dull, but as my awareness grew sharper, so did my panic.
I looked down at myself. Thick bandages wrapped around my torso and arms. Machines beeped steadily around me. Wires connected me to monitors, and an oxygen mask covered my nose and mouth. The sight sent a surge of dread through me.
I struggled against the fog in my head, my breathing becoming erratic. Why was I here? How was I still alive?
The doctor must have noticed my growing panic because she placed a firm hand on my shoulder.
“Calm down, Alpha,” she said in a soothing voice. “You’re safe now. You’ve just woken up from a coma.”
Her words barely registered.
Coma?
My throat felt raw and dry, but I managed to rasp, “Coma?” I swallowed painfully, forcing out the next words. “How… am I still alive?”
Franklin stepped closer, his face grim but steady. “You summoned me,” he said.
I frowned weakly. “Summoned you?”
“It wasn’t a normal mind-link,” he explained. “I felt you call me with full Alpha authority. I had no choice but to come.”
A vague memory stirred in the back of my mind-Fenrir growling, calling me weak before everything went black. Had it been him? Had he somehow reached Franklin when I couldn’t?
Franklin continued, his expression darkening. “I left everything and rushed to your location immediately. When I got there…” His jaw tightened. “The cabin was on fire.”
Fire.
Sherelle.
Kamrynn.
The memories hit me all at once. The betrayal. The dagger piercing my stomach. Kamrynn’s unconscious face as she was taken from me.
I sucked in a sharp breath as Franklin kept speaking.
“It looked hopeless,” he admitted. “But I put out the flames and searched the wreckage. The whole place was destroyed, but then I found an entrance to an underground tunnel.” He exhaled. “You were there. Buried under the rubble.”
I remained silent, absorbing his words.
“You had no pulse,” he said grimly. “Your heart had completely stopped. You looked-” He cut himself off, shaking his head. “Honestly, I thought I was too late.”
I could hear the emotion in his voice, the weight of that moment still heavy on him.
“But I performed CPR,” he continued. “And by some miracle, I got a pulse.”
I stared at him, struggling to comprehend what he was saying.
“You were rushed to the nearest hospital,” Franklin explained. “You fell into a coma… and the doctors didn’t think you’d ever wake up. After stabilizing your condition, we decided to bring you back here, to the Pack house. The Pack doctor monitored you to cut down on costs, but… we weren’t sure if you’d ever open your eyes again.”
I swallowed hard, my throat thick with emotion. I was quiet for a long moment before forcing myself to ask the question weighing heavily on my chest.
“How… long?”
Franklin hesitated.
A sinking feeling settled in my gut.
“Franklin,” I rasped.
He sighed, his shoulders sagging slightly. “… A month.”
A wave of shock crashed over me.
A month?
An entire month had passed since that night? Since I fell into Sherelle’s trap? Since Kamrynn was-
No.
My breath hitched, and before I even realized what I was doing, I pushed myself up, yanking off the oxygen mask. The machines around me beeped in protest, but I didn’t care.
“Kamrynn-!”
Pain flared through my body like wildfire, but it was nothing compared to the agony in my chest.
“Alpha, stop!”
Franklin and the doctor rushed to my side, pushing me back down. I fought against them, desperate, but my body was too weak.
“You can’t move yet!” the doctor scolded. “You’ve only just woken up! Your body needs time to recover!”
I gritted my teeth, my hands gripping the sheets beneath me.
Kamrynn…
She had been gone for an entire month.
A month since Sherelle’s betrayal.
A month since Kamrynn was stolen from me.
A month since I failed her.
My hands clenched into fists as a sickening realization washed over me. She doesn’t remember me.
To her, I was nothing but a stranger.
The weight of everything was suffocating, pressing down on me like an unrelenting force determined to shatter what little strength I had left. But even through the haze of pain and exhaustion, I forced myself to focus on what mattered most-my Pack.
Taking a slow, steadying breath, I turned to Franklin, my voice hoarse but firm.
“How has the Pack been faring?”
Franklin exhaled, rubbing a hand down his face. “Better, for now. We managed to secure resources from the north-food, medicine, and other supplies. It’s enough to sustain us for the time being, but…” His expression darkened. “It won’t last forever, Calvin. The sickness is still spreading. Our people are still dying.”
I clenched my jaw, guilt gnawing at me like a ravenous beast.
Franklin hesitated before continuing. “Look, I won’t sugarcoat it. If this curse isn’t lifted soon, we’re doomed. The Pack can’t survive like this much longer.”
A bitter, humorless laugh escaped me. “Lifting the curse isn’t an option.”
Franklin frowned. “What the hell does that mean?”
I met his gaze, the weight of my words sinking into my very bones. “Kamrynn… I found her.”
Franklin’s eyes widened. “What?”
“She’s in Blue Bell,” I continued, my voice thick with emotion. “Or at least… she was.”
Franklin leaned forward, urgency creeping into his tone. “Was? What do you mean was?”
I swallowed hard. “Sherelle. She-” I inhaled sharply, forcing the words out. “She reappeared.”
Franklin recoiled slightly, his brows drawing together in confusion.
“Sherelle?” he repeated, as if the very name was a foreign concept.
I nodded stiffly.
He shook his head. “No… No, that’s not possible. She-”
“She’s alive,” I interrupted. The words tasted like poison on my tongue. “She’s been alive this entire time. She faked her death.”
Franklin’s face twisted with disbelief. “Wait, wait, wait. Back up for a second. Luna Sherelle is alive?”
I nodded again, my throat tightening.
Franklin ran a hand through his hair, muttering curses under his breath. He looked as if I had just told him the moon had fallen out of the sky.
“She staged everything,” I continued, my voice barely above a whisper. “She manipulated me into believing Kamrynn had killed her. She wanted me to hate Kamrynn, to hurt her.” I clenched my fists. “And I played right into her hands.”
Franklin looked at me, still trying to process everything. “You’re telling me she orchestrated everything? Framing Kamrynn for her death?”
I forced myself to nod.
“Son of a-” He exhaled sharply, pacing the room. “And where is Kamrynn now?”
I closed my eyes, feeling the full weight of my failure crash down on me.
“She’s gone.”
Franklin stopped pacing. “Gone?”
I forced the words out, each syllable slicing through me like a blade. “Sherelle and some man-a dragon-took her.” I gritted my teeth, my fingers digging into the sheets. “They stole her memories, Franklin. She doesn’t even remember who she is anymore.”
Silence.
A heavy, suffocating silence filled the room.
Then-
Franklin slammed his fist against the nightstand. “That bitch!”
I let out a slow, shuddering breath, my eyes burning with fury and regret.
Franklin took a moment to compose himself before turning to me, his expression hard and unwavering.
“This isn’t over,” he said firmly. “Not even close.”
I let out a bitter chuckle. “You think I don’t know that?”
“No, what I think,” Franklin countered, stepping closer, “is that you need to stop wallowing in guilt and fight.” His eyes burned with conviction. “The moon goddess gave you a second chance, Calvin. Don’t waste it.”
His words settled deep in my chest, a fire slowly reigniting in my soul.
“You need to recover,” Franklin continued. “You need to get stronger. And then?” He smirked. “We hunt. We track Kamrynn down and get her back. We fix this.”
For the first time in what felt like forever, I allowed hope to take root.
Franklin was right.
This wasn’t the end.
Not even close.
I swallowed, nodding slowly. “You’re right.”
A small grin tugged at Franklin’s lips. “Of course I am.”
I exhaled sharply, my mind already working through the next steps.
“If we’re going to make this work,” I said, my voice steady, “we need help.”
Franklin crossed his arms. “Who do you have in mind?”
I looked him dead in the eyes.
“Lysaa.”
Franklin blinked. Then, his expression turned to one of sheer disbelief.
“…You can’t be serious.”
I didn’t waver. “Release her from the dungeons.”