Chapter 21
“I reject you, Ellaine Aurora Rollin, as my fated mate.”
No…
The word slipped out of me in a whisper, but inside, I was screaming.
“Ruben?” I croaked, my voice trembling.
He turned his back to me–like I was nothing. Like I was never something to him.
I stood there in the middle of the crowd, their faces blurring, their whispers piercing like glass shards. I couldn’t breathe.
I watched Ruben laughing with Kaithlin as they walked away together. Their hands were intertwined, their steps so light–like they had been freed. Like shedding me had set them free.
“No…” My voice cracked. “Please… don’t go.”
The more I reached for him, the faster they walked. The harder I ran, the further they drifted, until their figures vanished into the swirling mist.
“Why…?” My knees hit the cold ground, and I wept. “No… don’t go… please…”
My voice shattered. “Don’t leave me…”
And just like that, I was alone.
Alone in the darkness.
The world around me was an endless void. The echo of my sobs was the only sound that remained, and even that faded into silence. I curled in on myself, trembling, the pain a dull roar in my chest.
I stayed like that–lost in the dark.
Until…
“Ellaine…”
A voice. Low. Comforting.
“Ellaine, I’m here…”
My body stilled. The voice was familiar, so achingly familiar.
“Who…?” I whispered, eyes straining to find light.
“I won’t leave… I’m here…”
That voice… I knew it. I felt it. It wrapped around me like a cloak, warm and safe. A voice full of strength and something else–vulnerability.
‘Promise?‘ I thought, too scared to say it out loud.
“Yes,” the voice said softly. “I promise. I won’t go anywhere.. I am here..”
And for the first time in what felt like forever, I didn’t feel alone. I wasn’t flying, but I was floating–carried by something stronger than despair.
His voice kept me tethered, and his presence–though unseen–was unwavering. Day after day, that voice kept the nightmares away.
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པས་ ་་པu་
Chapter 21
And then-
Beep… beep… beep…
A rhythmic sound echoed in my ears, sharp and clear.
My eyelids fluttered open, heavy and sluggish, and the light stung. I blinked a few times, trying to understand where I was.
A blurry shape came into focus–brown eyes filled with tears staring down at me.
“Ellaine!” Audrey’s voice broke as she leaned closer, touching my hand. “You’re awake…”
She quickly stepped back, calling someone over. My heart thudded weakly in my chest.
“What…?” I rasped, my throat dry. My gaze swept the room in confusion.
Who’s voice is that?
And why did I feel like something horrible had happened?
I saw Beta Alfonso, Patricia, Monica, Audrey… and the guy. The one I remembered seeing before the chaos. The one the rogues had been after.
He stood at the foot of my bed, his face a mix of guilt and relief. Behind them, Healer Kurt scribbled notes on a clipboard.
Then the memories hit me like a flood.
The rogue attack.
The sculpture courtyard.
The screams.
He needed help.
The pain…
“Rogues…” I whispered in horror.
Audrey rushed to my side, her hand on mine instantly. “Everything’s okay,” she said gently. “No one’s hurt badly. Just you.”
I let out a shaky breath, the tension leaving my chest all at once. My body still ached, but at least no one else-
“I’m Joshua,” the man said softly, stepping closer. “Ellaine Rollin… thank you. I–I’m sorry.”
I blinked at him.
“I should’ve called the pack,” he continued, shame thick in his voice. “I thought I could handle it alone. I was wrong. And because of that, you got hurt.”
I shook my head slowly, the motion making me dizzy. “You’re okay… that’s what matters,” I murmured.
“Too kind,” Beta Alfonso muttered, shaking his head with a long sigh. “Lucky she’s okay, or your life would be in danger from your own Alpha.”
He smacked Joshua lightly on the back of the head, and the young man nodded solemnly.
I frowned, the words muddling in my tired brain. “Why would the Alpha want to…?” Ugh..
But I couldn’t finish. My energy dipped. I leaned back into the pillow, trying to piece it all together.
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16:54 Sat, 12301 T
20་ གན་
Chapter 21
Why would the Alpha care so much?
Why did Beta Alfonso say it like that–as if my safety meant something personal to Alpha Francesco?
Then I remembered something else.
“is the Alpha okay?” I asked, eyes wide. “The rogues… they didn’t hurt him, did they?”
For a moment, the room went quiet.
Then laughter.
Soft and knowing, like I had said something naive and sweet.
“What?” I asked, slightly embarrassed.
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Audrey smiled and shook her head. “Don’t worry about anyone else, El. You’re the one who was injured worst. He…” She trailed off, exchanging a glance with Patricia and Monica.
Healer Kurt spoke next. “Your wolf could’ve accelerated the healing process,” he said gently. “But since she’s not responding, you’ll recover a bit slower.”
I sighed, eyes falling shut again. Mika… Where are you?
I shifted, turning my head to the side–and froze.
There on the table beside my bed was a large, elegant bucket filled with pale blue roses. My breath hitched.
Blue roses.
Rare. Wildly expensive. Almost impossible to find unless…
“Is that-?”
“From Alpha Francesco” Beta Alfonso said and make me turn my gaze to him “The way he say his gratitude for saving him”
I know the beta sound formal but I knew what they meant.
They were called Anastasia Roses–they only grown in the Lycan Alpha’s private gardens. A gift more meaningful than gold, more intimate than any spoken words.
My heart skipped.
SO is that mean he’d been here.
He was here.
I remembered the dream. That voice in the dark. That promise.
Was that him?
Had he been the one who kept me grounded when I was falling apart?
A tear slipped from my eye, unbidden.
He hadn’t spoken much before. Barely a few words exchanged, a glance here and there. But something about him had always pulled at me. His presence calmed my wolf. And now, knowing he had come…
I turned my gaze back to the blue roses, heart beating a little faster.
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10:34 Sat, 12 Jul
Chapter 21
What did it mean? What did I mean to him?
The silence stretched around me, but this time, it wasn’t lonely.
For the first time since Ruben’s rejection, I didn’t feel like I was drifting in the dark. I was still hurt, still healing… but not alone,
Never truly alone.
And maybe just maybe–this time, someone meant it when they promised they wouldn’t leave.
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