Chapter 28

Flora’s P.O.V

Darkness. It was all around me; all consuming and everlasting.

As a child, I had always been scared of the dark. Maybe it was the absence of the moon that made me feel like the Goddess has withdrawn her blessing from me; or maybe it was the ghostly stories that Riley used to scare me with when I was a child. But darkness was always something that frightened me…suffocated me.

But this darkness didn’t suffocate me. This darkness was…caring; filled with love.

Clay…

He was nearby, I could feel it. There was something about Clay…a kind of warmth to his aura…something that called to me. It was that same gut feeling that led me to him when he was in trouble. And now, in this darkness, it was that same feeling that was leading me to light.

I didn’t know how long I had been out for but it was time to wake up…to see Clay with my own two eyes and make sure he was alright. I didn’t feel any heaviness in my limbs or any uncomfortable feelings when I tried to open my eyes. My lids were heavy and the light in the room made me squirm…but I was finally awake after blinking rapidly for a short while.

But when I was finally able to open my eyes, it wasn’t to Clay’s beautiful face I saw in front of me. Instead, it was Alpha Nicolas and our primary healer, Jessica.

Alpha Nicolas’s salt and pepper hair was cut short to an inch above his scalp and his handsomely aged face now held a couple new scars that I was sure he wasn’t going to heal. It was going to be a reminder of the battle he survived. However, his dark green eyes were hard as I looked into them before immediately lowering my lashes.

Jessica’s features were a lot softer in comparison to Alpha Nicolas with her dark cock-screw curls and dark caramel skin. She looked tired and worn out but she still greeted me with a kind smile.

“How are you feeling, love?” Her voice was soft yet concerned as she came forward to place a hand on my forehead. “You’ve been out for three days. We were starting to worry about you.”

“Three days?” My voice was hoarse and Jessica immediately handed me some water to wet my throat.

Sitting up on the hospital bed with Jessica’s help, I greedily drunk the water and asked for seconds. I was parched.

“How is she now, Jess?” Alpha asked when Jessica was done checking up on me.

“Perfectly fine, Alpha.” Jessica gave me a big smile. “Proper nutritious food, a good night’s sleep and plenty of water is all she needs now. Her vitals are almost back to normal but the large drainage of power might result in fatigue for a couple days.”

“Thank you, Jess. Now, can you give me a moment with Flora here?” He gave Jessica a tight smile. “I think we have certain things to discuss.”

“Sure.” Jessica gave me a smile and a reassuring look before heading for the door. I swallowed nervously as I watched her leave but I already knew I had this coming.

“I’m not going to scold you, Flora.” Alpha Nicolas told me as soon as we were alone in the room, his dark green eyes boring into mine with raw power. “You’re a healer. You should already be feeling the fear and worry from everyone else around you. But have you learned your lesson yet?”

I broke eye contact with Alpha Nicolas right then, because of two reasons. First, because the shove of power was too much to take it and it wasn’t just because he was the Alpha. He was old, and his power had aged with him. And secondly because I didn’t want to make promises I couldn’t keep.

“Flora?” His tone was gentle yet filled with authority. He wanted an answer this time.

“I’m sorry…” I whispered quietly, bowing my head.

Alpha Nicolas gave a long sigh. “I understand how love works, Flora. I was your age once and it difficult controlling your emotions. But you took a huge risk today and you put not just yourself but also your pack in danger.”

“I’m sorry, Alpha Nicolas.” I told him quietly. “Next time I feel any of my loved ones are in danger, I’ll inform someone first.”

“You come straight to me, you understand, kid?” His voice was rough but the hand he placed on my head was gentle.

I was unable to speak because of the power in his voice, so I just nodded my head. But when Alpha Nicolas told me to rest and turned to leave, I immediately called out to him.

“Yes?” he asked, turning to face me once again.

“I…I just wanted to know…how can you tell when someone might have a tendency of turning rogue?”

The question was the hardest to get out, but I had to ask. I needed to know that what I saw was just an illusion…nothing real. Nothing that could change our lives forever.

Compassion and understanding dawned on Alpha Nicolas’s face and I knew that he had misunderstood why I had asked the question. But that was for the best.

“That is something you never have to worry about little one,” he gave me a gentle smile while patting my head in a way of comforting me. “I understand that today’s events have left you scarred, as it has all of us, but our pack is a strong family unit. We will never let anyone fall behind.”

Once we start losing contact with our pack, our feral side takes over, exposing us to the risk of becoming rogues, creatures who have lost all empathy and humanity.

I remembered the words Clay had taught us in class and how similar they were to Alpha’s words. But Alpha Nicolas was older, he must have more information. So I decided to probe further.

“But other than distancing from the pack, is there anything else? Please…I need to know.” I begged him.

“Well…” he looked thoughtful for a second before answering. “Some wolves start to act out and give in to their anger. Some leave the pack and disappear. I’ve also heard the strangest rumours that some wolves can communicate with rogues but I’ve never seen such a thing happen my entire life.”

My heart thrashed against my ribcage.

The image of Clay as he growled at the rogue and how they bowed their heads to him…it kept on flashing before my eyes and I felt my body go numb. How…

No! I must have been mistaken…I was mistaken. Clay would never turn rogue! He couldn’t!

But my expression must have given something away as Alpha Nicolas bent down to my level with a worried look on his face. “What’s wrong? Did something happen?”

I had to answer him least he got suspicious or assumed that something was wrong. So I decided to go for half-truths rather than an entire lie.

“The wolves…they hesitated before attacking me.” I told him with a lump in my throat. “So, I thought…”

Alpha Nicolas looked thoughtful for a short while before shaking his head with a slight smile. “It’s because you’re a healer. Even though they are rogue, they know just how precious healers are. That’s why they hesitated before their animal instinct took over.”

Breathing a sigh of relief, I was about to ask him if he knew where Clay was, when a sudden question from him caught me completely off-guard.

“You risked your live saving Clay…do you even know if you guys are mates?”

My heart began to sink again at the question. How was I supposed to answer that when I didn’t even know the answer to that question?

“I don’t know…” I told him unsurely.

“You slept with him…you should be able to tell the connection.” Alpha told me with a frown.

That had me blushing like a tomato. How did he know I slept with Clay? Was it because I risked my life to save him or was it some sort of freakish Alpha power I had no knowledge of? But the answer was probably simpler that these options. Wolves were physical creatures. After the Heat, almost all relationships involved sex. So it was natural to assume.

However, before I could answer him, Alpha Nicolas started to speak…and the embarrassment was quickly replaced by despair.

“I’m sorry for probing; making you uncomfortable wasn’t my intention. But the mating bond is a very serious matter and in case Clay doesn’t turn out to be your mate…you should prepare for the worst. There’s not much time left,” he looked at me with sad eyes. “Get out while you still can. Heartbreaks can take a long time to heal and it’s the worst pain you can ever feel in your life.”

With that, he turned and walked out of the room, leaving me lost for words and puzzled.

What should I do now? I couldn’t back out because it was already too late. How I can stop when I was already so deeply in love with Clay?