Page 99 of Fated
Ava clutched at his shirt, sobs muffled against his chest. Kai buried his face in her hair. Tears spilled freely down his cheeks, mingling with hers as he pressed frantic kisses to her crown.
“I should’ve been here,” he whispered again. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have left…”
The words tumbled from his lips, raw and unfiltered, as he rocked her gently. He didn’t know how long they stayed like that—her body shaking against his, his hands stroking her back in soothing circles. The clock on the wall ticked, minutes bleeding into hours as his breathing synced with Ava’s, tears drying on his cheeks while fresh ones replaced them.
Kai was vaguely aware of his father stopping by the room multiple times, his shadow hanging in the doorway before retreating. At one point, he thought he caught the faintest trace of Lena’s scent in the hallway, but he couldn’t be sure. The extended exposure to the antiseptic air had dulled his senses, leaving him foggy and adrift.
When Ava’s sobs finally gave way to quiet snores, Kai gently eased her back onto the bed. He tucked the blanket around her, brushing a strand of hair from her damp cheek before pressing a soft kiss to her forehead.
“Rest,” he whispered. “I’m back. I won’t let anyone else hurt you.”
He struggled to his feet, legs stiff and unsteady, and stepped into the hallway. The quiet of the hospital was jarring after the chaos of his arrival. The sinking sun painted the sky in bleeding oranges and reds as he pushed through the exit. His car wasn’t where he’d left it. He assumed his father had moved it back tothe packhouse—only to remember that the primary packhouse was gone.
Pressure built beneath his sternum as he navigated the scorched pack courtyard, the devastation spread before him like a horrific canvas.
The ground was torn and bloodstained, scarred with boot prints and claw. Burned buildings loomed like blackened skeletons, timber creaking in the evening breeze. With each inhale, ash and the reek of death coated his throat—char, copper, fear—a bitter cocktail that no amount of swallowing could clear.
Kai’s gaze fell on his Range Rover parked outside one of the dormitories. He moved toward it mechanically, retrieving his bag from the back seat. He knew he needed to speak to his father, to get his marching orders for the work ahead, but he also desperately needed a shower. The tang of the hospital’s antiseptic clashed with Ava’s floral scent and the remnants of Lena and their lovemaking. His stomach churned at the competing scents, each one an accusation.
The dormitory lobby was quiet when Kai entered. He grabbed a key from the desk clerk and climbed to the third floor, the creak of his boots on the stairs the only sound in the stillness.
Inside the room, he left a trail of clothes behind him as he made his way to the bathroom. He turned the shower to its hottest setting and stepped into the steaming stall without hesitation.
The water seared his skin crimson, steam filled his lungs, and pain bloomed across his shoulders and down his back. Welcome punishment. Each droplet hissed against his flesh, the sound mingling with the echo of water hitting tile, drowning out everything but his heartbeat hammering in his ears. Memories of the past day assaulted him in disjointed fragments—
Waking up in Lena’s bed after making love to her deep into the night. How seeing her face when he opened his eyes made him desperate to spend the morning buried inside her…
The concern etched on her face as she told him he’d been summoned to her father’s study…
Raelen’s words and sorrowful expression as he delivered the devastating news…
Cian’s hand pressed to his shoulder, his new friend offering him a small comfort…
Lena’s sadness for him, her attempts to soothe his pain. How her tentativeness morphed into fear as he escalated…
Ava’s bruised and broken body…
The shattered packhouse…
The bloodstained courtyard…
The guilt, the rage, the helplessness—all of it slammed into him like breaking tides during a hurricane battering his body as sobs ripped from his chest.
He lost track of time as the water burned his body, scrubbing away his choices like grime coating his skin. When he finally stepped out, his eyes were red and swollen and his chest heaved with the remnants of his grief. The fresh clothes felt stiff against his damp skin, the fabric catching on patches where he’d scrubbed too hard. He stood before the mirror, avoiding his own reflection, and tried to summon the strength to face what came next.
Grieving whispers, soft sobs, and the scrape of chairs against floor tiles greeted Kai as he entered the dining hall. The air hung thick with salt—tears shed and unshed—mingling with theearthy scent of wolves in mourning, their normally bright notes dulled by grief. Each breath tasted of collective sorrow, a bitter reminder that his private pain was just one drop in Bloodstone’s ocean of suffering.
Kai spotted his father seated with Maxim and Magnus at a table near the back. He started toward them but stopped short when his gaze caught on her.
Lena.
She moved through the hall, steaming mugs balanced in steady hands, golden-brown eyes cataloging needs before they were voiced, a focal point amid the room’s subdued turmoil. She approached the table where Darius sat, setting the mugs down with care. Her touch lingered on Magnus’s shoulder, then Maxim’s, offering a gentle squeeze of reassurance.
Darius reached for her hand, capturing it between his own. His typically stern expression softened, though the depth of his grief was imprinted on his face.
“Thank you,” he said, voice so quiet that Kai barely caught the words.
Lena responded with a faint nod, leaning down to press a light kiss to Darius’s temple. The older alpha closed his eyes at the gesture, shoulders sagging as though a burden had been lifted.
