Chapter 268: Chapter 268 She Never Came
Phoebe’s POV
I rattled off the items I needed, keeping my voice steady even though my nerves were screaming. Inside, I was practically begging the universe not to let me screw this up.
Every lesson Marcela had drilled into me felt fragile in my memory. What if I’d gotten something wrong? What if I’d mixed up the dosages?
"That covers everything," I said once I’d finished explaining the plant list to Jude and Patricia. I also asked them to get a fire going so I could brew the mixture.
"We should be able to track down the other five, but what’s this Locus thing?" Jude frowned, clearly stumped by that particular plant.
Right. Different kingdom, different names for everything. I switched tactics and went with a description instead.
"Small flower, green petals. Bitter taste at first, then your tongue goes numb."
Jude and Patricia exchanged glances, racking their brains for anything that matched.
"We’ll figure it out."
"Thanks. I’ll be here."
They scattered quickly after that. Jude headed into the forest with the others to hunt down the plants, while Patricia stayed behind to rope Rylie into helping.
The Valerium kingdom felt like stepping back in time. Everything was done by hand here—no cars, no electricity, none of the modern conveniences we took for granted back in Mya City. Especially not in a tiny harbor pack like Ashford.
Old-school methods were the only option.
The moment Patricia and Jude left the hut, Samuel moved closer. His expression was loaded with questions. "Why are you helping them?"
"Why wouldn’t I help when I can?" I shot back, watching him fidget under my gaze.
"I mean... you’re a queen. This isn’t your problem. You could just call for a healer to check the kid." He settled beside me, his eyes fixed on the sick child. "Nobody’s ever cared about them before. Nobody would blame you for walking away."
Something in his tone made me pause. There was a rawness there—sadness and rage twisted together in a way I’d never seen from him before.
"What’s really going on here, Samuel?"
He seemed to snap back to himself, stumbling over his words. "Sorry, my queen. I didn’t mean to question you."
"You didn’t offend me. But I can tell something’s eating at you. Talk to me."
I needed to understand Samuel better. After losing Justin and Orion, the guilt was crushing me. I hadn’t really known the people who’d died for me.
I should’ve done better.
"It’s nothing, my queen. I’m sorry."
I shook my head. "There’s definitely something. I can see the pain in your eyes, Samuel."
He looked away, shoulders hunched. This wasn’t his usual behavior at all. Something was tearing him apart, and I wanted to know what.
"My queen, did you know I’m originally from the Valerium kingdom?" His gaze drifted to the little girl, who was still whimpering in her sleep.
"You’re from here?" The revelation hit me like a slap. I blinked at him, mind reeling. Did Perry know about this?
"Yeah. Born and raised in the Valerium Kingdom. My mother was an omega from the Astrid pack—couple days’ journey from here."
My chest tightened. Whatever pack she’d come from, the way this kingdom treated women was worse than anything I could wrap my head around.
"What happened?" I kept my voice gentle, not wanting to spook him into shutting down again.
He was lost in thought, clearly wrestling with memories he’d rather keep buried.
"My mother ran with me to the Mya Kingdom when I was six. I was being trained as a warrior for my pack. In this kingdom, they start the boys early—four, maybe five years old."
I’d heard the stories. Back in Mya, warrior training didn’t begin until twelve or thirteen. Starting at four or five was barbaric. Those should’ve been childhood years—playing, learning, growing. Not learning how to kill.
"But I was weak. Premature birth left me smaller and frailer than the other boys. They made my life hell."
He didn’t elaborate on what that bullying looked like, but I could imagine. This wasn’t playground name-calling or shoving matches. In a savage kingdom like Valerium, where kindness was seen as weakness, what Samuel had endured as a child must’ve been horrific.
"My mother couldn’t watch them destroy me, so she risked everything to get us out of this nightmare kingdom. I made it out, but she didn’t."
Pain sliced through my chest. I had no idea Samuel carried this kind of history. "What happened to her?"
His jaw clenched, and he shook his head. "They hunted us down. To give me a chance to escape, she made herself bait while I got on the ship. She promised she’d find me there, but..." His voice cracked. "She never came."
