Chapter 191: Reunion
Aurora’s POV
I forced my heavy eyelids open.
The medical room was exactly the same as we had left it. The small lamp on the corner table was still casting a soft, yellow glow across the stone walls. The old healer was still standing near the door, his eyes wide with worry.
Right beside me, Lady Hailee let out a long, shaky breath and took her hands away from my head. She staggered backward a little, her face looking incredibly pale and covered in sweat. She had used a massive amount of her own energy to pull my soul back from the spirit world.
"Aurora..." Lady Hailee whispered, her tired blue eyes looking down at me desperately. "Did... did you find him?"
Before I could even answer, a loud, heavy gasp echoed through the quiet room.
My head snapped toward the bed.
Oliver’s big body suddenly jerked upward against the mattress. His chest arched, and he sucked in a massive breath of air, his eyes flying wide open. The brilliant, glowing sea-blue color of his eyes was back, shining brightly even in the dim light of the room.
"Oliver!" I cried, my voice breaking completely.
The old healer let out a loud shout of pure shock, dropping his mixing bowl onto the floor with a sharp clatter. "A miracle... by the Moon Mother, it is a total miracle!"
Oliver’s heavy chest was heaving up and down rapidly. He looked around the room, looking confused and disoriented for a split second, before his eyes locked straight onto me. The coldness, the fury, and the gray fog from the nightmare were completely gone.
"Aurora..." his voice was incredibly rough and dry, barely a scratchy whisper, but it was the most beautiful sound I had ever heard in my entire life.
He didn’t care about the pain in his chest or the three bandage-covered bullet wounds. He immediately reached out his large, shaky arm toward me, his fingers spreading open.
I moved as fast as my weak body could carry me, climbing right onto the side of his bed. I threw my arms around his neck, burying my face into his warm shoulder as fresh, hot tears burst from my eyes.
Oliver’s large hand instantly wrapped around my waist, pulling me so close against his side that there was no space left between us. His other hand went straight to my stomach, his palm pressing flat against my belly, exactly the same way he did in the dream. He squeezed me tight, his body shaking slightly as he held onto his family.
"I’ve got you," he muttered roughly against my hair, his scent of forest and rain washing over me, making me feel completely safe for the first time in months. "I’ve got you, Aurora. I’m here."
Lady Hailee let out a loud sob of pure relief behind us, covering her mouth with both hands as she watched her son breathe again.
"I am so sorry, Oliver," I kept whispering over and over into his neck, my voice thick and breaking with every word. I squeezed him tighter, the guilt still burning fresh in my chest. "I’m so sorry... I’m so sorry..."
"Calm down, Aurora," he murmured roughly against my ear, his large hand rubbing slow, soothing circles on my back. His heart beat steadily against my ribs, proving he was truly back. "Shh, stop. Now isn’t the time for apologies."
Before I could say anything else, the heavy double doors of the medical room burst open.
Sir Callum stepped across the threshold, his face pale and tight with anxiety. He stopped dead in his tracks the moment he saw his son sitting up. He saw me wrapped tightly in Oliver’s arms, but for the first time since I had met him, the fierce, angry Alpha King didn’t seem to care about me at all.
Instead, a look of pure, raw relief washed over Sir Callum’s hardened face. His knees buckled, and he fell straight onto the hard floor, placing his forehead flat against the stone. He stayed there for a long moment, completely silent, as if he were giving a silent prayer of ultimate thanks to the Moon Goddess for saving his boy.
When he finally stood up, he wiped a hand across his face and walked straight toward the bed, completely ignoring my presence. He looked only at his son.
"Son," Sir Callum breathed, his voice cracking with an emotion I didn’t know the cold man possessed. "Are you okay?"
Oliver nodded his head slowly, a faint, tired expression crossing his features.
Sir Callum stepped closer, leaning down to press a firm, lingering kiss against Oliver’s forehead. "You almost killed me, boy," he whispered, his broad shoulders shaking slightly. "You almost left me."
Oliver mouthed a quiet, scratchy ’I’m sorry’ back to his father, his throat still too raw to speak out loud for long.
Sir Callum straightened up, and his gray eyes shifted over the bed to where Lady Hailee was standing. Instantly, the air in the room grew heavy and thick with a bitter, freezing tension. The two of them stared at each other for a long, silent moment, decades of unspoken pain passing between them.
But then, Oliver turned his head slightly toward his mother. "Thank you, Mother," he whispered.
The moment the words left his mouth, Lady Hailee gasped. She broke into fresh tears, covering her face as a loud sob escaped her lips. She kept nodding her head rapidly, unable to speak. My heart squeezed for her. I knew exactly what that moment meant to her—it was Oliver finally, truly acknowledging her as his mother again after all these years of distance.
The heavy atmosphere lifted slightly as Knox walked into the room. A warm, relieved smile spread across his face when he saw his best friend breathing and awake.
Oliver shifted on the mattress, slowly trying to sit up further. He winced, grinning through the sudden flash of sharp pain in his chest, but he refused to lie back down. He turned his attention back to me, using his large hands to gently cradle my face. He leaned in and kissed my forehead softly.
"Stop crying now," he commanded gently, his blue eyes searching mine. I swallowed the lump in my throat and nodded tightly, wiping my damp cheeks.
Once he knew I was okay, Oliver’s face hardened into the stern expression of a leader. He turned his gaze toward his brother. "Knox... anything about Alex?"
Knox stepped forward, his smile fading into a serious, professional look. "We just got information. He is hiding out in China. We have officially declared him wanted across all territories. A global alpha order has been sent out—anyone who harbors him, hides him, or helps him in any way will be considered a direct enemy to the entire werewolf race."
Oliver nodded his head once, a cold, dangerous glint returning to his eyes. Alex would pay for what he did to our family.
Seeing that the pack business was being handled, Lady Hailee stepped closer to the edge of the bed, her eyes full of maternal worry. "Oliver, are you hungry? Would you eat something?"
"Yes," Oliver replied, a small, genuine smile touching his lips for his mother.
"Good. I will go prepare something for you in the kitchen," Lady Hailee said quickly, looking eager to finally do something for her son.
But before she could even turn around, Sir Callum’s cold voice cut through the warmth of the room. "This isn’t your home, Hailee. Stop acting like it is. We have plenty of maids in this palace; they will cook for the Alpha King."
I frowned deeply, looking between the two older wolves. My mind raced with questions, wondering what had truly gone wrong between them. I knew they were separated, and I knew there was bad blood, but was that really all of it? The hatred in Sir Callum’s voice felt so much deeper than a simple separation.
Before a fight could break out, Oliver spoke up, his voice firm and leaving no room for argument. "Father, let her do it. It has been ages since I last tasted her meals."
Lady Hailee’s breath hitched, and she smiled through a fresh wave of tears, her heart clearly bursting with happiness at Oliver’s defense.
"I am coming with you, Lady Hailee," I spoke up gently, sliding off the edge of Oliver’s bed. I wanted to give the men some time to talk about the pack, and honestly, I wanted to get away from Sir Callum’s suffocating glare.
Oliver gave my hand a reassuring squeeze before letting me go, and I followed Lady Hailee out of the heavy medical doors.
A quiet maid led us down the grand hallways and into the enormous, professional palace kitchen. Once the maid left us alone, Lady Hailee immediately moved around the counters. She seemed incredibly eager and excited, washing her hands and gathering ingredients with a frantic energy, as if cooking this single meal for Oliver was the most important task of her entire life.
I stood by the large island in the center of the room, watching her move. My mind was completely clouded with curiosity and confusion. I couldn’t shake the heavy tension I had just witnessed upstairs.
Lady Hailee paused, noticing my silence. She turned around to face me, holding a bunch of fresh vegetables in her hands. She looked at my face, noticing the deep look of wonder in my eyes.
"What is it, child?" she asked softly.
I swallowed hard, stepping a little closer to her. "Lady Hailee... what really happened between you, Oliver, and Sir Callum?"
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