Chapter 193: In Danger
Aurora POV
"Left?" Lady Hailee gasped, covering her mouth. "What do you mean he left? He has three bullet wounds! He just woke up from the spirit world!"
"Where did he go?" I pressed, stepping closer to the guard. "Who is with him?"
"He left with Alpha Knox and a unit of our elite warriors," the guard explained quickly, his voice tight with professional discipline, though the worry in his eyes gave him away. "They moved out only a few minutes after you went down to the kitchens."
"To where?" I yelled, panic completely taking over. "Why would Knox let him leave in that condition?"
"We just got an urgent intel report," the guard answered, straightening his posture. "A tracking unit spotted Alex’s scent profile moving near the border coordinates. He hasn’t crossed into China yet. He’s trying to slip through the mountains. Alpha Oliver received the report and demanded his armor immediately."
My breath caught in my throat. The room felt like it was spinning. "What?" I breathed, a cold dread washing over me. "He went after Alex? Now? He is not strong enough! He can barely breathe without wincing!"
The guard dipped his head, his expression grim. "We tried to stop him, Luna. The healer begged him to stay, and Knox tried to reason with him. But Alpha Oliver refused to listen. When Alpha Knox ordered him back to bed, Alpha Oliver completely rejected the command. He said he would drag Alex back in chains himself, or die trying."
My knees completely gave out under me. The terrifying fear sapped all the strength left in my body, and I dropped straight down to the hard stone floor.
"Aurora!" Lady Hailee cried out, running to my side, but I couldn’t even look at her.
Heavy, loud footsteps echoed down the hallway, and Sir Callum walked into the medical room. He didn’t look surprised. His face was tense and grim—it seemed he had just found out about Oliver’s reckless choice to leave, too. He stood near the door, his broad chest rising and falling heavily. A scary, angry, and worried aura radiated from his large body.
Hot tears spilled over my eyelashes, burning my cheeks as I began to cry openly. The panic felt like a heavy weight crushing my lungs. He was going to kill himself. After everything we went through to pull his soul back from death, he was walking straight into a trap just for revenge.
Beside me, Lady Hailee suddenly went completely stiff. Her blue eyes grew wide, staring blankly ahead as her breathing became shallow. I knew that look right away—she was using her mind link.
"Oscar..." she whispered out loud, her voice shaking. She focused deeply for a long moment before she looked down at me with pure fear. "Oscar is with him. He was at the border when the news came in, and he joined Oliver’s team. Oh, by the Moon Mother... how could they let him go? Why didn’t anyone stop them?" She rubbed her head, looking just as worried as I was. "They are both running on pure anger."
I couldn’t listen to pack business anymore. I couldn’t think about the warriors or their plans. I squeezed my eyes shut, pressing my shaking hands flat against the cold stone floor, and I did something I hadn’t done in a very long time.
I said a prayer.
Moon Goddess, I screamed in the silence of my own mind, my heart aching with every word. I don’t believe in you. I haven’t believed in you for a long time because you have failed me so many times. You watched me suffer, you took away my peace, and you let my life be torn apart over and over again. But right now, I am begging you. If you have any mercy left for me, please bring Oliver back to me safely. I cannot lose him. Do you hear me? I can’t. He is my life. He is the father of my child, the only warmth I have left in this cruel world. Take my strength, take my life, take whatever you want from me—just keep him breathing. Don’t let Alex take him away from me again.
"Aurora," Lady Hailee’s soft voice broke through my desperate thoughts. She was still holding her hand to her head. "I am talking to Oscar right now. He says they are fine... for now. They have reached the area. They are almost exactly where Alex is hiding."
I snapped my eyes open, looking up at her from the floor. "What if it’s a trap?" I choked out, my voice high and panicked. "Alex is sneaky! He knows Oliver is weak right now! What if he lured him out there on purpose to finish what he started?"
Lady Hailee’s face turned serious and determined. "I won’t just sit here and wait to find out." She stood up, looking strong again. "I am teleporting there. Right now."
"Take me with you!" I scrambled to my feet, grabbing the fabric of her dress, my eyes begging her. "Please, Lady Hailee, you have to take me! I can’t stay here!"
"I can’t, Aurora," she said firmly, gently but surely pulling her dress from my grip. She turned to a nearby maid who had just crept into the room. "Look after her. Do not let her leave this room."
"Take me, Hailee," Sir Callum’s deep, rough voice suddenly boomed from the corner. He stepped forward, his gray eyes locking onto his ex-lover. "I can help."
"No!" Lady Hailee snapped back, glaring at Callum with absolute anger. "Oliver will kill me if I bring his aged father onto a bloody battlefield! I am protecting his family!"
Before either of us could say another word, a bright, glowing light covered her body. In the blink of an eye, the space in front of me was empty. She was gone.
"No! Ah..." A sound of pure frustration and sadness escaped my throat. I sank onto the edge of the empty medical bed, pulling my knees up to my chest. I felt so completely useless. So weak. I was Oliver’s woman, but in this moment, I couldn’t do anything but sit in a quiet room and cry while the man I loved risked his life.
Sir Callum didn’t leave. He walked over to the far corner of the room, leaning his heavy shoulder against the stone wall. His arms were crossed over his chest, his face in the shadows, completely lost in his own quiet worry. The fierce Alpha King looked older, more fragile, haunted by the scary stories of the past battle his ex-lover had just talked about downstairs.
Minutes turned into long, painful hours. For two full hours, the medical room was completely silent, except for the sound of my shaky breathing. Every second felt like a drop of hot wax on my skin. I kept checking for the sound of cars driving in.
Then, out of nowhere, a sharp cracking sound echoed through the room.
A bright light flashed, and Lady Hailee teleported back into the middle of the space.
I jumped off the bed, rushing to her and grabbing her shoulders. "Is he okay? Tell me! Is he alive?!"
Lady Hailee was breathing heavily, but she immediately placed her hands over mine, a relieved smile breaking across her tired face. "It went well, Aurora. It’s over. Alex has been caught. He is completely knocked out—Oliver nearly killed him with his bare hands. He tore through his guards like they were nothing."
"Where is Oliver?" I asked quickly, looking behind her as if he would magically appear. "Why isn’t he with you?"
"He is coming back by car," she explained softly, rubbing my arms to calm my shaking body. "He refused to let me teleport him. You know how stubborn he is. He wants to ride back with his warriors, but he is safe. I promise you, Aurora, they are fine."
I nodded tightly, but the knot in my stomach didn’t fully go away. I couldn’t fully breathe until I saw him with my own eyes.
I waited. Thirty more long minutes passed, my eyes glued to the dark window.
And then, the faint, roaring sound of heavy car engines echoed from the palace yard below.
"That must be them!" I shouted out loud.
"Aurora, wait!" Lady Hailee yelled behind me, her voice filled with panic. "Be careful! You are pregnant!"
I completely ignored her. I didn’t care about the stairs, and I didn’t care about my weak body. I ran out of the medical wing, my bare feet slapping against the cold floor. I flew down the grand, winding staircase, my heart beating fast against my ribs, and threw open the massive front doors of the palace, running out into the cool night air.
A line of black SUVs was pulling to a stop, their headlights cutting through the darkness.
The door to the front car clicked open.
Knox stepped out first, looking tired and covered in dirt, followed by a few top warriors. And then, from the backseat, Oliver came out.
The moment his boots hit the gravel, he stumbled. His large body swayed sideways, his hand immediately flying to his bandage-covered chest as a sharp look of pain crossed his face.
I stopped dead in my tracks, my breath catching in my throat.
Oliver froze, too. He slowly lifted his head, his brilliant sea-blue eyes locking straight onto mine across the yard. He looked pale, completely tired, his body shaking from the heavy work of fighting with three bullet wounds.
But as he stared at me standing there in the cold, a deep, painful look of guilt washed over his rugged face. He knew he had recklessly risked the life I had just fought so hard to save.
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