I sigh heavy-heartedly, gazing into green eyes that twinkle with sincere concern that prompts me to open up a little.
“It’s my relationship with the alpha…” I admit tersely. “Being his mate has been stressful, and it’s only ‘cause there’s history between us.”
Rissa takes a deep breath as if digesting this new information, her brows furrowing warily as she nods thoughtfully.
“What do you say we go out for a walk, and you can tell me all about this?”
“Y—you’re sure? Don’t you need to be at the clinic?”
Rissa shakes her head as she gets to her feet, holding my hand to lead me up. “I have the day off. Del—I mean, someone else is on duty at the clinic today.”
Nodding tentatively, I know Rissa is speaking about Delilah. Of course, my personal healer heard about what happened when Alpha Brooks stepped in, and she was livid about it. She’s since stopped being friends with Delilah, and that only proves that I can trust her.
She’s on my side, just as Elias is, which is why he assigned her to check up on me and our baby.
***
“Woah…” Rissa gasps, slowing down as we’re about to get to the market.
As the evening settles over the town, the stallholders at the market are busy closing up for the night, allowing us to return to the town without the risk of being cornered. We’d spent most of the day in the forest, where it’s safer because of the guards posted around and where none of the casual pack members would be loitering.
Rissa stops and turns to me, taking both my hands in hers to show compassion. “So, the alpha rejected you once before.” She winces. “That’s why you’re struggling to trust him.”
Nodding, I shrug diffidently. “Exactly. Even though he’s apologized, and he’s been great, I’m afraid that if I trust him again, I’ll—”
“Only end up getting hurt?” Rissa speculates with a raised brow.
I purse my lips and nod. “Yeah. He doesn’t know it, but he has the power to hurt me all over again.”
“Because you still have feelings for him?”
I stare into Rissa’s eyes, feeling as though she’s seeing through me. It’s true. I do have feelings for the alpha, and they’re stronger than they’ve ever been before, simply because we have an intimate relationship, and I am his mate, bound to him by the ritual we performed. He has the power to hurt me all over again, maybe even more deeply than he did in the past, because my feelings are more intense now.
Nodding tentatively as I keep my lips pursed, I wordlessly admit that I do have feelings for the alpha, realizing that my admission to Rissa is the confirmation to myself that I’ve been denying all this time. How could I be so out of touch with myself, with my heart, that I’d been avoiding what I felt in an attempt to protect myself?
A burst of sensation spreads out from my chest, aligning me to my innate powers as a witch, as if admitting what I feel for Elias was the missing puzzle piece that I needed to unlock those powers. My eyes widen as I stare at Rissa, the glint of amethyst reflecting back to me as my intuition heightens, and I sniff the air.
“Do you smell that?” I ask her, snapping my head in the direction of a strong, distinct smoky aroma that fills the air.
“What is it, Aurora?”
I close my eyes and focus on the smell, then realize that the burning smell indicates a fire. I don’t have to see it, but I can feel it deep down in my bones, my instincts drumming from their depths as my ears ring out the alarm bells.
“There’s a fire!” I exclaim, grabbing Rissa’s wrist and pulling her along with me as I begin to sprint through the market. Just as I suspected, a whiff of dark gray smoke curls toward the clouds up ahead, signaling the outbreak of fire in one of the town’s buildings.
“The clinic!” Rissa yelped helplessly. “There are children in the clinic today!”
I release Rissa’s wrist and continue running forward with all my might, my heart pounding in my chest with terror and fear to get everyone out to safety. Once we’re in the clearing, I can see the clinic building becoming consumed by the enveloping flames, and I rush forward. My magic powers might be futile against the fire, but I rely solely on my compassionate instincts that send me charging into the building as panic and chaos ensue. Everyone inside is rushing about, adult werewolves grabbing children and the elderly and pulling them out to safety.
There’s screaming all around, yelps and wails as everyone works to get them out.
“Help!” I hear the panicked cry in one of the rooms and fold an arm over my nose to protect my airways from the ruthless smoke as I dodge the licking flames. Forging through the ensuing chaos that spreads out all around me, my heart wails with panicked beats knocking against my chest as I find my way to the room and kick down the door just as an angry flame gushes passed my face.
Nimbly dodging the fire, I see a head peeking from behind the desk in the admin room, where files and pages burn to ashes all around.
“Hey! I’m gonna get you out!” I yell out to whoever is behind the desk, the cruel fire blocking my path to get to her. “You’re gonna have to climb the desk!”
The head that lifts shocks me when I find that it’s none other than Delilah caught in the midst of danger. But there’s not a trace of resentment that has me turning my back on her, and my deep empathetic nature has me reaching out a hand that she hesitates to take.
