Chapter 61
Alaric helped me wash my hands in silence. The water ran red at first, then pink, then finally clear. He dried them carefully, his movements slow and methodical like he wasn’t sure if I would break or bolt.
He didn’t say anything as he guided me to the carriage. The guards opened the door. He helped me in and followed, the cabin dimly lit by the lantern outside.
Only when the door shut and the wheels began to move did he speak.
“She’s been having trouble for months,” he said quietly. “Financial issues. Her mate was asking for a separation. There were whispers… that she was involved with the rebel sympathizers.”
I stared blankly ahead, the words slow to register. My hands sat limply in my lap. I hadn’t realized how cold they were until his found/ mine again.
He held them gently. His thumb began to move in slow, soothing circles.
Still, I said nothing.
He glanced at me. “Liana?”
“I’m sorry,” I said, barely a whisper. “I just…”
My throat tightened..
I sucked in a breath, trying to steady myself. “My best friend… died. In front of me. She was murdered.”
The silence that followed was heavy.
I kept staring at the floor, my voice shaking. “Watching Brielle… it triggered everything. Olivia’s death. The blood. The shock. That helpless feeling.”
His grip tightened slightly, grounding me.
“I don’t know why Brielle did it,” I added, licking my dry lips. “But I don’t think it was because of her mate or money.”
Alaric frowned. “Then what?”
“She said something. Before she did it.” I met his gaze slowly. “Some strange words. Like a spell.”
His body stilled. “What kind of words?”
I shook my head. “I can’t say it well. I tried to repeat it to myself, but it slips. Like something ancient.”
He leaned forward slightly. “Can you try?”
I hesitated, then mumbled the closest approximation I could remember. The syllables didn’t sound right, didn’t feel right in my mouth.
Alaric stiffened.
His eyes narrowed. “That’s not just a language.”
He paused.
“That’s the Old Tongue,”
I frowned. “What’s the Old Tongue?”
Alaric’s jaw tensed, his eyes fixed on the carriage wall like he could see through it. “It’s a language spoken long before the packs were formed. Before Lycans ruled. Before witches were hunted.”
I blinked. “Witches?”
“It was their sacred language, he muttered. “Spells, curses, blood oaths–everything was cast in the Old Tongue. Only a few fragments of it remain. Most of it died with the witches.”
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5:05 PM !
Chapter 61
The air in the carriage felt heavier.
He looked at me now. “It’s the same language used to curse me.”
My heart skipped. “What?”
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He nodded once, jaw clenched tight. “The High Priestess, before she died–she whispered it. I didn’t understand the words then. But I never forgot the sound. And what Brielle said before she…” he trailed off. “It was the same saying. Same structure.”
I shivered. “So… someone taught her?”
“Or something,” he muttered. “Either for me or…to curse you. Did any mark appear on you?”
I shook my head. “I feel normal. I didn’t see or feel any mark suddenly appear.”
The castle gates opened before us, the carriage jerking as we rolled in. As soon as it stopped, Alaric was out.
I rushed after him.
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My heels slipped on the stone path and my gown caught on something, but I didn’t stop. My blood was pumping too fast. My thoughts a mess.
“Alaric,” I called, breathless.
He didn’t turn. Just kept walking.
I grabbed my skirts, lifting them as I chased him, my heart hammering.
He finally stopped under the archway, just before the steps leading deeper into the castle.
He turned, his face unreadable. “You’re still in that thing?”
“What?”
He didn’t answer. His hands reached for me.
My breath caught.
Then, without a word, he ripped my dress at the sides. Not violently, not cruelly–just with enough pressure to split the tight seam that clung to my thighs.
I stared. “What are you-
“For mobility,” he said, matter–of–fact. “You can’t run in this.”
My cheeks flamed.
He dropped to one knee and yanked off my heels, placing them beside the stone path like it was the most normal thing in the world.
Then he stood again and held out his hand.
I stared at it, dumbfounded.
“You’re going to drag me into danger barefoot?” I muttered.
His lips twitched. “Only if you don’t keep up.”
I rolled my eyes but placed my hand in his.
His fingers wrapped around mine. His hands were cool and firm.
1 siniled and followed him.
This cold, impossible man who showed emotions in all the wrong ways but still made my heart race like no one else ever had.
He didn’t speak as we passed through the corridor. The soft tap of our steps echoed against stone walls lit by flickering torches My gown, now ripped at the side, barely grazed the ground. My feet were bare, but I didn’t feel the cold. Not with Alaric’s hand gripping mine like he was afraid to let go.
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Chapter 61
We entered the chamber.
The glass case stood exactly where it had been, petals glowing faintly, as if the curse breathed.
I hesitated, my fingers twitching. “I noticed something different.”
Alaric’s gaze followed mine. “You noticed, what?” he said quietly.
“That you’re… not shifted?”
He gave a low chuckle. “Haven’t you realized? Every day here… is a full moon.”
I blinked. That couldn’t be right.
I looked up, through the high arched window. And today there was no full moon.
There was a moon yesterday. And the night before.
“When there is no moon. I am free.”
I turned to him slowly. “Why?”
He stepped closer to the glass, folding his arms. “Because tonight… is the only night I’m free.”
I didn’t say anything. I just listened.
“I never shift on this night,” he continued, voice low. “It’s the only night of every cursed cycle when I’m in control. When I don’t feel the beast clawing at my insides.”
“And you never use it now at your own free will?” I asked.
He shook his head. “No. It’s the only day I can breathe so I make sure not to call in it. I don’t trust myself. I’m tired of losing control… of not knowing who I’ll hurt.”
The silence that followed was heavy.
I watched his face, the shadows under his eyes, the slight twitch of his jaw.
“You said the witch cursed you,” I whispered.
“She did,” he replied. “Her final breath… cursed me to relive my bloodline’s sins.”
I stepped closer. “But why make the cure so hard? Why make it–true love?”
He didn’t answer right away.
When he finally did, his voice was quiet. “Because I was worse than her curse.”
My heart twisted.
He wasn’t trying to be poetic.
He meant it
“I was a beast,” he continued, eyes on the petals. “Like my father. Raised in blood. Raised with power. I burnt villages because it was expected. I killed witches because I believed they were the enemy. And when I slaughtered the one who begged for peace… she gave me
He motioned for the petals.
“And said I would either die as a monster or learn how to love like a man.”
I stepped mer, quietly. “You think you don’t deserve peace?
His jew Uglarned. “I dunk men like me don’t get to ask for it?
Something turned in my durout.
5:06 PM ·
Chapter 61
I didn’t know what to say.
He turned slightly, his gaze locking with mine. “You should rest. You leave for the rebel lands tomorrow. It’s going to be a long trip.”
I opened my mouth.
Then closed it.
I wanted to argue. To ask him why he kept pushing me away, why he always shut the door just when I thought it was open.
But I didn’t.
I bit my bottom lip and nodded instead.
“Okay.”
He gave a tight nod, already turning toward the far door.
But I couldn’t help the words th
at slipped out next. “Alaric?”
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He paused.
I swallowed. “You’re not a beast. Not to me.”
He didn’t turn around.
Didn’t speak.
But I watched his fingers twitch slightly–like he was fighting himself.
AD
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