CHAPTER 16: CHAPTER 16: TIME TO ACT AT DESPERATE TIMES

DAMIAN’S POV:

They only made love, but the pain makes me so weak I can barely walk straight. What more if Harleigh finally accepts Alpha Torrin’s claim?

I can’t believe she trusts his promises more than mine. Am I really not enough? If I were the Alpha and Alpha Torrin isn’t, will she love me more?

I slump on the couch and steady the weak thump of my heart, while trying to push away the dark thoughts that are running wild in my head.

Suddenly,...

When my strength returns a little, a loud crash echoes from downstairs.

I race to the living area where broken vases are scattered on the floor, while dad and Alpha Cassandra stand rigid, surrounded by Crimsonbane werewolves by the door.

"I won’t marry an old man like you! Besides, you’re not even an Alpha! My goal is to be a Luna. Anything else is unacceptable!" Cassandra hisses, like a spoiled child denied a gift for the first time.

"But you’re infertile, a crucial reality you tried to hide from us all this time. No Alpha would want to be heirless," dad snaps.

Slap!

Cassandra’s hand lands across dad’s cheek.

"As I’ve said, I didn’t know I’m..." She stops herself to say the word that’s obviously hurting her, then turns to the Crimsonbane wolves. "Let’s go home and tell my father to proceed with an alliance with the Dunebourne Pack."

She looks back at dad with a wicked smirk, before storming out of our house.

Dad’s fists clench. "If we don’t act fast, our pack will end up like the Shadowfang Pack. Whether you like it or not, we must gather our loyal wolves and topple Torrin’s incompetent leadership now. If he fights back, then we will have to kill him."

Even if I hate Alpha Torrin for what I found out earlier, I don’t want him dead. Still, he can’t lead the pack any longer, coz the longer he remains Alpha, the closer we come to ruin.

"Give me until tomorrow morning to do something about this. If I fail, then you do you. I won’t interfere," I say.

Intrigued, he squints his eyes at me, but I don’t bother to explain myself.

I grab my coat, climb into my car, and drive away.

My destination lies about three hundred miles from our territory. It’s a place only the desperate dare to go: the Forbidden Woods, where the multi-eyed seer lives.

The trip takes hours, and it is already twilight when I arrive.

Her home stands out amid thick, thorny trees: an ethereal, shimmering gilded banyan tree.

I call out, my voice echoing through the woods. "Excuse me! Is anyone home?!"

After a while, a wrinkled figure with long fingers and dirty nails limps from the gilded tree, leaning on a wooden staff.

When she pulls down the hood of her black, ragged robe, her entire head brims with blinking, different-colored eyes.

Chills run up my spine, but I force myself to appear unruffled.

Then,...

In an eerie, hoarse-like voice she says, "Beta Damian Chandler of the Frostveil Pack, whose heart is bleeding and whose mind is turning vile. It’s a pleasure to meet you. Come in."

The ethereal vibe of the multi-eyedseer’s home continues inside.

"Speak," she rasps. "Tell me what it is you desire against your Alpha."

I swallow hard, my throat dries out as I force my answer out of my mouth. "If Alpha Torrin’s health worsens, and my father takes over our pack’s leadership, will it stop the war between our pack and the others?"

Her cracked lips curl into a crooked smirk, revealing jagged, yellowed teeth. She then begins mixing oils and herbs in a flask, muttering strange incantations under her breath.

The scent of burning sage and bloodroot fills the air.

After a few moments, she pours the thick, shimmering liquid into a small bottle and hands it to me.

"One drop in his drink is all you need, and his memories will be wiped out," she says.

My hand trembles as I clutch the bottle. "Will my plan help our pack? Because if not, I won’t do it."

"It will help postpone the agony," she replies with a low laugh. "But destiny always finds a way. No one can escape it."

"You mean a war will still happen?" I ask.

"For as long as the wolf with the Shadowfang bloodline lives, the prophecy remains: Fight the Shadowfang wolf, and the world will perish. Bow to it, and live in eternal fear," she murmurs.

Harleigh’s face flashes in my mind.

I could never kill her, let alone hurt her.

"Can I save her?" I ask.

"Harleigh Hale?" She smirks again. "You won’t."

I open my mouth to ask more questions, but when she snaps her long, bony fingers, I’m suddenly standing alone in the middle of the woods, her gilded banyan tree is gone.

As I drive home, the multi-eyed seer’s words continue to haunt me. You won’t. She didn’t say you can’t. That means it’s my choice and will.

Harleigh is the one I want to protect most. I’m even willing to leave my pack for her, so why wouldn’t I save her?

I nearly run over a deer on the road, jolting back to reality. My car screeches to a stop inches from the metal guardrail.

I take a deep breath for a moment to clear my messy thoughts.

No matter what happens, I won’t abandon Harleigh, even if she still chooses Alpha Torrin over me after what I’m about to do.

It’s already midnight when I arrive home.

In the Alpha’s mansion cellar, I pour two glasses of red wine and slip a single drop of the elixir into one. Then I bring both to Alpha Torrin’s study where he spends most of his time.

He looks up, surprised.

"Sorry about earlier," I say, handing him the glass.

He nods, forcing a smile. "About Harleigh... I won’t give her up. And since she’s chosen me, it’s time I forbid you from pursuing her anymore. If you refuse, I’ll take all necessary actions, even if it means I jail or exile you. But if you obey, I’ll ensure you receive all the medical treatments you need to ease the pain of breaking your mate-bond with her."

Anger wriggles through my chest, burning away my guilt about the elixir.

I force a smile, clinking my glass against his.

We then drink, emptying our glasses at the same time.

Instantly,...

His glass slips from his grasp and shatters on the carpet. He clutches his head, groaning in pain.

"Damian! My medicine!"

I’m not sure if I should give him his medicine or not. But to make sure that the elixir will work, I don’t dare budge.

I try not to panic as his body begins to tremble, eyes rolling back until he collapses.

When I call the doctor, Alpha Torrin is rushed to the hospital, Harleigh crying at his side, begging him to stay alive.

And yet, my wolf howls, not in anger or guilt, but in relief.

If my wolf agrees and doesn’t scold me, then I must be doing the right thing.

I’m sorry Alpha Torrin, I won’t let you ruin our pack nor steal Harleigh from me.

A few days pass, and Alpha Torrin still hasn’t woken up. Though Dr. Lei confirms his vitals are completely stable, the entire pack remains anxious, especially Harleigh, who has never once left his hospital room. The only times she takes her eyes off him are when she falls asleep or takes a quick bath in the ensuite bathroom.

Whenever I offer to look after Alpha Torrin so she can rest properly, she refuses, as if he might die the moment she leaves.

Whenever I bring her food, she barely touches it.

Whenever I try starting conversations to distract her, she hardly listens, but just nods absently so I won’t feel foolish.

My wolf growls at me, urging me to express my love and dedication to her. But I already have, several times. Besides, now isn’t the right time or place.

So instead, I pull her gently into my arms and let her cry against my shoulder until we both drift to sleep on the sofa.

Some time later,...

We’re startled awake by the frantic movements of Dr. Lei and two nurses.

Alpha Torrin has already awakened, making my chest tighten with unease.

If the elixir didn’t work, and he remembers that I didn’t give him his medicine, he’ll probably accuse me of poisoning him. But if it worked, everything should fall neatly into place.

After checking his vitals and pulses, Dr. Lei and the nurses leave calmly.

Harleigh immediately rushes to hug Alpha Torrin, tears of relief streaming down her face.

Meanwhile, Alpha Torrin blinks a few times, his eyes dazed and unfocused, shifting slowly between her and me.

Then,...

He asks, "Who are you two? And... where am I?"

I hide a smile, carefully masking it with a look of concern to match Harleigh’s.

Normally, his memory loss is triggered when he overuses his power in battle. If this is the elixir’s doing, then... he’ll never remember us ever again, and he’ll be easier to control.