Chapter 15
Michael's pov
I knew it was a dream before I even realized where I was, before I even looked up to the sky. My nightmares always started like this... too quiet, too still. The kind of silence that made it seem the whole forest was holding its breath, afraid something might happen.
And then I saw her.
Selene.
She stood alone in the clearing, her hair messed up from running, her dress shining as the moon shone on it. She looked just like she did the day she vanished... both delicate and unbreakable, her eyes shining firmly as she stared at me.
But this time, she wasn't alone.
One hand rested over her swollen belly, that curve impossible to mistake.
My child.
She moved toward me, slowly, like she wasn't sure if I would let her get close.
"Michael…" Her voice cracked as she spoke.
"I found you," she continued.
Something inside me twisted so hard I nearly dropped.
But what came out of my mouth wasn't longing.
The words ripped out, sharp and ugly.
"Don't."
She stopped dead.
Her eyes were full of confusion, fear, and a little bit of hope that looked like she was choking.
"Don't come near me," I said again, my voice colder than I had intended.
"You shouldn't have found me," I spoke still.
She bit her lip, trembling. "But… we're mates."
"Not anymore."
The lie tasted too much like the truth.
I stepped closer. I felt her wolf stir, she felt it too, the bond, the pull neither of us could ignore. But I forced myself to go stone-cold. Dreams don't have mercy.
"I'll never claim you," I told her.
She jerked like I'd slapped her.
"Michael..."
I didn't let her finish.
I pushed her.
She stumbled, reaching for me, eyes huge and hurt. But I didn't stop. I kept pushing until she bumped into something behind her.
A well.
An open, black mouth in the earth.
She slipped.
Her screams echoed through the night as she fell, arms wrapped tight around her belly... our child, while she feels deeper into the shadows.
"No!" I shouted, but it was too late.
I lunged, but I was already falling apart, crashing to my knees at the edge of the well, staring down into the shadows that took her. I could still hear her screams long after she was gone.
I tried to go after her, I tried to crawl in.
But something invisible yanked me back.
Her voice drifted up from the black...
"Why didn't you want us?"
And then...
Nothing.
I snapped awake, breathing heavily, my skin cold and covered in sweat.
My heart raced in desperation. The room felt small and the Alpha chamber looked like a cell. I stared at the window and it was still dark outside as the cock crowed, meaning it was almost daybreak.
The dream, no, the nightmare replayed itself in my head, so visible.
"Selene…" I whispered, my voice low.
I dragged a shaky hand over my face. "Goddess, what's wrong with me?"
I didn't think. Didn't even really breathe. I just moved.
I extended my hand to the closet and drew the first cloth I touched, draping it over my body without any care, fumbled with my shirt buttons, and burst out the door. My steps echoed through the corridors, half-running, half-stumbling toward the healer's rooms.
A sentry tried to bow. I barreled past him.
I shoved open the healer's door.
She looked up from her herbs, startled. "Alpha...?"
"I had the dream again," I said, rough, clipped. "Worse this time. I..." My voice broke. "I pushed her. Into a well."
The healer, the old woman with eyes like stone in moonlight, set her tools down gently.
"You dreamed of your mate again."
"Yes," I snapped, then guilt hit me. Softer, "Yes."
She watched me. "And every time, it grows… worse?"
I swallowed. "Yes."
She nodded, slowly.
"Then it's confirmed," she said.
I had a sick feeling in my stomach.
"Confirmed what?" I asked.
"That your nightmares are tied to her life-force."
I froze. The whole room spun.
"What?"
"Selene is the only one who can stop them," the healer whispered.
My heart hammered in my chest. "How?"
"I… don't know, Alpha," she said, pressing her lips together.
A chill swept through the room. The air felt colder, even though none of the windows were open.
"You said she's the key," I asked, staring intently.
"But you don't know how?" I noted.
"I can feel the bond stirring again," she murmured. "Whatever's between you two, it isn't over. Not until it is. And until then, you'll suffer whatever your mind thinks you deserve."
That hit hard. My breath caught in my throat.
"Finished," I repeated. "What does that even mean?"
She shook her head, helpless. "Give me time to study it. I'll come back to you."
Time.
I didn't have enough of that. Not anymore.
Still, I just nodded, turning away before she could see what my eyes held. I stopped in the doorway, gripping the frame a little too tightly.
"She's getting stronger," the healer said, softer now. "That's good."
Good.
Sure.
Except nothing about this felt good.
The sun came up, and I went back to the administrative wing to get ready for the morning briefing, but my mind could not be at peace.
All I could see was her falling into that well, and she screaming my name.
When a guard finally knocked, I was almost grateful for the interruption.
"Come in," I called.
A young warrior stepped in and bowed. "Alpha, I've got news from the treatment room."
My stomach twisted. "Is she...?"
"She's recovered, sir. Completely. The healer says she can be discharged."
Relief slammed into me. Panic wasn't far behind. Something in between kept my heart in its fist.
"And her son?" I managed.
"Healthy, Alpha. He hasn't left her side since she woke."
Of course, he hadn't.
A strange warmth filled my chest. My son. Mine. The piece of Selene I was never supposed to have, but fate shoved him into my life anyway.
I straightened, trying to look like I had everything under control.
"She's not going back to the forest," I said, my voice flat.
"Prepare a room for her in the palace," I ordered.
The guard hesitated.
"A room, Alpha? In the main residence?" he questioned doubtfully.
"Did I stutter?"
"No, Alpha. Right away."
He bowed again and hurried out.
I let out a slow breath.
It was the right call. The practical one. The only decent thing left to do.
She had no one else. No pack. No friends. And those forests would tear her apart now, with rogues prowling around outside the borders.
But honestly? That wasn't really it.
The truth was simpler. More dangerous.
I needed her close.
Not because I loved her.
Not because I missed her.
Not for all those empty spaces she left inside me.
It was because every night I dreamed of her dying, and the healer kept saying she was the only one who could stop it.
That's all this was.
Duty.
Necessity.
Survival.
At least, that's what I told myself.
But even with my eyes closed, I still saw her falling.
Still heard her whisper...
Why didn't you want us?
And the answer burned at the back of my throat...
I always wanted you.
Too much.