Chapter SeventyFour 

Was last night real?I asked myself, staring up at the ceiling in bed

So many things had happened, so many truths had finally come out

...And I felt... lighter

Id woken up after deep sleep, unsure how long had passed, but my body had been grateful for the uninterrupted rest

Though a part of me was angry at myself for taking the risk of their reaction, I would be lying if I said I wasnt happy with the outcome. Or I at least meant that in Alerics case. Caiwell, I had to believe that what I did was for the best

The fact that I wasn‘t locked away in a hospital right now pending a psych evaluation meant that Aleric had actually believed me. It was something Id been worried about the entire time Id been back. I knew how insane it sounded when being told the first time. Some days even I still couldn‘t believe it

I slowly got out of bed, my body still aching in several places, and got changed into some clothes. There would be things Id need to start working on and I needed food and water before I could begin anything

But as I walked out into the living room, I was surprised to see Aleric on the couch reading documents. H e looked comfortable as if hed been there for some time. It was strange since I thought he would have been out for the day

...Youre finally awake,he greeted without looking up. Was starting to wonder if you fell into a coma.” 

I frowned, still groggy from sleep. How long was I out for?” 

My voice felt raw as I spoke, causing me to cough from the dryness in my throat. The amount of crying and yelling had probably taken its toll there

A bit over a day,he replied, leaning over to hand me one of the two coffees sitting beside him

I took it from him and was instantly grateful for the small relief it provided after having a sip. Water probably would have been better but I wasnt about to turn down the caffeine. It was nice of him to have gotten me one

How did you know I was going to be awake now? The coffee is still warm.” 

He laughed a little. I didnt. They were both mine.” 

I stared at the beverage in my hand and suddenly felt a little conflicted given the recent revelations. Truthfully, it felt a little weird between us. He had confessed to me and Id turned him down, called him a murderer, and now I was sharing his coffee. And yet somehow he was acting as if nothing had happened, his expression not revealing that he felt phased in any way

Aleric-” 

Relax,he cut me off. I hadnt drunk from it yet.” 

Instantly, I felt a little stupid for even worrying about something as minor as that and quickly pushed it aside. It shouldnt have been a big deal anyway. Though I wished I knew what he was thinking. One of the most frustrating things about Aleric was that he was so unreadable

Have you been here long?I asked, trying to focus on anything else. “Im a little surprised to see youre still here.” 

He snorted and finally looked up at me, amusement in his eyes. Still? No, I left for a whole day, came 

Chapter SeventyFour 

back and you were still passed out. Im just taking a shift for guard duty since I was going to be working in my room down the hall anyway.” 

My cheeks immediately burned a little from embarrassment, having made an assumption once more.. Really, I just felt a little bad because of the circumstances. I didnt enjoy the feeling of having to be constantly babysat, as if I were a burden on everyone

I cleared my throat and tried to brush it off once more, deciding to take a look at what he was so focused on instead. I quickly walked behind him and leaned over, scanning the pages over his shoulder

It looked like a status report on a new Alpha whod recently succeeded his father; Harvey Gallagher. Though no one really knew anything about him here yet, I could recall from the past that the boy was around our age and far too naive for the position he held. Mostly, I just remembered how easily he surrendered to an alliance under us when propositioned

he was never really cut out to run the pack on his own at such a young age. If you were to extend a hand out and send him someone experienced to help him through these first few years, then he

shoulder at me and was momentarily confused. “How–?

needing all the excuses for how I knew what I did. Strangely as though I‘d removed

major and all of them could be easily resolved. Though, I could probably write up a few pointers to nudge him in the right direction and give insight into how certain paths would

you going to finally tell me

just as I‘d taken another sip, causing me to almost choke on

my airway for a moment, all the while the

with water,’ I thought bitterly to myself and patted my clothes down with a tissue.

after I continued to ignore his question.

which he just looked at me, waiting for me to tell him

the couch, hugging my legs to my chest a

found his mate,” I

Ah.” 

know what that meant, know how it would affect me. Even if Aleric supposedly had feelings for me now, he already knew about my prior relationship with Cai. How could he forget? He‘d literally caught u sin bed

I just figured it would

we were romantically involved.

Yeah... I know.” 

Chapter SeventyFour 

recalling the whole ordeal with Cai and my chest ached a little. I missed him. I shouldn‘t... but I did. Was it wrong of me to even feel that much? Would it be okay if I still wished, even

been through, it felt so... abrupt. Final. Though maybe that‘s how things were always

laugh then escaped me thinking

Whats so funny?” 

on my lips. “Just… It‘s crazy how things turned out. The very fact I was involved with Cai at

do you

at him, my

were the ones who killed him in

before turning into a small frown. “What? Why?”

first major act of Alpha, you decided to kill his father, Tobias, during a meeting being held in the Winter Mist. Tobias came to negotiate the alliance tax given their large increase in pack size but your only counteroffer was his head. Never made any sense to me... Though that didn‘t

The fuck? Wouldn‘t that make things between you a

Winter Mist so I had never met Cai personally. Because of that, I had no idea who he was in this life until after we‘d already become friends. He was training me in fighting for a while before his exchange was over. And, well... then he came back and confessed to me... and then Myra died... and then....” I took a deep breath, steadying myself. “...It was an extremely dark time for me. Cai helped me through the worst o fit and

now he was a reminder of how quickly

right? Because of what he originally

but he was trying his best to understand it anyway. Who could

proceeded to tell

were even officially mates, then moved on to Thea, the Goddess, about our time together and what we did, and finally about some of the things I’d done up until now since coming back. But unlike the first time I told Cai about the

he hated me or not afterwards, it didn‘t have nearly the same weight as when I‘d feared Cai‘s judgement. Cai had

after Myra died. I‘d driven myself to find Aleric first because I‘d felt he couldn‘t judge me for my mistakes given the weight of his own. But they weren‘t * his*. It‘s just that

Chapter SeventyFour 

truth to him

out who I really was? Because whilst it might not have been him personally who did the things I was telling him about, there was no mistake that it had been me. That this was my past I was telling him about and, unlike him, I actually had

all in without interrupting. The things I told him couldn‘t have been easy to hear if he truly was different now. Our combined

I meant to convince him of why certain decisions

almost completely gone by the time I was finished. I spoke for so long that the sky had turned dark outside.

was finally done, we sat silently for a few minutes, both of us needing a moment to take in everything I‘d just

I eventually said after he still hadn‘t said a word since I‘d stopped speaking. “I‘ve been completely honest with you, telling you every painful detail of my past...

did you want

you to tell me why...,” I said slowly, wincing at the thought. “...Why

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