Ghosts don't sleep

6 – Kael

Ghosts Don't Sleep

I didn't leave the hidden chamber after she was gone.

Not right away.

I stood there, staring at the pictures I'd thrown onto the table, like they held all the answers I still didn't have. The scent of her lingered in the room—moonflowers and pine, the same scent I used to breathe in when I thought the world was something I could protect her from.

Now, I knew better.

The world didn't care about lovers. Or bloodlines. Or promises made under starlight.

It burned what it wanted. And it was coming for us again.

I paced the stone floor, fists clenched. My body still hummed from being near her. From hearing her voice, watching her fight to keep her anger from becoming something softer. Something like hope.

I didn't deserve that hope. But I wasn't leaving again.

Not until this was over.

Not until I bury the ones hunting her.

I pulled my satchel closer and reached into the hidden lining at the bottom. My fingers brushed cool glass—the small vial I'd stolen from the witch temple before they burned it to the ground. The liquid shimmered inside, a pale silver-blue that pulsed with power.

Moonroot.

Not the kind we use in healing rituals. This one was corrupted—tainted by dark magic, enough to poison even an Alpha if ingested.

It was proof. One of the last pieces of the puzzle.

And one of the only reasons I was still alive.

They'd wanted me dead after I stole it. I'd been hunted for months. I lost people I trusted. I crossed bloodlines and burned every bridge I ever built just to make it back here. To her.

To the girl I once loved.

To the woman who might have to kill me if I failed.

The sun was dipping low outside the chamber window. Soon it would be time. I had until nightfall to show Alera that I was worth trusting again.

One night to rebuild the ruins I left behind.

I climbed out of the chamber, shut the trapdoor, and made my way through the forgotten wing of the packhouse. Dust clung to the walls like cobwebs of memory. I ducked through a side exit and headed toward the edge of the territory, toward the only wolf who might still believe me.

Jace.

I hated the thought, but it was necessary. If Alera was going to face this threat with me, I had to prove she wasn't alone. And Jace—well, Jace and I had a long, ugly history. But he was loyal to her, and that was something I could use.

I reached the training yard just as the last few fighters were wrapping up their drills. Jace stood off to the side, barking orders, his voice commanding and firm. Still lean, still sharp-eyed, still Alpha-blooded despite never claiming the title. The scar across his jaw was new.

When he saw me, his entire body went rigid.

"Well," he said darkly, "if it isn't the ghost of betrayals past."

"Jace."

He stepped forward, eyes glowing gold. "You have a death wish, Kael?"

"I'm not here to fight."

"No?" He scoffed. "Then I'll make it quick."

He lunged, faster than I remembered, and I barely had time to block before his fist connected with my ribs. I grunted and twisted, shoving him back, not striking. Not yet.

"I'm trying to help your pack!" I snapped.

"You're five years too late!"

He threw another punch. I dodged this one.

"She's in danger," I said through clenched teeth. "And so are you."

That stopped him cold. His eyes narrowed. "What did you say?"

I pulled the vial from my jacket and held it up. "They're coming. The witches. The ones tied to the Old Blood. They've already started taking out bloodlines. You're next. Alera's next."

He stared at the vial, chest heaving. For a second, the rage cracked.

"You expect me to believe you?" he growled. "After what you did?"

"No," I said. "But I think Alera might. And that should be enough for you to listen."

He didn't speak.

Then, finally, he said, "You have until sunrise. One mistake, Kael, and I'll finish what the Elders never did."

I nodded once. "Fair enough."

As I turned to leave, I caught the faintest scent of movement—Alera.

She'd been watching.

Maybe testing me. Maybe protecting me, even if she wouldn't admit it yet.

I didn't care.

I just knew this wasn't over.

Not between her and me.

Not between us and the war rising in the shadows.

Tonight, we prepare.

Tomorrow, the hunt begins.