An Uneasy Respite

Rhys's childhood bedroom was surprisingly spacious, with large windows overlooking the Warner family's sprawling property. As I gazed at the trees where Jaxon's wolf had disappeared earlier, I couldn't help but wonder if he was still out there, prowling the perimeter.

"You can take the bed," Rhys offered, dropping my small bag of borrowed clothes on a chair. "I'll sleep on the floor."

"Don't be ridiculous," I protested. "That bed is huge. We can share."

Silas entered the room behind us, carrying extra pillows. "Actually, I think we're all bunking in here tonight."

I raised my eyebrows. "All of us?"

Ronan appeared in the doorway, his expression serious as he scanned the room. Gone was the shy, sweet boy I first met. This Ronan moved with purpose, checking the locks on the windows and drawing the curtains with practiced efficiency. The transformation wasn't just in his behavior—his shoulders seemed broader, his jaw more set. The guilt in my chest tightened. I had done this to him. My presence in his life had forced him to become this hardened version of himself.

"Safety in numbers," he said simply, not meeting my eyes.

Rhys began moving furniture, pushing a dresser against the door after we were all inside. The casual way he did it, like this was routine, sent a chill down my spine.

"Guys, you're freaking me out," I said, sinking onto the edge of the bed. "Are we really in that much danger here? I thought this place was safe."

Silas sat beside me, his glasses catching the golden light of the bedside lamp. "Nowhere is completely safe when someone as powerful as Kaelen is hunting you."

"You mean whoever's after Kaelen," I corrected. "They're after him, not us."

The three of them exchanged looks that made my stomach drop.

"What aren't you telling me?" I demanded.

Rhys ran a hand through his blond hair, looking suddenly tired. "The person after us is just as powerful as Kaelen, if not more so. And they're not just after him—they're after you."

"Me? Why would anyone be after me? I'm nobody."

Ronan moved away from the window, his ice-blue eyes intense. "You're everything to us. That's why."

Silas nodded. "If you die, we die. It's that simple. You're the linchpin of our bond. Taking you out would be the most efficient way to eliminate all of us."

The weight of his words settled over me like a suffocating blanket. Not only was I in danger, but I was putting all of them at risk just by existing. My throat tightened.

"So that's why you're all being so paranoid? Because I'm a target?"

"We're not being paranoid," Rhys said firmly. "We're being realistic. For six weeks, we've been training, preparing, while you were healing."

"Training for what?" I asked.

"To resist compulsion, mostly," Silas explained. "Mr. Vance has been working with us daily."

I frowned. "Wait, Mr. Vance has been training you? The same Mr. Vance who pretended not to be my bond? The same one who's been keeping secrets since day one?"

"He's trying to protect us," Ronan said, but there was a hint of uncertainty in his voice.

"Is he?" I challenged. "Or is he just controlling us? How do we know we can trust him?"

Rhys sat on my other side, the mattress dipping under his weight. "We don't, not completely. But he's the one who saved you, Hazel. He poured his own energy into you for days when nothing else was working."

I tried to process this information. Mr. Vance—Kaelen—had saved my life. The same man who had denied our connection, who had looked at me with such cold detachment when I'd first arrived at the academy. It didn't add up.

"Tell me about the training," I said, needing to focus on something tangible.

Silas smirked. "Well, it wasn't exactly pleasant. Basically, Mr. Vance would try to compel us to do things, and we had to resist."

"What kind of things?" I asked.

Rhys snorted. "The first day, he tried to make me bark like a dog."

Despite the tension, I laughed. "Did you?"

"Only for like two minutes," he admitted sheepishly. "But I got better! By week three, I could resist for almost a full hour."

"Ronan was the best at it," Silas added. "Mr. Vance couldn't get him to do anything by the end."

I looked at Ronan with newfound respect, but he just shrugged, a hint of his old shyness returning. "I just... focused on protecting you. In my mind."

"And Jaxon?" I asked, trying to sound casual.

The room fell silent for a moment.

"Jaxon and Mr. Vance have a... complicated relationship," Rhys finally said, a hint of jealousy in his voice. "They spend a lot of time training separately from us. I think Jax's empath abilities make him different."

I nodded, storing that information away for later. "So what now? We just hide out here until... what?"

"Until Mr. Vance tells us it's safe to move you," Silas said.

"Until Jaxon's baby is born," Ronan added quietly.

My hand went instinctively to my still-flat stomach. The reality of my pregnancy still felt distant, abstract. A baby. Jaxon's baby. Our baby. The thought was both terrifying and strangely comforting.

"I'm exhausted," I admitted. "This is my first day conscious in weeks, and my brain is already overloaded."

"You should rest," Silas said, immediately concerned. He shifted behind me on the bed and began massaging my shoulders with practiced hands.

I groaned involuntarily as his fingers found a knot of tension. "God, that feels amazing."

"We got pretty good at this while you were out," Rhys said, joining Silas in the massage. "The healers said touch was important, even if you weren't conscious."

Tears pricked my eyes at the thought of them caring for me so tenderly while I slept. "You guys did this for me? For six weeks?"

"Every day," Ronan confirmed from his position by the window. "Though Jaxon wouldn't let anyone but himself touch you for the first week."

"And Mr. Vance banned Lyra from coming to see you after the first few days," Silas added, his fingers working magic on my tense muscles.

I stiffened. "What? Why would he do that?"

"He said it was for security reasons," Rhys explained. "Too many people knowing your location was a risk."

"But Lyra is my friend! She's like the only person I trust in this whole mess," I protested, anger flaring. "And she's a healer. She could have helped!"

"Mr. Vance brought in his own healer," Silas said, trying to sound soothing. "He was just being cautious."

"Cautious? Or controlling?" I snapped, pulling away from their hands. "Did any of you think to question him?"

They exchanged guilty looks.

"We were focused on you surviving," Rhys said quietly. "Everything else seemed secondary."

I stood up, pacing the room. "I want to talk to Lyra. Now."

"Hazel, it's late," Silas reasoned. "And Mr. Vance specifically said—"

"I don't care what Mr. Vance said," I interrupted, holding out my hand. "I need a phone."

Silas hesitated, then reached into his pocket. "Hazel, maybe we should think about this..."

I snatched the phone from his hand before he could finish. "I'm done letting other people make decisions for me. I need answers, and Lyra might have them."

My fingers trembled slightly as I dialed her number, ignoring the apprehensive looks on my bonds' faces. I needed to hear her voice, to get information that wasn't filtered through Mr. Vance or anyone else. As the phone began to ring, I felt a strange mixture of defiance and fear. Whatever came next, I was done being kept in the dark.