Chapter 274
Chapter 274:
Dr. Evans checked my IV line before stepping out to review my lab results, leaving me alone in the quiet room.
I had survived. But as the reality of the night crashed down on me, a new, suffocating dread pooled in my stomach.
Kain.
I had stubbornly defied his Alpha’s Command. I had thrown his protection back in his face, only to walk blindly into a predator’s trap. He was going to be furious. The thought of his icy glare, the inevitable accusation, or worse — the soul-shattering words of a Rejection because I was a wolfless liability — made my chest tighter than the silver poison had. I couldn’t face him. Not yet.
𝖸o𝘶𝗿 𝗻ex𝘁 fа𝘷𝗼𝗋𝗶𝗍𝖾 𝘳𝗲𝖺𝘥 𝗶ѕ 𝗼𝗻
My phone sat on the bedside table, its screen cracked from where I had dropped it. With trembling fingers, I dialed the only person I could trust right now.
“Adelina?” Blake Davenport’s voice came through, laced with confusion.
“Blake,” I choked out, tears of sheer exhaustion finally burning my eyes. “I’m in the Blackstone medical wing. Please come. And please — don’t tell Jase p>
“I’m on my way,” she said instantly, not asking for details.
I dropped the phone onto the mattress and let my head fall back against the pillows. I braced myself for the agonizing wait, preparing to sit alone with my shame.
But the silence didn’t even last a second.
The heavy double doors of the medical suite didn’t just open — they were violently shoved apart, slamming against the walls with a deafening crack that made me flinch.
Kain Blackwell stormed into the room.
The air instantly thickened, saturated with the heavy scent of ancient cedar and a brewing thunderstorm. He didn’t look like the composed, untouchable Lycan King. He looked like a feral beast on the edge of a bloodbath. His suit jacket was gone, his tie discarded, and his chest heaved with ragged breaths. In his dark eyes, the golden fire of his Inner Wolf burned with a terrifying, unhinged intensity.
I shrank back against the pillows, my heart hammering against my ribs as I braced for his fury.
But he didn’t yell. He didn’t reprimand me.
In a blur of motion, he was at my bedside. He dropped to his knees, his massive frame trembling as he reached for me. His hands — usually so commanding and steady — shook violently as they gently cupped my face. His thumbs traced my cheekbones, his golden eyes frantically scanning every inch of my pale skin as if terrified I were a ghost that would vanish under his touch.
He hadn’t spoken to Blake. The medical staff hadn’t paged him yet. But as his frantic heartbeat echoed in the quiet room, I realized he hadn’t needed a phone call to know I was awake.
Adelina POV
His thumbs stroked my cheekbones, his golden eyes frantically searching mine. The heavy, erratic beating of his heart echoed in the quiet room, grounding me.
“You’re alive,” Kain breathed, the words a ragged, desperate prayer.