Free Web NovelChapter 222: Chapter 222
Caden’s POV
I had been pacing the room for minutes that felt too long.
Back and forth. From the door to the bed. From the bed to the wall. Over and over again.
Leslie stayed close to Gunnar, her hands busy with the herbs, checking his pulse, adjusting whatever she could, but I could tell from the tight look on her face that nothing she was doing was working the way it should. Every few seconds, her fingers would press against his wrist, then move away a little slower than before.
I dragged a hand through my hair and stopped near the foot of the bed, staring at Gunnar.
He looked worse.
Not just weak. Fading.
His chest barely moved with each breath, and the color in his skin had dropped even more. It didn’t sit right with me. I had seen injuries before. I had seen people bleed, struggle, even pass out, but this... this felt too different.
"Cane should have been back by now," I muttered, more to myself than to Leslie.
She didn’t answer immediately. She just kept working, her focus locked on Gunnar, but after a moment, she spoke.
"He’ll come," she said, though her voice didn’t sound fully convinced.
I turned toward her. "He doesn’t take this long. Not when it matters of life and death."
She paused briefly, then resumed what she was doing. "Maybe something delayed him."
"Delayed him?" I repeated, my voice sharper now. "Nothing delays Cane when someone’s dying."
That was the truth.
If anything, he would have dragged the answer back with him by force already.
I started pacing again, my steps heavier this time. "Something’s wrong."
Leslie didn’t argue with that. She just kept quiet, which somehow made it worse.
I stopped again, my eyes going back to Gunnar. His hand lay limp by his side, the same hand I had bitten earlier, hoping for any kind of reaction. Nothing. Not even a twitch.
I clenched my jaw.
"Damn it," I muttered under my breath.
I couldn’t just stand here waiting anymore.
"I’m going to check on him," I said, turning to Leslie.
She looked up this time. "Alpha Caden-"
"I’ll be quick," I cut in. "Stay with him. Don’t leave him alone."
Her expression tightened, but she nodded. "Go."
I didn’t waste another second. I turned toward the door, already moving, my mind running through possible reasons why Cane hadn’t returned yet. Something had to be wrong. There was no other explanation.
I reached for the door and before my hand could even touch it, it flew open.
The sound echoed through the room, and I stepped back immediately, my body reacting before my mind could catch up.
Someone walked in.
Calm. Like they owned the space.
I froze.
There was no way I wouldn’t recognize that presence.
The way she carried herself. The way she stepped forward without fear. The way the air in the room changed the second she entered.
My eyes locked onto her, and for a moment, I forgot how to breathe.
"Holy..." I muttered under my breath, my voice coming out rough. "No... no, no... this is not real."
I blinked hard, trying to clear my vision, but she didn’t disappear.
She stood there, exactly the same.
Same face. Same posture. Same look in her eyes.
"No fucking way," I said, shaking my head slowly as I took a step back. "No. I’m hallucinating. That’s what this is."
I turned my head quickly toward Leslie, needing confirmation that I had finally lost it.
But the look on her face stopped me cold.
She wasn’t confused. She wasn’t questioning it as well.
Infact she looked terrified.
Her eyes were wide, her body stiff, and her hands had completely stilled where they hovered over Gunnar. She looked like she had just seen something she never expected to see again.
That made my stomach drop.
I turned back to the woman standing in the doorway.
She smiled.
Not wide. Not playful.
Just enough to show she knew exactly what she was doing.
"Caden," she said, her voice calm, familiar, and steady. "It’s been a long while, hasn’t it?"
My chest tightened.
I shook my head immediately. "No. No, you’re dead. You’re fucking dead. You’re not supposed to be here."
She didn’t react to the words the way I expected. She didn’t get offended. She didn’t get angry.
She just kept that same calm expression."I’m here now," she said.
"Go back," I snapped, my voice rising. "Wherever you came from, go back. This isn’t funny."
"I’m not here to joke," she replied.
"Then what is this?" I demanded, gesturing at her. "Because you being here makes no sense."
She didn’t answer that directly.
Instead, she took a small step forward, her gaze shifting briefly to the bed where Gunnar lay.
"I’m here to help him," she said.
My body went tense instantly.
"No," I said sharply.
She didn’t stop moving. "There’s very little time left. If you want him alive, you need to move aside."
I stepped in front of her without thinking, blocking her path.
"Don’t take another step," I warned.
Her eyes lifted back to mine.
There was no fear in them. Only patience.
"He’s holding on by a thin line," she continued, her tone steady like she was stating a fact. "If I don’t act now, you’ll lose him."
"I said don’t move," I repeated, my voice harder now.
Behind me, I could feel Leslie’s tension rising, but she didn’t speak.
"Alpha Caden," the woman said again, more firmly this time, "Please step aside."
"No," I said without hesitation. "Not until you tell me exactly who you are."
She looked at me for a second, then let out a small breath.
"I already told you," she said. "You just don’t want to accept it."
"Say it again," I demanded.
Her lips curved slightly. freёweɓnovel.com
"Carian," she said.
The name hit me like a punch.
"I am Carian," she continued, her voice calm and clear. "I am not alive, and I am not dead."
The words sucked the air out of my lungs.
For a second, I couldn’t respond.
I just stared at her, my mind trying to process what she had just said and failing.
That wasn’t possible.
None of this was possible.
Behind me, I heard Leslie shift slightly, like she was trying to move but didn’t know if she should.
I forced myself to speak. "That’s not an answer."
"It’s the only one you’re getting," she replied.
My jaw tightened. "Then you’re not going near him." freēwēbnovel.com
Her expression didn’t change, but something in her eyes sharpened slightly.
"If you stop me again," she said, her voice dropping just enough to carry weight, "then you’re choosing to let him die."
My fists clenched.
"Don’t twist this," I snapped. "I’m protecting him."
"No," she said calmly. "You’re delaying the only chance he has."
"You expect me to just trust you? A dead mate?" I asked.
"I expect you to decide quickly," she answered.
I glanced back at Gunnar for a split second.
His breathing was even weaker now. Barely there.
I turned back to her immediately.
"And if you’re lying?" I demanded.
She held my gaze without blinking.
"Then you lose him anyway," she said.
The room went quiet at her words. No one moved. No one spoke.
And for the first time, I didn’t know what to do next.
She took another step forward.
I didn’t stop her this time but I didn’t move aside either.
She stopped right in front of me, close enough that I could see every detail on her face, every sign that she was real and I wasn’t seeing things.
"Last chance, Alpha Caden," she said quietly. "Move... or watch your brother die."
