CHAPTER THIRTEEN: KAEL

"Sigillum rumpere,("To break the seal,)" I heard her whisper, and my blood ran cold. "Vitam dare("To give life.)"

Those weren't just memorial inscriptions. They were part of an ancient protection spell, words of power that hadn't been spoken in this garden for decades. Words that only a few ancients knew how to speak. And she was reading them like she understood their meaning.

Her lips parted like she was about whispering the next one when she stopped, turned and locked eyes with me.

Her spine stiffened, shoulders tensed and eyes shone with recognition as we stared at each other. It felt exactly like when she stared at my wolf at the hospital balcony.

I noticed the change in her breathing as she squeezed one of the boards. She scrunched her face and shut her yes then opened them again just like I felt it like a physical blow. Power crackled through the air, visible to my enhanced senses as silver threads that connected her to the very foundation of our territory's protections.

The inscriptions  began to glow with a soft, ethereal light that I knew only I and Stephan could see but even at that I knew that every supernatural here could feel the shift in the atmosphere. Only nine supernaturals in the world can recite these spells and without another's company, but this seemingly human girl casually recited them, drawing a reaction from them. How is this even possible?

My wolf whined in agony. His pain slamming into my consciousness with the force of a physical blow. The pack bonds that connected me to every member of Crescent Pack pulsed like it was reaching out and trying to draw something almost like an integration or mate bond but she wasn't my mate. What was happening? I clenched my first to control the surge of energy from leaking into the pack bond and in a matter of seconds everything stilled.

The surge of magic was almost overpowering and too sudden. I blinked to clear the fog in my mind and then I saw her stumble, her face going paler than usual, her eyes, wide with confusion and fear, found mine across the distance just before they dropped close.

"Aria!" Her name tore from my throat as she collapsed, but I was already moving, supernatural speed carrying me to her side before her body hit the ground. I caught her just in time, her slight weight settling into my arms as if she belonged there.

Her face was peaceful in unconsciousness, light blonde lashes fanned against pale cheeks. I could feel tremors coursing through her system. Whatever she'd triggered by touching the memorial boards and reciting those spells correctly, had been too much for her human physiology to handle.

"Get Dr. Spruce," I ordered the pack members who'd gathered around us, my voice carrying the weight of Alpha command. "And clear a path to the infirmary."

As I carried her through the crowd, her unusual scent with an underlying note of something sweet filled my lungs with each breath. My wolf had gone quiet, but not calm. He was focused, protective, every instinct screaming that this woman in my arms was precious beyond measure but why was she precious to me, to us? She wasn't ours.

The infirmary was empty except for the night nurse, who quickly prepared a bed at Dr. Spruce's direction. I laid Aria down gently, reluctant to break the physical connection between us. Her face was peaceful, but I could sense the waves that flickered behind her closed eyelids.

"What happened?" Dr. Spruce asked, beginning his examination.

"She touched the memorial boards," I said quietly. "I think she triggered something."

His eyes widened slightly. He'd been pack physician long enough to know about the old magic that still lingered in certain places. "Her vitals are stable, but there's definitely magical interference. She'll need to sleep it off, let her system process whatever she absorbed."

I nodded, taking a seat in the chair beside her bed. "I'll stay with her."

"Alpha, you have guests"

"Thane can handle the rest of the evening," I said firmly. "I'm not leaving her."

And I didn't. Through the long hours of the night, I sat vigil beside her bed, watching the slow rise and fall of her chest, listening to the steady beat of her heart. Occasionally she would stir, murmuring words I couldn't quite catch, her fingers moving restlessly against the white sheets.

As dawn approached, her breathing changed, becoming lighter, less deep. I leaned forward, my enhanced hearing picking up the subtle shift that indicated she was waking.

"Aria?" I called softly.

Her eyes fluttered open beautiful, dark eyes that seemed to hold depths I could spend lifetimes exploring. For a moment, she looked confused, taking in the sterile white room and medical equipment. Then her gaze found mine, and I saw recognition flicker in their depths.

"You," she whispered, and there was something in her voice wonder, maybe, or resignation. "You were the wolf on the balcony."

I nodded, not trusting my voice. I then handed her a cup of water with a sipping straw. Up close, she was even more beautiful than I'd thought, but there was something fragile about her too, something that made my protective instincts surge to the forefront.

"How are you feeling?" I asked instead.

She tried to sit up, wincing slightly. "Like I stuck my finger in an electrical socket."

A small smile played at the corners of her mouth. "What happened? The last thing I remember was reading those inscriptions, and then..."

"You fainted," I said gently. "The boards you touched they're connected to some very old magic. I think you absorbed more energy than your system was ready for."

She was quiet for a long moment, processing this information. When she looked at me again, there was something different in her expression, a wariness that hadn't been there before.

"Magic" she repeated.

"Yes"

"Why are you here? Shouldn't you be with your pack, or handling Alpha duties, or..." She gestured vaguely, and I could hear the underlying question: 'Why would someone like you waste time sitting with someone like me?'

The truth was too complicated, too confusing, too intense to share with someone I'd known for less than twenty-four hours. I'd have to confirm whatever was happening to me before saying anything to her.

How could I explain that from the moment her pack had entered our territory, she'd been a song in my blood? That watching her collapse had felt like losing a part of myself? That my wolf had not claimed her as our mate, none of us had felt the mate bond or anything that could certify we were mates, that I'm just insanely attracted to her when I shouldn't.

"You were hurt," I said simply. "And you're a guest in my territory. That makes your wellbeing my responsibility."

It wasn't a lie, exactly, but it wasn't the whole truth either. She studied my face as if trying to read between the lines, and I found myself hoping she couldn't see too much. Not yet. Not until I understood what this connection between us meant.

"Thank you," she said finally. "For taking care of me. But I should probably get back to my family. They'll be worried."

"Of course." I stood, immediately missing the small intimacy of sitting beside her bed. "I'll have someone drive you home. And Aria?"

She looked up at me expectantly.

"If you experience any lingering effects from last night, headaches, dizziness, anything unusual, please don't hesitate to contact me. Magic can be unpredictable, especially for those not accustomed to it."

She nodded, and I forced myself to leave the room before I did something foolish like ask her to stay. As I walked down the corridor, my wolf's confusion matched my human mind's concerns about timing, propriety, and the complications that would inevitably arise from this.... whatever this is.

One thing was certain, there was a big shift, a change and there would be no going back to the way things were before Aria had touched those ancient boards and awakened something that had been asleep for a long, long time.