~~~6. It’s Not Grief. It’s My Responsibility.

{SIX YEARS LATER.}

Brayden reached for him. Their fingers never touched. The ground gave way. The stranger was gone. Swallowed by the river below.

“You’re him.”

His eyes snapped open.

The sheets had been soaked with sweat. His chest heaved while his lips trembled as his heart slammed against his ribs like it was about to be ripped out.

He grabbed the water jug from his nightstand and poured it straight over his head, gasping at the coldness that came with it.

It didn’t help.

He stumbled off the bed and backed into the corner of the room with his knees to his chest, breathing in short, ragged pulls.

“I died because of you.” The voice said.

“Stop,” he whispered. “Stop.”

For six years, the accusation had followed him into every dream. He never got the chance to prove it wrong. He never got the chance to prove it right, either.

He shot up and ran. Not toward the door. Toward nothing. His leg caught the center table and sent it crashing to the floor, wood splintering and a vase also shattered into pieces.

Silence.

Outside, the maids froze at the sound. One reached for the door handle.

“Don’t,” another maid muttered. “Not unless we’re called.”

Footsteps approached them quickly and the maids straightened.

It was Gina.

The maids greeted her. And she did the same. She knocked gently on the door but there was no response. That was when she turned to the maids and noticed their expressions.

No one needed to tell Gina what was happening. This had been happening for six years.

“And none of you didn’t think of coming to inform me?” She said.

She gulped down hard and forced the door open, bursting inside.

On the left side of the room, Alpha Brayden was on the floor with his back pressed to the wall, staring at nothing as his body shook tremendously.

“You’ve found me again.” He whispered, biting down hard on his fingers.

She crouched carefully in front of him. “Alpha Brayden.”

No answer. He was lost in his own illusion.

“Alpha. Look at me.”

His eyes finally found her face.

“He’s not here,” she said quietly. “Nobody’s here but you and me.”

She stretched her left arm towards him. He blinked as he exhaled sharply. She nodded her head with a bright smile on her face.

Slowly, he reached for her hand and she guided him to sit on the edge of the bed but his hands wouldn’t stop shaking.

“I heard him again,” he said. “He said—”

“I know what he said. You tell me every time.” Gina knelt in front of him, gripping both his hands until they stilled. “Alpha. We searched that river for six years. We searched the forest, the villages, every pack within a hundred miles. We couldn’t find him. He didn’t survive. You have to stop doing this to yourself.”

“What if we missed something?”

“You didn’t.” Her voice hardened. “You made one decision in a single terrifying night, and you have punished yourself for it every day since. That’s not honoring him. That’s just suffering for the sake of suffering.”

Brayden dragged a hand down his face. “You don’t understand. It’s not just the guilt. It’s that I still don’t know if he was telling the truth. Six years, and I never even got to ask him properly.”

“Would it change anything if you knew?”

“I don’t know.” His voice cracked on the last word. “Maybe. Maybe it would mean I didn’t let an innocent person die over an accusation I never had the chance to prove.”

Gina’s expression softened, just slightly. “You didn’t let an innocent person die. You only did what you had to do.” She paused, letting the words sink it. “And that’s what anyone responsible for a lot of people under their protection would do. It was fine that you questioned where he came from.”

“That still doesn’t change anything. He kept saying ‘you’re him.’ Him who? I still don’t know who he thought I was.”

“Right now, you’re not living at all. You’re just surviving until the next nightmare.” Gina said.

Brayden said nothing.

She stood and crossed to the wardrobe, pulling out his robe. “Get up. Bathe. You have the Assembly in an hour, and you cannot walk in there looking like this.”

“I don’t want to go.”

“I know that already.” She dropped the robe beside him. “But we have no choice. Not this time.”

*I really hope you can stop punishing yourself because of that single night.* Grey added, his voice soft. *I also caused it. I was meant to protect you.*

Brayden finally went ahead to get his bath and dressed up for the meeting. And by the time he arrived, The Throne Room was already full. Gina followed closely behind. Several seats were arranged around the long table and ten ministers rose.

“Long Live Your Majesty.” They chorused.

Brayden sat at the head of the table without a word. He just waved for them to sit.

The hall went silent after they all settled in.

Cedric Holloway, the Prime Minister, inclined his head, the rest of the room following his lead.

“Your Majesty, the kingdom still has no heir. You have no mate. It has been three years since the political mating ended.”

“I'm aware of how long it's been, Cedric.” Brayden replied. “You don’t need to remind me whenever we meet.”

“Then you're aware of what that means for the Crownfang Pack.” Roland Ironhart, the Minister of Defense and Military Affairs spoke up. “Every pack within our borders watches this throne for weakness. An unmated King with no successor is exactly that. Even the people of our Pack are worried.”

“I have ruled this pack perfectly well for ten years without a mate.”

“For now.”

Sylvia Dawncrest's voice was gentler, but no less firm. She is the Minister of Health and Public Welfare.

“Your Majesty, I say this with respect. Your father had died suddenly. If something happened to you tomorrow, this kingdom has nothing. No heir. No stability. That is not a risk The Royal Assembly can continue to accept.”

“So find another candidate for the Assembly to grieve,” Brayden said. “Is that the plan?”

“Nobody wants a repeat of what happened six and three years ago,” Sylvia said. “Least of all me. But the throne cannot stay empty of a future forever, Your Majesty. That is not cruelty. As a royal blood, that is simply the nature of what you were born into.”

Brayden's jaw tightened. “I have given this kingdom everything since the day I took the crown.”

“Everything except an heir,” Roland said.

The room went quiet.

“I already tried,” Brayden said in a low voice. “Three years ago, you all sat in this room and arranged it yourselves. A political mating, sanctioned by this Assembly. I took her in as my consort but she died in her third month. Her body couldn't carry the pregnancy.”

Nobody spoke.

“My own mother died bringing me into this world,” he continued. “That is the price of this bloodline. Every omega who has ever carried a Crownfang heir has paid it with their life. So forgive me if I refuse to bury another innocent person just to satisfy this table.”

Cedric folded his hands. “We understand your reluctance, Your Majesty. But the kingdom's stability cannot rest on your grief simply because of a stranger you spent one night with on an uncontrollable rut, six years ago.”

“It's not grief. It's my responsibility.”

Roland leaned forward. “The Assembly has been patient. That patience has limits. And we also have the interest of the people at heart.”

Brayden looked around the table.

“What exactly are you proposing,” he said.

Cedric exchanged a glance with Roland before answering. “One month, Your Majesty. Find a suitable mate within one month, of your own choosing. If you cannot—”

“Then Roland's daughter will take the position for an arranged mating ceremony between you and her,” Sylvia finished for him.

*Are they crazy?!* Grey asked.

Brayden's hands curled into fists on the table.

“You would force me into another political mating. After everything that's already been buried because of the last one.”

“We would rather force a mating,” Cedric said quietly, “than bury our Pack.”

Brayden shot to his feet, the chair scraping hard against the floor. “This meeting is over.”

“Your Majesty—”

He didn't look back at the table full of ministers—including Tyler Ravenclaw—watching him go, or at Roland's satisfied silence. He walked straight out of the chamber with one thought circling louder than all of it.

‘I won't bury another person.’

He just didn't know yet how he was supposed to keep that promise.

“Alpha, it’s time for your next appointment. Can we head to the clinic to see the therapist for your weekly session?” Gina asked as soon as they reached outside.

*I really need to see the therapist right away.* Grey groaned. *This is getting too much for me to handle.*