CHAPTER 07

Madeleine’s POV

The smell reached me before I fully woke up. For a moment, I didn’t understand what it was. My mind was still caught between sleep and reality, and the only thing I could focus on was the strange warmth spreading through the room. Then my stomach growled. I froze.

Food.

Not the smell of old bread left over from someone else’s meal. Not the smell of whatever scraps were thrown at the servants after everyone else had finished eating. This was fresh food. My eyes opened slowly. A tray sat on the small table beside the bed. I stared at it for a long time. There was no reason for me to trust it. Maybe it was poisoned. Maybe it was some kind of test. That was what I would have expected from Damon’s pack. Kindness was always followed by a price.

But the longer I sat there, the louder my stomach complained.

Carefully, I moved closer and examined the food. A bowl of soup. Fresh bread. Some fruit. Everything looked normal. I picked up the spoon and took a small taste. The warmth spread through me almost immediately. I stopped. I couldn’t remember the last time someone had prepared a meal specifically for me. Usually, I ate whatever was left after everyone else was done. If there wasn’t enough, I went without. I looked down at the bowl. It felt strange. Almost uncomfortable. Because I didn’t know what to do with something given freely.

I forced myself to keep eating. Slowly. Carefully. Like someone might appear and tell me I had taken too much. By the time I finished, I felt embarrassed by how quickly I had eaten despite trying to be careful. I pushed the empty bowl away and looked toward the door. The fact that they had fed me didn’t change anything. I was still surrounded by strangers. I still didn’t know why they brought me here. And I still didn’t know what truth they were hiding from me.

After resting for a while longer, I carefully stood. The pain in my side was still there, but it wasn’t as sharp as before. I could walk. That was enough. I opened the door slowly. No one was outside. Good. I stepped into the hallway and started walking. I wasn’t wandering. I was learning. Every place I had ever survived in had required me to know where everything was. Which doors locked. Which ones didn’t. Where people gathered. Where I could hide if someone came looking. Old habits kept me alive. I counted the steps between the room and the stairs. I noticed which hallways led outside. I paid attention to the windows and the doors. If I needed to leave, I wanted to know how.

Nobody stopped me. Nobody questioned why I was walking around. That almost made me more suspicious. Eventually, I found my way outside. The compound was much busier during the day. Wolves moved around carrying supplies and training together. Some noticed me, but unlike Damon’s pack, nobody looked at me like I was something disgusting. They simply watched. I was still trying to understand that.

A noise caught my attention. Someone was arguing near one of the buildings.

“I told you to sit still.”

“I told you I don’t need help.”

“You are bleeding all over the ground, so clearly you do.”

I turned toward the voices. A man was sitting on a wooden bench while another wolf tried to wrap a cloth around his arm. The injured wolf kept pulling away.

“You’re making it worse.”

The other man frowned. “I’m trying.”

“Trying badly.”

I don’t know why I stepped forward. Maybe it was because I knew they were doing it wrong. Maybe it was because I couldn’t watch someone suffer when I could help.

“You’re tying it too loose.”

Both men turned toward me. I immediately regretted speaking. The injured wolf raised an eyebrow.

“What?”

I looked at the bandage. “If you leave it like that, the bleeding won’t stop properly.”

The man holding the cloth stared at me. “You know how to treat wounds?”

I hesitated. A part of me wanted to walk away. I was still the outsider here. But then I remembered my mother. Her hands covered in herbs. Her voice telling me that knowing how to help someone could be the difference between life and death. I stepped closer.

“Let me see.”

The two wolves exchanged a look. But neither stopped me. I carefully removed the loose bandage. The wound wasn’t as serious as mine had been, but it still needed proper pressure.

“You need to press here first,” I explained. “Not directly on the wound. Around it.”

The injured wolf watched silently as I worked. When I finished wrapping the new bandage, I checked that it was secure.

“There. Don’t move it too much.”

For a few seconds, nobody spoke. Then the man who had been helping him looked at me.

“Where did you learn that?”

I lowered my eyes. “My mother taught me.”

“Was she a healer?”

I shook my head. “No.” A small smile touched my face before I could stop it. “She just hated seeing people hurt.”

The wolf looked at the bandage again. “She taught you well.”

I didn’t know how to respond. A simple compliment shouldn’t have affected me. But it did. Because I wasn’t used to people appreciating something I did. The two men thanked me before returning to what they were doing. I stood there for a moment, feeling strangely uncomfortable. Then I walked away.

That evening, I was returning to my room when I heard voices coming from one of the rooms nearby. I wasn’t trying to listen. At least, that was what I told myself. But then I heard Jax’s voice.

“Damon’s patrol reached the border.”

My entire body froze. I moved closer to the door without making a sound.

“They’re still searching,” Jax continued.

My stomach dropped. Silas spoke next. “He hasn’t given up.”

“No,” Jax replied. “He hasn’t.”

I pressed my hand against my chest. Damon was still looking for me. I had hoped… I didn’t even know what I had hoped for. That he would forget me? That he would decide I wasn’t worth the effort? That I could finally breathe? But I was wrong. Damon wasn’t letting me go. A colder fear settled over me. Because now he knew I was somewhere. And if he found me… I knew exactly what would happen.

I stepped away from the door before anyone could notice me. My hands trembled as I walked back toward my room. I had escaped Damon once. But he was still coming for me.