HAYLEE~~“Are you sure about this, Queen Haylee?” Gladys asked me with evident concern, her voice trembling slightly, after I declared that I was willing to let Aradia go.Was I truly certain I wanted my mother to die without ever having the chance to have a normal relationship with her? Goddess, no. The pain in my chest was almost unbearable, the ache too deep to bear. But deep down, I knew that if she was willing to stop fighting for her life, I had to be ready to accept it. This moment, I believed, was the time to let go, even as my heart shattered inside.No strength remained in me to speak or explain my swirling, conflicting feelings to the worried Healer before me. I nodded faintly, feeling light-headed and hollow as I took slow steps toward the sofa. I was done fighting. Completely exhausted and my soul weary beyond words.“I'm not done fighting, Nerina. Don’t give up yet.” Those words suddenly echoed in my mind, scrambled, almost incomprehensible, but I recognized Aradia’s
HAYLEE~~It didn’t take long for Xalen and me to realize that we could have handled things differently.He could have shown more kindness despite his feelings and listened to me instead of acting out of fear. Conversely, I could have been more understanding because if I were in his shoes, I wouldn’t allow him to die for any cause, no matter how noble it seemed.“I know he isn’t the one who is dying, Haylee, but you can’t just ignore his feelings,” Liya scolded me after I told Xalen that there was nothing he could do to stop my death. “You are frustrated and exhausted because you’ve been worried about Aradia, whom you barely even know. You don’t want her to die, and everyone understands you, so why can’t you understand Xalen?”My wolf called me out as silence settled between Xalen and me for the first time since he stepped into the suite, angry.“It’s different, Liya—”“Yes, I agree,” Liya cut me off. “Xalen is our mate. We’ve marked him, and our death will kill him—or at least try
ALPHA KING XALEN~~I knew where to find her even though we hadn’t spoken since we departed after Kaylee’s funeral. I knew Haylee would be beside her mom, even though I knew nothing about the kind of day she was having.The only thing I knew aside from her whereabouts was the fact that I was shocked, pissed, and devastated.It all started when I went to check on the lab that my men were setting up for Richard so we could commence his punishment. I thought I could release some anger and other pent-up emotions if I tortured Richard a bit before heading home.But to my surprise, I got tortured instead.Richard, with blood in his mouth, said to me— and I quote —“Let’s see what you will become when your special little red wolf mate lays down her life to save others.”Of course, at first, I thought he was yapping to get under my skin, but then he continued speaking, telling me about a prophecy regarding the first red wolf to be born directly by another red wolf after the Crimson curse. Al
HAYLEE~~Despite how many times my heart has raced and pounded these past few days, I still wasn’t used to this feeling. I wasn’t used to being out of breath. I wasn’t used to the dread, and I didn’t want to get used to it.I wish life could just go back to normal.But what exactly would normal be like? Would it be when I used to talk to my mom in my dreams and knew nothing about her? Or would it be when I was a slave or a Royal Help? Would it be when I was mated to Jett, or when I was much younger, living in constant fear of my dad and Kaylee?Reality slammed into me as those thoughts raced through my mind. I had never experienced normalcy. Not even once in my life. I’d had a few good times before this storm and after Xalen and I fell in love, but I was never a normal, soon-to-be twenty-year-old girl. Never have I been normal.And maybe, normalcy is out of reach for me. I considered that as I finally made it to the suite and saw many healers gathered around my mom’s bed. When I le
HAYLEE~~Blaming myself for Kaylee’s death, even though I have been reminded countless times by my loved ones that I wasn’t at fault, had become a constant, one I hoped would be buried with her today.With my loved ones around, Kaylee's funeral began, and even though my dad and I were the only two families present, it was heartfelt. Alfred spoke about the kind of girl Kaylee was before she found out the truth about his affair with my mom and the effect it had on her late mother.We could all feel his love for her even before tears trickled down his face.Before I knew it, my dad finished, and I was called on to say a few words about Kaylee. I hesitated because I didn’t have anything good to say about her. Would it be proper if I stood by her grave and spoke ill of her?“Go on, Haylee,” Flavia whispered to me, snapping me out of my thoughts.I moved closer to where Kaylee’s body was lying and started speaking, uttering the first words that came to mind: “She made my life a living he
HAYLEE~~“I’m sorry your sister died, Haylee,” Sophia, who was standing behind me, muttered to me as I got dressed for Kaylee’s funeral.The kids have made a habit of spending time in the room with me, and when I wasn’t in the room, they would be wherever I was. I could tell that was their way of ensuring that I was safe ever since the kidnapping that almost took me away from them.“Me too, Haylee,” Asher said from where he sat on the bed with Jodie. His gaze shifted to Sophia and me before he looked back at Jodie and muttered, “I wouldn’t want to lose any of mine like I lost Mom. That would be painful.”Sometimes, I wish Asher and Sophia weren’t as mature as they were because I didn’t want them to lose their childhood so fast. But here we are, talking about dead siblings and a late mother. I managed to smile for them regardless of the hole in my heart.“Thank you, Ash.” I started with a smile. “And you, too, Fifi.”“What can we do to make you less sad?” Sophia ignored my show of g