Chapter 004

❀° ┄───────╮

Sylphiette

╰───────┄ °❀

The first thing I felt was warmth.

Soft, smooth linens—nothing like the scratchy blanket and damp floors of the dungeon. Then the scent of lavender and antiseptic. Clean. Calming. Clinical hit me in waves.

I groaned, my consciousness fully seeping in and I blinked open my eyes slowly, fighting the weight on my eyelids. A pale ceiling greeted me, unfamiliar and sterile.

The second thing I felt, panic and it rose up my throat.

Where was I?

I jolted upright, but my body screamed in protest. Pain pulsed down my spine, sharp and deep. My back throbbed from the memory of the whip, and my head spun. I gritted my teeth, groaning as I forced myself to sit up fully, ignoring the sharp tug of bandages against my skin.

My mind raced until it screamed with a thought.

Kian. My baby boy. My heart pattered frantically in my chest.

But just then, the door swung open, and a man stepped in. The first thing I noticed was his salt-and-pepper hair neatly combed back.

A thin spectacles perched on his narrow nose and a white overall coat draped over soft blue attire.

He looked startled the moment our eyes met but quickly composed himself, stepping further into the room with practiced calm.

His smile was gentle. “Sylphiette. You’re awake.”

The name twisted in my gut with a strangely familiar feeling. My name, Sylphiette. No one had called me that with kindness in years.

But I froze. My breath hitching as he came closer. He looked… familiar.

“You—you're the Wintermoon Pack's physician, Doctor Harlan.” I said, my gaze narrowing at him.

He nodded, his smile warming. “That I am.”

“Where—Where am I?”

“You’re in the pack’s medical center.”

“What… pack?” I hissed, my muscles tensing with dread.

Something flashed in his eyes before it vanished. “You’re in the Wintermoon pack.”

My shoulders sagged, my mind reeling with disbelief. I was back. Back to the very place that I was cast out from. I was back to—Wintermoon—my former pack.

But… how?

Then my mind spun and everything began to resurface in waves. The assault attempt by the rogue king. His Luna’s furious accusation. The trial and the lashing on my back. Kian being dragged into the chaos and then… someone.

Someone had stepped in and stopped the chaos—more like stoppedmy chaos with chaos. Someone that smelled like Cassius.

I clutched the side of my head, trying to shake off the sudden wave of dizziness.

“How… How am I here?” I asked, and something sparked within me as panic set in. “Where’s my son? Where’s Kian? What did you people do to him?”

Doctor Harlan raised both hands, palms up, trying to soothe me.

“He’s safe, Sylphiette. I promise. He only suffered a few bruises,” I gasped, dread filling me and I moved to get off the bed to find my son but the physician’s words had me slightly faltering. “It’s nothing major, I assure you but we’ve treated them. He’s resting now.”

I stared at him, breathing hard, unable to believe him. The pain on my back was there, sizzling through my banded skin but I didn’t pay attention to the sting as I moved.

“Where is he?” I demanded urgently, flinging the blanket off me and attempting to get out of bed. The room tilted, and my legs buckled the moment my feet touched the floor.

“Wait—You shouldn’t get up!” The doctor rushed forward to stop me, but I swatted his hands away.

“I need to see him—”

“You’re in no condition to move about, Sylphiette.”

I began to protest but the door opened again, halting my words. This time, the air shifted the moment someone stepped into the room. My chest locked up again, instantly recognizing the scent.

One I had thought I’d dreamed up. He was here. He was real. Too real and sudden, it made my heart squeeze with painful familiarity.

Cassius Winters.

His presence filled the space instantly. The familiar scent of a misty forest—one that made my heart flutter and ache all at once—tingled my senses.

And he stood, tall, broad, and still cloaked in that damn poised confidence. But he looked… different. Older. Hardened.

His dark hair was longer, brushing down his collarbone in loose, sleek waves. A light stubble lined his strong jaw. His bright hazel eyes searched the room briefly before they locked on mine, and my body stiffened.

For a heartbeat, the world stopped moving.

“Sylphie.” His voice was soft but low, rough around the edges like gravel wrapped in silk.

I lost my breath momentarily, instantly hating the way my body reacted to his voice when he called my name.

It felt as though someone doused cool water on me, soothing away the ache and stiffness in my body.

I hated it.

His voice was a reminder of the past. His presence, even worse.

I tried to back away, but my knees gave out again. I caught movements as I stumbled over, bracing myself for a fall and the aftermath but then Cassius was there before I fell.

His arms caught me, strong and sure. My body tensed on instinct, but I couldn’t move, couldn’t breathe.

The scent of him surrounded me, bringing with it memories I had long buried.

My hackles rose and I shoved him back with what little strength I had left. But he was like a boulder, sturdy, unmoving and hovered stickily over me as I stumbled once more. Instead, he carefully helped ease me back onto the bed.

“Don’t touch me,” I muttered, irritated at how frail my voice was.

Cassius silently turned to the doctor. “Give us a moment, Harlan.”

The physician hesitated but nodded, closing the door quietly behind him.

Silence swelled between us. The air was too tight, crackling with tension, and filled with everything we hadn’t said in four years.

I stared at him. “It was you, wasn't it? You brought me back here. Why?”

Cassius didn’t speak immediately. He studied me, his gaze unreadable, his hands curling at his sides.

“I found you in that rogue brute’s pack. You were being whipped,” he said finally, his voice low but heavy with something.

I flinched at the word ‘whipped’, recalling the chaos of my unjust trial.

He continued, stepping closer. “I stopped it and brought you here. You passed out in my arms.”

I turned my face away, shame burning in my chest. The image of that crowd, the pain, Kian screaming… I could still hear it. Feel it.

“You didn’t answer my question,” I said bitterly, catching his gaze. “Why did you bring me here? How did you know where I was?”

His jaw tightened. “I didn't,” he answered. “I had… business with the rogues… But when I got there and saw you—saw what they were doing to you—and that child, Sylphie—”

I didn't give him a chance to inquire. My protective instincts rose at the mention of my son.

“You should have gone about your business and left me alone.” I bit out.

Cassius's gaze softened, something in the depth of his gaze flickered— worry? Guilt? But it was gone before I registered it, as swiftly as it’d flashed by.

He paused. “That child…He’s… he’s mine, isn’t he?”

My heart thudded painfully against my ribs but I shoved it off with a scoff, “You can't be serious, right? Why would he be yours?”

He swallowed, his mask slipping slightly and that vulnerability resurfaced again. I hated it—hated him.

He shouldn't be looking at me that way. Not when he was so quick to throw me away at a moment when I needed him the most.

Not after all these years…

He had no right to.

“I don't know. Maybe because he looks like—”

“Don’t be mistaken, Cassius,” I cut in abruptly. He stared at me, startled. I held his gaze, looking him dead in the eyes. “He's not yours.”

His expression cracked. Just slightly.

But I turned away, refusing to give him more or look at him any longer. I was tired and my body was still sizzling from the pain.

But most of all, he didn’t deserve the truth.

Not when I was still bleeding from the wounds he helped create.

He stood in silence for a long moment. Then he turned away with a low sigh.

“I’ll give you some space,” he murmured. “Rest up, I'll call the doctor to check in on you. I'll… see you later.”

And then he left. The door clicked softly behind him, leaving me with the silence and clinical stench.

I clutched my chest, feeling a rush of pain spread. My eyes stung with tears at the hollow feeling in my chest.