Chapter 45 Bloom

Beta Zane's heavy footsteps faded quickly down the hallway toward Alpha Ronan's office, leaving behind an icy tension that seemed to cling to my lungs. The dim corridor lights had returned to normal, but the shock of those two sinister voices exploding inside my mind continued to ripple through my body.

The bandaged wound in my left palm burned as though it had split open all over again inside the illusion.

Kai moved in front of me without wasting a second, his alert gaze sweeping across every shadowed corner of the hallway.

Ivy grabbed my arms with trembling hands, trying to steady me.

"We're taking you to your room right now," she said, her voice echoing softly off the stone walls. "We can't stand here in the middle of the hallway like an open target. Come on, Bloom."

Cassian didn't say a word. He simply lifted me into his arms and carried me to my room like a shield protecting the center of our group.

The four of us slipped inside, and Kai shut the door hard behind us before locking it. My mind had finally cleared enough for me to speak.

"You know I could've walked," I muttered. "Put me down. We're already here."

Cassian rolled his eyes, but lowered me carefully to the floor. I leaned my back against the cold door and tried to take several deep, uneven breaths. The tension in the room was so thick I could almost touch it.

Ivy began pacing back and forth. She dragged her hands through her hair again and again as the horror on her face deepened.

"This is impossible," she whispered to herself. "How did they find out?"

She stopped and looked at us. "We only just learned that Alpha Ronan opened those chests in the library. We only just heard about Bloom's situation and the plan to enter the vault."

Her voice tightened. "How did people outside the pack find out so quickly? Is there a traitor leaking information from inside the pack house? Or have those ancient spells been watching us much more closely than we realized?"

"A traitor inside is impossible," Kai growled.

He moved to the window and stared out at the pitch-black forest.

"Every wolf who enters this mansion has had their loyalty tested under the Alpha aura more than once."

His jaw tightened. "But Ivy's right. Something is wrong. If both factions know about Bloom's acceptance process and the vault's runes, they may have surrounded us from the inside as well as the outside."

"I don't want to believe anyone has infiltrated the pack," I said.

The others turned toward me.

"Before we accuse an innocent person of betrayal, it makes more sense to consider that they may have interfered with the mind of a pack member the same way they just interfered with mine."

"Traitor or magic, I don't care what it is," Cassian cut in.

His voice came out so low and predatory that it seemed to vibrate through the furniture. The dark rings around his blue eyes had fully widened, and Axel's savage need to protect me consumed every trace of air in the room.

He crossed the distance between us and placed both hands on my shoulders.

"Zane is right. The enemy doesn't want to waste time."

His gaze locked onto mine.

"They want to stop you from entering the vault, learning the truth, and forming a bond with a wolf."

His expression hardened.

"Which makes the legend sound more real than ever."

"Cassian, calm down," I said, trying to keep my voice steady. "Zane said the trial will happen tomorrow night."

I tightened my fingers around the bandage on my palm.

"But the real problem is that we still don't know what kind of trial it is. I was ready for anything physical. None of us knows what I'll face in a spiritual examination."

"That's the worst part!" Cassian snapped. He pulled his hands away from my shoulders and turned sharply. His jaw was clenched so tightly it formed a hard line in the darkness.

"If it were a fight, if someone attacked you physically, I'd throw myself in front of you, Bloom."

His voice grew rougher.

"I'd take every silver blade through my own chest."

He looked back at me.

"But in a mental or spiritual trial..."

His hands curled into fists.

"I can't enter your mind and take the pressure for you. You'll be completely alone inside that circle, and knowing I won't be able to do anything is driving me insane."

Kai and Ivy exchanged a silent look, clearly sensing the tension between us. Kai placed one hand lightly on Ivy's shoulder and guided her toward the door.

"We're going downstairs to join the border guards," he said, his voice serious. "Whatever is out there, we won't let it cross the territory tonight."

His gaze moved between Cassian and me.

"We'll keep watch outside the door and in the hallway."

Ivy gave me one final worried look before leaving with him. The door closed quietly behind them. Then only Cassian and I remained, surrounded by the ominous darkness beyond the windows.

For a while, Cassian stood silently in the middle of the room. Then he walked over and sat beside me on the edge of the bed. With his messy hair and the tension carved into his face, he looked fiercer than usual. And more helpless.

He slowly reached for me, wrapping his hand around my left wrist before placing my bandaged palm inside his larger one. His touch was so gentle that I could feel the slight tremble in his fingers. He was terrified of hurting me.

"We don't know what the trial is," Cassian murmured.

His voice had dropped to a quiet, almost defeated whisper. He looked directly into my eyes.

"Zane refused to reveal the details because those are the rules." His thumb moved carefully against my wrist.

"They're going to throw you into that circle completely blind and completely unprepared." His expression darkened.

"Spiritual trials leave the mind completely defenseless, Bloom. If those two factions could enter your thoughts this easily today, how are you supposed to withstand the pressure of the trial tomorrow?"

"I'll endure it, Cassian."

I never looked away from his burning blue eyes. "The same way I refused to bow when my bones were aching inside that circle."

My voice grew firmer. "The same way I got back up every time Nova knocked me down."

I leaned closer. "I have to enter that library. I have to reach the vault."

My chest tightened. "For my freedom. And maybe so I can finally reach the wolf waiting for me."

Cassian went still.

"That wolf deserves this," I continued. "She trusts me. She's waiting for me."

Cassian slowly lifted my bandaged hand and pressed it against his chest, directly over his heart. Even through the layers of cloth, I could feel the hard, rapid beat beneath my palm.

"I can't stop this wild admiration inside me," he said.

His voice deepened into a rough growl. His face was so close to mine that his warm breath heated my skin.

"Watching you stand there so strong, so unwilling to bend..." His eyes darkened.

"Axel is breaking every chain inside me." His fingers tightened gently around my wrist.

"He wants to protect you. But at the same time, he wants to kneel before that strength." The air between us disappeared.

"Even if we don't know what the trial will be, I want you to hold onto one thing when you enter that circle tomorrow." His gaze never wavered.

"Your own will." His voice lowered.

"Don't open the doors of your mind to anyone." A pause. "Not even me." He didn't say anything else.

There was no need. The possessive, protective fire in his eyes wrapped completely around me. That night, we sat side by side on the edge of the bed, locked together as we waited for the unknown to arrive.

Time moved like water—treacherous and impossibly fast. The next day at school passed in tense silence. Not one of us said more than a few words. The whispers in the halls and the people in our classrooms were nothing more than ghosts to us.

Every moment, we waited for another shadow. Another attack. Eventually, the hours gave way to the inevitable evening.

After school, we returned directly to pack territory and headed toward the open ritual grounds behind the mansion. Ancient runes surrounded the clearing. Darkness had fully settled, and the moon had risen above the treetops. The crackling of the torches echoed through the night.

At the center of the ritual ground, Luna Sierra, Beta Nova, Zane, and the oldest members of the council stood in a circle around enormous runes carved into the earth. Thin streams of incense drifted through the air. Mint. Moss. And something faintly magical.

My friends remained behind me as Beta Zane stepped forward. His stern, professional expression was sharper than ever. He looked directly at me.

"Time is running out, Bloom," Zane said.

His voice echoed coldly across the clearing.

"Before the shadows outside reach our door, you must prove that you belong to this pack spiritually as well."

He lifted his chin.

"Your two-stage Spiritual Trial begins now."

Cassian touched my shoulder one final time. I left the warmth of his hand behind and stepped into the center of the rune-covered circle. Blind to what waited for me. Armed with nothing but my own will. My trial was about to begin.