Chapter Nineteen

The Burning Mark

Mila (Erwin)

Morning duties did not stop just because pain lived under my skin. The yard was already busy when work began. The buckets scraped the ground. Wood cracked under blades. Voices moved around like nothing was wrong. Yet something was very wrong with me.

The blue mark on my shoulder burned without pause. It did not rise and fall anymore. It stayed. Deep. Sharp. Constant. Every breath felt heavier than the last.

“Erwin, move faster,” a guard shouted.

“Yes,” I answered, forcing my legs to obey.

Each step sent pain through my arm. I clenched my teeth and kept going. Stopping was not an option. Questions followed stopping. Eyes followed weakness.

Two maids passed behind me.

“Did you hear?” one whispered.

“The prince brought a woman,” the other replied. “They say she will be his bride.”

The mark flared.

My hand slipped on the bucket. Water splashed onto the ground.

“Careful,” Marge said sharply as she rushed toward me. “What is wrong with you today?”

“Nothing,” I said quickly. “Just tired.”

Marge’s eyes narrowed. “You have been tired for days.”

“I can work,” I insisted.

She reached for my arm. I pulled away too fast.

“Do not touch me,” I said.

Her expression changed. “Erwin?”

“I mean… I am fine,” I added quickly.

She did not look convinced.

Across the yard, Selena laughed while sorting vegetables. Her face was bright. She hummed under her breath.

“You look happy,” Marge said to her.

Selena smiled. “They say the prince is finally getting married. That means the pack will be calm again.”

The mark burned hotter.

I turned away before my face betrayed me.

Thoughts crowded my head. The healer’s voice returned clear and sharp.

The pain will grow as the bond awakens.

Distance will no longer help.

I had refused to believe her. I had told myself it was stress. Fear. Injury. Anything else.

But the pain reacted to his name.

It reacted to the thought of him choosing another.

Lucien.

The man I had dragged from blood and dirt. The man who had looked at me like he was seeing something he did not understand. The man who had punished someone for hurting me when no one else ever had.

My mate.

The word formed in my mind, heavy and unwanted.

“No,” I whispered.

“Did you say something?” Selena asked, stepping closer.

I shook my head. “No.”

She studied me. “You look pale.”

“I am fine.”

She smiled softly. “You should rest more. Someone will love you one day too. You work hard. Any woman would be lucky.”

The mark burned deeper.

I turned away again. “Stop talking.”

Selena blinked. “I was only—”

“Just work,” I snapped.

She stepped back, hurt flashing across her face.

Marge sighed. “Erwin, enough. Go fetch the firewood.”

I nodded and moved toward the storage area. My steps slowed without my permission. My arm shook as I lifted the wood.

Pain spread down my back.

“You are shaking,” Marge called.

“I said I am fine,” I replied, my voice rough.

Another group passed by.

“The wedding will be soon,” one man said. “The Alpha ordered preparations.”

“About time,” another replied. “The prince needs a woman to steady him.”

The mark exploded with pain.

My knees buckled.

“Erwin!” Marge shouted.

I grabbed the table, breathing hard. Sweat rolled down my neck. My vision blurred.

“I need… air,” I muttered.

Marge rushed over. “Sit down.”

“No,” I said. “I need to finish.”

She grabbed my shoulders. “Enough. You will collapse.”

Selena ran toward us. “What is happening?”

“I do not know,” Marge said. “He has been like this all morning.”

“I am not sick,” I said. “Please.”

My voice cracked. That scared me more than the pain.

Marge lowered her voice. “Is it the mark again?”

I froze.

Selena frowned. “What mark?”

“Nothing,” I said quickly.

Marge held my gaze. She knew. “You should see the healer.”

“No.”

“Erwin,” she said firmly. “You are not well.”

The world tilted.

The mark burned like it was alive. Every thought of Lucien standing beside another woman made it worse. My chest tightened. My breath came out broken.

This bond did not care that I was hiding. It did not care that I was seen as a man. It did not care that loving him would ruin everything.

It was demanding.

“I cannot,” I whispered.

Marge caught me as my legs gave out.

“Help!” Selena shouted.

Hands grabbed me. Voices blurred together.

“Lay him down.”

“He is burning up.”

“Get water.”

The ground felt cold beneath me. My vision darkened at the edges.

Marge’s face hovered above me. “Stay with me, Erwin.”

“I do not want this,” I whispered.

“What?” she asked.

“The bond,” I said. “It hurts.”

Her eyes widened.

The pain surged once more, stronger than before. It felt like something inside me was being pulled apart.

I gasped as everything went black.