Chapter 2 Old wounds

Chapter 2: Old Wounds

"You came," she continued, her voice low and tinged with something I couldn't quite identify, maybe resentment? Was it relief, then? It was of no importance today.

"I came," I said, moving farther into the room under her watchful eye. "You were correct." We have no time to lose.

Her eyes flitted momentarily over me before returning to the table strewn with maps and reports. I was not incorrect. Vincent, I didn't expect you to arrive. Not after all that.

Her words pierced me more than I would want to acknowledge. She need not say it. We both understood what had taken place. Years of quiet, of painful distance. And now here we were, brought together once more by something far larger than each of us.

Avoiding her sight, I said, "I had no choice." The rogues are pushing more forcefully. The Alpha Kings... I caught myself. There was no cause to say more about it. She was aware of it all.

Her lips grew tight and a muscle in her jaw twitched. "You still don't believe me, right?"

I finally looked into her eyes. Trust? That's a strange thing to mention. Kailyn, what about you? You left us, our people, all we had, everything behind. Now you wish to discuss confidence?

Her chair scraped back violently as she got up. I did what I believed to be best for myself. And don't pretend you didn't do the same thing. You also departed. Don't assume I don't recall. She moved nearer; the tension between us was clear. No, then. I don't either trust you.

The air was heavy with the burden of past wounds, but even as the words lingered between us, something else started to boil, something unarguable. Watching her made my chest tighten; the tension between us now felt almost palpable. We had a war to fight, but this... this wasn't about fighting one. This was about us, about all that had gone unspoken for decades.

A loud explosion shook the room before I could react. The earth under us trembled, and I automatically grabbed for her, drawing her towards me. The air crackled with anxiety and the outside sounds of mayhem became louder.

"They've found us," Kailyn murmured, her voice almost lost in the noise. Her face was tough when she looked me in the eyes. Be ready. We are fighting now.

have time to consider before mayhem broke out around us. Already on her feet, Kailyn dashed for the weapons lining the wall. I followed impulse, taking my own sword as she did.

"Vincent, you don't get to decide any more," she added, her voice strong. Though her hands trembled, I could see the fire in her eyes, the fighter I remembered. "This is my fight now; should you wish to survive it, you will follow my lead."

I did not contest. Time was lacking. The smell of blood permeated the air as the conflict outside the walls roared louder. Just beyond the door, I could hear the heavy footfalls of rogue wolves roaring and howling as they approached. Knowing precisely what had to be done, Kailyn moved with precision. I wasn't here to fight her wars; no, this was our struggle now. As one.

Rushing by me, her moves flowing and every action a deliberate strike, I caught a sight of her. She was still the same Kailyn, fiery and stubborn, and I couldn't help but admire her.

We were, however, on the same side now. I wanted her. I was prepared to battle beside her regardless of what the past between us contained.

Outside, the first rogue wolf crashed at the door, claws scraping against the wood. Already moving, I stepped into position next to Kailyn to confront the approaching wave of adversaries. Under the assault's ferocity, the door broke; the wolves started rushing through with frantic eyes and bared fangs.

We battled side by side. Every blow was precise, quick, and in harmony. Our bodies moving as one, her blade slicing through the air, mine following in perfect rhythm, it was as though we had never been separated. Her body so near I could almost hear her heart racing as rapidly as mine, her breath in my ear. Though there was little time to reflect on it, the tension between us was unmistakable. All that remained was the struggle and the battle we had to win.

But suddenly, just as it appeared we had taken charge of the chamber, the ground shook under yet another powerful assault. The door burst open with such fierce power it drove us both falling backward.

Then I spotted it.

Before he leaped, I hardly had time to notice the peril. He was quite quick. Though the impact made me fall backward, I was able to block his first hit. Kailyn, not far behind me, her sword gleaming as she blocked another one of his strikes.

"Stay close," I snarled, my voice almost a whisper. There was no room for uncertainty now; this was do or die.

The Alpha, however, was not allowing us any breathing space. Everywhere at once, his claws slicing through the air quicker than we could respond. Though my instincts yelled at me to go back, I could not, would not leave Kailyn behind.

Finding her balance, she rolled elegantly to avoid his next blow, her gaze fixed on the Alpha. Keeping close, I observed every movement and followed suit. We were once more in sync, battling like we had previously, but this foe was different kind. Something we were unprepared for.

I swung at the Alpha's side and struck a glancing blow; it was like hitting a brick wall. He didn't even wince.

Kailyn's eyes sparkled with the same resolve that had once driven us through the most trying of circumstances. "He's too strong," she remarked, her voice steady in the mayhem.

Blood rushing in my ears, I said, "We'll find a way."

Though the fight was over, the tension in the air persisted. It never done so. Not with her, I suppose.

I wanted to say anything to shatter the silence. The words, however, were caught in my throat, too knangled with years of hate, remorse, and untold truths. I ended up looking at her instead, at how the gentle glimmer of the candlelight played off her dark hair and how her sharp, defined features still bore the weight of all she had experienced. She was just as lovely as I remembered, perhaps even more so. But suddenly there was remoteness in her eyes, a gap I wasn't sure I could traverse.

What next? Kailyn's voice pierced the stillness, the query straightforward yet laden. Though she talked without looking up, I could sense her gaze on me in the manner she expressed it, almost as if challenging me.

"Now we fight," I said, my voice more gruff than I meant. That was the fact. We had no option but to battle. But something else was brewing between us, something far more hazardous than the wild wolves we had just driven off. I could not longer overlook it.

Kailyn moaned, her fingers rhythmically drumming on the map. "You always know just what to say, don't you?"

I opened my mouth to speak, but the words perished before they left my lips. The years separating us, years full of too much suffering, too much unsaid, loomed over us and I was unsure how to close that gap.

"You can't trust me," I eventually whispered, the words tumbling out before I could stop them. "I understand you cannot."

Her head shot up and I noticed the flare of feeling in her eyes-anger, disappointment, perhaps even fear. But it was gone as fast as it arrived, hidden beneath her frigid exterior.

Vincent, don't act as though I don't know what you are thinking, she replied softly. We are not unfamiliar. Not really.

Her comments pierced deeper than I had anticipated, so I gritted my jaw. She was correct, after all. We were not unknowns. We had shared too much, been through too much, to act as if we didn't know one another better than anybody else ever could. But that did not allow me to forget what she had done. What I had made.

"I'm not pretending," I responded, my voice rough. "I'm just trying to get through this without losing anything."

Standing, her lips twitched with precise, incisive movement. "You always believe you're the only one attempting to keep everything together."

We had no time for it. No more. Our packs called for us. The wild wolves were closing in from every direction. The conflict had only started.

Kailyn murmured, her voice tight but resolute as we walked past the makeshift barricades along the corridors, "We can't do this alone." Every ally we can obtain will be required.

I nodded, my mind a tangle of strategies and dangers. I agreed. Agreed. But right now, we cannot afford to throw faith away freely.

Kailyn looked at me, her eyes narrowing. I never mentioned anything about giving it away gratis. Our people are dying, so we cannot afford to hang onto grudges.

I felt her words' weight land on me. Of course, she was correct. What was going on overshadowed our history, our fractured past. Still, I wasn't certain I could so lightly abandon that history. I wasn't certain she could either.

You believe I am ignorant of that? I snapped, my annoyance rising to the surface. Kailyn, this is not only about payback. Survival is what matters. It's about preserving what's left.

She turned to look at me and stopped abruptly. Vincent, stop bringing up survival to me. You have no idea how it feels to lose everything.

The words struck me more than I wanted them to. I understood what it was like. I have also lost individuals.

"Then perhaps it's time we both stop pretending," I murmured softly, meeting her gaze. Then we should begin cooperating.

Neither of us moved for a long time. The air between us was thick not just with the promise of what was to come but with the shared history we both tried to ignore.

Kailyn finally breathed out, her shoulder stiffness somewhat subsiding. Alright. We battle as one. But don't believe for one second that indicates we are pals."

"I don't need friends," I grumbled, my voice harsh. I require allies.

Her face unreadable, she looked into my eyes. Then, just as fast, she spun and walked towards the door, her footsteps resonating down the corridor.

But before we could get there, a voice over the intercom broke in.

"There's a traitor in the pack," it replied coldly and finally. It's not only one of ours.