Chapter 5 CAELAN'S POV

CAELAN'S POV

"I'm telling you, that girl-Nyla-she isn't someone we should keep around," Thalia said again, her tone sharper than usual. Her arms were folded tightly across her chest, lips pursed like she'd been holding back more than just those words. "Who in the world sleeps for an entire month and wakes up without their memories?"

"She's under a spell," Ashir replied calmly, leaning back in his chair with an easygoing shrug. "Elda just said so. That could explain everything. Personally, I don't think she can do any harm."

Thalia scoffed, the sound clipped and bitter. "You say that now. But spells don't erase entire identities unless someone very powerful cast them. What if she really is dangerous? What if the spell was meant to suppress something dark inside her?"

"I wonder, dear," Elda said softly, and yet her voice carried so much weight it felt like the room leaned into it. She was staring directly at Thalia now, her tone pointed. "I wonder why you're so worried about someone who's posed no threat so far... unless she has, and we aren't aware of it."

Thalia's eyes widened. Her mouth parted slightly, as if a protest had rushed forward and died on her lips. But then she fell silent.

I noted the change in her expression-anxious, even a little guilty. What exactly had Elda seen that I hadn't? Thalia had always been fiercely protective of me, of the Crescent Vale Pack. But lately, her protectiveness had edged into paranoia. Was it grief, or something more?

"I agree with Elda and Ashir," I said finally, watching Thalia's reaction out of the corner of my eye. "She doesn't seem dangerous. And until we know more, it would be wrong to toss her out or leave her to fend for herself-not when rogues are still lurking near the borders. However"-I paused, letting my voice drop-"as soon as her memories return, inform me immediately. That's when we'll know for sure whether she belongs in our pack... or if she's to be killed on the spot."

Elda didn't even flinch. "A wise decision, Caelan. I'll do as you wish."

I nodded and waved her off, dismissing her with a flick of my hand. Elda bowed her head slightly in acknowledgment and vanished down the corridor, her presence fading like smoke into the stone hallways.

The silence she left behind was heavy.

"You know, as much as I'd like to be optimistic," Ashir said, drawing circles on the wooden table with his finger, "we really can't ignore the possibility that Nyla could be dangerous. She may not be the next Varek, but she's... unusual. And mysterious."

"Well, finally," Thalia snapped. "You said something useful. I thought I was the only one actually using her head."

I sighed. "We're not dismissing the possibility, Thalia. We're just saying the likelihood of her being some latent threat is slim-for now. We're confused, not blind. We just don't have a protocol for this... someone who doesn't know who they are. Someone who fell from the sky into our territory like fate dropped her there."

"Whatever," she mumbled, looking away, her expression shuttered.

"I could watch her," Ashir volunteered, his eyes gleaming with mischief. "She wouldn't even know I'm there. Plus, I'm very bored. I'll report anything of significance, Alpha. Promise."

I paused, weighing the offer.

As unbothered and lazy as Ashir could be, he was excellent at tailing people. And discreet. If anyone could keep an eye on Nyla without causing suspicion-or panic-it was him.

"Alright then. Watch her, and nothing more," I said.

"You insult me, Caelan," he said, placing a dramatic hand to his chest before grinning. "But I accept."

He turned and walked off with that lazy swagger he always wore like armor. Ashir could be annoying, sure-but useful. He played dumb most of the time, but he missed very little. He'd report back with more than just Nyla's whereabouts-he'd pick up on mood, speech patterns, even lies.

Still, I couldn't shake the feeling that having to spy on her at all... bothered me more than it should.

I turned back toward Thalia and found her still sulking, her arms crossed and lips trembling-not with anger, but something else. Hurt, maybe. Or fear. She was hard to read when she let her guard down.

I stood from my chair and crouched beside her, gently placing my fingers under her chin and tilting her face toward mine.

"You're mad at me, aren't you?" I asked quietly.

Her lips wobbled before she spoke. "I think I have every right to be, Caelan. I can't remember the last time we disagreed on anything. Even Ashir saw things from my point of view today. Ashir, who lives to contradict me."

"I understand, Thalia. I didn't mean to upset you, I promise."

And as was our unspoken language, I leaned in and pressed my lips against hers-a familiar, reassuring kiss. She responded instantly, her hand tangling in my shirt, and for a second, I forgot about the chaos of everything else.

But then I pulled away.

We were still in the war room, and someone could walk in at any time. The walls here held too many echoes. Too many secrets.

Thalia looked confused, lips slightly parted. "What's wrong?"

I didn't answer. Not because I didn't know-but because I did.

Nyla.

Her face had crept into my thoughts. The way her eyes lit up when she was curious, or the way she blushed when I caught her staring at me. I didn't even know why it bothered me. She was a stranger. A mystery wrapped in a spell. A burden, possibly.

But I'd enjoyed walking with her. I'd laughed-genuinely laughed-for the first time in weeks. And that... wasn't something Thalia had made me do lately.

I shook my head to rid myself of the thought. No. That wasn't fair. Thalia had always been there-through the war, through rebuilding the Crescent Vale Pack, through the endless meetings and patrols and fights. She had stood beside me, strong and loyal. She deserved better than my wavering focus.

"Caelan?" Thalia asked, softly now. "What are you thinking about?"

"My chambers," I said gruffly, standing and scooping her up into my arms in one smooth motion. "Now."

Her eyes widened in pleasant surprise, and she smiled. I could feel the tension in her melting already. She pressed a soft kiss to my jaw as I carried her down the corridor, past the guards who wisely looked away.

I needed her tonight-not just physically, but mentally. I needed her to remind me of who I was, of the path I had chosen. We hadn't been together in that way in a long time, not since the last battle with the rogues. Rebuilding the pack had consumed every hour, every drop of strength I had. Maybe that was why someone like Nyla-so strange, so helpless-could throw me off balance. Because I hadn't let myself feel in a long time.

Thalia clung to me, her fingers teasing the back of my neck as we reached my chambers. I pushed the door open and laid her on the bed with more force than usual, watching the hunger in her eyes as she looked up at me.

I kissed her-hard, desperate, purposeful. She moaned against my mouth and reached for the hem of her dress, and for a while, I let the heat consume us both.

This was what I needed. This was clarity. There was no mystery here, no questions, no what-ifs. Only the two of us, tangled in sheets, clinging to something solid in the middle of the chaos.

Afterward, as I lay beside her, her head resting on my chest, I stared up at the ceiling.

Thalia was content. Sated. She whispered something I didn't quite hear and drifted off to sleep, her breaths soft and even against my skin.

But I remained awake.

Because even now-after everything-I couldn't stop thinking about Nyla.

Her laugh.

Her fear.

Her mystery.

And why the hell my wolf kept stirring whenever she was near.

It wasn't love. I knew that much. It was too soon for that, too impossible. But it was something. A pull. An ache in the back of my mind and deep in my chest that warned me this woman-this stranger-was far more than she seemed.

And somehow, I knew this was only the beginning.