Chapter 41
Evelyne watched Kaldrek practice his wielding every night, and she could not have been prouder.
Each evening, his control strengthened. He could draw from water and flame for longer now, hold their power more steadily than before. Yet the land answered him most readily. The ground beneath him seemed to know him, to recognize something ancient and commanding in his blood.
Roots. Stone. Soil.
That was where his strength truly lived.
Perhaps it was because the wilds had always been his home—the forests, the rolling grasslands, the solid press of the world beneath his paws when he ran.
Evelyne believed his power would always be strongest there, among the deep-rooted things.
And tonight, seated alone with him in a small makeshift tent near the edge of the Shaw orchard fields, she watched him practice once more.
Kaldrek held both hands above the ground, eyes closed in concentration. Slowly, the dirt and scattered stones beneath him began to stir. Pebbles rattled softly, then lifted into the air in uneven clusters.
It was magnificent. And a little adorable.
His brow furrowed, his mouth pressing into a thin line as he fought to keep his focus. But when he opened his eyes, the wonder shining in his dark gaze made Evelyne’s heart swell.
“Kaldrek,” she whispered, smiling. “You are amazing. I knew you could do it.”
He smiled back, then carefully lowered the stones and soil.
When he tried again, he sank lower, bowing his head as he pressed both palms firmly into the ground. This time, when he lifted his hands, the force came with him. The ground trembled beneath them. Evelyne’s balance faltered, and she reached out to steady herself. Kaldrek had not moved.
“Kaldrek… what are you—?”
His head lifted slowly, but the shaking did not stop.
Then she saw his eyes.
Black. Rimmed in silver.
Just like his mother’s.
He tilted his head and smiled, but there was no warmth in it.
“Stop,” Evelyne said quickly. “You do not know what you are doing.”
Kaldrek raised his hands higher. The ground split between them with a violent crack, and a low growl rolled from his throat as his fangs descended.
He was losing control.
“Enough!” Evelyne shouted.
But he did not stop. He only stared at her with empty, distant eyes as the land obeyed him. More soil lifted. More stone tore free.
How was he doing this?
Evelyne stepped toward him, ready to leap across the widening crack—when the ground shifted again. Dark, blood-veined roots forced their way up through the soil, twisting and spreading like something dead clawing free from a grave.
“Kaldrek! Stop!” she screamed.
Panic surged through her. She needed to warn the others. Find the Oathroot pack. Someone—anyone—had to stop him.
This was not her mate.
Not the Kaldrek she knew.
“Evelyne.” His voice came low and distorted.
She couldn’t move. Her feet felt frozen to the land itself.
What was happening?
“Evelyne!”
Hands grabbed her shoulders and the scene shattered.
She gasped as she woke, the nightmare dissolving around her.
Kaldrek was there—real, solid, and very much himself—his dark brown eyes wide with concern as he gently shook her awake. Her heart pounded wildly as sweat cooled against her skin.
“Another nightmare?” he asked quietly.
She could not bring herself to speak, so she only nodded. She could not tell him it had been the same dream again.
Kaldrek drew her gently into his arms and pressed a soft kiss to the top of her head, his hand moving slowly through her hair as he tried to soothe her. But even when she closed her eyes, sleep never truly returned.
***
“You want to tell me why you’re being distant this morning,” Kaldrek asked lightly as they approached the path to her home, “or should I keep tiptoeing around you in case you decide to bite?”
Evelyne heard the teasing in his voice, but the words barely reached her.
How could she possibly explain any of it?
How could she tell him that the nightmare had returned again—the same one where he lost himself to something dark and terrible?
How could she explain the knot twisting in her stomach as they neared the manor she had not seen since leaving to save Cillian?
And how could she begin to tell him that soon she and her brother would have to tell their mother the truth about their father?
Or that Aurelia still didn’t know. Or that Evelyne herself was now a wolf and mated to an alpha.
And she certainly wasn’t ready to speak of Lord Ivan Bavrick.
Normally, Evelyne prided herself on keeping control of her emotions. But as the familiar path leading to Duskwood Manor came into view, everything crashed over her at once like a sudden blow to the chest. Her breath shortened, and a tremor ran through her hands.
“Come here. Now.” Kaldrek’s hand settled gently on her shoulder.
She did not argue. Her body moved toward him on instinct, as though it already knew where safety lay.
He gathered her close, one arm around her shoulders while his other hand cradled the back of her head, guiding her against his chest. She pressed her cheek to him and breathed in his familiar, intoxicating scent, grounding herself in the steady strength of him.
Beneath her ear, his heartbeat thudded slow and sure as he held her tightly.
Behind them, the others stopped walking, giving them space.
“Let’s take a minute,” he murmured.
“No. I’m quite fine,” she said quickly, pushing herself back, though her eyes remained lowered.
“Look at me.”
“I’m fine. Truly.”
“Then look at me.”
Reluctantly, she lifted her head.
His dark eyes met hers with unhurried patience. He said nothing, only let his thumb drift along her cheekbone as he waited for her breath to settle.
The others could wait. The world could wait.
“I’ve watched you face demons in tunnels so dark most men would have fled before taking a single step,” he said quietly.
“I watched you stand against a blood-magic witch who would have broken the world itself.” His voice warmed.
“I’ve seen you push through every humiliation during training without ever once backing down.
And I’ve seen you fight—not for pride, not for glory, but for the people you love. ”
His hand slid gently beneath her chin, lifting it slightly.
“Whatever is weighing on you now, you will overcome that too. Because you, Evelyne, are the most extraordinary female I have ever met.”
A smile broke across her face before she could stop it.
“I love you,” she whispered.
Kaldrek tilted her chin upward and leaned closer, his voice dropping into a low murmur near her lips.
“Good,” he said. “Because I am completely, hopelessly obsessed with loving you.”
Then he kissed her.
His lips met hers slowly, as though reminding her exactly where she belonged.
The moment stretched, the world slipping away as his warmth surrounded her.
She melted against him. His hand slid into her hair as the kiss deepened, and when his lips parted, she answered without hesitation.
Her fingers curled at the back of his neck, drawing him closer as their bodies pressed together.
It grew urgent, consuming—his mouth moving with a hunger that made her head spin, his touch sending warmth through her chest and down her spine.
For a moment, she forgot everything—the manor, the fear, the grief waiting ahead. There was only him. Only the way they fit together, as though they had always been meant to.
The kiss was so intoxicating she barely registered the sound of someone clearing their throat behind them.
“Miss Evelyne Duskwood,” Aurelia said primly, “I believe you might remember your manners before our dear mother faints at the sight.”
Evelyne pulled away quickly, covering her mouth as laughter bubbled up despite herself.
“Oh—my apologies.”
Aurelia’s stern expression lasted only a moment before it transformed into a knowing smile.
Then the moment passed, and together, Evelyne, Kaldrek, Aurelia, and Cillian turned toward the place she had once called home.