Chapter 12 - Mercy From The Enemy

𝐀𝐔𝐑𝐎𝐑𝐀

"No!"

The word rang through the kitchen, clear and desperate, but it didn't come from me. It came from Sonya.

She pushed away from Cyrus, stumbling forward despite her injured leg, her hands raised in a pleading gesture. "No, please don't kill him. It's not his fault." Tears streamed down her face as she looked between the Lycans, her voice breaking with what sounded like genuine anguish. "Aurora—she's done something to him. Brainwashed him somehow. The poor creature is just following her commands. He doesn't deserve to die for her manipulations."

I stared at her, my mouth falling open in shock. She was defending Cheese. Sonya, who had just broken his leg on purpose, who had screamed for them to come running, was now begging for his life.

And the Lycans were buying it.

Kaleb's violet eyes softened slightly as he looked at Sonya, his expression shifting from cold fury to something almost resembling respect. "You would spare the beast that attacked you?"

"It's not the wolf's fault," Sonya insisted, wiping at her tears. "Aurora is the monster here, not him. Please, just—just let him live. Punish her if you must, but don't kill an innocent animal for doing what she trained him to do."

Cyrus moved to her side, his hand settling on her shoulder in a gesture of comfort that made my stomach turn. "Your compassion does you credit," he said softly, his crimson eyes warm as they looked at her.

"Fine," Zayne said, adjusting his glasses. "The wolf lives. For now. But Aurora—" his gaze cut to me like a blade, "—you will serve breakfast immediately. And if that creature shows any sign of aggression again, compassion won't save it. Do you understand?"

I nodded frantically, my hands still shaking.

"Good," Kaleb said, stepping back from Cheese. "Get to work."

Cyrus lifted Sonya into his arms, cradling her against his chest as she buried her face in his shoulder. She looked so small, so vulnerable, so perfectly victimized. But just before he carried her out of the kitchen, her eyes found mine over his shoulder.

She smiled.

It was brief, barely a flicker of her lips, but I saw it. I saw the triumph in her eyes, the satisfaction of knowing she'd twisted the situation so thoroughly that she'd come out looking like a saint.

The door swung shut behind them, and I collapsed beside Cheese, wrapping my arms around his neck and burying my face in his fur. He whined softly, trying to lick my face despite his pain, and I held him tighter, my whole body trembling.

I stayed there for as long as I dared, whispering silent promises against his fur. I'll protect you. I won't let them hurt you. I swear it.

Finally, I forced myself to stand, my legs unsteady beneath me. Cheese whined from where he lay, his green eyes tracking my movements, but he didn't try to follow. He just watched, his injured leg held carefully off the ground, his whole body radiating pain.

"You're a good boy," I mouthed at him, my hands shaking as I returned to the stove. "Such a good boy."

I moved through the kitchen like a ghost, plating food with mechanical efficiency even though my vision kept blurring. The eggs, the bacon, the hash browns, the roasted vegetables—I arranged everything perfectly, my hands operating on muscle memory while my mind screamed.

Every few seconds, Cheese would whine softly from his corner, a low sound of distress that he seemed to be trying to suppress so he wouldn't disturb me. Each whine felt like a knife to my chest.

I carried the platters to the dining room as fast as I could without spilling anything, setting them on the table where the three remaining Lycans sat waiting. None of them looked at me. I was furniture again, a ghost in a servant's uniform.

The moment I returned to the kitchen, I dropped to my knees beside Cheese. His breathing was shallow, his eyes half-closed with pain, but when I touched his head, his tail gave a weak thump against the floor.

"I'm so sorry," I mouthed, my hands gentle as I examined his leg. "I'm so, so sorry."

I needed to set the bone, needed to splint it somehow, but I had no supplies and no time before they would call for me again. All I could do was sit with him, stroking his fur and whispering silent promises I didn't know if I could keep.

His eyes met mine, and I swore I saw them glisten with something that looked almost like tears. Or maybe it was just my own tears falling onto his face. I couldn't tell anymore.

"I'll protect you," I whispered again, the words barely a rasp from my damaged throat. "I promise. I'll never let them hurt you again."

Cheese whined once more, softer this time, and pressed his head against my chest like he was trying to comfort me instead of the other way around.

And in that moment, I hated Sonya more than I'd ever hated anyone in my entire life.

—

I carried the last platter to the dining room, setting it down with trembling hands. The Lycans were already eating, their conversation flowing around me like I wasn't there. I turned to leave, desperate to get back to Cheese, when Kaleb's voice stopped me cold.

"Stay."

I froze, my hand on the doorframe.

"You'll remain here until we're finished," he continued, not even looking up from his plate. "In case we need anything else."

My chest tightened. From the kitchen, I could hear Cheese whining—soft, pained sounds that made my heart clench with each one. I tried to sign that I needed to help him, but Kaleb's violet eyes cut to me with a warning that made the words die in my throat.

"I said stay."

Another whine drifted through the doorway, louder this time, and I felt something crack inside me. My hands clenched into fists at my sides, my nails digging into my palms hard enough to hurt.

"Oh, for heaven's sake," Sonya said softly from where she sat beside Cyrus, her leg bandaged and elevated on a cushioned stool. "Let her go tend to the poor creature. It's clearly in pain, and it's her fault anyway. She should be the one to deal with it."

Kaleb frowned, but Rafayel nodded slowly. "She has a point. The animal's suffering because of her actions. She should be responsible for managing it."

"Your compassion continues to amaze me," Cyrus said, reaching over to squeeze Sonya's hand. "Even after what happened, you're thinking of the wolf's wellbeing."

Sonya smiled softly, though her eyes when they found mine were cold and calculating. "I just can't stand to hear anything suffer. Even if it did attack me."

"Fine," Zayne said, adjusting his glasses. "Go. But you'll return immediately if we call for you."

I didn't wait for them to change their minds. I bolted back to the kitchen, dropping to my knees beside Cheese so fast I nearly slid across the floor. He whimpered when he saw me, his tail attempting a weak wag despite his pain.

"I'm here," I mouthed, my hands gentle as I examined his leg more carefully. "I'm so sorry, I'm here now."

The bone was definitely broken, the leg swelling where Sonya's foot had come down. I needed to splint it, needed to stabilize it before the swelling got worse. I scrambled to my feet, searching through the kitchen for anything I could use—wooden spoons, clean rags, anything.

I found a drawer full of old utensils and pulled out two long wooden spoons, then grabbed several clean kitchen towels. Cheese watched me with those intelligent green eyes, understanding somehow that I was trying to help.

"This is going to hurt," I whispered, my voice barely a rasp. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

I positioned the spoons on either side of his leg as carefully as I could, then began wrapping the towels around them to create a makeshift splint. Cheese whimpered with each movement, but he didn't snap at me or try to pull away. He just pressed his head against my shoulder, trusting me completely even though I was causing him pain.

By the time I finished, my hands were shaking so badly I could barely tie the final knot. Cheese licked my face once, then settled his head in my lap with a long, exhausted sigh.

I stroked his fur, whispering wordless comfort, and that's when it hit me.

The exhaustion slammed into me like a physical force, so sudden and overwhelming that I didn't even have time to brace myself. One moment I was sitting upright, the next I was swaying, my vision tunneling to a pinpoint. I'd been awake since before midnight, cleaning the entire estate, cooking breakfast, enduring Sonya's cruelty, watching Cheese get hurt—

My body simply gave up.

I tried to catch myself, tried to at least lower myself gently, but my muscles wouldn't respond. I collapsed sideways, my arms still wrapped around Cheese, my cheek pressed against the cool kitchen floor. Cheese shifted slightly, tucking his body closer to mine like he was trying to keep me warm, and the last thing I felt before darkness claimed me was his steady heartbeat against my chest.

—

A loud crash jolted me awake.

My eyes flew open to find two figures looming over me, their shadows stretching across the kitchen floor in the afternoon light.

 I blinked, disoriented, my mind struggling to piece together where I was and why everything hurt.

Kaleb stood closest, his violet eyes blazing with fury. Beside him, Rafayel's golden gaze was cold and hard.

"So this is where you've been hiding," Kaleb said, his voice a low growl that made the air vibrate. "After poisoning the food. Even after Sonya showed you mercy."

My heart stopped.