21: Beneath the Mask
Kaelen’s POV
The garden was quiet after Celeste left. It was as if there was something that had been left unsaid. The cool night air caressed my skin, but I barely noticed. My mind was elsewhere, it was still set on her.
I’d seen the look in her eyes as we spoke, the weight she was carrying pressing down on her shoulders. She had tried to hide it, masking her pain behind a weak smile and soft words, but I wasn’t blind.
She was grieving.
I could feel it, even if she didn’t say it aloud. Her thoughts were written across her face, her emotions were laced in every movement. She was thinking of her family, of those she’d lost.
I leaned back against the tree at my back, staring skyward at the stars. The grief wrapped around you, tighter and tighter, until it could suffocate or become a part of who you were. The feeling was one I knew too well.
I was eight years old when my world had been torn apart, my parents killed in an ambush, their blood staining the earth where I’d stood only a moment before. It was chaos as I remembered fire and screams, the metallic tang of blood in the air. I had survived by the luck of a draw, hidden beneath the body of a fallen warrior.
Even now, decades later, I could still hear my mother’s voice and still see my father’s determined expression as he fought to protect us. That loss had shaped me and hardened me, and I’d vowed never to feel that kind of pain again.
I took a deep breath, my eyes closing. There was no way to comfort someone in grief, not really. And even if there were, I wasn’t the type to do so. Comfort had never come easily to me as I hated giving it, and I hated receiving it.
Pain was something I knew how to live with, to take as part of life. But Celeste… she wasn’t me.
Her pain was raw and fresh, and she carried it alone, much as I had. But she shouldn’t have to.
I sprang up, instantly deciding to take a leap before I was able to reconsider it. If anyone could help me sort out a means of finding Celeste, it was Irina.
I found myself outside my sister’s chambers moments later. The door was closed, the faint glow of candlelight visible through the crack at the bottom. Normally, I would have knocked. Normally, I would Successfully unlocked! walled
unlocked! to invite me in.
But tonight, I didn’t have the patience.
I pushed the door open without warning, stepping inside.
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21: Beneath the Mask
Seated at her vanity, brushing her hair, Irina’s face changed in an instant, from calm to irritated. “Kaelen,” she snapped, laying the brush down with a sharp clatter. “Do you ever knock?”
I ignored her question, stepping further into the room. “I need to talk to you.
Irina turned fully to face me, her brows drawn together in frustration. “You need to learn some manners. We’re not babies anymore, Kaelen. And in case you’ve forgotten, you have a wife now. This” she gestured to the door I’d left wide open ” is not how a married man behaves.“She said grinning
I crossed my arms, unimpressed by her scolding. “This has nothing to do with me being married.”
“Doesn’t it?” she countered, raising a brow. “Or are you here because of Celeste?”
Her words hit the bull’s eyes, and I hesitated just long enough for her to notice.
Irina huffed, her annoyance melting as she gestured for me to sit. “Fine. Tell me what
this is about.”
I sat down opposite her, resting my elbows on my knees, and leaning forward. I was still a little nervous, but I forced my mind to adhere.
Irina looked at me, her bright eyes narrowing. “You’re awfully quiet,” she said. “Should I
be worried?”
I didn’t respond immediately, my eyes fixed on the floor. My mind raced with everything I wanted to say, everything I wanted to ask. But the words felt heavy, tangled in my throat.
Irina tilted her head, her curiosity growing. “Kaelen?”
I glanced up at her, my jaw tightening. “It’s about Celeste.”
Irina’s face softened slightly and she leaned back against the headboard of her bed. ”
Go on.
I hesitated, the weight of what I needed to say settling heavily on me. There was so much to say but no easy way to say it.
“She’s struggling,” I said finally, my voice low. “And I don’t know how to help her.
Irina’s eyebrows rose. “You? Asking for advice on how to help someone?”
I threw her a look, the look did not say amused.
“Sorry,” she said in a rush, though the smirking didn’t leave her lips. “I’m just not used to seeing you like this.”
I leaned back in my chair, running a hand through my hair. “She’s grieving, Irina. Her family, her pack… everything she’s lost. I can see it eating away at her, but she won’t talk to me about it. And I don’t know how to reach her.
Irina’s face turned contemplative, and she crossed her arms as she studied me. “You‘
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21: Beneath the Mask
ve never been one for emotional connections, Kaelen. Why does this bother you so much?”
“Because she’s my mate,” I said simply.
Irina’s gaze softened, and for once, she didn’t push. Instead, she nodded, her lips pressing into a thin line.
“You’ve always taken everything on yourself,” she said after a moment. “The weight of the pack, the curse, the expectations. But this… Kaelen, you can’t fix this on your own.”
I clenched my fists, my frustration simmering just beneath the surface. “I don’t need to fix it. I just need to help her.”
Irina’s lips arced into a faint smile, but it didn’t reach her eyes. “And what makes you think she’ll let you?”
I didn’t have an answer for that.
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