the blood of hades

Chapter 8: Chiro

I sat in the small clearing I normally did right outside of the pack house in the woods, listening to the crunching of leaves behind me. I didn't bother turning around; it was probably just Ryan or maybe the goddesses. They had been ignoring me since everything happened. I wanted to know what had happened, why it had happened.

"You're off bed rest sooner than you should be," a voice said. That voice... it didn't belong to Ryan or the goddesses. I spun around to see Lucas standing there. My heart raced, worried that he might remember what I had forced him to forget, what he had seen...

"You're here more often than you should be," I retorted with a sarcastic tone and a forced smile. Stay calm. He probably doesn't remember anything. He shouldn't.

Lucas chuckled as he took a seat next to me in the overgrown grass. I ran my hands through it, tugging at a few strands to fiddle with. "The king's busy protecting the kingdom. He's talking to other packs, so I'm here because you're our second strongest pack other than ourselves. Plus, all the attacks have been more directed here than the palace. I'm here on his behalf," Lucas said, calming my nerves slightly. At least he wasn't here to spy on me. "But seriously, you should still be on bed rest. You were out for a few days; you got really... hurt."

That pause in his sentence made me believe that he truly did not remember. It was as if he was trying to remember, and the only thing he could think of was that I must have gotten injured during the attack.

"I'm a fast healer, being a hybrid and all. Not only do I have werewolf healing, but I have vampire healing," I said. It wasn't completely a lie; any injuries I had sustained had healed. The only reason I was in bed for so long was because my energy was so weak after using my goddess abilities. But I was fine now.

"That's good, I guess," Lucas said, looking off into the distance as if he was trying to think. "Do you have family here?" he asked me out of the blue.

"If you count Ryan, he's basically my big brother," I said, chuckling before shaking my head. "My mother died when I was born. I never got to meet her, but Ryan and his father did. They say I'm just like her in some ways," I said, wishing I knew her, wishing I was able to connect with her and learn from her.

"And your father?" he asked with a somber note to his tone.

My heartbeat picked up slightly. "Not really in my life," I mumbled under my breath. It wasn't a lie; Hades wasn't in my life, but Lucas didn't need to know the reason why. "What about you? Does your family live within the palace?"

Lucas seemed to appreciate the change in topic. "Yeah, they do. My parents were advisors to the king before they retired. They live a bit farther from the palace now, in a quieter part of the territory. I see them when I can, but duty keeps me busy."

I nodded, feeling a pang of envy for his relatively normal family life. "Must be nice to have them close by."

He smiled, a touch of wistfulness in his eyes. "It is. But duty comes first, especially now with everything going on."

We sat in silence for a moment, the weight of our respective responsibilities hanging between us. The moonlight filtered through the trees, casting a gentle glow on the clearing.

"Lucas," I started, unsure of how to proceed, "do you ever feel... overwhelmed by all of this? By the responsibility, the expectations?"

He looked at me, his gaze softening. "Every day, Cairo. Every single day. But we do what we have to, for our packs, for our people. It's what keeps us going."

We sat in comfortable silence for a few moments, both lost in our thoughts. The sounds of the forest surrounded us, providing a peaceful backdrop to our conversation. Lucas broke the silence first, his voice gentle.