Kano's War

Chapter 37

The first thing I noticed was the beeping.

Soft. Steady. Almost too calm for what I remembered.

Then came the light—dim and yellow behind my eyelids—followed by the sterile scent of antiseptic and the ache that pulsed through every inch of me. My mouth was dry. My chest tight. But I was alive.

I blinked slowly, vision adjusting to a small hospital room. Pale walls. A single window letting in a golden spill of sunlight. Machines to my side, a thin blanket over me, and the distinct weight of a hand wrapped around mine.

Kano.

His eyes were red, jaw bruised, knuckles scraped and bandaged—but it was him. And the moment our eyes met, I saw the shift in his face. Relief. Pain. Something else I couldn't place.

"You're awake," he breathed, tightening his hold.

I tried to sit up but winced immediately. "Where... where are we?"

"Stay down." He placed a hand to my chest and gently pushed me back. I could see the tiredness in his eyes. He looked like he had been crying as well. He paused for a little while and glanced over me before he began talking again,"Human territory. Eastern end of the land," he said. "It was the closest hospital after the battle."

I swallowed, my heart catching on that word—battle.

"Is it over?"

He nodded. "The tower fell. The kingdom's in shambles now. Tristan's dead."

My breath hitched. "Dead?" The sound of my own voice made my head pound and I hissed silently.

"You have a concussion." Kano whispered.

Artemis' voice came from the corner of the room. I hadn't even noticed her standing there, arms crossed tightly over her chest. "Kano killed him easily."

I looked between them both, my chest tightening. Something was wrong. I could feel it in the silence. In the way Kano wouldn't meet my eyes fully.

My hand drifted to my chest instinctively.

There was no hum. No presence. No soft whisper of my wolf.

I blinked. Then blinked again.

"Wait," I said slowly. "Why can't I...?" I trailed off, unable to form the rest of the question. My heart began to beat faster. "Where is she, is the silver still in my system?"

The room turned stiff.

Kano stood, jaw working as if trying to form an answer he didn't want to give.

"She's just weak, right?" I asked, voice growing sharper. "It's the silver, isn't it?"

"No," came another voice—deeper, steadier.

Alpha Cole.

My father stepped through the doorway, dressed in black, looking both relieved and furious. His eyes met mine, and I saw the pity there before he even spoke.

"She's gone, Amory."

Silence. Total, deafening silence.

I stared at him, unsure if I'd heard right. "What?"

"She's not gone," Kano snapped, his voice rough. He looked at my father like he was ready for another fight, "She's—she's still alive. Just not inside her anymore."

"What... what does that mean?" I said, heat rising to my face. "Where is she?"

Kano looked away. Artemis closed her eyes. My father stepped closer.