IMPRESS. [Book 1]

Chapter Eighty-Seven: Trials & Tribulations

[Hi guys! (if you are still with me) I am back, next chapter will be out soon but enjoy this one for now, I'm really sorry for long hiatus!]

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Chapter Eighty-Seven: Trials & Tribulations

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A week later....

Cathryn's POV~

I couldn't shake the weight of my last moments with Alaric. The memory gnawed at me—a relentless reminder of how I should've fought harder, done more to save him. The guilt was crushing. Alaric had practically died in my arms, yet even in his final moments, he was the same selfless man I had fallen for.

Watching him slip away shattered me. I knew I'd never forgive myself for failing him. He died saving me, pouring every ounce of strength he had into ensuring I survived. He spent his last moments alone because he wanted so desperately for me to make it out alive. Alaric was my hero, but his sacrifice devastated me.. And what he did out there- What he did to rescue me... Left me speechless.

Words couldn't even fathom my thoughts then or even now. 

Even now, I couldn't fully process it. Words failed me, and the shock lingered like a shadow over my thoughts. Somehow, impossibly, Ric had transported me to the safety of the woods. It's like he shut my eyes for me and when I opened them, I was no longer in that nightmare but standing amidst the trees. 

I couldn't comprehend how but he transported me to the safety of the woods. The same woods where I would eventually stumble across Alexander, Derek, Chris, Xavier, and Terrence on their search for a safe house. The timing felt like a miracle, 

The pain hit again as I took stock of what we'd lost. The castle torturers were no longer six—Aaron had been slaughtered, Dario taken prisoner alongside his father, Alpha Raymond Hunter, and Douglas had vanished without a trace. The weight of these losses was unbearable, but the relief of reuniting with some of my people, especially my brother and Derek, was a small solace. All of it was thanks to Alaric.

I dabbed at my eye, feeling a tear tickle at its corner. All that time he was much more capable than what he let on. He truly meant it when said he could protect us both, only... he just got unlucky this time.

A tear slid down my cheek as I thought of him. He was far more capable than I ever gave him credit for. He meant it when he said he could protect us both—he just got unlucky. His sacrifice made me question everything I'd missed, including Natalya. Could she possess the same power? As a descendant of Andrea Driarco, was she as gifted as Alaric had proven to be? It was maddening that I hadn't realised this sooner. As the supposed "brains" of my siblings, I felt betrayed by the truth I had failed to see.

"Your grace, you should get some sleep," Cassandra murmured, turning toward me from where she lay, her voice soft but tinged with concern.

"I will, I will," I whispered back, "sleep well."