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CHAPTER 49
RAIDEN
When I was finally able to retire and return to my chambers, it was well past midnight. I was tired, drained and utterly miserable. The isolation of my room had never felt so heavy, pressing down on me with a force I could barely stand.
I sighed, slamming the door shut behind me. Still no sign of Lily. No fresh scents and not even a whisper in our mind-link. She must have decided to sleep in the guest room for the night instead.
How could I possibly fix this? I didn’t plan for things to go so horribly wrong.Would she ever be able to trust me again?Would she understand if I explained everything to her? I should have told her what had happened sooner. Shouldn’t have lost my temper and should have mind-linked her the moment Tanya kissed me.
It was an effort to move my tired body into the bathroom and turn the shower on. Long, sluggish moments went by as I waited for the water to heat up. Eventually, I leaned back against the shower wall, closed my eyes and slid to the ground with a frustrated groan, slamming my head twice, deliberately, against the hard tiles.
I was exhausted, mentally and physically. Having been plagued by the day’s events, over and over again, I had come up with no solution to my troubles, other than facing my mate and hoping she would believe me.
My head throbbed; a blinding headache caused by a combination of anxiety and stress. Another deep sigh as hot water cascaded over me and steam filled the tiled interior, fogging up the mirrors. I’d been sitting there for minutes, knowing that I would have to get up at some point, pull my shit together and face what awaited me.
Just when I was about to step out of the shower, a dull pain started building in my chest. I drew my brows together and pressed a palm flat to the area over my heart. It was a strange sensation, a pain unfamiliar to me. I closed my eyes, focusing solely on the steady pulse beating beneath my hand. It didn’t seem to be beating at an irregular pace, but the pain quickly grew in intensity. Exponentially doubling in vigour. Soon, my whole body reacted to the now stinging ache. Piercing.
A cold sweat broke out over my skin, and the stabbing pain shot through me, spreading out like an electric current. I stepped out of the shower, doubling over, heaving. What the-? Clutching the side of the bathtub tightly, I tried to steady myself, keep myself upright, but it was an impossible task.
Gunnar, I groaned through our mind-link.
Standing by.
My chambers, I heaved, stat.
It took Gunnar less than three minutes to barge in and find me curled up on the bathroom floor. I couldn’t move and was struggling to breathe. The pain was unbearable.
He switched off the shower and crouched beside me, his heavy hand landing on my shoulder, “Raiden? Ray, can you hear me?” his voice was laced with concern, urgent. “What’s wrong?”
I clenched my teeth, “I-I don’t know, the pain comes and goes in waves.”
“Where is it? Where’s the pain coming from?” He tried to roll me over to get a better look at what was happening, to see if I had any injuries.
I tried to focus on the pain but ended up calling my wolf to the front instead. It seemed to work, and the pain faded slightly, enough for me to uncurl and sit up, leaning onto my arms.
My eyes found Gunnar’s. “The fuck, man?” He asked, studying me with a bewildered expression.
I straightened, and he pulled me up, helped me to make my way over to the bed. Gunnar took a weary seat next to me, examining my every move, my shallow breathing, clammy pale skin and the slump of my shoulders.
“Well?”
“I’m not sure,” I groaned, still weak and light-headed, “it feels like my heart,” I added, pressing my hand firmly against my chest.
Gunnar stared at me in confusion, his forehead wrinkling, “what do you think it is? Heart attack? A witch, maybe?”
We shared a look for a moment, trying to figure out what to make of it.
“Well, congratulations, man,” Gunnar eventually said, patting me on the shoulder, “you and Lily.”
“Oh, right, the mark. Thanks.”
Suddenly Gunnar’s brows flew up. “The mate bond,” he yelled out, “Lily.”
Because I’d marked her, we were now linked for eternity by the Moon Goddess, in body, mind and soul. We could sense each other’s emotions and comfort levels. It also meant that if I was experiencing excruciating pain but couldn’t seem to figure out why, it was probably coming from her. Something was happening to her. Fuck, I was so new to this, I hadn’t even thought of it.
Without a second to waste, both of us jumped up and sprinted down the hall. Running fast enough that I didn’t quite make the last corner, I slammed into the side wall with a loud thud, almost losing my footing. Pulling myself together, I pushed on and slid to a stop right in front of Lily’s door. Gunnar joined me a second later, where I was already tugging on her door handle, but it didn’t budge.
Gunnar looked at me for a split second, took two steps back and rammed himself into the door, shoulder-first. It burst open with shards and splinters of wood flying everywhere. Well, so much for door number two.
