Chapter 497: You are Safe.

ADREIN.

I stood frozen at the head of the cot, my broad palm pressed flat against Maria’s smooth, ice-cold forehead.

The heavy scent of metallic blood and bitter herbs hung thick in the warm air of the infirmary, mixed with the quiet, rhythmic trickling of dark, poisoned blood draining through the copper tube into the basin below.

Physician Thorne adjusted the silver binding straps on her wrists, his fingers moving with practiced, frantic speed. "Keep your mind steady, Alpha Adrein," Thorne instructed, his voice low and tight. "Do not push your aura too hard. The wolfsbane has made her spirit fragile. If you force the bond thread, her body will fight it like an attack."

"I know what I’m doing," I muttered through gritted teeth, closing my eyes to shut out the sterile white walls and the glare of the lanterns.

I took a slow, deep breath, reaching inward toward the center of my chest where our pack bond thread resided. It was frayed, thin as a hair, and burning with a dull, throbbing pain, but it was still there. I gently gathered my golden Alpha warmth—not the dominant, heavy power I usually flexed, but a steady, calm, soothing heat—and guided it down through my arm, pouring it directly through my palm and into her forehead.

The moment my energy touched her, I felt the icy, suffocating fog inside her mind.

It was horrifying. Vincent’s wolfsbane was like a thick layer of frost coating her internal wolf, freezing her spirit into a terrifying stillness. But as my warmth trickled in, the frost began to melt. Tiny sparks of her dormant spirit flickered back to life, reaching toward my heat like a starving flame.

"It’s working," I rasped out, my chest heaving as sweat broke out across my brow. "Her spirit is taking the energy."

"Good," Thorne said, leaning over her arm to check the glass vial filling with dark fluid. "The silver-willow counter-tonic is neutralizing the poison in her veins, but your bond thread is what’s keeping her heart beating. Keep it steady."

From across the room, Noah leaned his broad shoulders against the stone wall, his face still deathly pale from his own lingering weakness. His dark eyes were locked onto Maria, his knuckles white where his fingers gripped his leather belt.

"Is she in pain?" Noah asked, his raspy voice cutting through the quiet room.

"No," I replied, keeping my eyes closed, my focus entirely locked on the golden thread between us. "She’s calm now, and the coldness is fading."

I cleared my throat, the sudden quiet in my mind making me realize I needed to check on the rest of our pack. I opened a quiet, narrow mental channel across the distance, reaching toward the front lines at the border.

’Aidan,’ I called out through the link, my mental voice strained with effort. ’Aidan, can you hear me?’

The connection crackled for a second before snapping into place, loud with the faint, distant sound of wind and heavy iron armor clanking together.

’Adrein?’ Aidan’s mental voice answered, sharp, cold, and razor-focused. ’What’s her status? Is she alive?’

’We made it to Noah’s pack house,’ I reported, letting out a heavy, silent breath. ’Noah’s physician has her on the cot right now. They’re running a silver-willow blood-cleansing process to drain Vincent’s poison out of her system.’

A long, heavy pause hung over the link before Aidan let out a ragged, mental sigh. ’Is it working?’

’Yes,’ I answered, looking down at Maria’s face. ’I’m standing at the cot right now, feeding my bond thread directly into her mind to keep her wolf alive. Her color is coming back. She’s going to make it, Aidan.’

’Thank Goddess,’ Aidan replied, his tone shifting back into absolute, lethal authority. ’Keep her secured. Davian and I are positioned at the river boundary with the fake surrender procession right now. Daniel is bound on horseback beside us.’

’What’s the situation at the border?’ I asked, my brow furrowing as I kept my palm steady on Maria’s skin.

’Vincent’s vanguard just stepped out of the timber line,’ Aidan said, a dark, murderous edge creeping into his thoughts. ’His generals think they’re walking up to collect a surrender and take Maria. The moment they realize she isn’t in the carriage, Marcus is launching our ambush from the ridge. We’re about to turn this valley into a slaughterhouse.’

’Don’t let Vincent escape,’ I growled through the link, my chest flaring with a sudden spike of pure hatred. ’He’s the one who fed her the wolfsbane every single day for a month. Tear him apart.’

’He won’t leave this valley breathing,’ Aidan promised coldly. ’Keep her safe, Adrein.’

The mental pressure dissolved, leaving me back in the quiet, sterile air of the infirmary.

I let out a long breath, opening my physical eyes.

Out in the hallway, the heavy oak door creaked open an inch. Damien stood in the threshold, his broad frame blocking the entire entry, his hand resting firmly on the pommel of his sword as his golden eyes scanned the corridor outside. He didn’t turn around, but his voice carried clearly into the room.

"What did Aidan say?" Damien asked, his tone rough and low.

"The ambush is springing right now," I told him, adjusting my stance to keep my arm from cramping. "Aidan and Davian are engaging the lyacn Prince’s forward line at the border."

Damien let out a short, dark grunt of satisfaction. "Good. I hope they leave a piece of him for us."

"Focus on the patient, gentlemen," Physician Thorne instructed sharply, tapping the side of the glass container. "The first basin is almost full. The black discoloration in her blood is clearing up."

I looked down at Maria, my heart skipping a beat.

Her skin was no longer paper-white. A soft, faint rose color was creeping back into her cheeks, and the terrifying blue tint on her lips had completely vanished. Her chest was rising and falling in deep, steady, natural breaths, no longer gasping for air like she had been in the cabin.

Suddenly, I felt a sharp, electric twitch under my palm.

My eyes widened. The golden thread inside my chest flared bright, humming with a sudden, beautiful wave of warmth that didn’t come from me—it came from her.

"She’s waking up," I whispered, my voice cracking with raw emotion.

Noah instantly pushed off the wall, taking two quick steps toward the cot before forcing himself to stop. "What did you say?"

"Her wolf just responded to my energy," I said, a genuine, breathless laugh escaping my throat as I looked down at her face. "She’s fighting back, Noah. She’s pushing the poison out."

Maria’s long, dark eyelashes fluttered softly against her cheeks. Her fingers twitched against the leather padding of the cot, her small hand reaching out instinctively until her knuckles brushed against the edge of my sleeve.

"Adrein..." a tiny, barely audible gasp slipped from her parted lips, faint as a whisper in the wind.

I closed my hand over hers, wrapping her cold fingers in my warm grip, my heart pounding against my ribs like a war drum.

"I’m right here, Maria," I said softly, my voice rich with unyielding promise as I leaned in closer. "You’re safe.. you’re home."