Chapter 89: A place no one knows my name

Pain woke Della up before her eyes did.

It settled deep within her bones, heavy and unrelenting, as though every muscle had been torn apart and stitched back together with coarse thread.

Della frowned as the scent of damp wood, burning herbs, and freshly baked bread lingered in the air.

Bread?

Her eyes slowly fluttered open, and she took in the new environment. Instead of towering stone ceilings and iron chains, she found herself staring at rough wooden beams overhead. Warm sunlight slipped through a tiny window draped with faded linen curtains, painting soft golden patches across the modest room.

She blinked.

The room was tiny, and a single wooden table stood in one corner beside a clay water jug. A stone fireplace crackled quietly, filling the little cottage with comforting warmth.

Where the hell was she?!

She tried to sit up, but pain exploded through her body. A cry escaped her lips as she collapsed back onto the straw-filled mattress.

The sudden movement sent the wooden door flying open, "Della!"

Annelise hurried inside, relief washing over her face, "Oh, thank the Moon Goddess. You’re awake."

Della’s cloudy gaze struggled to focus on the woman kneeling beside the bed, "...Annelise?"

"It’s me."

The woman smiled gently, though her tired eyes betrayed how worried she had been, "You’ve been unconscious for two days."

Two...days?

Della’s eyes widened slightly, and both hands flew to her stomach instinctively. The tiny flutter answered almost immediately, and her shoulders sagged with relief.

Annelise noticed the gesture and rested a reassuring hand over hers, "The little one is still there."

Fresh tears filled Della’s eyes, "I... I thought..." Her throat was so dry, and her voice felt like it was grinding through stone before coming out.

Annelise noticed and reached for the clay cup on the bedside table and carefully filled it with cool water.

She slipped an arm behind Della’s shoulders, helping her sit upright until her back rested against the pillow propped against the wooden wall.

The rim of the cup touched Della’s lips, and she drank greedily at first before coughing, "Easy," Annelise cooed softly.

Della took another, slower sip, feeling the cool water soothe her raw throat. Only then did she finally look around the little cottage again.

"Where are we?" She asked.

Annelise tucked a loose strand of hair behind Della’s ear, "A place where no one will think to look for a while."

Outside, she could hear distant laughter, the creaking of wagon wheels, and chickens clucking somewhere beyond the cottage walls.

"I... don’t understand," Della said.

"We are currently at a human village far away from the Pack,"

Far away from the pack?

Della’s mind went back to when she had seen Malachi. He had actually...let her go, for real. It was difficult for her to wrap her head around. Malachi isn’t the type to let someone like her just...walk past him like that.

"You need to stop thinking for now," Annelise’s concerned voice pulled her back to the present, "Your body needs to heal. You were at death’s door for days, Della. You need to try and clear your thoughts for now...so that the herbs can properly work,"

Della tried to nod, but the searing headache wouldn’t let her.

Annelise helped her lie back down, then she started to move around the room. Della watched her mix, pound and prepare different herbs till the whole room was choked up with the smell of nothing but leaves and bitterness.

When Annelise glanced at Della and saw the sour expression on her face, she almost laughed, "Just keep inhaling it all. It’ll help with your headache,"

"It’s making my eyes water," Della confessed.

"That shows it’s working," Annelise chuckled softly under her breath and went back to work.

She didn’t expect Della to stay silent for long, but to her surprise, she didn’t bother her at all. Her eyes simply followed every movement she made, till Annelise was done with all the preparation.

"You must be hungry," Annelise said as she walked toward the door, "Our Neighbour made chicken this afternoon and gave us some,"

She left for a few seconds, and returned with a small tightly closed plate.

She sat down on the edge of the bed and opened it, steam curling up at first before revealing the full chicken and soup inside the cooler.

"You have... friendly neighbours,"

"They are very nice people," Annelise smiled, and helped Della up again.

She cut a huge piece of the chicken, placed it on the lid and helped Della take every bite of it, patiently waiting for her to chew and swallow before bringing the next bite to her lips.

Annelise was very patient.

"Are you...sure we are safe here?" The words slipped out of Della’s mouth before she could help it.

Annelise was not surprised, for she had been expecting a lot of questions from Della despite warning her not to think about it. But she wasn’t about to tell her that Rowan had actually secured the house and she was still in contact with the Beta.

She didn’t want to bother her with anything that had to do with Eclipse Crown right now.

"I’m quite sure," Annelise flashed her a soft smile, "And I think you’re going to like it here a lot. Once you get better, I’ll take you out on a little tour,"

"Tour?" The word sounded foreign. Not because she didn’t know what it meant, but because she’d never... actually... thought someone would want to actually move around with someone like her.

"Yup," Annelise stood up, "So get well as fast as you can, so I can take you out to meet the humans around,"

Della stared at her for a long moment, "...Humans won’t be afraid of me?"

The question was so quiet that Annelise almost missed it.

She smiled sadly, "They don’t even know what a Rotblood is."

Della blinked.

"They’ll only see a young woman who’s recovering from an illness."

"That’s all?"

"That’s all."

Silence settled between them, then Della lowered her gaze to the blanket covering her legs. She didn’t know why that answer made something tighten painfully inside her chest.

Her entire life, she’d never simply been...a young woman.

She had been a curse.

A stain.

A disgrace.

A mistake.

Never just...Della.

Annelise gently squeezed her shoulder before standing, "Rest now."

She gathered the empty plate and carried it back to the little table, tidying away the herbs she’d finished using.

Outside, children burst into laughter.

Someone called out to a neighbour.

A dog barked happily before chasing what sounded like a wooden cart, and Della listened quietly.

Her hand found her stomach again, and she rubbed against the flat surface, "I’m going to protect you," she whispered, so softly that even she barely heard it. "No matter what happens... I’ll never let anyone hurt you."

A tiny flutter answered beneath her palm, and a fragile smile touched her lips.

Annelise watched from across the room without saying a word. She hadn’t seen Della smile like that before, and although it was barely there, it was more than enough to make Annelise’s own eyes sting.

The poor girl had survived things no one should ever endure.

She deserved peace.

She deserved a place where she didn’t have to look over her shoulder every few seconds.

And whether that peace lasted or not, Annelise silently vowed to protect it for as long as she could.