Chapter 394 Aldric’s wisdom

Chapter 394: Chapter 394 Aldric’s wisdom

Talia’s POV

I pulled back from the hug, but I did not let go of Piper’s hands.

I looked at her face, at her red eyes and her wet cheeks, and I felt the words rising in my throat. I could not leave without saying them, because I could not walk out that door and pretend tomorrow was just another day.

"Piper, listen to me," I said, and my voice was firm.

Piper blinked at me. "Talia, what is it?"

I squeezed her hands tighter. "Promise me something."

She tilted her head, confused. "Anything. You know that."

I took a breath. "Promise me you will stay safe tomorrow. Stay close to the stronghold. Do not go anywhere near the battlefield unless you absolutely have to."

Piper opened her mouth to argue. I saw it in her eyes, and I saw the protest forming on her lips before she could speak it.

"Piper, I mean it," I said, cutting her off. "I cannot lose you. You are my sister. You are the only person who has been with me through everything. Fifteen years, Piper. Fifteen years of my life, and you were there for all of it."

Piper’s eyes filled with fresh tears. "Talia..."

I stepped closer, and I cupped her face in my hands. "Promise me," I whispered. "Please."

Piper stared at me for a long moment. Then she nodded. "I promise."

I knew the promise meant little in war. I knew tomorrow would bring chaos, and chaos did not care about promises. But I needed to hear it. I needed to know she would try.

I pulled her into one last hug. I held her tight, and I breathed in the scent of lavender soap that always clung to her skin.

"I love you, Piper," I said against her hair.

"I love you too, Talia," she whispered back.

I let her go. I walked to the door, and I did not look back. I knew that if I looked back, I would not leave.

I closed the door softly behind me.

I stood there for a moment, my hand still resting on the wood. I could hear Piper moving inside, her footsteps soft on the floor. I wanted to go back in, and I wanted to stay. But I knew I could not.

The hallway was quiet, and the torch beside Piper’s door had burned low. The shadows stretched along the stone walls, long and dark.

I wiped my eyes with the back of my hand. I took a breath.

I did not want to go back to my empty room. Kaelen was still in the war room with Cain, and the silence of our chambers would only make the fear louder.

So I walked.

I did not know where I was going. I just knew I could not stay still.

I walked through the quiet hallway, and my footsteps echoed on the stone floor. The stronghold was sleeping, but it was not peaceful. It was the kind of quiet that came before a storm. The kind that made my skin prickle and my heart beat faster.

I passed by the great hall, and it was empty and dark. I passed by the library, and I passed by the gardens. I passed by the rooms of the servants and the rooms of the warriors.

I heard the distant sounds of the camps outside, as a sign that wolves were still awake. I could hear their voices, low and murmuring. I could hear the crackle of their fires, and I could hear the occasional howl, distant and mournful.

They were scared too, I realized. They were all scared.

The thought should have comforted me, but it did not. Knowing that others were afraid only made the weight heavier.

I walked past everything, and I still could not shake the feeling that was pressing down on my chest.

I was scared. I was scared of losing the people I loved, and I was scared of dying before I had a chance to live.

I stopped walking. I stood in the middle of the corridor, and I closed my eyes. I took a breath, and I let it out slowly.

I needed to see someone and I needed to be with someone. I needed to feel something other than the fear in my heart.

When I opened my eyes, I saw it.

There was a soft glow spilling from the angle of a door at the end of the corridor. The light was warm and golden, and it flickered like candlelight.

I knew that door, because it was Grandfather Aldric’s room.

I hesitated because it was late, and he should be resting. He was old, and tomorrow would be a long day for all of us. I had not seen him since the pack gathering. I had been so busy preparing for the war that I had not made time for him, and the guilt settled in my chest.

But the light was warm, and something in my chest pulled me toward it.

I walked to the door. It was slightly open, and I could hear movement inside. The soft rustle of pages turning, and the crackle of a fire.

I raised my hand and knocked. My knuckles rapped softly against the wood. For a moment, there was silence. Then I heard movement inside.

"Come in," a voice called out. It was gruff but gentle.

I pushed the door open.

Grandfather Aldric was sitting by the fire in a large armchair. A book rested in his lap, and a candle burned on the table beside him. The fire cast orange light across his weathered face, and for a moment, he looked younger than his years.

He looked up, and his eyes were tired but sharp. When he saw me, his expression softened.

"Talia," he said. "You should be resting."

I stepped into the room and closed the door behind me. "I could not sleep, Grandfather."

He studied me for a moment. I knew he could see the tears I had tried to wipe away. I knew he could see the fear I was trying to hide.

He gestured to the chair beside him. "Sit, child," he said.

I walked to the chair and sat down. The fire was warm, and the room smelled of old books and woodsmoke. It felt safe here, and it felt like home.

Aldric studied me for a long moment. His eyes were knowing, and I felt like he could see right through me.

"What is keeping you awake, child?" he asked.

I looked at the fire. I watched the flames dance and flicker. "I am scared," I admitted.

I did not look at him when I said it, because I did not want to see disappointment in his eyes.

But when he spoke, his voice was not disappointed. It was kind.

"Fear is not weakness," he said. "Fear is what keeps a wolf sharp, and fear is what keeps us alive."

I turned to look at him. "Are you scared, Grandfather?"

He was quiet for a moment. Then he nodded. "I am."

I had not expected that answer. Aldric had always seemed so strong to me, and so unshakable.

"I have lived a long life," he said. "I have seen many battles, I have lost friends, I have lost family, and I have seen things that would make a lesser wolf run and never look back."

He paused, and he looked at the fire. "But this one feels different. This one feels like the end of something. Like the end of an era, and the beginning of another."

I did not know what to say. So I asked the question that had been burning in my mind since I walked through the door. "Will you fight tomorrow?"

Aldric shook his head. "No, child. My fighting days are over."