Chapter 41 The first Suspicion

Chapter 41: Chapter 41 The first Suspicion

Talia’s POV

"What are you going to do?" Jax asked.

"Nothing yet." Kaelen’s voice was hard. "I am going to keep watching and waiting, and I am going to find out what she is hiding."

I needed to leave and go back to my room before they saw me.

But my legs would not move.

"And if she is hiding something dangerous?" Jax asked.

"Then I will deal with it," Kaelen answered coldly.

"Kaelen..." Jax called.

"I said I will deal with it," Kaelen repeated with the same cold voice.

The silence stretched between them like a rope pulled tight.

Then Jax spoke. "You care about her, Kaelen, don’t you?"

Kaelen did not answer.

"I have confirmed that you do. I can see it in the way you look at her, the way you brought her clothes the other time from the pack mall, and the way you cannot stay away from her," Jax said.

"I do not know what I feel," Kaelen said. His voice was quieter now. "But I will find out."

I pushed off the wall and walked away.

I did not know how I made it back to my room, but my feet carried me through the hallways without my permission. I did not see the wolves who passed me, and I did not hear their whispers.

All I could think about was his voice saying:

’Something is wrong with her.’

’Her scent does not match her face.’

’I am going to find out what she is hiding.’

He had sounded so sure, and so certain. Like he already knew the answer and was just waiting for proof.

I touched my necklace, and the glamour charm was still there, still hiding me. But for how long?

If he already suspected something was wrong, it meant the glamour charm was beginning to fade, and it was only a matter of time before he figured out the truth.

And when he did, everything would fall apart.

I opened the door to my room and stepped inside.

The fire had been lit, and the room was warm. A tray of food sat on the desk, but I did not eat.

I walked to the window, pressed my forehead against the cool glass, and replayed their words in my head.

’Her scent does not match her face. Maybe she is not what she seems. I am going to find out what she is hiding.’

I closed my eyes and tried to breathe.

He was going to find out soon, and when he did, he would have to decide what to do with me.

’Would he reject me? Send me back to Cresswood? Lock me in a cell?’

I did not know for sure what the punishment for hiding your real face would be, but I knew one thing.

I could not let him find out before I was ready.

I dragged the chair close to the desk, placed it near the window, and stayed there for a long time, watching the sun crawl across the sky.

The shadows grew long, the fire burned low, and the room grew cold, but I did not move.

I thought about my mother, about the fire, and about the glamour charm around my neck.

’Never remove it before your twentieth birthday,’ my mother had said.

I had passed that day, and I was twenty now. So I could take it off whenever I wanted.

But I was not ready yet.

I pressed my palm against the glass and watched my breath fog up the window. The valley below was dark now, and the mountains were nothing but shadows against the night sky.

I thought about what Jax had said.

’You care about her.’

Kaelen had not denied it. He had not said yes, but he had not said no either.

’I do not know what I feel,’ he had said.

That was more than I had expected, and more than I had hoped.

But it was not enough.

Caring about me would not stop him from rejecting me if he found out I had been lying to him. And caring about me would not save me from being sent back to Cresswood if I failed the Luna trials.

I needed him to trust me. But how could he trust me when I was hiding so much?

The door opened, and I turned around.

Kaelen walked in, but he did not look at me. He just walked to the wardrobe and pulled out a shirt.

"You are still awake," he said.

"I could not sleep," I answered.

He did not respond. He just walked to the bathroom and closed the door.

I stood by the window, staring at the closed door, and listening to the water running.

I knew now that he was watching me, and I was running out of time.

I should have felt relieved that he was here, that he had come back to the room, that he cared about me, and that he had not rejected me yet.

But all I felt was fear, because he was watching me and waiting for me to slip.

I walked to the bed and sat down on the edge. The sheets were still rumpled from last night, and his blanket was still folded on the floor.

I pressed my palms flat against the mattress and stared at the floor.

’What was I going to do?’

I could not keep hiding forever. Eventually, he would find out, and eventually, I would have to tell him the truth.

But not tonight.

Tonight, I would pretend everything was fine.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.