(AMARI'S POV)
The jet landed in Moon Haven Capital an hour later, and then we took the thirty-minute drive to my village, Moon Haven.
Thirty minutes felt like an hour, all thanks to me overthinking Al and Elara's conditions and, of course, thanks to Alpha Kaelen as well. He was seated beside the driver while Rudina and I were behind. But somehow those dark eyes of his always met mine through the rearview mirror, and the car felt smaller than it was.
By the time Moon Haven was pulling into view, I was ready to jump out of the car even though my stomach was in knots.
I could feel Rudina tremble frequently as the road home approached. I squeezed her hand as the streets blurred past. Steak and Soups, the restaurant where I worked, Mrs. Abara's shop, the church with the broken bell, and then… the turn onto our road.
Rudina's fingers dug into mine as the car sped down the untarred road that led to our home. My heart was threatening to fly out of my chest when I sighted, a short distance away, a figure at our gate.
The car stopped, and my pulse practically dropped. Elara, all dressed up, at the top of the rocky steps that led from our gate to the street. She looked like it was every other day, squinting at the car's tinted window.
"Mother!" That was what pulled me to life. Rudina's voice was loud as she let herself out of the car in the blink of an eye.
I scrambled to get out too, but Kaelen was out as well, and we were both met with Rudina, some feet away, sobbing into Elara's arms.
I glanced at Kaelen just as he did the same.
"She was really worried about the… flight," I explained smoothly, ignoring the guilt that built up in my stomach.
Kaelen's suspicious expression cleared out a little. We approached mother and daughter as the embrace broke. A new level of wild panic erupted in my chest.
There was one thing I had not prepared for. Best case scenario: that everything wasn't as bad as I thought. That Elara and Al are fine. And that even though it was the best case, it was also a recipe for disaster in keeping up appearances before the Alpha.
In other words, I believe I am done for because Elara is about to reveal the lies.
I searched for Al. Hope built in my chest. Nothing.
I could see Rudina better now, just a few steps away. She was talking to Elara. I wondered what they were talking about. Elara would reveal that this is not the Kaelen she knows. She would—
"Careful." Kaelen's voice came just as I swayed to the left after taking a wrong step.
He caught me as I almost fell.
His hand found my waist, gentle but sure, steadying me before I could even panic. His touch was warm. Too warm. It flashed through my veins like liquid fire.
"You're not paying attention," he said.
I couldn't answer. His thumb had moved—just a fraction, just a small circle against my side—and my thoughts scattered like startled birds. I should step back. I should thank him and move away.
I didn't.
How does he make me forget the world around me even when I know I should be focused? I'm a few steps away from a disaster, yet I want to close my eyes and imagine his touch again. I wanted to catch a whiff of that scent again, that amber—
"Thank you." I cleared my throat and grasped the ends of my veil.
I moved to take a step, but his hand reached out again. I glanced wide-eyed at him, but he wasn't looking. He was leading me up the rest of the steps while my fingers found his and settled comfortably, like old friends.
Somehow, that threw a blanket over my nerves even though my racing heart continued.
"Oh, how wonderful!" Elara announced as she came closer, a smile too bright on her lips.
She's about to hurl all insults at me, to curse me out for whatever Rudina had told her. She would tell me that I am a walking bad luck charm and that—
"I was so worried about you, son. Thank the Goddess you're alive." She clasped her bright colored purse tightly before she pulled Kaelen into her arms.
Elara clung to Kaelen like a grieving mother.
A thought settled in my mind.
She was definitely lying too. And I wondered, for what reasons.