Kaelen's heart pounded as he raced up the stairs. His wolf was clawing at his skin, desperate to break free. A terrifying thought kept repeating in his mind: what if she's gone?
Guards and servants scattered out of his way as he charged toward the rooftop. The afternoon sun burned hot overhead, making the concrete surface shimmer with heat.
"Where is she?" he roared.
A servant pointed toward a small group huddled in the corner of the roof. Kaelen pushed through them to find Seraphina being carried on a stretcher. Her skin was red and blistered from the sun, her lips cracked and dry. Her chest barely moved.
"Get her to her quarters now!" he ordered, following closely as they hurried down the stairs.
Inside Seraphina's small room, they laid her on the bed. Mrs. Moon was already there, tears streaming down her weathered face as she dabbed a cool cloth on her daughter's forehead.
"My baby," she sobbed, her hands trembling. "What have they done to you?"
The medicine woman, an older Beta named Rose, worked quickly, checking Seraphina's pulse and breathing. Her expression remained grave.
"Severe dehydration, heat exhaustion," she muttered. "Her wolf is trying to heal her, but she's been pushed too far."
Kaelen stayed back, watching helplessly as they tried to revive Seraphina. Her blonde hair was spread across the pillow, her beautiful face unnaturally pale beneath the sunburn. She looked small, fragile – nothing like the defiant woman who had stared him down just hours ago.
Mrs. Moon looked up, finally noticing Kaelen. Her eyes hardened instantly.
"You," she hissed, rising to her feet. Despite being an Omega, there was nothing submissive in her stance now. "You did this to her."
Kaelen stiffened. "The punishment was—"
"Punishment?" Mrs. Moon's voice rose. "For what? A necklace she never stole? My daughter has never taken anything that wasn't hers. Never!"
"There's evidence—"
"There's hatred!" she shot back. "Nothing but hatred from you three, when once you couldn't bear to be apart from her."
Her words struck him like physical blows. Images flashed through his mind – young Seraphina chasing after them in the woods, her laughter ringing out as they played in the streams, the way she would bring him wildflowers she'd picked herself.
"Do you remember, Alpha Kaelen?" Mrs. Moon's voice dropped to a harsh whisper. "Do you remember how you three boys would sneak her extra desserts? How you taught her to swim in the lake? How you cried when she caught fever at nine years old and wouldn't leave her bedside until she woke?"
Each memory pierced him like a dagger. Behind him, he heard the door open, sensed his brothers entering, but couldn't turn to face them.
"What happened to those boys?" Mrs. Moon demanded. "What turned their hearts to stone?"
Kaelen stared at Seraphina's motionless form. She looked dead. The thought sent a wave of nausea through him.
"Will she..." He couldn't finish the question.
Rose looked up from where she was working. "I'm doing everything I can, Alpha. But her body has been through tremendous stress. Her wolf is weakening."
Mrs. Moon collapsed back onto the chair beside the bed, taking Seraphina's limp hand in hers. "My sweet girl," she whispered. "Please don't leave me."
Kaelen felt something wet on his cheeks. With shock, he realized they were tears – his tears. He hadn't cried since... since before. Before the betrayal. Before his heart hardened against her.
But now, watching Seraphina struggle for each breath, something cracked inside him. What had they done? What had he done?
"I'm sorry," he whispered, the words feeling entirely inadequate.
Mrs. Moon didn't look at him again, her focus entirely on her daughter. The minutes stretched painfully as Rose continued working, mixing herbs and tinctures, placing cool compresses on Seraphina's body.
Suddenly, Seraphina's nose twitched. Once, twice. Then – a sneeze. Her eyelids fluttered.
"Seraphina?" Mrs. Moon called, hope lighting her tired face.
Another sneeze, stronger this time. Seraphina's chest rose in a deeper breath. Her fingers twitched in her mother's grasp.
"She's responding," Rose said, relief evident in her voice. "Her wolf is gathering strength."
Kaelen felt his knees go weak. She was alive. She would live.
But the relief was quickly chased by shame so profound it threatened to choke him. He didn't deserve to be here when she woke. Didn't deserve to see the relief in her eyes or accept forgiveness he hadn't earned.
Without another word, he turned and left the room before Seraphina could open her eyes and see his tears. In the hallway, he leaned against the wall, trying to regain his composure.
"Alpha?" A guard approached cautiously. "Is the Omega...?"
"She'll live," Kaelen said roughly. "Have food and water brought to her immediately. And inform the staff – the punishment is over. She is to rest and recover."
The guard nodded and hurried away. Kaelen straightened, squaring his shoulders and heading back to his quarters. Each step felt heavier than the last.
When he reached his room, he found Ronan and Orion sitting tensely on the edge of his bed. Lilith was curled up asleep between them, oblivious to the storm brewing in the air.
"Is it true?" Orion asked immediately, his face unusually serious. "About Seraphina?"
"Yes," Kaelen confirmed, his voice rough. "She nearly died on that roof."
Ronan's face paled. "But she's—"
"She'll live. Barely." Kaelen paced the room, unable to stay still with the turmoil raging inside him. "Her mother was there."
His brothers exchanged glances. They all remembered Mrs. Moon from before – her kind smiles, her healing hands when they scraped their knees, the cookies she would bake that they'd sneak from her windowsill.
"What did she say?" Ronan asked quietly.
"She reminded me of things I've been trying to forget." Kaelen stopped by the window, staring out at the darkening sky. "Of who we used to be. Of who Seraphina used to be to us."
A heavy silence fell over the room. Even in sleep, Lilith seemed to sense the tension, shifting uncomfortably.
"Do you ever wonder," Kaelen finally said, his back still to his brothers, "if we got it all wrong? About Seraphina?"
Neither answered immediately. He heard Orion stand, his footsteps crossing the room to pour a drink.
"Her father stole from us," Orion finally said, but his voice lacked conviction. "He betrayed our father's trust."
"And we've made her pay for it a thousand times over," Kaelen replied, turning to face them. "Maybe that's enough."
Ronan's expression was troubled. "What are you saying, Kael?"
"I'm saying I saw her nearly die today because of our orders. Because of our hatred." He ran a hand through his hair. "And I realized I couldn't remember exactly why we started hating her so much in the first place."
Their father's accusations against Silas Moon had come later. The rift with Seraphina had started before that – a slow-building wall of resentment and hurt that had eventually hardened into cruelty.
"She hurt us," Orion said, but his words sounded hollow even to his own ears.
"Did she?" Kaelen challenged. "Or did we just assume she did?"
Memories rose unbidden – Seraphina's fourteenth birthday, the letter he'd written her, pouring out his young heart. The rejection that came after. The way she'd suddenly stopped seeking them out, started avoiding their eyes. Then Lilith had stepped in, filling the void with her eager smiles and willing body.
Ronan glanced at the sleeping woman between them, then back at his brother. "It's complicated."
"It's wrong," Kaelen said firmly. "What we've become. What we've done to her."
Lilith stirred, her eyes blinking open. She stretched lazily, seemingly unaware of the tense conversation.
"What's wrong, Alpha?" she murmured, reaching for Orion.
"Nothing that concerns you," Kaelen said coldly. "Leave us."
Lilith's eyes widened at his tone. "But—"
"Now, Lilith." Ronan's voice held no room for argument.
Looking hurt and confused, Lilith gathered her clothes and slipped out of the room. When the door closed behind her, Kaelen turned back to his brothers.
"Orion, Ronan..." he said, his voice heavy with the weight of years of buried truth. "Tell me... what happened? Why did you two suddenly hate Seraphina?"