Chapter 658 Be strong for yourself
Flora was shifted to the palace with all necessary medical equipment on the bedside table, a nurse and a doctor to examine her every hour. It was decided that the palace would be better for Flora than the hospital.
Sora stepped into the room. Zander followed closely behind, his face etched with a exhaustion that only a mate could feel. The rest of the family remained in the corridor.
“Zander, please. Take your mate’s hand,” Sora commanded softly as she took her seat in the velvet chair beside the bed.
Zander didn’t hesitate. He reached out, his heart sinking as he felt the chill of Flora’s skin, which was frighteningly cold.
Sora placed her palm against Flora’s forehead. Almost instantly, an ethereal blue light began to pulse from her fingertips, then palm. Zander’s eyes widened; he had heard of Sora’s legendary healing gifts, but seeing the shimmering power of her magic in person was staggering.
“You must close your eyes as well, Zander,” Sora instructed. “Do not focus on the light. Focus only on the bond.”
Promptly, he shut his eyes, blocking out the world. He poured every ounce of his will into the darkness, reaching out through the mate-link, desperate to pull Flora back from the silent abyss and into the warmth of the living.
~~~~
Flora sat huddled in the corner of a void that mimicked her room, though it felt empty and dark. The only thing piercing the oppressive gloom was a single ray of light. In the suffocating silence, the only sound was the ragged rhythm of her own breathing.
“Is everyone happy now?” she murmured into the dark with guilt and exhaustion. “My absence must have brought them peace… Especially Gabriel and Amelie. I was nothing but a burden, creating trouble for them until the very end.” She began to hit her forehead repeatedly against her arm, a rhythmic, self-punishing motion intended to drown out the ache in her soul.
Suddenly, a voice shattered the stillness, a voice she had tried to bury deep within her mind.
“Flora, can you hear me? It’s me, Zander!”
She froze. It was him, the man who had looked past her flaws to see a kindness she didn’t believe she possessed. The man who was willing to sacrifice his world just to anchor her to hers. As his voice echoed through the void, she glanced down at her hands and legs.
For the first time, since falling into this trance, she felt a strange strength coursing through her limbs. The lethargy that had pinned her to the corner was lifting.
“Flora, you need to return. Just call for me once. I—I will run to you, I promise,” Zander’s voice reverberated again, warmer and more desperate than before.
Flora remained motionless, her heart warring with her mind. She shook her head violently, squeezing her eyes shut as she fought the urge to stand. ’Don’t listen,’ she told herself, the darkness whispering that she didn’t deserve the light he was offering. ’Don’t let him pull you back into a life you’ve already ruined.’
Flora kept her face buried between her knees, trying to sink deeper into the shadows, when she felt an impossible sensation of warmth. A pair of steady hands settled on her arms, their touch radiating a heat that felt like a sunbeam in the middle of winter.
“Flora,” Zander whispered. “It’s me. Look at me. Why weren’t you responding?”
“Leave,” Flora snapped coldly. She refused to lift her head. “I don’t belong there. I don’t belong anywhere.”
“What are you saying? All of us are waiting for you,” Zander urged, his grip tightening just enough to let her know he wasn’t going anywhere. “Your parents have been inconsolable; your mother fainted from the grief of seeing you like this. Even after everything, Amelie stayed by your side through the entire night. And Prince Gabriel… Despite his anger, he ensured you had the finest medical care in the palace. The Queen herself summoned the most powerful healer in the world for you. You have to return, Flora. Don’t leave us to live in the shadow of this regret.”
Flora remained stiff with a heaviness in her chest. She wanted to believe him, but the weight of her mistakes felt like it was dragging her down.
“Alex is gone forever, Flora,” Zander said. “He has dissipated into ashes. He can never hurt you, or use you, or haunt you again. The nightmare is over. You’re free.”
At the mention of Alex’s end, Flora finally shivered. She finally lifted her head, her tear-streaked face illuminated by the faint blue glow of the bond Zander was using to reach her.
“I did something unforgivable. I don’t want to live,” Flora whispered as she looked into the void. The guilt was so heavy that she didn’t want to get away from it.
“Don’t say that, Flora,” Zander countered, his voice rising with a desperate edge. “I always told you to move on because I knew you had that spirit inside you, the strength to be better. And what about the promise you made to me? Do you really want me to face Christmas without you by my side? Think about Amelie. You did all of this to protect her. Will she ever be able to sleep peacefully again, knowing you chose to stay in the dark rather than return to her? Flora, I beg you… Just once. Don’t be weak. Be strong for yourself, and for the people who still love you.”
As he spoke, the darkness of the room began to vibrate, but not with strength. The thread was fraying. The faint image of Zander began to flicker and fade, his golden warmth receding as the bond strained to its breaking point.
“Zander?” Flora gasped, her cold fingers reaching out instinctively as his silhouette became transparent.
“Flora, please!” his voice echoed. “Don’t let yourself alone in there. Return to us. Please…”
In the depths of her consciousness, the distant doorway began to glow with an intensity that burned through the shadows.
Flora forced herself onto her feet, her legs trembling at first before she got the strength. The warmth wasn’t just light anymore; it was Zander’s voice, her mother’s tears, and the life she had nearly thrown away.
She began to walk, then run, moving toward the brilliance.
“HAH!”
Flora’s body jolted against the palace bed as her eyes snapped open, wild and disoriented. The heart monitor beside her erupted into a frantic, high-pitched beeping as her pulse skyrocketed. Just as quickly as she had returned, her strength failed, and her eyelids fluttered shut once more.
“Flora! Flora! What happened to her? Sora, answer me!” Zander cried out, his heart leaping into his throat.
Sora exhaled sharply, withdrawing her hand from Flora’s forehead. “Call the doctor. Now!” she ordered.
Zander didn’t wait for a second explanation. He lunged for the door, throwing it open so hard it hit the stone wall with a crack. “We need the doctor!” he roared into the corridor. “Something’s happened to Flora! Get in here!”
The doctor and the nurse, who had been waiting in anticipation, rushed past him to examine Flora while the other family members walked in worry.
“What-what happened to my daughter?” Samyra asked, her hands holding Zander’s.
“Her pulse… It’s high. I am sure she will be fine,” Zander answered, though he was scared after seeing Flora’s condition. She wasn’t ready to return to them.