Chapter 41
[ 696 words ]
Life’s unfair
41: 41.
Life’s unfair Aria
“And Ronan won.”
“Yeah.” Dex leans back slightly, his gaze distant for a moment.
“He won.
He could’ve killed Everett right then and there.
Ended it.”
“But he didn’t.”
Dex’s eyes flick back to mine.
“No.
He didn’t.”
“Why?”
A pause.
“Because he’s not Everett,” Dex says simply.
Something in my chest loosens at that.
“I think that was the right call,” I say.
Dex shrugs, but there’s tension in the movement.
“Maybe.”
“Maybe?”
“That decision is why we’re here now,” he says bluntly.
“Everett left. Took his followers. Formed the Nightbane pack. And now?” His jaw tightens again.
“Now we’ve got two packs circling each other, waiting for the next excuse to tear into each other.”
“And Liam…” My voice falters slightly.
“Is caught in the middle,” Dex finishes.
Silence settles again, heavier this time.
I stare at the floor, my hands clenched together.
“Some of them still live in town, right?”
“Yeah,” Dex says.
“They blend in. Work jobs. Act normal.” His lip curls faintly.
“But they’re not.”
I nod slowly.
“That’s…complicated.”
“That’s one way to put it.”
My wolf shifts uneasily.
Enemies hiding in plain sight.
“Exactly,” I whisper.
I lean back against the couch, exhaling slowly.
The pieces are starting to come together, forming a picture I don’t like.
Two packs.
One history.
A split built on ideology and blood.
And now my brother is the spark that could set it all off again.
My chest tightens.
“I hate this,” I admit quietly.
Dex watches me for a moment, then his expression softens just a fraction.
“Yeah. Me too.”
I rub my hands over my face, trying to push back the rising panic.
“I should be out there.”
My wolf surges forward.
Yes.
We fight.
We take him back.
“I can’t just sit here while they—”
“You’re not ready,” Dex cuts in, his tone firm but not unkind.
The words hit like a slap.
“I know that,” I snap, more defensive than I intend.
Do I?
The answer sits heavy in my gut.
Yes.
I hate it.
“I just…” I trail off, my voice tightening.
“I’ve spent my whole life feeling like I couldn’t do anything. Like everything just…happens to me.” My hands curl into fists.
“And now this? This was supposed to be different.”
My wolf goes quiet.
Listening.
Dex studies me, something thoughtful in his gaze.
“It is different.”
I laugh bitterly.
“Doesn’t feel like it.”
“That doesn’t mean it isn’t,” he says.
I shake my head, but I don’t argue.
Because a small part of me wonders if he’s right.
If maybe this—learning, understanding, preparing—is part of something bigger.
It doesn’t make it easier.
But it makes it…bearable.
Barely.
Dex shifts in his seat, the tension easing slightly.
“Alright,” he says after a moment.
“Enough about packs and politics.”
I glance up at him.
“Oh?”
“Yeah.” A faint smirk tugs at his lips.
“My turn.”
“My turn for what?”
“To ask questions.”
I narrow my eyes slightly.
“That seems unfair.”
“Life’s unfair,” he shoots back.
I huff a quiet laugh despite myself.
My wolf perks up.
This one is distracting us.
“Yeah,” I murmur.
“He is.”
Dex arches a brow.
“You gonna fill me in on that, or…?”
“Maybe later.”
He shakes his head, amused.
“Alright.
Let’s start simple.
Before all this—” he gestures vaguely, “—what was your life like?”
The question catches me off guard.
For a second, I don’t want to answer.
But then I realize something.
Talking…helps.
It pulls me out of the spiral, gives my mind something else to hold onto.
So I shrug lightly.
“Normal.
Boring, even.”
“Boring how?”
“Work, home, repeat,” I say.
“Nothing exciting. Nothing…big.”
At least not now.
There was a time when I was happy with my life finally being simple, when I made peace with my dreams having to change.
Now it feels trivial.
All of it.
Every part of my life that was before this, because no matter how peaceful it finally was, it would have always been a half-life.
My wolf nods in agreement.
Huh.
I guess we were starting to grow on each other.
“No secret werewolf instincts kicking in?” he teases.
I snort.
“If they were, I ignored them.”
“Guess that’s not an option anymore.”
“Definitely not.”
The conversation shifts, lighter now.
He asks about small things—what I like, what I hate, what I miss.
I answer, sometimes reluctantly, sometimes with more ease than I expect.
And slowly, something changes.
The weight in my chest doesn’t disappear.
Liam is still out there.
The danger is still real.
But it doesn’t feel like it’s crushing me anymore.
It’s…manageable.
Contained.
My wolf settles, her pacing slowing.
We will get stronger, she says quietly.
We will not stay like this.
Yeah, we will.
Even if it kills me.
This will be the last time I’m left behind.
For the first time since I walked through that door, I don’t feel completely helpless.
Not yet strong.
Not yet ready.
But not lost either.
There is direction.
Purpose.
That’s enough.
If you find any errors (non-standard content, ads redirect, broken links, etc..), Please let us know so we can fix it as soon as possible.