Chapter 4

Elara

Kai pushed the door open to reveal a woman who was a complete and stark contrast to his imposing figure. Her grey hair was pulled back in a neat bun, and wrinkles drew a map of experience on her kind face. A gentle smile softened her features.

"Alpha Kai." The woman bowed her head in respect before looking in my direction.

"Hello. I'm Anyah. I'm the pack healer. I was here to check on you yesterday as per Alpha Kai's instructions, but you looked like you needed to sleep more and I didn't want to disturb you, so I only cleaned your injuries. How are you feeling?" she asked. I immediately felt relaxed in her presence.

It was easier to feel calm in the healer's presence. The word itself resonated with a comfort I hadn't felt since the moment I opened my eyes. Here was someone who practiced the same art that I did, someone who understood the power and responsibility that came with wielding herbs and tools for healing.

My upbringing had been a brutal composition of seduction, brutality, and apathy. Every facet of my existence was honed to make me the perfect weapon for destruction. The very notion of healing was contradictory to my purpose. It required empathy, a forbidden emotion within Silas' domain. It also carried a restorative energy that was the opposite of the destructive darkness that we were taught.

Stealing moments to learn healing had always been a tightrope walk. I had devoured any scraps of knowledge I could find. Thankfully, Silas had a very vast library and it was one of the only places where we had the freedom to explore. I practiced on my friends and the rush of joy that I felt with each successful patient was enough to keep me going through the years.

The healer bustled over, her movements surprisingly agile for someone of her age. As she drew closer, I noticed the worn leather satchel strapped across her hip. The air around her was faintly tinged with the earthy scent of healing herbs. It was all so familiar and I felt most of the tension l my body.

"My head hurts," I responded, and she nodded, holding out a hand to feel my forehead.

"You look a little pale, child," the healer said, concern etching deeper lines on her forehead. "It seems you must have hit your head pretty hard. Do you remember how you ended up in the cave last night?" she asked softly. My eyes strayed to Kai, who was standing by the foot of the bed.

His face held a blank look, and I couldn't tell what he was thinking about at the moment. His eyes could pierce a hole through me if he continued to watch me like that. I let out a shaky breath before turning back to the healer in front of me. The woman's presence was a balm after Kai's intimidating aura.

I shook my head gently, avoiding her questioning eyes as I did so.

"That's okay. I can tell you've had a pretty rough night, so I'll give you something for your head. Maybe it will all come back to you once you've had a good rest. Let me take a look at the rest of you," she offered.

She propped me higher up on the pillows so I was sitting straighter, and I winced when my sides protested at the movement. She gently pulled the quilt off my body and I immediately wrapped my hands around me, hoping to hold onto my dress that was falling apart and exposing part of my body.

"I need to check on those injuries, child," the healer said, when it seemed like I was determined to remain curled up. For the umpteenth time, I found my eyes straying in Kai's direction, except this time, the healer seemed to follow suit.

"Would you mind stepping out for a moment, Alpha?" Anyah requested. "I need to sort this out privately," she pressed when Kai only continued to watch us both.

Kai remained rooted to the spot, his gaze fixed on me with an intensity that made my cheeks burn. It was unnerving, the way he seemed to pierce through me with his stare, yet a strange comfort settled in my chest beneath it. It was almost like a reassurance that I couldn't understand.

"I'd rather stay," Kai said, his voice low.

Anyah's smile strained slightly. "While I appreciate your protectiveness, it's not necessary. I assure you, I mean her no harm."

"It's not you I'm worried about," Kai countered, his voice firm and I raised a brow.

Why was he worried about me? Did he think I would try to run away? Or did he just consider me dangerous?

"Very well," Anyah conceded with a sigh.

I flinched as the healer gently examined my wounds, her touch surprisingly firm and soothing. "These are nasty gashes," Anyah murmured. "You must have taken quite a fall." She trailed her fingers along the gashes that the thorns and branches had left scattered across my skin while I ran last night.

I nodded, wary of revealing too much. The less I said, the safer I would be. At least, that's what my every instinct screamed.

"Do you remember where you're from?" she began gently in a bid to start a conversation as she checked my injuries.

I swallowed heavily, wincing when she brushed past a particularly sore spot. "I'm not entirely sure," I admitted, a touch of despair creeping into my voice, that I immediately tried to cover up. I could still feel Kai's gaze on me, and I knew the Alpha was taking my every word into account, so I had to be careful about what I said. "I've been traveling for a long time. I barely remember where I started from."

The healer's smile faltered slightly. "Do you remember being attacked or who your attackers were?"

My hands clenched into fists. How could I forget the shadowy figures of Silas' hunters? They had been cloaked by darkness but I could hear the sound of their boots as they hunted me down like some sort of prey. However, revealing that information would change everything. I wasn't sure about how receptive Kai's pack would be to a Siren like myself, but what I did know was that Silas had a lot of enemies and maybe Kai was one of them. Even if I was a victim of Silas' evil myself, I doubted anyone would pity me.

"I don't remember much," I lied, the words heavy on my tongue. "It's all a blur."

The healer studied me for a long moment, a flicker of doubt dancing in her eyes. "All right," she finally said, accepting my answer for now. "Do you have anyone looking for you? Maybe your family?"

I bit my lip, a familiar ache blooming in my chest at the mention of my family. I had no family left. There was no one who would come looking for me.

"No," I said softly. "No one."

Anyah moved to the other side of the bed to pull some gauze from her bag and she began cleaning my wounds gently.

"It's okay. You'll be safe here. How are you feeling otherwise?" the healer asked, her gaze flickering over my face as she pulled out a soothing salve to apply to my injuries. The scent of it immediately calmed my frantic mind.

Is that Elixir?" I asked and Anyah's face immediately lit up at my question.

"Yes, it is. How do you know about Elixir? Are you a healer?" she asked with a new excitement in her voice that made me laugh.

"Yes. I'm still learning though, but Elixir is one of my favorite scents. I think I would recognize it anywhere," I added, and she hummed in satisfaction.

"Well, now that you're here, I'll be happy to help you with anything you need to know. Just let the Alpha know and he will bring you to me," she offered. I smiled, nodding in response.

"Who said anything about her being here for that long?" Kai interrupted.

Anyah began to answer when a jolt of pain lanced through my head, and I instinctively lowered my head to clutch at my forehead.

The healer's gasp ripped through the tense silence that had settled in the room at Kai's question. I froze, a sense of dread rising deep within the pit of my stomach. Slowly, I lifted my head, meeting the healer's horrified gaze.

"That mark," Anyah rasped, her voice barely above a whisper. "It can't be..."

Kai whirled around toward the bed, his eyes flashing with a different emotion that I hadn't witnessed before. He crossed the room in two long strides, his hand reaching out to touch my chin. I expected his touch to be harsh and painful, but it was surprisingly very gentle.

"What is it?" he demanded, his voice dangerously low.

Anyah only continued to stare at me, her eyes wide with a mix of fear and awe. She finally pointed to the very base of my neck, where a faint, swirling birthmark resided. It resembled a crescent moon, and my heart hammered against my ribs. The mark was a constant reminder of my past. It was the mark that Leo used to bind me to Silas' magic while I was within his territory. Every girl he owned bore a unique mark that indicated she had been set apart for him. We got the marks at birth and Silas always said that it was the Moon Goddess' way of choosing his girls for him.

"The Mark of the Moon," Kai whispered.

At the same time that Anyah said, "The prophecy…"

And my blood ran cold at those words.