Chapter 6 The Woman He Refused to See
[Draven's POV]
Theron was back quickly.
"The Moonshade Herb is there," he said, wearing an expression I rarely saw on him—openly pleased. "A large patch."
I looked at him without speaking.
I knew better than anyone what a large patch of Moonshade Herb meant.
It meant fewer Blackthorn fighters dying from silver wounds. It meant we could sustain longer campaigns. It meant more territory, more resources, more of a future for our people.
In my mind, Rune stirred for the first time since the wolfsbane compound.
"My Mate," he said, and the pride in his voice was entirely undisguised.
I did not respond.
Theron was quiet for a moment. "No ambush," he said, deliberately slow, as though making sure I caught every word.
I glanced at him. He didn't look away. He simply turned toward the medical tent.
I followed his gaze.
Eric had finished verifying that the herb was safe and was already preparing the medicine. Kaelan stood beside him, speaking quietly. Finn was there too.
I frowned.
An hour ago, when I had ordered Eric to test the herb for toxins, the look Eric gave me had sat wrong with me. Testing it was the right call—it was a matter of the Pack's safety. There was nothing wrong with it.
So why had I been unwilling to look at those green eyes while it was happening?
Then Finn had appeared, claiming that since he was responsible for watching Kaelan, he ought to be nearby. I had let him go without a word—but I had glanced at Kaelan in spite of myself. Her face was calm. No particular pleasure at seeing him. The way you look at someone ordinary.
I pushed the strange feeling down and waved them both back to work.
The tent had made me restless. I'd moved my people outside to wait for Theron's return, leaving the space to Eric.
By the time Eric finished preparing the first batch of medicine, he had cleaned one fighter's wound and was about to apply the treatment.
Kaelan watched for a moment, then placed a hand on his arm to pause him. She called Finn over. The three of them put their heads together.
Eric looked at the injured fighter. Then at her. He nodded.
After that, everything moved differently.
Eric summoned several attendants. Kaelan spoke to each of them in turn. Finn organized a team to carry in a large stone basin and a row of smaller ones—the big basin filled with hot water. Within minutes, multiple attendants were cleaning wounds simultaneously, cycling clean water through the basin under Kaelan's direction while Eric moved down the line applying medicine. In a short time, every one of the dozens of fighters had been treated.
Work that would have taken the better part of a day was done.
"That cut the time in half, at minimum," Theron said quietly beside me.
I said nothing. I had already been watching for too long.
"She's exceptional," Rune said, low and full of satisfaction.
Eric said something to Kaelan. She began to look up—toward me.
I moved my eyes away before I could think about it.
The motion was so fast I almost missed it myself.
I looked toward the forest. Darkness swallowed the distance. I drew a slow breath, letting the clean smell of pine press down on whatever was churning under my ribs.
Then I turned and walked into the medical tent. In my peripheral vision, I caught Nyx watching me—pale-faced. I rarely saw her look like that. I did not particularly want to know why.
Inside, the conversation stopped. The firelight shifted slightly. Every person stilled and lowered their head in greeting.
The injured fighters tried to rise.
I raised one hand. "Don't."
The tent went quiet—just the occasional sound of insects outside. I swept my gaze across the space. Every person looked away.
Except Kaelan. She simply watched me, as though she already knew what I was going to say.
I looked away from her. "Theron."
Theron took his cue and raised his voice. "The Moonshade Herb has been located." He turned toward Kaelan. "The location was provided by Kaelan." A pause. "There is a large patch."
The tent erupted in low voices.
They looked at her—and this time it was different. Not the way they had looked at an enemy's daughter. The way they looked at someone who had done something for them. Someone who could keep them alive on a battlefield.
I watched it happen. I thought of how Eric had looked, and how Finn had acted.
Something unfamiliar settled in my chest. I did not like it. It felt too much like approval.
"Kaelan."
The tent went quiet again. She looked at me.
"You located the Moonshade Herb. You contributed to Blackthorn." I paused. "Starting today, you are no longer confined to the cabin. You may move freely within Blackthorn's territory."
She held my gaze for a moment, as though she wanted to say something. In the end she only nodded.
I turned to leave.
Rune spoke immediately. "Just that?"
I kept walking.
"She helped our people. She can find Moonshade Herb. She is our Mate."
I stopped. "She is Alaric's daughter."
Rune went quiet.
"Letting her stay is already the furthest I will go."
This time he didn't argue. He only said, very quietly:
"But you know she isn't Alaric Wolfsbane."
My stride broke—just briefly.
Then I kept walking.
In the nights that followed, Rune went to the cabin.
Not me. At least, that was what I kept telling myself. My resistance meant he never crossed into the clearing—only circled the forest nearby, staying close without approaching.
During the days, I began to see Kaelan constantly.
At the stream. In the trees. At the training ground.
She was always somewhere within my line of sight.
Like now—she was training, Finn standing behind her, correcting her grip on a practice weapon.
Her technique had a foundation. Someone had trained her, at some point, and the experience showed in the structure of her movements. But she had clearly gone without practice for a long time—there was a shape to it that had once been sharp, worn down now by disuse.
Why?
I pushed the question down. It was not my concern what she had gone through. It was not something I should be thinking about.
Finn's hand closed around her wrist to adjust her stance.
The image from the medical tent surfaced without invitation—Finn beside her then too, the same ease between them.
My hand tightened slowly on the windowsill.
Crack.
A corner of the frame split. I looked down at it. Then I let go.
I did not like this feeling.
It felt like jealousy.
Like possession.
Like the fact Rune had been pressing on me since the beginning—she was my Fate Mate.
"Draven."
Theron knocked once and came in.
He looked at the window. Then at me. He said nothing.
I moved back to my chair. "What is it?"
Theron raised an eyebrow and began his report on the northeastern perimeter defense.
I listened. But the image kept returning—Finn's hand on her wrist, and her not pulling away. She trusted him.
Theron was nearly at the door when I heard myself speak.
"Blackthorn doesn't keep idle people."
A pause.
"Have Kaelan report to Nyx starting tomorrow."
"Doing what?"
"Nyx can decide."
