Chapter 220: THE SILENT ASSASSIN
Author’s POV
Dane arrived at the clinic a short while later, one hand pressed against his injured shoulder as he walked through the doorway.
Callum immediately noticed him and his expression changed. "What happened to you?" he demanded, looking from Dane’s face to the hand covering his shoulder.
Dane shook his head as though it was barely worth mentioning, but Callum wasn’t having it. "It’s nothing serious," Dane assured him, stopping beside the bed where Keisha remained unconscious. "I caught the shooter. He tried to use the gun on himself before I could stop him, and I managed to get it away from him. I got hit during the struggle."
Callum’s eyes narrowed. "You got shot."
Dane shrugged. "It’s a graze. The guards arrived before he could get away." .
He then explained everything that had happened, including where he’d chased the assassin and how the man had refused to answer any questions. "He’s being held downstairs," Dane finished. "The guards are waiting for us to decide what to do with him."
Callum looked back at Keisha before answering. "How badly did you get hurt?"
"I told you, I’m fine."
"You’re holding your shoulder like that because you’re fine? How assuring, Dane."
Dane gave him an unimpressed look, but Callum didn’t smile. "Go inside and see Keisha if you insist," Callum told him. "Then you’re getting that shoulder treated."
Dane didn’t argue. He walked over to Keisha’s bedside and stood there quietly for several seconds.
She still hadn’t woken. Her face looked peaceful as Dane reached out and gently touched her hand. "You scared me today," he murmured, his voice low enough that only Callum could hear. "You’d better wake up soon."
Callum watched him for a moment before looking toward the doctor. "She really is stable?"
"She is," the doctor assured him. "I’ve already checked her again. Nothing suggests that the babies are in danger. She simply needs rest."
Callum nodded, but his shoulders remained tense.
After Dane had spent a few minutes beside Keisha, Callum sent him to have his shoulder treated.
Dane protested again, claiming he could deal with it later, but Callum finally became firm enough that Dane had no choice but to follow the medical staff. Once the wound had been properly treated and wrapped, Dane returned to the corridor, where Callum was waiting.
"We’re going to see the assassin," Callum said.
Dane nodded and they left the clinic together.
Nadia remained behind.
She sat beside Keisha’s bed, watching her closely. Every few minutes, her eyes moved toward the door whenever she heard footsteps, and whenever the doctor entered to check Keisha, Nadia immediately asked the same question. "When is she going to wake up?"
The doctor gave her the same answer each time. "There is no exact time. She’s stable, Nadia. She needs to rest."
Nadia nodded every time, but the worry never completely left her face.
Eventually, when the room became quiet again, Nadia leaned closer to Keisha. "You know, I was actually supposed to sleep early yesterday," she began, almost laughing at how ridiculous that sounded now. "And then you weren’t sleeping, so I wasn’t sleeping, and somehow we both ended up sneaking out of the estate and almost getting caught at Elder Osric’s house."
She paused, looking at Keisha’s unconscious face. "You’re probably not listening to me, but I’m going to talk anyway."
Nadia pulled the chair closer to the bed. She began telling Keisha a long, rambling story about random stuff.
Every now and then, she stopped and stared at Keisha. "You’d better wake up," she whispered. "Because I don’t want to keep talking to myself."
Meanwhile, Callum and Dane stood in front of the captured assassin.
The man had been restrained and placed under heavy guard, but he hadn’t said a single useful word since being captured.
Callum questioned him first, demanding to know who had sent him and who else was involve, but the assassin simply stared back at him despite the torture.
Dane stepped forward next. "You killed Orin before he could finish speaking," he said coldly. "You knew exactly what he was about to reveal, which means you were sent."
The man remained silent. Even after the guards subjected him to harsh treatment, the man refused to confess.
Callum eventually stepped back, frustration evident on his face. "You’re protecting people who won’t hesitate to abandon you."
The assassin didn’t respond.
Dane looked at him for a long moment before turning toward Callum. "He’s not going to talk."
Callum’s jaw tightened. "I can see that."
"We have more important things to deal with right now." Dane growled.
Callum hated admitting it, but Dane was right. The war with Duskfen was still approaching.
Leaving the assassin under guard, they eventually walked away from the interrogation room.
By evening, the estate had settled a bit, though nobody had forgotten what happened in the hall.
Callum and Dane returned to the clinic to see that Nadia was still sitting beside Keisha.
Callum immediately looked toward the bed. Keisha remained unconscious, exactly as she had been when they left. The doctor entered shortly afterward and checked her again before giving them another reassuring update.
"She is doing well," the doctor said. "Her condition hasn’t changed. She’s simply resting."
Callum nodded as he pulled a chair beside Keisha’s bed and sat down. "I’ll stay here tonight."
Nadia looked at him. "You have things to do."
"No, I can handle them tomorrow." He shook his head.
"No, you can’t." She sighed. "Dad."
Callum raised an eyebrow.
Nadia crossed her arms. "Dad, you have a war coming. You have Ashveil warriors here, Duskfen is still a problem, and half the estate is probably waiting for you to tell them what happens next."
Callum glanced toward Keisha. "She’s my mate."
"And she’s my friend," Nadia replied. "Which is exactly why I’ll stay."
Dane, who had been standing near the doorway, looked between them before speaking. "We should get some rest too, there are still things that need to be handled before morning."
Callum wasn’t convinced.
Nadia softened her voice. "She’s stable. The doctor said she’s fine. I’ll stay here, and if anything changes, I’ll come straight to you."
Callum remained silent for a moment before finally nodding. "Fine. But you call me immediately if she wakes up or if anything changes."
"I will."
He stood and leaned over Keisha, pressing a gentle kiss against her forehead before straightening again. His hand rested briefly against hers. "We’ll be back in the morning," he murmured.
Nadia watched him and Dane leave the clinic together.
Once the door closed, she turned back toward Keisha.
She pulled her chair closer to the bed again, rested her arms on the mattress, and looked at her friend for a long moment.
"You really need to wake up," she whispered. "Because I’ve got way too much to tell you."