Chapter 109: FAVOURITE SISTER
KEISHA’S POV
Sleep refused to come.
I lay on my back for what felt like hours, staring at the ceiling above my bed while the events of the day replayed themselves over and over again, refusing to leave me alone.
Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Nadia lying unconscious in that room. Then Eliora’s face would replace hers, twisted with resentment as she admitted everything without the slightest hint of remorse.
It was strange.
A few weeks ago, Eliora had simply been another employee sitting quietly behind a desk. Now she was sitting inside the dungeon beneath the Alpha’s estate, and Nadia could have died because of her.
The thought alone made my stomach twist.
I reached over to my bedside table and picked up my phone.
For a second, I simply stared at Nadia’s name before typing out a message.
Are you feeling better?
I read it twice before pressing send.
The message sat there for a second.
One tick.
Then nothing.
I waited patiently.
Still nothing.
A small smile tugged at my lips despite myself.
She’d probably fallen asleep.
For once, she was actually listening to the doctor’s instructions instead of complaining about them.
Good.
She needed the rest more than she’d ever admit.
I placed the phone back down and leaned against the headboard, letting out a slow breath.
The house felt unusually quiet tonight.
Normally, by this hour, I’d hear Nadia barging into my kitchen because she’d suddenly decided she was hungry again, or she’d text me something ridiculous despite living only a few minutes away before she moved in.
Tonight there was nothing.
Only silence.
I was glad she was safe. That was all that mattered.
Still... I couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling that had settled inside me ever since leaving the hospital.
First, it had been Eliora.
Then that brief glimpse of someone who looked like Orin. Now every shadow outside my window seemed just a little darker than usual.
I rubbed my forehead. "You need to stop overthinking." I muttered to myself.
It sounded convincing enough until I realized I’d spoken aloud.
With another sigh, I climbed out of bed.
The cool wooden floor met my bare feet as I walked toward the front door. Maybe a little fresh air would help quiet my mind. Staying inside wasn’t doing me any favors.
The night greeted me the moment I stepped outside.
A cool breeze swept through the quiet street, carrying with it the scent of the earth and the smell from the forest surrounding the estate. It brushed against my face and stirred loose strands of my hair, easing some of the tension that had been building behind my eyes all evening.
I wrapped my cardigan tighter around myself and wandered toward the small porch, resting both hands on the railing.
The estate looked peaceful. Almost too peaceful.
No shouting. No alarms. No rushing guards.
After everything that had happened today, the silence felt strange.
I tilted my head toward the sky.
The moon hung high above the trees, bright enough to cast pale silver across the pathways below.
It reminded me that life had a strange way of continuing.
People got kidnapped. People betrayed each other. People almost died. Yet somehow the moon still rose exactly when it was supposed to.
Footsteps reached my ears.
At first, I assumed they belonged to one of the night patrols. Then I caught the familiar scents and my heartbeat stumbled.
Callum and Dane.
They were walking side by side along the stone pathway, speaking quietly about something I couldn’t make out from where I stood.
I hadn’t expected either of them tonight.
Before I could decide whether to greet them or quietly slip back inside, Callum lifted his head and our eyes met. For a moment, neither of us moved.
His wolf surfaced so suddenly that I felt the change before I saw it.
The intensity in his eyes deepened and his gaze lingered on me with an almost painful familiarity, and I felt my own wolf stir in response, pressing against my thoughts with quiet recognition.
Diane. Not now.
"Keisha..."
He crossed the remaining distance without saying a word. "You’re awake," he said softly.
"I couldn’t sleep."
His eyes searched my face. "Were you thinking about today?"
I gave a faint nod. "I keep wondering what would’ve happened if we’d been even a few minutes later."
His jaw tightened. "We weren’t."
"No."
"And Nadia is safe."
"I know." I nodded.
He reached out almost absentmindedly, brushing a loose strand of hair away from my face.
The simple gesture carried far more significantce than it should have.
I’d spent weeks trying to convince myself to keep my distance.
Trying to remind myself that this relationship—whatever it was—couldn’t continue forever.
Not with the child growing inside me. Not when I still hadn’t told them. Not when I had no idea how either of them would react.
Yet standing this close to him made all those carefully built walls feel strangely fragile.
Diane rumbled deep inside me again. "Keisha..."
I knew what she wanted. And goddess, I wanted it too.
Dane joined us a moment later, stopping beside Callum. "You should be asleep," he murmured.
"So should both of you."
A small smile appeared on his face. "We were heading back."
"Liar."
His eyebrows lifted.
"You always inspect the borders before calling it a night."
"I’ve been caught."
Despite everything, a laugh escaped me and it surprised all three of us.
Perhaps I needed that more than I’d realized.
Neither man moved away and neither did I.
For several quiet moments, we simply stood there beneath the moonlight while the breeze drifted lazily between us.
No one seemed eager to break the silence.
Eventually Callum spoke again. "You’ve had enough excitement for one day."
"I think everyone has."
His gaze softened. "You should rest."
"I will."
I meant to turn around. I truly did. Instead, I remained exactly where I was.
Some invisible thread seemed to keep pulling us closer together despite every reason we had to stay apart.
My thoughts drifted, almost involuntarily, toward the tiny life growing inside me.
They still didn’t know.
Every day I delayed telling them made the truth feel heavier.
Would they be angry?
Would they think I’d hidden it deliberately?
Or would they...
I stopped myself before finishing the thought. There was no point imagining answers I didn’t have.
Not tonight.
Callum squeezed my hand gently. "You don’t have to carry everything alone."
The words caught me off guard.
For a second, I wondered if he’d somehow guessed what I was thinking.
He couldn’t have. Could he?
I searched his face but found only quiet concern.
Dane rested a reassuring hand against my shoulder. "We’re here and wanted to check up on you."
Such simple words. Yet they settled somewhere deep inside me. The fear I’d carried ever since the hospital eased, if only slightly.
I realized then how exhausted I truly was.
The three of us eventually went inside, their hands roaming my body with breathless gaps while I let myself give in again to he temptations pressing against my mind for weeks.
Just for tonight, I wanted to escape reality again.
*******
Morning sunlight slipped through the curtains and landed across my face.
I blinked awake slowly.
For a moment I remained still, replaying fragments of the previous night in my mind.
Against all reason, I smiled.
It was ridiculous. Everything about us was complicated.
Yet remembering the comfort they had brought me last night filled me with a warmth I couldn’t quite explain.
The smile faded as another thought quickly replaced it.
The baby.
I rested my hand lightly against my stomach.
"I’ll tell them." I muttered to myself.
Not today, but soon.
I couldn’t keep hiding it forever.
A sharp knock echoed through the house and I frowned.
Who would visit this early?
The knocking came again more impatient this time.
Still wrapped in my nightrobe, I pushed myself out of bed and hurried toward the front door, absentmindedly smoothing my hair with one hand.
"I’m coming."
The knocking stopped as I unlocked the door, pulled it open, then forgot how to breathe.
A familiar woman stood on the porch with a travel bag resting beside her feet.
I instantly recognised the long dark hair, bright eyes and the same teasing smile I’d grown up seeing every single day.
For one impossible second, my mind refused to accept what my eyes were seeing. "...Lyra?"
She laughed. "What? Aren’t you going to invite your favorite sister inside?"
Holy shit.