Chapter 139: The accident
Killian gasped, instinctively gripping the edge of the table as the vision vanished. For a moment, he couldn’t tell where he was. The luxurious dining room slowly returned around him, the crystal chandeliers, the polished marble, the soft music that had stopped completely, and the faces staring at him in stunned silence.
Cold sweat trickled down his temples. His chest rose and fell heavily as his pulse thundered in his ears.
"Kieran..." The name escaped him in a strained whisper.
Alexander’s chair shifted. "Killian?" he called quietly, his voice immediately alert.
Killian was already pushing himself to his feet. His chair scraped violently across the marble floor, the harsh sound cutting through the stunned silence.
Every conversation at the table died. Killian’s hands curled into fists at his sides. His mind was still trapped inside the vision, the screaming tyres, the headlights, the blood, and Kieran’s consciousness disappearing beneath the chaos.
"I have to leave," he said abruptly.
His voice was usually controlled, even when issuing an order. This time, there was something raw underneath it.
Fear.
Alexander noticed. His expression hardened. "Killian, what happened?" he asked.
"I’ll explain later." Killian didn’t have the time to explain.
He didn’t wait for permission. He turned and strode towards the doors, his footsteps echoing through the dining room.
Alexander watched him disappear.
Killian would never abandon negotiations halfway through a meeting. Not for anything. Something catastrophic had happened.
The moment Killian stepped outside, the cool night air struck his overheated skin. He barely noticed it.
’Kieran!’ He reached through the mind link again.
Nothing.
’Kieran, answer me.’
Silence.
There was no answer.
His stomach dropped.
Killian broke into a run towards the private parking area. An Alpha guard stationed outside immediately stepped forward.
"Lord Killian?" the guard called, startled by the sight of him. "Is something wrong?"
"Keys." He demanded the single word like an order.
The guard blinked. "Sir?"
"Give me the damn keys," Killian demanded, his voice low and dangerously impatient.
The guard immediately pulled the keys from his pocket and placed them in Killian’s palm.
Killian pressed the button. A black Aston Martin parked at the far end of the lot flashed its headlights.
He was already moving.
The guard stared after him in disbelief.
Killian barely remembered opening the driver’s door. He threw himself inside, slammed it shut, and started the engine. The roar of the car shattered the quiet parking area.
He didn’t bother with the seat belt.
The tyres screeched against the pavement as he pulled away, narrowly missing another vehicle entering the driveway. The guard stumbled backwards.
"Bloody hell..."
Killian didn’t hear him.
His entire world had narrowed to one thought.
Kieran was in danger.
His hands tightened around the steering wheel until his knuckles whitened. He stretched his consciousness through the pack bond, searching for his brother.
Killian could barely feel him through the bond, but the faint pulse of Kieran’s consciousness was enough to tell him one thing.
His brother was still alive.
Killian released a breath he hadn’t realised he’d been holding.
’How did he get into a car accident?’ his wolf demanded, his voice restless and agitated.
’I don’t know.’ Killian’s jaw clenched.
Then the guilt came.
’I should have stopped him.’
His wolf fell silent.
’I knew he was overworking himself. I knew something was wrong, and I still let him continue.’
Killian’s foot pressed harder against the accelerator.
’Kieran isn’t careless like Kaden. I thought he knew what he was doing.’
His grip tightened.
’But he was wrong this time.’
The image from the vision flashed through his mind again, blood, glass, Kieran’s fading consciousness.
Killian’s chest tightened.
’Please be alive.’
His wolf didn’t answer.
Neither of them needed to.
A sudden voice broke through the mind link.
’Killian!’
Kaden.
The panic in his brother’s voice made Killian’s stomach twist.
’What happened to Kieran?’ he asked.
Kaden was nowhere near Raven City. He was stationed at the Ravencourt military base on official pack business, negotiating a territory dispute with a neighbouring pack. Under normal circumstances, he would have abandoned the assignment without hesitation. Killian knew how reckless Kaden could be.
’Kieran got into an accident,’ he answered, keeping his voice as steady as possible. ’I’m heading there now.’
A burst of anger surged through the link.
’What? Where? I’m coming back.’
’No.’
Killian’s answer was immediate.
’Killian...’
’Finish your assignment.’
’Are you seriously telling me to sit here while Kieran is in an accident?’
’I’m telling you not to make the situation worse,’ Killian snapped, his voice turning firm. ’You know what happens when you act before thinking.’
Silence.
Kaden knew exactly what his brother meant.
Killian continued, his tone leaving no room for argument.
’You’re too far away. I’m already on my way. Stay there and finish the negotiations.’
Kaden hesitated.
’Is he alive?’
Killian glanced at the faint presence he could still feel through the pack bond.
’Yes.’
Barely.
But he was there.
’He’s unconscious, though.’
Kaden exhaled shakily.
’Fine. I’ll finish here.’
The connection went quiet.
Killian pushed the accelerator harder. The city blurred around him. He ignored traffic lights. Horns blared as he cut between vehicles. Several drivers swerved out of his way, their curses swallowed by the roar of his engine.
Then rain began to fall.
At first, it was little more than scattered droplets against the windscreen. Within minutes, the sky opened. Heavy rain hammered against the glass, turning the roads into a shimmering blur.
Killian switched on the wipers and leaned closer to the windscreen.
Then he saw them.
Flashing lights.
The blinding headlights of wrecked cars cut through the rain. An ambulance was racing towards the scene from the opposite direction, but it was still some distance away.
His heart lurched.
He followed the lights.
The accident had happened only a short distance from the restaurant.
He got there before the ambulance.
By the time Killian reached the scene, chaos had swallowed the road. Several vehicles had stopped along the roadside. People stood beneath umbrellas or simply in the rain, shouting over one another.
Broken glass glittered across the wet asphalt. Smoke drifted from twisted metal, mixing with the sharp smell of petrol.
Kieran’s car was barely recognisable.
Killian slammed his car into park and jumped out.
His steps faltered when he saw the Aston Martin.
For one terrible second, the wreckage looked exactly like the image that had flashed through his mind.
Only now, it was real.
The crushed bonnet, the shattered windscreen, the twisted frame pressed against the building.
His brother was somewhere inside that wreckage.