Chapter 5 Heart To Heart

The SUV jolted over a root in the dirt road. Kieran's hand spasmed in mine. A sharp gasp escaped him quickly, like he had been punched in the gut. His fingers went slack for a second, then clenched again, harder, like he was afraid I would disappear if he let go.

I looked down at our joined hands. His knuckles were white. Mine were trembling. I had not noticed until now.

"It is inside me," he repeated, voice barely above a whisper. "The curse. I can feel it... crawling."

His eyes met mine. Gray. Usually so steady. Now glassy, wide with something I had never seen on him before. Fear. Real, bone-deep fear.

My throat closed. I wanted to say something anything but the words stuck. Instead, my free hand moved on its own. Pressed against his chest, right over his heart. It was racing. Too fast. Erratic. Like it was trying to outrun whatever was spreading inside him.

The bond answered. A hot, twisting ache bloomed in my own chest, right where my heart sat. Not my pain. His. But it felt like mine. Sharp. Burning. Like someone had poured acid under my ribs.

I sucked in a breath. Tears pricked my eyes suddenly, hot. I blinked hard, but one slipped free anyway. Landed on our linked fingers.

Kieran noticed. His thumb brushed it away, slow, careful. "Don't," he murmured. "Not for me."

But the tears kept coming. Quiet. Steady. I could not stop them. Because this was not just about the curse. It was about everything crashing down at once three years of locking everything away, and now the lock was broken. Mom's face flashed behind my eyes. Toby's small hand slipped from mine. The silence after the screams.

And now him. This man I was supposed to hate. This alpha who showed up and tore my world open again. Bleeding in the back seat. Scared. And still looking at me like I was the only thing keeping him here.

I leaned closer without meaning to. My head rested against his shoulder. His shirt smelled like rain, blood, and him pine and smoke and something warmer I could not name. His head tilted until it touched mine.

"I am sorry," he whispered. "For all of it. For not finding you sooner. For the pack failing you. For... this."

His voice cracked on the last word. Barely. But I felt it ripple through the bond. A wave of regret so heavy it made my own chest hurt worse.

I shook my head against his shoulder. "Stop."

"I cannot. I should have"

"Stop." My voice came out rough. Broken. "Just... stop talking."

He went quiet. But his hand squeezed mine tighter. Like he was afraid silence would make me pull away.

The SUV slowed. Ronan glanced back from the driver's seat. "We are almost at the house. Selena says the ritual circle is lit. We can try to slow it."

Kieran nodded weakly. Did not speak.

I lifted my head. Looked at him properly. His skin was too pale. Sweat beaded on his forehead despite the cold. Every breath seemed to cost him.

The bond pulsed again stronger this time. Not just pain. Something else underneath. Warmth. Need. A desperate pull that made my stomach flip and my skin flush.

I hated it. I hated how much I wanted to crawl into his lap and hold him until it stopped hurting. I hated how the thought of losing him after three days of knowing him felt like another death I could not survive.

A fresh wave hit him. He doubled forward with a choked sound. Hand pressed to his chest. Fingers digging in like he could claw the darkness out.

I moved before I could think. Wrapped both arms around him. Pulled him against me. His head dropped to my neck. Hot breath on my skin. Shaky.

"Lila..." My name sounded like a prayer. Like he was drowning and I was the rope.

Tears fell freely now. Into his hair. Down his back. I did not care.

"I am here," I whispered. Voice cracking. "I am not going anywhere."

The SUV stopped. Doors opened. Cold air rushed in.

Ronan reached for Kieran. "We have to move him."

I did not let go. Held tighter.

Kieran lifted his head just enough to look at me. Eyes wet. "You do not have to do this."

"I know." My voice shook. "But I am."

Selena appeared at the door. "The circle is ready. But the curse is accelerating. If we do not start the ritual soon..."

Kieran tried to stand. Legs gave out. Ronan caught him.

I stood with him. Arm around his waist. Supporting his weight again.

As we stepped into the night, toward the glowing circle in the trees, the ground rumbled once more deeper this time. Lights in the pack house flickered. A low wind rose, carrying whispers I could not understand.

Kieran's grip on my hand tightened. "It is calling your name," he breathed. "The curse... it is calling your name."

We reached the circle. Flames leapt higher than they should. Selena's eyes widened. "It is not waiting for the full moon. It is here. Now." Kieran's knees buckled completely. He fell to the dirt inside the circle. Black veins crawled up his neck, spreading fast. He looked up at me, terrified and pleading and whispered, "Run, Lila. Before it takes you too."

I dropped beside him. Hands on his face. "No. I am not running."

The flames roared. Shadows moved at the edge of the circle. Green light pulsed from the ground. The whispers got louder.

Selena started chanting. Hands raised. Light from her palms pushed against the shadows.

Kieran grabbed my wrist. "Lila... the bond. It needs more. It needs us."

I felt it. The pull. The ache. The need to finish what we started.

I leaned down. Lips close to his ear. "I am here."

He exhaled shakily. "Then stay."

The circle glowed brighter. The curse shadows pushed back. But they did not leave.

Selena said, "The ritual is starting. Hold on. Both of you. No letting go."

Kieran pulled me down. Our bodies touched. Chest to chest. Heart to heart.

The bond flared. Hot. Bright. Painful.

I cried out. So did he.

But we held on.

The shadows broke through the light. Wrapped around us. A cold, old voice spoke in both our heads. "The bond is weak. Doubt remains. Give one life… or lose both."

Kieran’s eyes met mine. "Lila..."

I shook my head. "We fight."

But the shadows tightened.