KADE'S POV
I wake up to the sound of water dripping and the scent of herbs. My whole body aches like I've been trampled by horses.
"You're awake," Ivy's voice says softly from somewhere nearby.
I try to sit up and immediately regret it. Pain shoots through every muscle in my body.
"Easy," she says, placing a gentle hand on my chest. "Don't move too fast."
I look around and realize I'm still in the reinforced quarters. But the chains are gone, and there's a makeshift bed where the stone bench used to be.
"How long was I out?" I ask, my voice hoarse.
"Two days," Ivy replies, wringing out a cloth in a bowl of water. "You've been in and out of consciousness."
"Two days?" I try to sit up again, more carefully this time. "Ivy, you shouldn't be down here. It's not safe."
"Where else would I be?" she asks, placing the damp cloth on my forehead. "You're my mate. You needed me."
"But the smell down here, the dampness, the—"
"The what? The fact that this is where you suffer alone every month?"
I look away, unable to meet her eyes. "It's not your responsibility to take care of me."
"Yes, it is," she says firmly. "Just like it's your responsibility to take care of me."
I watch as she moves around the small space, organizing herbs and medical supplies. She's set up a complete healing station down here.
"Where did you get all this?" I ask.
"I asked the castle healer for supplies. Told her I was working on a special project for you."
"And she believed that?"
"She didn't ask questions. I think she was just happy someone was finally helping you."
The guilt hits me hard. "Ivy, I'm sorry. For avoiding you. For shutting you out. For—"
"Stop," she interrupts. "We don't need to do this right now."
"Yes, we do. You deserve an explanation."
She sits down on the edge of the makeshift bed. "Then explain."
I take a deep breath. "I was scared. Terrified, actually."
"Of what?"
"Of you seeing me like this. Of you realizing what kind of monster you're bound to."
"You're not a monster, Kade."
"Aren't I?" I ask bitterly. "You've seen what I become. You've seen the violence, the lack of control."
"I've seen you in pain," she corrects. "I've seen you fighting something that's part of you instead of accepting it."
"You don't understand. The things I've done. The people I've hurt."
She reaches for my hand. "Tell me."
"I can't."
"Yes, you can. Whatever it is, I can handle it."
I look at her sitting there, so small and brave, willing to hear my darkest secrets. The mate bond hums between us, encouraging honesty.
"There was an incident," I begin slowly. "Three years ago. The worst transformation I'd ever had."
"What happened?"
"I was supposed to be locked up, just like last night. But the chains broke. I got out."
Ivy's grip on my hand tightens, but she doesn't pull away.
"I was completely gone," I continue. "No human consciousness left. Just the wolf. Just the beast."
"Where did you go?"
"Into the castle. I was hunting. Looking for... I don't even know what. Food. Prey. Something to kill."
My voice cracks on the last word.
"Did you find someone?" she asks quietly.
I nod. "Marcus. He was only sixteen then. A young warrior in training. He was doing late-night guard duty."
"Oh, Kade."
"I attacked him. No warning, no provocation. Just pure animal instinct."
I can still remember it. The smell of fear. The taste of blood. The sound of screaming.
"I nearly tore his throat out," I whisper. "If Derek hadn't found us when he did..."
"But he did find you," Ivy says. "And Marcus survived."
"Barely. He was in the healing ward for two months. Still has scars across his neck and chest."
"Is he still afraid of you?"
"Terrified. He can barely look at me. And I don't blame him."
Ivy is quiet for a long moment, processing what I've told her.
"That's why you've been avoiding me," she finally says. "You're afraid you'll hurt me."
"I know I'll hurt you. It's not a question of if, it's when."
"No," she says firmly. "It's not."
"How can you be so sure?"
"Because you're not the same person you were three years ago. And I'm not Marcus."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean Marcus was just a castle guard. I'm your mate. The bond between us is different. Stronger."
"That doesn't make me less dangerous."
"Doesn't it? When you were transforming the other night, when you were completely lost to the wolf, what happened when I touched you?"
I think back to that moment. The instant relief. The way the beast calmed at her touch.
"You stopped it," I admit.
"Not just stopped it. Controlled it. Guided it. Made it manageable."
"Ivy, you don't understand what you're saying. Living with me means living with constant danger. Every full moon. Every time I get angry. Every time I lose control."
"I understand perfectly."
"Do you? Do you really? Because once we're officially mated, there's no going back. No changing your mind when things get too hard."
She stands up and walks to the small window near the ceiling. Sunlight streams through the bars, illuminating her face.
"Can I tell you something?" she asks.
"Of course."
"When I was little, before my parents died, my mother used to tell me stories about the old times. About the first werewolves."
"What kind of stories?"
"She said that in the beginning, werewolves were wild and violent. They couldn't control their transformations. They killed indiscriminately."
"Sounds familiar."
"But then something changed. They found their mates. True mates. And the mates learned to calm them. To guide them. To make them whole."
"Those are just stories, Ivy."
"Are they? Or are they history that's been forgotten?"
She turns back to me. "Your curse isn't just about being the last of your bloodline, Kade. It's about being disconnected, isolated, and alone."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean maybe the reason your transformations are getting worse is because you've been fighting them alone. Maybe you were never meant to handle this by yourself."
"So what are you saying?"
"I'm saying that what happened the other night wasn't an accident. It wasn't luck. It was the mate bond working the way it's supposed to work."
I stare at her. "You really believe that?"
"I believe in us. I believe in what we can do together."
"Even after everything I just told you? Even knowing that I'm capable of killing innocent people?"
"Especially then."
She walks back to the bed and sits down beside me again.
"Kade, I spent five years as a slave. I've seen real monsters. Men who hurt people because they enjoy it. Men who kill for pleasure or power."
"And?"
"And you're not one of them. You're a man who's been cursed with something terrible, but you're still a man. Still someone who cares about protecting others."
"How can you be so sure?"
"Because if you were really a monster, you wouldn't be agonizing over what you might do to me. You'd just do it."
The simple truth of her words hits me like a revelation.
"You're not going to leave?" I ask.
"I'm not going anywhere," she says firmly. "Whatever comes next, we face it together."
"Even if it means more nights like this? More danger? More uncertainty?"
"Even then."
She takes my hand again, and the mate bond flares between us. But this time, instead of making me feel desperate or out of control, it makes me feel... peaceful.
"I'll stay," she says, looking directly into my eyes. "I'll stay, and we'll figure this out. All of it."
For the first time in years, I believe her. For the first time in my life, I don't feel completely alone.