CHAPTER TWO HUNDRED & SIXTY ONE
Talia’s POV
My father looked past me at Solon, who was standing near the door with Leslie. He frowned slightly and said, “You told her.”
“Yes, I did,” Solon replied without hesitating.
“I gave you explicit instructions not to.”
“I know,” Solon replied, “but I couldn’t keep this from Talia. She needed to know.”
My father made a sound that was almost a laugh, but more bitter. It surprised me. He looked back at me and said, “You should have told me yourself the moment it started, not days later through Leslie accidentally letting it slip to Della.”
“You had enough to deal with,” he answered.
“And you still should’ve told me,” I insisted. “There is no version of this where it was okay for you to keep that from me.” I stopped. I was not going to spend the time we had arguing about what should or shouldn’t have happened. “I am not here only to be with you. I think you were poisoned. Nolan and I came back to find the antidote.”
Father was quiet for a moment. He looked at Nolan, who was standing on the other side of the bed.
“I thought the same thing once,” he admitted. “In the beginning. I believed we would find the source quickly, but there was nothing. Leslie examined everything she could examine. There’s nothing that points to sabotage. I am just sick.”
“Our strong wolves don’t just allow us to get sick and especially not you,” I argued. “There must be something you missed.”
My father shook his head. “My wolf has been weakening since the marks appeared. I can still feel him, but he is distant in a way he has never been before. It is as if he is being pulled away.”
When my wolf was gone, it was like a piece of me missing. I couldn’t imagine what it would feel like with my wolf still there, but just out of reach. This couldn’t be an illness.
“I have had time to accept that my time is limited, Talia. I have made my peace with it,” Father continued.
“No,” I said. “I can’t accept this.”
“I need to speak about arrangements. About what should happen to Silverfang after I am gone, about who takes responsibility for…”
“No!” I snapped, my voice breaking as I fought back the tears. “Do not talk to me about arrangements. We are not there yet.”
Nolan walked over and placed his hand on my back. He did not say anything, but I could feel his support through the mate bond. His touch was enough to help me hold myself together.
Father watched us for a second before saying, “Nolan, do you remember what you promised me?”
“Of course I do, Alpha,” Nolan replied.
“You will protect her,” my father said.
“With my life,” Nolan answered.
“You made a vow when you took her as your mate.”
“A vow that I never forgot.”
“Whatever happens to me, she does not face what comes alone. Do you understand me?”
“I understand,” Nolan affirmed. “And I give you my word on it.”
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“Please stop talking like this. You’re acting like you’re going to die tomorrow,” I interjected.
Father turned his attention back to me and said, “Talia, this is serious. You are his Luna. You must stand with him. You can’t make decisions on your own anymore.”
I frowned. Did he really think that I ran off to see him without Nolan’s input? I wasn’t that reckless.
Before I could respond, Nolan said, “We made the decision to come here together. You do not need to worry about us, my king.”
‘Don’t take it to heart, Talia. He is just concerned,’ Nolan said through our mind link.
“Good,” my father said. “Solon, Leslie, come here.”
He called toward the door. “Solon. Leslie. Come in.”
They walked up to the foot of the bed. Leslie stood with her arms at her sides and her expression carefully neutral. Solon had his arms crossed. The slight frown on his face meant he already knew what was coming and had already decided how he felt about it.
“I have been thinking carefully about succession,” my father started.
“No,” Solon and I said immediately.
“Talia is right. You can’t give up,” Solon added.
“I have not finished.”
“You do not need to,” Solon retorted. “I am not taking the title, not while you are still here and not until we have exhausted all options. I am not going to accept the title while you are still breathing. So, you can finish your sentence, but my answer is no and
it will stay no.”
“Announcing a successor now, while you are still Alpha King, will create instability. Other packs will read it as a collapse of leadership. It will invite challenges and interference that we do not need while we are trying to focus on this,” Nolan added.
“You are not wrong,” Father conceded. “But time is short and I will not pretend otherwise.”
“We know,” I sighed. “We are not ignoring the seriousness of the situation. Let Nolan and I try to find a solution. With fresh eyes on the situation, we may be able to see something that you missed. If it comes to the point where succession cannot wait, we will face that then.”
Father nodded and said, “Then, we have no time to waste.” He pushed back the sleeve of his hospital gown and held out his
arm.
The marks had spread much further than Solon had described. They ran from his wrist all the way up past his elbow in branching dark lines. They were dense in some places and thin in others, covering the inside of his forearm completely.
“Goddess, they are worse than I thought,” I gasped.
Nolan went rigid beside me. I felt his hand on my back tighten on my shirt. “Nolan, what’s wrong?” I asked.
“Black spots?” Nolan murmured softly. His voice trembled slightly, which was unnerving. His eyes narrowed as he was trying to put a puzzle together.
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