Chapter 257 Wherever You Are
TESSA
尽
<b>66 </b>
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Ca lifted her head to answer for me, her face blotchy with tears. “A man-” she hupped between words, the sound strangled by fear. “A man was going <i>to </i>take me, Mommy!”
My heart stopped. My arms tightened around her, and I immediately looked up, my eyes sweeping over the soot–stained faces of the survivors huddled nearby. My voice trembled with urgency, but I forced it out.
“Is that true?”
For a moment, no one spoke. Then Winston,ing from behind the people with his shirt singed and torn, stepped forward. He gave one nod. “Yes.”
My breath hitched.
“She was ying as usual, just outside.” He swallowed hard, shaking his head. “We didn’t feel the presence. There was no scent, no sound. Whoever it was, they had the power to be undetectable.”
“It’s a good thing your daughter is smart,” he continued. “The moment she cried, everyone was on alert. We rushed out, ready, but…” His voice broke off, his lips tightening as though he couldn’t bear to finish.
“But what?” I pressed, my hand rubbing soothing circles into Ca’s back as she whimpered softly.
Winston’s jaw clenched. “It was all <i>too </i>fast. They probably didn’t expect Ca to alert all of us. Otherwise, we would have been as good as dead. Explosions erupted from all directions. It was an annihtion, and I had no choice.”
His eyes lifted, filled with guilt. “I had to let everyone leave because my people’s safety is my priority.”
He nced back at the huddle of our people, the broken cluster of men, women, and children clinging to one another amidst the ruins of what had been their homes. His shoulders sagged, and for the first time since I’d known him, Winston looked defeated.
“But everything I’ve built…” He exhaled shakily, his voice heavy with grief. “Everything I’ve fought for is now ash. Burnt to the ground.”
His words trembled with a pain that pulled something deep inside me.
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“I don’t know what to do anymore.” He dragged a hand down his face, smearing soot further. “We only had enough money for the renovation of the clinic, and now everything else is ruined.” His throat bobbed as he forced the words out. “I feel so sorry for our people.”
He turned again, his hand gesturing toward them. “I was able to save all of our people,” he repeated, sounding desperate. “However, I don’t know if we can continue living like this.”
I had thought of rc as a ce of refuge during my lowest times. However, this has be my home, too. From the look on Rowan’s face, I could tell he felt the same, even though he had only been here for a short period of time. Thend, the people, the bonds I had formed here… they were mine just as much as his. Seeing it all in ruin felt like losing a part of myself.
In my arms, Ca whimpered again, fresh tears streaking her cheeks. I kissed the top of her head, whispering nonsenseforts I didn’t truly believe myself. I didn’t know what else to do.
“I don’t want him to take me, Mommy,” she cried. “Don’t let him.”
“Never,” I whispered fiercely, rocking her gently. “I’ll never let anyone take you.”
But inside, fear dug sharp ws into my heart. Will Kyle and Montrose actually go this low and involve my daughter in whatever war they want to start?
Edith stepped forward then. Her eyes, usually so enthusiastic, were dim with exhaustion and dread.
“We don’t have anywhere to go,” she said quietly. “A few of our people have enough money for hotels. But that won’tst. It isn’t sustainable. Along with that, I’m afraid,” she admitted.
“I’m afraid that the witches and wizards of Montrose will taunt the humans we interact with. We didn’t lose anyone in this attack, and I want to make sure we don’t affect anyone else.”
A heavy silence followed, broken by the faint crackling of mes still eating what little remained of our pack.
Rowan sighed, then looked at Winston, then at Edith, then finally at me.
“Do you want to go back…”
With those few words, I already had a hunch of what he was about to ask. He swallowed, his eyes locking with mine. “To Fenra? To my pack?”
***
The water rippled with every dip of the oars, the sound mingling with Rowan’s firm voice as
Chapter 257 Wherever You Are
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he spoke on the phone. I nced across the darkening horizon–boats upon boats drifted behind us, each one crowded with our exhausted pack members. Families crammed together, clutching children close with no belongings in sight.
We’d managed to squeeze every pack member into the boats we had, though some were far too small to be carrying the weight they bore now. It was heartbreaking.
“Is it really alright?” Winston suddenly asked as he rowed. Sweat beaded across his forehead, but his grip on the oar was steady. Rowan lifted his head from where he had just ended a call. His phone rested on his knee, his fingers pinching the bridge of his nose.
“Yes,” he muttered. “I already informed my Delta. We have an unupied pack house meant for those who don’t have their own home. There are a lot of vacant beds still because we’ve been using an individual housing strategy these past years.”
His words carried reassurance, but I could see the fatigue shadowing his features.
“The damage in the South is mendable,” Rowan continued, his eyes scanning the stretch of waters. “Compared to ours… especially since the other factions are also helping.”
At that, Winston finally let out a long sigh. Relief softened the tight line of his shoulders, but a deep crease of worry still sat between his brows. His eyes flickered to the people before us, then back to the water.
I sat quietly for a while, my hand gently stroking Ca’s hair. Her head was light against myp, her chest rising and falling with uneven breaths as she slept. Even in sleep, her little face was puffy from crying, hershes wet, her lips quivering faintly.
Her small hand held onto Rowan’s finger tightly. He hadn’t moved it away once.
“I’m sorry,” I muttered suddenly.
Winston’s head lifted, his eyes narrowing slightly in confusion. Noelle and Sol also lifted their heads.
“What are you talking about?” Noelle muttered.
“Why are you saying sorry?” Winston asked, genuine puzzlement in his tone.
I pressed my lips together, staring down at Ca. “Because…” I hesitated, tightening my arms around her body. “Because of this. Because of everything that just happened. It wouldn’t have happened if I hadn’t moved here. If I didn’t exist…”
My throat thickened as my gaze drifted out over the boats, the broken ruins of re burned into my memory. My heart hardened as another name surged into my thoughts.
Chapter 257 Wherever You Are
Kyle Rose.
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I didn’t know what the hell he wanted or what his people were scheming. But I knew their chaos had found us here.
“I don’t understand what they want from us,” I whispered. “If they’recking resources, they could just ask for our help. They didn’t have to do this. They didn’t have toe after us. To innocent people.”
My voice cracked, and I felt tears prickling behind my eyes. “Was it because of me?” I whispered the thought I hadn’t dared to speak until now. “It seemed like he… needed something from me. But what? What is it?”
I didn’t realize how tight my grip had be until Ca stirred slightly, shifting against me with a faint whimper. I loosened my hold quickly, smoothing her hair back, but the question gnawed at me still, tearing holes through every breath.
“It’s not your fault,” Rowan’s voice broke through, and I snapped my gaze toward him.
My tears slipped free, trailing hot down my cheeks as I stared at him. He leaned closer, his hand lifting to cup the back of my head.
“You’re even going back to the South,” I muttered. My voice trembled. “You said you didn’t want to anymore.”
He pulled back just enough to look at me fully, his eyes searching mine before shaking his head gently.
“That’s not what I said,” he whispered.
“I said, wherever you are, I’ll be there,” Rowan murmured, his thumb brushing across my temple. “And where you are the safest, I’ll be there. Because home is not a ce for me, but a person.” His eyes softened even more, locking me in ce,
“And that’s you.”
“So, it doesn’t matter if I’m inconvenienced, or if I have to go through every single hardship in life. As long as I’m with you, I feel like I’m going to be okay.”