Page 108 of Wrath

She reached for my hair and pulled it away from my face as I emptied the contents of my stomach. I was just grateful I didn’t have breakfast yet. As it was, barely anything came out.

“Are you feeling okay, dearie?” a soft voice inquired.

Jolene was an older shifter and high-ranking member of the resistance, with a face perpetually stretched into a smile and wrinkles bracketing her intelligent gray eyes. She exuded “motherly” vibes in a way I’d never seen before. Not only was she a kind woman, but she was also a healer who specialized in the care of humans. We quickly put her to work in our medical center, and she’d been a godsend ever since.

“Just a little nauseous,” I said, dismissing her concern.

There were more important things for her to focus on—like the soldiers Ryland had just destroyed with his powers.

“She had a fight with her mate,” Mali explained, continuing to smooth back my hair.

Jolene’s face twisted in sympathy. “That could do it. It’s an awful feeling to be on the outs with your soulmate.”

Once I was positive I’d thoroughly emptied my stomach of its contents, I straightened, wiping at my mouth with the back of my hand.

“Let’s get you cleaned up, okay?” Mali said gently, guiding me back towards my tent.

“I want to look at your vitals as well, if you don’t mind.” Jolene moved to stand on my other side.

Her dark hazel eyes, currently appearing more brown than green, glimmered with concern.

“I’m fine. I promise.” I waved away both of their worries. “I was just feeling overwhelmed.” A lump formed in my throat, making swallowing impossible. “Ryland has never acted like that before.”

“Do you think it has something to do with the trials?” Mali asked. “Is this his trial?”

“No? Maybe? I don’t know.” And that was the truth.

All of the previous trials saw us in a different world, but that didn’t mean Lilith would always do that. Devlin’s trial was proof enough that she wouldn’t hesitate to shake things up.

Could Ryland be experiencing his trial at this exact moment?

But what was it?

Mali and Jolene conversed in soft tones as I changed into my own clothes, brushed my teeth, and then braided back my blonde curls. Once I felt more like myself instead of a walking, talking zombie, I returned and perched on the side of the bed.

Jolene immediately began to fuss over me.

“Is this really necessary?” I huffed.

Mali folded her arms and smirked. “You’re the leader of the biggest resistance in history. You could get a simple scratch and have a million healers look you over, ensuring you’re okay.”

I rolled my eyes but didn’t argue as Jolene fretted over me.

“I need to grab my supplies to do more,” she said, the crinkles around her eyes deepening with her smile. “But I wanted to ask?—”

“Z!” The flap to my tent was pushed away, and a familiar human stumbled inside, blood staining the side of his head.

“Stefan?” I stared at the human resistance leader with concern.

What the fuck?

“Z, come quick!” His eyes bulged. He looked unnaturally pale, almost ashen, like someone had taken chalk to his skin.

“What’s going on?” I reached for my weapons and began to sheathe the various daggers I had on hand, along with my sword.

“We’re under attack! Aaliyah’s army… It’s here. It’s fucking here.”

THIRTY-FIVE

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