Chapter 61: Shadows in the Dark
Kiel
The weight in my chest was unbearable.
I couldn’t stay there. I couldn’t keep standing in that hallway, waiting like some helpless fool while my mate—our mate—was barely hanging on inside that room.
Josie.
It was my fault.
I didn’t wait for anyone to say anything. My legs moved on their own, carrying me out of the hospital and into the open air. I barely made it past the threshold before the suffocating guilt forced the words out of me.
"It’s my mistake," I ground out, the words clawing from my throat. "She’s suffering because of me."
The door hadn’t even closed behind me when I heard footsteps. Of course they followed.
"Kiel, wait—" Varen’s voice called out behind me, but I didn’t stop.
They caught up easily, of course. They always did. My brothers never left me alone when I needed it, and tonight, I both hated and loved them for it.
Thorne was quiet, but Varen tried to talk. "There was nothing any of us could’ve done, Kiel. You can’t do this to yourself."
I turned, glaring. "Then what should I do? Sit there and pretend like everything is fine? She nearly died, Varen!"