Chapter 183 Episode 182: Just let me stay.

“Let’s take him to the clinic,” Caius suddenly said.

The Serpent Alpha stepped out of the dark hallway. He did not look panicked. He looked as calm as a still pond. He rolled up the sleeves of his neat dark shirt, preparing for messy work.

Rue looked at the snake warlord. Her hands shook. She looked at the massive puddle of dark blood forming on the stone floor right under Onyx’s boots.

“Why?” Rue asked, her voice cracking. “Can you do something about it, or should we call for a doctor?”

She knew Caius read a lot of thick books. She knew he was very smart. But this was a massive, bleeding wound. She wanted a real healer. She wanted someone who knew how to save a dying man.

Caius chuckled. It was a soft, dry sound that cut through the heavy tension in the room. He walked over to the moody white wolf and inspected the torn leather.

“I took care of Gianna for Tanith back in the swamp,” Caius said. “I know exactly how to deal with heavy injuries like this. A village doctor would faint if they saw a beast bite this deep. I will not faint.”

Rue let out a shaky breath. The crushing weight on her chest lifted just a little bit. She remembered Tanith talking about Caius. The snake was a genius with herbs and stitches. He kept the swamp warriors alive through brutal, muddy wars.

Rue stopped worrying and smiled. “Okay. I trust you.”

Drax and Axel moved fast. The Dragon King grabbed Onyx by his good shoulder. Axel grabbed his twin right around the waist. They lifted the bleeding wolf off the floor. They hurried down the dim hallway. Rue followed right on their heels. She stepped carefully, avoiding the fresh drops of red blood staining the stones.

They reached a large, bright room at the back of the house.

Caius built this room himself. He spent weeks turning an empty storage space into a clean, functioning medical ward. The walls were painted a stark white. Tall wooden shelves lined the walls, packed tight with glass bottles, dried plants, and clean cotton bandages. A heavy, flat wooden table sat right in the center of the floor, sitting under a bright iron lantern.

They laid him on the table that Caius had put in time for treatments just like this.

Onyx let out a harsh, wet groan as his back hit the hard wood. He is badly injured. The bite on his arm was nasty, but that was not the real problem. His side torn open by the Hyena Alpha was much worse. The feral beast managed to sink its massive jaws right through the tough leather armor before Drax burned the swarm to ash. Dark, thick blood pumped out of the wound in a steady, terrifying rhythm.

“Cut his armor off,” Caius ordered.

The snake warlord walked over to a clay basin. He grabbed a block of harsh soap and started scrubbing his pale hands. He moved with cold focus. He did not rush, but he did not waste a single second either.

Axel did not bother unbuckling the thick leather straps. The white wolf pulled a hunting knife from his belt and sliced the expensive armor right down the middle. He tossed the ruined pieces onto the floor.

Onyx lay on the table with his pale chest bare. He looked awful. His skin was the color of old snow. His breathing sounded like wet gravel.

Rue steps in to help Caius.

She could not just stand by the door and watch him bleed out. She was soft. She hated the sight of blood. It made her stomach churn and her head spin. But this was her family. This was the man who caught Mochi when she fell. She pushed her fear down and walked up to the wooden table.

“Tell me what to do,” Rue demanded, looking right at Caius.

Caius did not argue. He did not tell her to go wait outside. He knew she was braver than she looked. He grabbed a tall stack of clean white cloths from a shelf. He shoved them into her hands.

“Press these directly against his side,” Caius instructed. “Use all your weight. Do not let go until I tell you to. I need to clean the bite on his arm first.”

Rue nodded fast. She leaned over the table. She helps Caius with anything he needs. She pressed the thick stack of cloths right against Onyx’s bleeding ribs. She pushed down hard, locking her elbows straight. Warm, sticky blood soaked right through the white fabric in seconds, turning her hands bright red. She ignored the awful, coppery smell. She just focused on keeping the pressure steady.

Caius grabbed a glass bottle filled with clear, harsh alcohol. He picked up a curved iron needle and a spool of thick black thread.

He poured the burning liquid right into the deep bite marks on Onyx’s arm.

Onyx arched his back off the hard wood. He is calm although he grits his teeth and clench his fist tight. His knuckles turned pure white under the strain. He did not scream. He did not thrash around and ruin Caius’s work. He just took the terrible, burning pain like a stubborn beast.

Rue felt her heart break watching him suffer.

She shifted her stance. She kept her right hand pressed hard against his ribs. She reached her left hand out and rested it gently on his sweaty forehead. She smoothed his messy white hair away from his eyes.

“It is okay,” Rue whispered. Hot tears pricked the corners of her pink eyes. “Just hold on. Caius is fixing it.”

Onyx opened his eyes.

He looked up at her face. He saw the wet tears shining in her eyes. Onyx sees she is worried about him, but doesn’t say anything. He just stared at her. She was covered in dirt and ash from the battle. Her soft green dress was stained with his blood. She did not look disgusted by his messy wounds. She just looked like she cared.

Caius finished cleaning the arm. The snake started sewing the torn skin back together while the snake sews him up. He pushed the sharp iron needle through the flesh with quick, practiced movements.

Onyx let out a low, shaky breath. He turned his head just a fraction, pressing his cheek right into Rue’s warm palm.

“I am sorry,” Onyx muttered. His voice was a harsh, weak rasp.

Rue shook her head. “Don’t talk right now. Save your energy.”

“I have to say it,” Onyx grumbled. He forced the words out between clenched teeth, muttering apologies to Rue for being so cruel at the manor. “I was awful to you. I broke your window. I insulted your home. I acted like a feral dog.”

“You were hurting,” Rue hushed him, her thumb tracing his pale cheekbone.

“I was scared,” Onyx confessed.

The heavy, honest truth finally spilled out. The blood loss stripped away all his stubborn pride. He could not hide behind his thick walls anymore. He was just a dying man on a table, holding onto the only warm thing in the room.

He confesses that he was just terrified of ruining her life.

“You are so bright,” Onyx whispered, his silver eyes locking onto hers. “You are warm. You built a safe place. I spent my whole life standing on a freezing rock in the dark. I only know how to fight and bleed. I thought if I stayed near you, I would just drag the cold right into your house. I thought I would break you.”

A single tear slipped down Rue’s cheek. It fell onto the wooden table with a soft tap.

“You didn’t break anything,” Rue told him fiercely. She leaned closer so he could hear her clearly over the sound of Caius working. “You fought for us today. You stood with your brother and held the line. You kept my babies safe. You are a protector, Onyx. Not a monster.”

Caius finished sewing the arm. He tied off the black thread with a tight, neat knot. He moved down to the massive wound on Onyx’s side.

“Lift your hand, Rue,” Caius said.

Rue pulled her bloody hands away. Caius quickly poured the burning alcohol into the torn ribs.

Onyx let out a sharp gasp, his body going rigid. The pain was blinding. The edges of his vision started to turn black. The massive blood loss was finally catching up to his wild wolf metabolism. He felt so cold. The bright lantern light hanging above the table started to fade away.

He reached his good hand up. His fingers were clumsy and weak. He grabbed the soft fabric of Rue’s green dress.

He did not want to die. He did not want to go back to the freezing mountain. He finally understood what it felt like to have a real family, and he refused to let it go. He accepted the magic. He accepted the mate bond. He just wanted to stay right here in the warmth with her.

His head rolled to the side. His breathing slowed down to a shallow, ragged whisper.

Onyx’s blue eyes flutter shut. “Just let me stay, Rue…”