Chapter 286: It was for Kieran

Yuki stared down at her healed hand in quiet relief. Her fingers flexed softly as the crushing weight that had sat on her shoulders since the attack finally loosened its grip.

Kaden let out a dry scoff and crossed his arms over his chest. His sharp eyes cut across the room.

"You got lucky, Kieran," he said. His deep voice carried a rough, grating edge. "Don’t do something this stupid again."

Yuki glanced his way. Her eyes lingered on the dark, bruised circles shadowing the skin beneath his eyes. Sensing her gaze, Kaden’s eyes met hers for a fraction of a second before he snapped his head away.

"Place is crowded anyway," he muttered, making a hasty excuse as he uncrossed his arms and turned on his heel. He brushed past Killian. His shoulder nearly clipped the older brother’s hoodie as he headed for the open bedroom door.

’Don’t go to the base today,’ Killian’s commanding voice cut directly into Kaden’s mind through their private mindlink. Firm and unyielding.

Kaden’s steps hitched for a microsecond before he hissed back through the link. His golden wolf eyes flashed with irritation. ’You don’t have to tell me what the hell to do, Killian.’

Killian scoffed softly under his breath. As he relaxed his posture, the sharp wolf ears and plush tail from his half-shift form receded into his skin with a faint flicker of ambient aura.

"You should say that when you don’t look like a walking corpse," Killian murmured aloud. His cool voice echoed down the hallway.

Kaden’s hands clenched into tight fists at his sides. His knuckles turned stark white.

’She had to survive because of Kieran,’ Kaden shot back through the link, rationalising his rash actions to himself and refusing to admit, even internally, that absorbing her fever and pain while using healing magic had been a spur-of-the-moment, purely emotional reaction.

’ You aren’t in any state for combat drills today, Kaden,’ Killian added via mindlink. His tone left no room for argument.

Kaden offered no reply. He pulled open the heavy door and stepped out into the hallway. The moment the door clicked shut behind him, his stiff shoulders dropped. The iron grip that had locked around his chest ever since the emergency military meeting finally loosened.

She was fine.

He let out a long, shuddering sigh and rubbed a hand over his tired face. Even so, he still could not tell whether the relief came from Kieran escaping taking responsibility for hiding a patient that posed a threat to national security, or from the simple fact that Yuki had not turned into some rabid monstrosity of a wolf.

Inside the bedroom, Killian’s gaze remained fixed on the closed wooden door. He could still sense Kaden’s lingering aura just beyond the threshold before he finally dragged his eyes back toward the bed. Kieran was leaning over Yuki, quietly checking her temperature and running through a few routine physical questions in a low, gentle voice.

Killian cleared his throat. His deep voice cut through the quiet room. "Once you’re done here, Kieran, we’re leaving."

Kieran gave a silent, single nod without looking up from his work. Satisfied, Killian turned and stepped out of the room. His boots made faint thuds against the wooden floorboards as he walked down the quiet corridor.

He came to a stop beside a large arched window overlooking the grounds. A cool morning breeze swept through the narrow opening, rustling his dark hair and carrying the fresh, crisp scent of yesterday’s heavy rainfall.

Down below, Killian’s eyes scanned Kieran’s manicured garden. The vivid expanse of blooming flora instantly brought back memories of their mother’s glasshouse. Kieran had inherited her quiet passion for delicate plants, and Killian had to admit, as much as he hated to give his brother credit, the doctor was exceptionally gifted with them.

*I could never handle something so fragile,* Killian thought dryly, flexing his scarred, broad hands.

A soft, clear "Meow" echoed from below and shattered his train of thought.

Killian’s brow furrowed slightly. His sharp gaze locked onto the flowerbed, where a tiny ball of pure white fur stood delicately nestled among a cluster of blooming white lilies. The creature raised its head, revealing striking, piercing purple eyes that shimmered in the morning light.

Killian stared. His frown deepened. Purple eyes. That was an impossibly rare, unnatural colour for an animal. But what truly set his wolf instincts on edge was not the colour. It was the fact that he had not sensed the feline’s presence at all until it uttered that single sound. Even from his perch on the first floor, a wolf of his standing should have caught its scent or heartbeat instantly. There was nothing, no breath or pulse only the quiet rustle of leaves after it moved.

The cat held his gaze for a long, quiet moment. Its purple eyes glowed with strange intelligence before it smoothly turned and melted back into the dense flora, vanishing completely from sight.

’That is definitely not a stray cat,’ his wolf stated flatly inside his mind. Its voice was laced with sudden caution.

Killian remained silent. His wolf had taken the words right out of his head. No stray animal in the city possessed a coat that pristine, nor an aura that completely masked itself from an Alpha.

He rubbed the centre of his forehead again, where a dull, throbbing ache persisted against his temples. He shook his head in irritation. He could not believe he was wasting mental energy being bothered by a mystery cat when he was running on absolute zero sleep, all because Kieran had decided to play hero overnight.

Back inside the bedroom, Yuki sat quietly on the edge of the mattress, watching Kieran carefully pull out the suture thread after finishing his physical exam. The moment the black threads pulled free from her skin, the minor puncture marks sealed over instantly, leaving behind flawless, unmarked skin. If anything, her body was recovering at a speed that surpassed her normal healing factor.

"I believe the worst of the corruption has passed," Kieran assured her softly, stowing his medical instruments back into his leather kit.

Yuki nodded, watching him set aside his stethoscope. She swallowed hard. Her eyes lingered on his pale face.."Are you going to be fine, Kieran?" she asked quietly.

Kieran paused mid-movement. His shoulders hitched as he looked up, visibly puzzled by her concern. "What do you mean?" he asked

"Your actions... hiding my condition from the hospital," Yuki explained. Her hoarse voice faltered slightly. "There will be repercussions from the Alpha, won’t there? Even if I’m safe now, you broke the law."