Chapter 69

I drifted in and out of fevered dreams, my body racked with chills despite the dampening touch of the cold towel on my forehead. Each shuddering breath reminded me of the gnawing truth; maybe I was turning. Elena's cryptic prophecy scoffed at for years, was about to bloom in the starkest hues of moonlight and fur. It had all happened so fast, a whirlwind of confusion and pain. My reckless defence of my estranged father, Nico stepping into the crossfire, his panicked teeth sinking into my flesh. Then, the chasm that opened between me and Dad, his eyes spitting venom and accusations, his face an alien mask of loathing.

Nico hovered by her bedside despite it all, his face ravaged by guilt. Every tear that streaked his cheeks was a searing needle in my already burning core. I reached out with a shaky hand tracing the path of a glistening tear.

"Don't," I rasped, my voice brittle like dry leaves. "It wasn't your fault. You were protecting yourself."

Nico choked, collapsing onto the mattres