Chapter 14: Chapter 14

Emilia’s POV

My breath got caught in my throat when I was grabbed and slammed against the wall suddenly. A scream escaped my lips and my arms flailed. I kicked and thrashed as a sense of panic gripped me. However, it was futile. My movements were no match for the brutal force that was pinning me down. Eventually, the fight fled my body and I raised my head.

My heart skipped a beat before throbbing erratically. For a split second, I thought I was hallucinating but the characteristic scent finally registered in my brain. Tears rolled down my cheeks and a whimper escaped my lips.

“Nivaan….,” the name rolled off my tongue naturally. “Nivaan…. Nivaan….” I kept chanting his name as the tears flowed endlessly. I had never thought I would see him again in my lifetime.

The impact of being in proximity to him was so overwhelming that I couldn’t control my emotions. I leaned into his touch and almost rested my head against his arm.

His expression turned sour and he released me instantly; rubbing his palms as if he had touched something gross. Pain seared through me at the loss of contact. His expression made the rejection even more gruesome.

His voice shook with anger as he spoke, “Emilia Ryanwood, I knew that you were a cunning whore but I never thought you would go this far.” His fingers clenched and unclenched several times. His face had flushed and the veins on his forehead were showing. His jaws clenched and thud!

He punched the wall next to me making me jump. I took a step back and stuttered, “I… What did I do?”

I had taken special care not to cause him any discomfort. I even left my home so that I wouldn’t have to disclose his identity.

“Seriously? Are you that shameless?” He snorted shaking his head, “How long are you going to put up this ruse?”

I licked my dry lips and said in a louder voice, ‘I really don’t know what you are talking about…. If you want me to abstain from doing something, just tell me….” I grabbed his arm as I continued, “I promise I will do whatever you want…”

Nivaan’s expression grew colder hearing my words. His fingers clenched into tight fists as he snapped, “I am not interested in listening to your rant.” His chest heaved as his breath grew labored. “What you are doing here?. Did you really think you could persuade me into accepting someone as vile and hateful as you? Do you think my sister is naïve enough to listen to YOU?”

My face turned pale and my voice dropped several notches lower, “Your sister?” My hand dropped to her side and I staggered a bit. My mouth hung open as the realization dawned on me, “Kiara? I really didn’t know that she is your sister… I swear….” I wiped off her tears and said quickly, “I will leave this place immediately… I won’t come here again….”

NIvaan grabbed both my shoulders and squeezed them painfully. He lowered his face and said in a dangerously low voice, ‘If I ever see you again, I will kill you.”

“Nivaan? Emy?” Kiara’s voice sounded. Nivaan released me instantly and stepped back.

Kiara’s eyes darted from Nivaan to Emilia and back to Nivaan again, “You guys know each other?”

“No,” Nivaan replied without skipping a beat. “I sensed an unfamiliar scent and came here to investigate.”

I felt like her heart had been hollowed. I couldn’t stop my tears from flowing again. He didn’t even consider me worth knowing.

Kiara’s eyebrows knitted in a deep frown. Her eyes drifted to me and locked with mine. I stood there like a statue; unable to look away. Her jaws hung open suddenly and she blurted out, “Emy? Do you know Nivaan?”

I was taken aback by this sudden confrontation. I gulped the lump in my throat and ranted in a flustered voice, “Me….Ummm…. how can I know him…. I swear I have never seen him before… I just….” My voice trailed as I ran out of energy. I let out a deep sigh and held my head. How was I supposed to pretend when my emotions were so all over the place?

I leaned against the wall with a thud; my hands went limp and dropped to my sides; My eyes became glazed and I stared at the space with envy. Even the empty space had air to accompany it but me, I had no one….

It didn’t take Kiara long to figure out the truth. Shaking her head, she said in a furious voice, “How could you, Nivaan? How could you reject your mate?” She grabbed him by his shoulders and shook him up. Her lips trembled as she continued, “You had promised me, Nivaan….”

Nivaan’s eyebrows knit together in a deep frown and his adam’s apple bobbed up and down, “Kiara…. Won’t my sister give me a chance to explain?”

Kiara covered his mouth and stopped him, “I don’t want to hear anything…. You will just come up with more stories….”

I looked at the scene ruefully for a few moments. My teeth dug into my soft lips. If I could get even an iota of this love, I would die a happy woman.

I shook my head and drew in deep breaths. My voice was steady when I spoke up, “Kiara, you should have given your brother a chance to explain before accusing him.” My nails dug into my wrists as I looked into her eyes and continued, “Nivaan didn’t reject me. I was the one who rejected your brother.”

Kiara’s hands dropped to her sides and she gaped at me for a long time, “Are you telling me the truth?”

I shrugged my shoulders, “What is there to be so surprised by this?” I eyed Nivaan with scorn as I taunted, “Who wants to be stuck up with a blind man?”

Kiara’s expression hardened and her eyes lit up with fury. She walked toward me with slow menacing steps. She looked so angry. It was as if she would chew me alive. But then her eyes shifted to my abdomen. Letting out a deep sigh, she said, “Leave as soon as the sun rises tomorrow….”

Then, she grabbed her brother’s hand and stormed out of the tent. I let out a dry laugh as I watched their backs disappear into the darkness. I was homeless again…

***

I stood near the bonfire, wringing my hands. Kiara’s face beamed in the orange flame as she passed around some stewed meat. Deep lines had formed on her forehead as she listened to the men and women with keen interest; giving advice and commands now and then. How efficiently she managed to handle everything!

I was struck by a sense of uselessness. I couldn’t even imagine herself doing something similar. I spent my entire life mocking and ridiculing others. If my mother was here, maybe things would have been different. But, she wasn’t and now father didn’t want me either.

I caressed my stomach lovingly. I would make sure that my child learns everything. I would make him perfect in every way. Then, nobody would reject him…

Sensing my gaze on her, Kiara’s head snapped up. Her expression hardened and her lips pressed in a thin line. She raised her hand and got to her feet, “We will talk about this tomorrow.”

She got to her feet and started walking towards her tent hurriedly. I rushed to catch up with her and said in a breathless voice, “I didn’t want to bother you, Kiara…. I just wanted to thank you before going to sleep….”

Kiara spun around abruptly causing me to almost bump into her. Kiara’s eyes narrowed and she snapped, “Do I look like I want to listen to your thank you?”

I chewed my bottom lip and shook my head. Tears brimmed in my eyes as she replied, “I still want to thank you…. For saving my life; for saving my baby.” My voice got choked up with emotions, “For letting me live with you even if it was for a day.”

Kiara’s expression turned stoic and she said in a cold voice, “There is no need to thank me. It was my duty as the Luna of the Mystical pack….”

I ignored her words as I continued, “I also want to thank you for saving me from getting lost in the sea of darkness. I was in a very bad place at that time. God knows what I would have done if I hadn’t met you. That one moment you treated me as your sister was enough to give me strength….”

I gulped the lump that had formed in her throat, “I will leave tomorrow but that moment, that kindness will always stay in my heart. I….” My voice cracked and my voice trailed. I looked at Kiara one last time and whispered, “I just wanted to thank you….”

The container that was in my hand slipped to the ground as I spun around; running towards her tent. I had brought the ointment with me just in case Nivaan was around. I had noticed the bruises and cuts on his knuckles and wanted to treat them.

After returning to my tent, I cried my heart out. I sobbed and wailed till her eyes burned and her lungs ached.... until exhaustion took over and I passed out.

When she woke up the next morning, I couldn’t even open my eyes; my eyelids felt so heavy that I could barely move them. My mouth had turned drier than her sawdust and my entire body was sore.

With an agonized groan, I threw off the sheets and tried to get up, but my legs were wobbly and I fell back on the bed with a thud. After trying a few more attempts, I gave up and pulled myself to a fetal position.

I felt like something was burning me from the inside. With passing time, my vision became blurry and I started mumbling incoherent phrases.

“Why hasn’t she left?” Kiara’s voice sounded outside the tent.

F***! I didn’t want Kiara to think that I was deliberately trying to trouble her. I groaned and tried to get up but I just couldn’t move her arms or legs; they had gone numb. I lay there like a lifeless corpse as I listened to the conversation.

“I think she is not feeling well, Luna. She has been lying on her bed the entire time,” the maid replied.

“What nonsense? She is probably just pretending,” Kiara’s cold voice caused my heart to twist. I knew that I totally deserved her distrust. Still, it hurt.

“Go and get the healer. I want her to be on her way as soon as possible,” Kiara commanded as she entered the tent. She crossed her arms over her chest and kept looking at me with disgust.

“What did you do to make yourself look so sick? I have to hand it to you that you are very meticulous,” Kiara’s words dripped into my ears like acid.

“I… I didn’t do anything on purpose,” I tried to say in reply but my voice came out as a raspy whisper.

A few minutes later a young woman dressed in white robes came in with a wooden box. Her expression grew somber as she took my pulse, “She has a rare form of fever that affects the muscles; making it difficult to move about.”

Kiara’s jaws clenched when she heard this. She drew closer to me and took my hand in hers. face turned a bit pale when she sensed my erratic pulse and examined my pupils.

Clearing her throat, she said to the healer, “Give her Assyrian herb mix thrice a day. She should recover by the end of this week.” Shifting her gaze towards me, she added, “There is no need to read too much into my action. If I was just Nivaan’s sister, I would have dragged you out of this camp even in this state. But, I am the Luna of this pack too. I can’t taint this pack’s name by kicking out a sick, pregnant woman.”

Then, she spun around and walked out of the tent briskly. My lips lifted in a small smile at her gesture. Kiara had such a pure soul. If only I could have been like her. A deep sigh escaped my lips and I closed my eyes. My fatigued brain didn’t have the energy to process anything, anymore….