Chapter 41: Chapter 41

Abhay’s P.O.V

It was snowing again. The ground was completely white.

This part of the valley didn’t usually get much snow, but it was unusually cold this year. And I knew that it would only get colder, winter only a whisper in the air and yet it howled with a ferocious chill all around me.

I looked at the waterfall in front of me, untouched by the winter chill. Jharna, that was what we called it. The literal Hindi translation of a waterfall, but it just sounded right to us. It was freezing outside but I knew it would be nice and warm inside the pack house. It would also be noisy with the new packmates. But I liked that noise. It was welcoming. It was home. And so was she.

Something dropped to the ground at my feet, distracting me from the view. A sense of déjà vu threatened to overwhelm me as I looked down to see what it was. It was only a speck in the vast sea of snow but it stood out amongst the white. It was in the shape of a tiny droplet but the warmth coming from it melted the snow a little, caused a slight dent as it was absorbed into the cold earth. Blood. It was a drop of blood.

My blood.

The temperature suddenly dropped by at least ten degrees as another drop of blood fell on the ground to join the other droplet. Then another. And another. The drops weren’t coming from the sky and this time, I didn’t need to look down to know that the blood was actually dripping down my fingertips.

I raised my hands in front of my face to inspect the blood and saw that there was blood everywhere. It was running down my arm as it colored my sleeves.

But now…there was no more confusion and neither did I feel the pain. It was because I was gone beyond repair, the pain having numbed my senses. It wasn’t going to be long now…

I looked down at the ground and watched as the ground beneath me turned completely red. It was like standing in a river of blood. It flowed freely in the snow, heading towards the slope before taking the plunge downward to meet the waters of the Jharna, turning it a dark pink it color.

But I didn’t see the end of the waterfall. Everyone said it just plunged into hell, or that there were some kind of rocks down there that would crush us to death if we ever had the misfortune of falling down.

I felt something trickle down my forehead and I raised my bloody hands to wipe it away, only to come up with more blood. I felt a sad smile form on my lips. This was it then, this was how it all ends.

My vision blurred, black spots danced in front of my eyes and I knew I didn’t have much time left. I only wished I could hold her once again. Just this one last time before I was gone. Our time together had been so short. Too short for her to remember me through eternity.

I turned back to look at the vast fields of snow that were now drenched in blood. And there she was, in her white fur and soulful blue eyes. There was blood on her coat but that didn’t diminish her beauty; she would always be the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen, no matter what form she took.

She was running towards me with all her might but she was too far. It was of no use. It was already too late.

I raised my hand towards her as if to say goodbye, but my vision blurred further, the dark spots increased…and then…

A black wolf jumped towards me with it jaws gaping and blood dripping from its sharp fangs…

*******

I gasped awake in my bed, cold sweat drenching my body and my lungs hungry for air.

It was that dream again, that dream that I had been having for so long that it now seemed like a regular occurrence. But no matter how many times I saw it, the dread never lessened.

Instinctively, I turned to look at the window at my back and saw, as I’d expected, the sun barely rising on the horizon.

After having caught my breath, I brought my hands up in front of my face just to make sure there wasn’t any blood on them, just like I did every time I had this dream. It was almost like an instinct to check my hands, to see if the nightmare wasn’t coming to life.

When I had first had this nightmare, I had scolded myself for believing in such absurdity that an early morning dream may have a chance of coming true. But now, months later, with a werewolf mate and a growing pack, with my home currently the pack house near Jharna…I already realized that part of my dream had already come true.

Then what was stopping the rest of it from coming true? What if this truly was a premonition of what was to come?

But why me? Why now? Why did I have to die?

There were so many questions swirling in my mind, but when I looked beside me at Mikalya, my gorgeous mate with her silvery hair sprawled all over the pillows…I could help but feel a burst of tenderness for my mate.

She now carried my child, our child. And if there was some kind of a threat that was trying to harm Mikalya and my child…I would stand in its way regardless of me being a useless human. If it meant that I could save my family…then I could accept dying as well.

However, this morning, it felt suffocating to stay inside the packhouse. I needed some fresh air to clear my mind, to prepare myself mentally for what was to come, because somewhere in the back of my mind, I knew what I saw was coming true.

And now with the addition of that black wolf…everything seemed to change suddenly.

Was it a new threat? Was it a packmate gone rogue? Was it someone challenging Mikalya? Will a war break out? Nothing was certain…but all I knew was that my dream might come true…and we didn’t have much time left.

Getting out of bed, I slowly made my way across the room, trying my best so as not to wake Mikalya. It was too early, barely even five in the morning, and I wanted her to have a good rest since the new pack’s responsibility was weighing heavily on her shoulders, and it showed at how exhausted she felt every night.

I put on a winter jacket over my pajamas, not really bothering to change since my main concern was to get some fresh air and the entire mountains were home anyway. No one would be bothered about a dress code, so the only thing I cared about was keeping myself warm.

Closing the door behind me with a soft click, I noticed how the packhouse was quieter than most days, the patrol guards on duty and no one yet awake since it was so early.

However, as I was crossing the kitchen, I found Mira and her mother, Belle, talking in hushed voices as they peeled and washed vegetables and meat, in preparation for breakfast, their silent laughter echoing through the empty hallways.

It brought a smile to my face as I watched their interaction, glad that the mother daughter duo were finally reunited after seventeen long years of separation.

But thankfully, their conversation made it easier for me to slip out of the house unnoticed.

Once I was outside, I looked at the horizon, at the sunlight barely visible in the still dark sky.

After contemplating for a few minutes, I decided to head towards the Jharna, the very instrument that was about to take my life one day.