Chapter 52: Chapter 52: The One Who Opened the Door

Chapter 52: The One Who Opened the Door

Liora’s POV

The sound of the door opening reached me before anything else, soft enough that it could have been ignored if I had been fully unconscious, but clear enough that my mind caught onto it even through the heaviness dragging at my body.

I didn’t move, didn’t open my eyes, and forced my breathing to remain uneven and slow, matching the weakness that had already taken hold of me, because something about the timing felt wrong and reacting too soon would only give away that I was more aware than I should be.

Footsteps followed, careful at first, measured in a way that suggested whoever had entered was aware of the guards and the tension in the room, but not afraid of it. That detail settled uneasily in my mind. No one was supposed to be able to walk in here without Kael’s permission, not after what had happened earlier, and yet this person had entered without resistance, without noise, without urgency.

For a brief moment, no one spoke, and the silence stretched just long enough to make the next sound feel sharper than it should have.

"Oh my God... what happened to her?"

I knew the voice immediately.

Ivy.

The shock in her tone was convincing, layered with just enough panic to sound real, but after everything that had happened, I didn’t trust it anymore. I kept my eyes closed, my body still, letting her believe whatever she needed to believe while I listened.

"She collapsed," one of the guards answered. "The healer says she was poisoned."

"Poisoned?" Ivy repeated, her voice rising slightly, as though the word itself had caught her off guard. "How is that even possible here? Inside the fortress?"

"We’re still investigating," the guard replied.

Her footsteps came closer, quicker now, no longer cautious, and a second later I felt her presence right beside the bed. When her hand touched mine, it was warm and familiar in a way that should have been comforting, but instead it made something in me tighten, because I couldn’t forget the way she had smiled earlier or the quiet relief that had slipped through before she could hide it.

"Liora... you need to wake up," she said softly, her voice lowering into something more personal. "You can’t just lie here like this."

I didn’t respond, didn’t let even the smallest reaction show, even though my chest felt tight and my thoughts were already racing ahead of me.

Another shift in the room told me Kael had stepped closer. I didn’t need to see him to recognize it. His presence had a way of changing the air around him, grounding everything while at the same time sharpening the tension.

"She’s still unconscious," Ivy said, turning toward him. "What happened? They said poison. How is she now?"

"There are things you don’t need to involve yourself in," Kael replied, his tone controlled, but not soft.

"I’m her sister," she said immediately, and there was no hesitation in her voice this time. "If something like this happens to her, I should be involved."

There was a pause, not long, but long enough for me to recognize what it meant. He was thinking, weighing whether to allow it or not, and I already knew what would influence his decision.

"You shouldn’t be here," he said finally. "It’s not safe."

"I’m not leaving her like this," Ivy insisted, her voice steady, carrying just enough urgency to sound sincere. "She’s already weak, and now this... she shouldn’t be alone."

I felt something tighten in my chest at those words, not because of what she said, but because of how easily she said it.

"She won’t be alone," Kael replied. "There are guards here."

"That’s not the same," Ivy said quietly. "She needs someone she trusts."

The words settled heavily, and I had to focus on keeping my breathing steady, because if I reacted to that, even slightly, it would give everything away.

If she knew what I knew, she wouldn’t have said it so easily.

"She’s not waking up," Ivy added, softer now. "At least let me stay with her for a while. I won’t leave. You can keep the guards here if you want."

Another pause followed, and this time it felt heavier, like the decision mattered more than he wanted it to.

"Fine," Kael said at last.

The word carried weight, not because it was loud, but because it came with reluctance.

"You stay," he continued, his tone firm again. "But you don’t leave this room."

"I won’t," Ivy replied without hesitation.

A moment later, I felt Kael move closer, and then his hand rested briefly against my arm, steady and careful.

"I’ll be back," he said quietly.

Even knowing I couldn’t answer, he still said it. I didn’t move, didn’t open my eyes, even though something in me reacted to his voice.

"Make sure nothing changes," he added to the guards.

"Yes, Alpha."

His footsteps moved away, and a few seconds later the door opened and closed again, leaving the room quieter than before, but not in a way that felt safe.

For a short while, nothing happened. No one spoke, and the stillness lingered just long enough to make the shift that followed unmistakable.

Ivy’s hand slipped away from mine slowly, and when she spoke again, the panic that had filled her voice earlier was gone, replaced by something calmer, something far more honest.

"You really don’t know when to die, do you?"

The words were quiet, almost thoughtful, as though she wasn’t even angry, just... tired.

I kept my breathing steady, forcing myself not to react, even though my heart had already begun to beat harder against my chest.

"I thought that night would be enough," she continued, her tone even now. "You shouldn’t have survive it, and it would have made things easier."

She shifted slightly, and I heard the faint sound of a chair being pulled closer before she sat down beside the bed.

"I even felt a little bad about it," she went on, though there was no real regret in her voice. "Not because of you. Just because of how it had to be done."

My fingers pressed lightly into the sheets beneath me, but I forced them to remain still.

"But you survived," she said, and this time there was something different in her tone, not anger, not frustration, just a quiet acknowledgment of something that hadn’t gone according to plan.

"And now we’re here again."

Her hand moved closer, not touching me this time, but near enough that I could feel the shift in the air.

"I didn’t think you would make it this far," she admitted. "I underestimated you."

The words settled slowly, but they didn’t shake me the way they might have before.

"You always were like that," she continued. "You stay longer than you’re supposed to, even when everything around you says you shouldn’t."

She paused briefly, then added in a quieter tone, "It’s becoming a problem."

That was the first moment her voice sharpened, not in volume, but in intent.

"You weren’t supposed to be here," she said. "This wasn’t meant for you."

My chest tightened slightly, but I kept my breathing controlled, steady enough to avoid drawing attention. 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

"I gave you a chance," she went on. "Even today, I gave you one more chance. You said you wanted to leave, that you were scared, and that would have solved everything."

Her voice shifted again, the calm slipping just enough to reveal what sat underneath.

"But you stayed."

There was a brief pause, and I could feel her watching me, waiting for any sign that I was listening, that I understood.

I didn’t give her one.

"You made it complicated again," she said quietly.

Her fingers finally touched my wrist, resting exactly where the healer had been checking my pulse earlier, and even though the contact was light, it felt deliberate.

"You can feel it, can’t you?" she murmured. "How weak you are."

I forced myself not to react, even though she wasn’t wrong.

"This won’t kill you immediately," she continued. "That’s not the point."

The confirmation settled fully this time, clear and undeniable.

"It just makes things easier," she added. "For what comes next."

There was no hesitation in her voice anymore.

No attempt to pretend.

"You should have died that night," she said quietly.

The words stayed there, not dramatic, not loud, but final in a way that left no space for doubt.

And this time, I didn’t feel confused.

I didn’t feel uncertain.

I knew exactly who I was dealing with.

And I wasn’t going to make the mistake of underestimating her again.