The Three Who Chose Me
Chapter 61: Shadows in the Dark

Chapter 61: Shadows in the Dark

Kiel

The weight in my chest was unbearable.

I couldn’t stay there. I couldn’t keep standing in that hallway, waiting like some helpless fool while my mate—our mate—was barely hanging on inside that room.

Josie.

It was my fault.

I didn’t wait for anyone to say anything. My legs moved on their own, carrying me out of the hospital and into the open air. I barely made it past the threshold before the suffocating guilt forced the words out of me.

"It’s my mistake," I ground out, the words clawing from my throat. "She’s suffering because of me."

The door hadn’t even closed behind me when I heard footsteps. Of course they followed.

"Kiel, wait—" Varen’s voice called out behind me, but I didn’t stop.

They caught up easily, of course. They always did. My brothers never left me alone when I needed it, and tonight, I both hated and loved them for it.

Thorne was quiet, but Varen tried to talk. "There was nothing any of us could’ve done, Kiel. You can’t do this to yourself."

I turned, glaring. "Then what should I do? Sit there and pretend like everything is fine? She nearly died, Varen!"

His lips pressed into a tight line. "She didn’t die."

"Because we got lucky."

Thorne’s voice was sharp. "You need to calm the fuck down."

"Calm down?" I snapped, my voice rising. "Calm down, when Josie was drugged under our noses? When we let someone near enough to poison her twice in the same damn night?"

"You think we don’t feel the same way?" Varen’s voice cracked with frustration. "You think this doesn’t kill us too?"

I stared at them both. "Then why aren’t we doing more?"

Thorne stepped forward, eyes narrowed. "We’re doing what we can. But right now, panicking won’t help. Josie needs us clear-headed."

His words were logical, but they didn’t ease the fire in my chest.

"I need to be alone."

Varen’s jaw ticked. "It’s as much my fault too, you know." His voice was quieter now. "Thorne was right earlier. We’ve been careless. We trusted the system too much."

That broke something inside me.

I tilted my head back and howled.

A full-bodied, anguished sound that tore through the night sky. The pain laced in every note burned through my throat. It was all too much—everything that had happened, the secrets I couldn’t explain yet, the images that kept replaying in my head.

I didn’t even realize Thorne and Varen were arguing until I heard Thorne snap.

"He’s not fine, Varen! Don’t push him. The last thing we need is Kiel losing his fucking mind on top of everything else."

I turned to them again, breathing hard. "We have one job," I hissed. "And that’s to find out who wants Josie dead. Ask Marcy if she’s figured it out yet."

Varen nodded slowly, taking a cautious step back. "Two jobs now. But we’ll get to it."

"Good." I looked away.

Varen hesitated. "Will you be okay?"

I didn’t answer him with words. Just a grunt.

The silence that followed was only broken when Thorne did something unexpected.

He walked up to me and pulled me into a man-hug.

It stunned me.

He wasn’t the affectionate type. Neither of us were. But there was something grounding in the way his hand gripped my shoulder for a second longer than needed, like he was silently telling me to keep it together.

I didn’t say anything, but the contact—just that brief show of solidarity—made everything inside me stir. My wolf went quiet, soothed by the connection.

When they were gone, I turned toward the woods, needing distance, needing to breathe.

The trees welcomed me like an old friend. I wandered deeper, feet crunching over the dirt, heart pounding with every step. I couldn’t stop thinking.

Twice. Two near-death experiences in one night.

That wasn’t normal.

That wasn’t coincidence.

And the worst part?

I’d seen it.

The vision. The paralyzing moment before we left for the clinic. The way I couldn’t move, couldn’t breathe, couldn’t even blink. My eyes had shown me something—and whatever it was, it had locked my limbs in place.

It had been her. Josie.

But not her.

She was standing in the room, shadowed by something I couldn’t name, her fingers twitching in a way that didn’t make sense. Her eyes had glowed faintly silver in the moonlight, and for one second—one terrifying second—I didn’t recognize her.

I hadn’t said anything to my brothers. I couldn’t. Not until I was sure. Not until I knew exactly what she could do.

I exhaled, pressing a hand against my chest.

"I know you’re gifted," I whispered into the trees. "I know what I saw."

And so was I. I’d spent years pretending it wasn’t true, trying to bury the visions, the instincts that screamed before danger arrived. But denying it now was pointless. My power had been warning me about something the whole night, and I’d brushed it off.

Never again.

I swallowed the lump in my throat and raised my head.

Williams.

I mind-linked him. "Make sure the hospital is protected. I don’t trust anyone there. No one goes near Josie without one of us knowing."

He responded instantly. "On it."

The link closed, and I sank to my knees in the dirt.

My voice was hoarse when I started to sing, low and soft, letting the melody soothe my rage and grief. It was something Josie didn’t know about me yet—I always sang when I needed to center myself. When the storm inside was too loud.

The woods answered with silence.

Eventually, the fire inside me began to ebb.

I closed my eyes and breathed.

She was going to be fine.

She had to be.

And I was going to be the one to fix this. To bring the light back to her eyes. I didn’t care how long it took, or how hard it would be. I’d take her on walks, help her heal. I’d protect her until there was no threat left.

But just as I made the decision to head back, the mind-link buzzed.

"Alpha."

Williams again.

I straightened. "What?"

"She’s awake. Josie’s awake. And she’s asking for you."

My heart stopped.

Everything around me blurred as I broke into a run. Branches clawed at my arms and face, but I didn’t care. I had to get there. I had to see her.

But as I neared the hospital, something strange caught my eye.

There.

A shadow moved past her window.

Too fast to be normal. Too quiet.

No.

I sprinted toward the window, leaping the railing, shifting just enough to tap into my speed. But when I got there, there was nothing.

Just the wind and the dim flicker of lights from inside.

I shoved open the door to her room and froze.

She was crying.

Silent tears streamed down her cheeks, and her hands trembled as she stared past me.

"Josie," I whispered, stepping toward her.

She didn’t meet my eyes.

I crouched beside her bed and gently took her hand, gripping it tight enough to ground both of us.

"Tell me who was here," I said, my voice as soft as it was deadly. "Please, baby. Tell me who the hell was here."