Phoebe’s POV
Elder Tricia slumped into his chair, exhaustion etched across his weathered face. The past few days had drained him—managing both the kingdom and the council of elders was a burden that would have crushed even Flynn’s spirit.
This was exactly the kind of responsibility Flynn used to grumble about, and I could see why. The elder wasn’t young enough anymore to handle such relentless pressure.
"Perry probably doesn’t rember, but I believe the poison barely touched him because the forr king had already poisoned him before. Whether he recalls that incident or not, I can’t say. The poison didn’t kill him then, but it left lasting consequences."
Elder Tricia gestured toward the unconscious king on the bed, his aning crystal clear.
"He won’t wake for at least three days. When he does, the pain will be unbearable. He’ll need sothing strong for it. Helen always knew this was coming—she’d have the dicine ready every ti. You’ll need to do the sa."
His eyes found mine, gentle and almost paternal as his voice grew softer.
"The fact that Perry never told Marcela about this tells he’s not comfortable sharing his vulnerabilities. You understand how shifters view weakness by now."
I did understand. Most shifters had no respect for anyone weaker than themselves. For the king of this realm to be bedridden with fever for days would be seen as nothing short of disgraceful.
"Can you make painkillers?" Elder Tricia continued. "I heard Marcela’s been teaching you about dicine."
I shook my head, then nodded, then shook it again.
"You can’t make painkillers?"
Another shake of my head.
"Hmm... Perhaps Helen left so in the infirmary. Could you ask Marcela to prepare so?"
I nodded.
"Perry will survive without the dication, but I’m worried the pain will cloud his judgnt during etings and set off that temper of his."
I bit down on my lip, knowing exactly what that would an. Elder Tricia pushed himself up from the chair, his joints protesting with audible cracks.
"I don’t give a damn what others say about you, Phoebe. You balance him out. The moon goddess must have had her reasons for binding you two together."
I scribbled quickly on my notepad. [What reason did the moon goddess have for giving Kevin as a mate?] The bitter taste in my mouth returned whenever anyone brought up divine planning.
Elder Tricia just shrugged.
"Sotis the Moon Goddess makes mistakes too. Maybe Perry is her way of making ands to you. The sa could be true for him—maybe you’re his blessing after everything he’s suffered through."
***
Even though I’d told Elder Tricia I would ask Marcela to make the painkiller, when evening ca and I found the healer, I asked her to teach how to make it instead.
"Why do you need shifter painkillers?" Marcela looked puzzled.
Shifter dicine was completely different from human redies, and most of what I’d learned was geared toward humans since I couldn’t exactly be called a shifter without my wolf.
I wrote on my notepad. [Perry seems to be in terrible pain. I want to help ease it.]
"Don’t worry about the king. He’ll recover just fine. You don’t need to give him anything."
[Please, just teach how, in case I need to know.]
Seeing my determination, Marcela had no choice but to give in. The painkiller wasn’t complicated to make, but it required patience. I’d have to stand for two solid hours, stirring the mixture without stopping.
When she explained this, I winced. Should I really put myself through that?
Or just let Perry suffer. He probably deserved it anyway.
A little pain wouldn’t kill him.
Elder Tricia had said the king would be fine without it.
But in the end, I did it anyway. I complained silently in my head as I stirred the concoction, and by the ti I finished, my arms felt ready to detach from my shoulders.
After boiling all the ingredients for two hours, I was left with a tiny amount of liquid that I carefully poured into a vial.
When I returned to my bedroom, I found Perry sitting on the edge of the bed, head buried in his hands.
He looked absolutely miserable. I moved closer to check on him, considering calling for Marcela, though the healer wouldn’t arrive for another hour.
"Phoebe," Perry called my na, his voice delirious and strained. His body still radiated intense heat. I wondered if the dicine Marcela had given him was even right, since she didn’t know his condition the way Helen had.
I pressed against his shoulder, trying to get him to lie back down.
Surprisingly, he offered no resistance—a clear sign of just how weak he’d beco.
I could only imagine what the elders would say if they saw their king like this, or those pack alphas who supported him. The werewolf king wasn’t supposed to have any weaknesses.
"Stay." Perry reached out for with trembling fingers.
"Stay with ." His brow furrowed when I didn’t imdiately move closer. "Stay... with ."
When I still hesitated, Perry grew impatient. He sat up and pulled into his arms, drawing against his chest.
Instantly, I felt like I was being consud by fire.
He was burning up.
But just as I was about to push him away, Perry rested his chin on my shoulder. His whole body was shaking.
"It’s so cold," he whispered weakly.
His skin was on fire, yet he was trembling as if frozen.
Against every instinct telling to pull away, I wrapped my arms around him. I grabbed the blanket and covered us both. At this point, I was pretty sure I was going to pass out from the heat.
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