My chest hurt so badly it felt like I couldn’t breathe. My heart was pounding, and my eyes burned with tears I didn’t want to let fall. Levi looked so weak, his breathing shallow, and I felt like the world was slipping out of my hands.

She turned her gaze on me. “Can you do that now?” she asked gently, her meaning clear–my drunkenness.

My heart stopped. My mind spun.

Lennox’s POV

I swallowed hard, running a tired hand over my face. “Let me take a bath first,” I murmured, my voice low but steady. “I need to clear my head before we do this.”

“Next time…” I muttered, glancing between them, “don’t trick me like this. Find another way.”

The words hit me like a knife. My wolf growled inside, furious. My teeth clenched, and a growl rumbled from my chest. “Don’t say that!” I snapped. “Don’t you dare tell me my brother can’t be saved!”

My breath caught in disbelief, my arms dropping away as the truth hit me. “You… you’ve been deceiving me,” I whispered, my voice trembling with rage and relief.

I let out a shaky breath, my wolf pacing inside me, not angry–just exhausted. “I’ve always loved you, Levi. You and Louis both. Nothing changes that. I just… wish you hadn’t forced it out of me this way.”

The bastard had tricked me.

Louis finally spoke, his voice gentle. “We weren’t trying to hurt you. We just needed to bring you back.”

“They love you,” he murmured, firm. “Don’t push them away.”

“Olivia can’t heal him,” Louis said slowly, “do you really think anyone else can?”

In my room, I stripped out of my clothes and let the warm water pour over me. Steam curled around my shoulders, heat seeping into my aching muscles. I braced my hands against the tile, letting the water wash away the sweat, the stench of alcohol, the fear that had clawed its way through me.

“I think we need to sit and talk,” Olivia’s voice finally broke the silence.

Realization slammed into me like a blade to the chest.

I swallowed hard, my hands flexing uselessly at my sides. “Do you know what it felt like—thinking I was losing you?” My voice cracked despite how angry I was at myself, and I shook my head. “I thought… I thought my brother was slipping away right in front of me. And I couldn’t stop it.”

Despite the heat of my anger, the corner of my lips twitched. Just a little.

My chest eased a little when I felt it–Levi was breathing. Slow, steady breaths. Relief flooded me so hard I almost collapsed right there.

No, they tricked me.

He wasn’t sick.

I pressed my hand against Levi’s chest, desperate to feel something—anything. My vision blurred again, but I forced the tears back.

I swallowed and nodded.

He was smiling.

“You love me that much, huh?” he teased, his voice weak but full of mischief.

The confession tumbled out like water breaking through a dam. “I’ve carried you since we were kids, always trying to shield you… but the truth is, you’re the one who’s kept me alive. You and Louis. Without you, I’m nothing. Do you hear me? Nothing.”

Her words sank into me. Sit and talk. She was right. We needed it. But the thought of sitting here now–reeking of alcohol still clinging to me, my head pounding, my emotions hanging by a thread–it felt impossible.

Levi’s teasing expression vanished completely. He reached for my arm. “I’m sorry, I really am. But I had to see it, Lennox… had to hear it. That you still cared. That you still loved me, even after everything.”

And then—

By the time I stepped out and pulled on fresh clothes, my head felt lighter, clearer. The storm inside had dulled. I was back to my sanity.

“You… you were faking?” My voice came out quieter, pained. I looked between Levi and Louis, my throat burning.

My whole chest felt tight, like I couldn’t breathe. Relief and betrayal tangled inside me until I didn’t know which one was stronger.

I spun toward Louis, my voice breaking. “Call the healer!” I shouted, panic shaking through me.

“I’m ready,” I said quietly, meeting her eyes. “Let’s talk.”

A sound.

I didn’t trust myself to answer with words. Instead, I rose to my feet, my steps heavy and sluggish as I turned toward the door. The silence behind me was thick, but no one stopped me.

I rubbed a hand over my face, sighing deeply. The raw ache in my chest was still there, but the anger had drained out of me. In its place was just weariness–and, reluctantly, a flicker of gratitude that Levi wasn’t in danger.

A low, soft chuckle.

Levi’s smirk disappeared, his eyes softening. “We had to, Lennox. You weren’t listening to us. You were tearing yourself apart. We didn’t know what else to do.”

When I returned to Levi’s room, they were all still there. Louis leaned against the wall, arms crossed, his eyes on me the moment I stepped inside. Olivia sat close to Levi, her hand resting lightly on his arm, her gaze lifting as I entered.

But Louis didn’t move. His face stayed calm, too calm.

Levi chuckled softly, but there was no arrogance in it now–only warmth. “Noted, big brother.”

I wrapped my arms around him tightly, hugging him as if letting go would make him vanish. My wolf calmed just a little, soothed by the sound of his breathing under my cheek.

He wasn’t fainted.

I bent closer, pressing my forehead to his shoulder. “Levi…” my voice cracked, “Don’t ever scare me like this again. You hear me? I love you, brother. I love you so damn much. You drive me crazy sometimes, but I wouldn’t trade you for anything. Not in this life, not in the next.”

Olivia’s gaze lingered on me, worried and concerned as if she was weighing whether or not to push. Finally, she gave a small nod. “Alright. But don’t take too long.”

I froze. Slowly, I lifted my head. Levi’s lips were curved into a small, smug smile. His eyes fluttered open just enough to meet mine, and then–he chuckled again.

For a long moment, I just stood there, my chest rising and falling, listening to the steady rhythm of the water. My wolf was quieter now, soothed by the cleanse, but not silent.