The Alpha's Silent Bride: Seventh Time's The Charm novel Chapter 122

Chapter 122: 122: He’s Not Gone Yet

THIRD POV

Celeste’s throat tightens as she stares through the small glass window at Nikolai’s covered body lying motionless inside the morgue. No matter how many times she tells herself to walk away, her feet refuse to listen.

Her mind drifts back to the night everything changed. The night she discovered he was her mate.

She remembers bolting from the mating ceremony, convinced she wanted nothing to do with him, only for him to chase her into the darkness with that infuriating confidence of his.

"Just give me a chance, Celeste."

She remembers how stubborn he had been. How he’d refused to accept her rejection. How he’d stood there, looking at her as though she were the only woman in the world worth fighting for.

And then... how he had kissed her, it was her first real kiss, and It had stolen every coherent thought from her head, leaving her heart pounding so hard she could barely breathe. She had hated herself for enjoying it... and hated him even more for making her feel something she wasn’t ready to admit.

A broken sob escapes her lips. They never even got the chance for anything, not even a first date or a first dance. They didn’t get the chance to learn each other’s favorite color, favorite meal, or the little habits mates are supposed to spend a lifetime discovering together.

Instead... She got a corpse.

She hasn’t been able to summon the courage to look at his body since the battle ended. Every time she tried, fear rooted her to the spot, convincing her that seeing him like that would make his death real.

But after everything Mara did to Roselle...

After watching the woman who should have become Blackshadow’s Luna be humiliated while the Alpha remained lost to his curse...

Something inside Celeste finally broke..The Alpha had gone feral, the Beta was dead, and the pack was falling apart.

With trembling legs, she pushes open the heavy morgue door and steps inside. The room is unnaturally quiet.

The air is cold enough to sting her lungs, and the faint scent of antiseptic fills ber nostril.

The attendant looks up as she approaches, immediately recognizing the grief written across her face.

"You came to see Beta Nikolai," he says softly.

Celeste can’t trust her voice, so instead, she simply nods.

Without another word, the attendant walks toward one of the steel compartments and slowly pulls out the tray.

The scraping sound echoes painfully through the room.

A white sheet covers Nikolai from head to toe. Celeste’s knees nearly give out under her.

The attendant gently folds the sheet back.

"There he is," he murmurs softly.

For a long moment, Celeste can’t breathe. A painful lump forms in her throat as tears sting her eyes, and she can only stare at the face before her in complete disbelief.

"No," she whispers, her lips trembling uncontrollably. "No... this can’t be."

Her gaze remains fixed on Nikolai’s face, searching desperately for something that tells her this is all some horrible mistake. He looks so peaceful lying there that it almost seems as though he’ll open his eyes at any second and flash that cocky grin she hated so much.

Her chest tightens painfully as another sob escapes her lips. "Moon Goddess... why would you do this?" she asks brokenly. "Why would you let me find my mate only to take him away from me before we even had a chance?"

She slowly reaches toward him, her trembling fingers stopping just inches from his hand because she can’t bring herself to touch him. A part of her is terrified that the moment she does, the last thread of hope she’s clinging to will disappear forever.

Then she feels a sudden sensation so faint, almost impossible to notice because of the crushing grief threatening to consume her.

Her mate bond. Her eyes widen as her hand flies to her chest. The connection is barely hanging on, but she can still feel it pulsing deep inside her heart.

"No," she says again, this time with conviction replacing her despair. "No... you’re not gone."

She quickly looks up at the attendant, hope flooding her tear-filled eyes. "Please," she begs. "Take him out of there."

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify