The Silver Wolf (Diana and Talon) novel Chapter 88

Chapter Eighty Eight

“Where am I…?”

That was the first thought that came to Willow as consciousness slowly returned.

It felt heavy.

Like she was dragging herself out of deep water

Her body didn’t feel like her own.

Everything was slow.

Muted.

Distant.

She forced her eyes open.

White.

A ceiling.

Plain.

Bright.

She blinked slowly.

Trying to focus.

Trying to remember.

“Mate is here.”

Winter’s voice echoed softly in their shared mind.

Willow stilled.

Winter sounded…

Different.

Not broken.

Not curled up in pain like before.

Content.

“He’s been here for a long time,” Winter continued.

“And… he marked us.”

Marked.

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Willow’s breath hitched slightly.

“What… happened to us?” Willow asked weakly in their shared mind.

“My memory… it’s hazy”

Everything felt like a fog.

Fragments of something she couldn’t quite grasp.

“I don’t know,” Winter admitted softly.

“Why don’t you wake up fully… and ask him?”

Willow frowned slightly.

“He is not our mate, Winter,” she said quietly.

“Remember… we were going to ask him to reject us.”

Winter paused.

Then-

“But he marked us,” she said.

“Can you feel it?”

Willow stilled.

She could.

A pull.

A connection.

A thread tying her to something-

Someone.

The bond.

“I can feel it,” Willow admitted.

“But it doesn’t change anything.”

Her voice hardened slightly.

“He didn’t want us.”

Images flickered.

Damon-

Looking past her.

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Looking at Diana.

Words spoken.

Clear.

Unmistakable.

“He said as much,” Willow continued.

“Even after Diana was marked.”

“Don’t you remember, Winter…?”

Willow’s voice was soft inside their shared mind.

Too soft.

But her thoughts were no longer for him.

“They were all there…”

She continued quietly.

“The Alphas… the Lunas… our pack…”

Her chest tightened at the memory.

“And in front of all of them…”

“He called Diana the Queen of the Rogues.”

A pause.

“So easily.”

“So confidently.”

Willow swallowed.

“Like it was already decided.”

“Like she was the one he chose.”

Her fingers curled slightly against the sheets.

“He didn’t look at us.”

“Not once.”

Winter shifted uneasily inside her.

“He does not want us,” Willow whispered.

Her chest tightened.

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Her mernoiy blurred again.

What happened after that?

She remembered leaving.

Walking away.

Trying to breathe.

Trying not to break.

And then-

A shadow.

A presence.

Pain-

Sharp.

Sudden.

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And then-

Nothing.

Willow’s eyes flickered slightly.

She remembered linking everyone, telling them where to find her.

Just before everything went dark.

“You’re awake.”

The voice pulled her out of her thoughts.

Damon.

Willow turned her head slowly.

He was there.

Sitting beside her.

Closer than she expected.

Closer than she remembered him ever being.

“You shouldn’t scare me like that again.”

His voice was rough.

Tight.

Chapter Eighty Eight “Do you hear me?”

“Willow blinked at him.

Confused.

Why did he sound like that?

Why did he look-

Worried?

“What… is going on?” Willow asked weakly.

“Where am I?”

“You’re in the pack hospital,” Damon answered immediately.

“You were attacked.”

His jaw tightened.

“Do you remember?”

Willow shook her head slightly.

“It’s blurry…”

“I remember… someone… maybe…”

Pain flickered in her mind.

“The wolfsbane affected you,” Damon said.

“That’s why your memory isn’t clear.”

He leaned slightly closer.

“You were in the garden.”

His voice lowered.

“When we found you… you were on the ground.”

Willow felt something twist in her chest.

“The blade was still inside you,” Damon continued.

“It was coated in wolfsbane.”

His voice broke slightly.

“You almost died, Willow.”

Silence fell.

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almost lost you…

His hand tightened around hers.

“Before I even accepted the bond.”

Willow stilled.

“What are you talking about?” she asked quietly.

Her eyes searched his.

“You don’t want me as your mate.”

Her voice didn’t shake.

But it was quiet.

“You wanted Diana.”

Damon closed his eyes briefly.

“I know I hurt you.”

He didn’t deny it.

“But listen to me.”

His gaze locked onto hers.

“You are my mate. I accepted the bond. I marked you.”

Willow’s brows furrowed.

“How…?”

Her voice was barely above a whisper.

“I was unconscious.”

Her eyes hardened slightly.

“My brother would never allow that.”

Something wasn’t right.

Something he wasn’t saying.

“What are you not telling me, Damon?”

Winter stirred inside her.

“Why are you being hard on him?” Winter asked softly.

Willow frowned.

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“I’m not being hard on him,” she replied.

“And we agreed-”

“We would ask him to reject us.”

Winter hesitated.

“He accepted us.”

“He marked us.”

“But why?” Willow pushed back.

“What changed?”

Her chest tightened.

“What happened?”

Damon exhaled slowly.

“Your life was in danger.”

That made Willow focus fully on him.

“If we didn’t act…”

His voice dropped.

“You would have died.”

Silence.

“The healer said your wolf…”

He swallowed.

“…lost the will to live.”

Willow froze.

“She needed her mate,” Damon continued.

“To fight again.”

“And Diana-”

His eyes flickered briefly.

“She gave you her blood.”

“Her blood helped your body fight the wolfsbane.”

Willow didn’t move.

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Chapter Cult Eight

Didn’t breathe.

Didn’t speak.

Because suddenly-

Everything made sense.

The marking.

The bond.

The urgency.

It wasn’t because he chose her.