Chapter 31 — Storm in Her Veins
The day began with quiet skies. Pale morning light filtered through the gauzy curtains, soft and golden, painting the royal garden in a peaceful hue. Yet the calm never lasts long around me—not when emotions stir beneath my skin like gathering thunderclouds.
Ryker had spent most of the morning with his Betas, attending to matters of the council and border patrol. I'd joined him briefly, seated beside him at the long oak table, but my attention had wandered. My thoughts had been a restless sea, circling the same storm again and again—the prophecy, my lineage, the uncertainty of what I was becoming.
When the meeting ended, Ryker touched my hand, his thumb brushing over my knuckles.
"Go breathe, Kate," he murmured, voice gentle. "You've been holding too much in."
And maybe he was right.
So I found myself in the royal garden once again, barefoot this time. The grass was cool beneath my feet, dew still clinging to the blades like tiny drops of light. The air smelled of roses and rain-soaked earth. I closed my eyes and inhaled, letting the quiet wrap around me.
For a moment, it worked.
For a moment, I felt peace.
Then something inside me shifted.
It was small at first—a whisper of irritation, a tremor of old hurt that slipped through the calm. I thought of how everyone looked at me, half in awe, half in fear. I thought of how little I still understood about myself. About this power that came and went like a fickle storm.
And then… thunder rolled.
The sound cracked through the clear sky so sharply that birds scattered from the treetops. My heart lurched. My hands trembled. A pulse of raw energy rippled through me, and the wind stirred, slow at first, then faster, whipping through the garden and sending petals spinning into the air.
"Kate!"
Ryker's voice cut through the chaos, firm and commanding.
I turned, finding him at the edge of the stone path, his eyes glowing faintly amber. The storm reflected in them—the same wildness that I felt now rushing through my veins.
"I didn't mean to," I gasped, clutching my arms to steady myself. "I wasn't even trying—"
"I know," he said, stepping closer. "Breathe."
The command in his voice was soft but absolute. He came to stand in front of me, his presence grounding, solid as the earth beneath our feet. The air crackled around us, and a streak of lightning tore through the clouds in the distance, followed by a low growl of thunder.
"Look at me," Ryker murmured. His hand cupped my jaw, fingers tracing the side of my face until I was forced to meet his gaze. "You are in control. Not your fear, not your anger—you."
His closeness steadied the chaos. The scent of him—cedar, smoke, and rain—filled my senses, familiar and maddening all at once. Slowly, the winds began to ease, the lightning fading to nothing but faint tremors in the sky.
And just like that, the storm passed.
I exhaled shakily, pressing my forehead against his chest. "I thought I'd hurt someone," I whispered. "What if I lose control like that again?"
Ryker's arms wrapped around me, holding me tight. "Then we learn. Together."
For a long moment, neither of us spoke. The world seemed to hold its breath. I could hear his heartbeat, steady and strong against my ear. His warmth bled into me, chasing away the chill the storm had left behind.
"You're stronger than you think," he said finally. "Your power listens to your heart, Kate. Not your rage. So if your emotions guide the weather—then I'll just have to make sure your heart stays calm."
I smiled faintly. "That sounds like a full-time job."
He chuckled, low and rough. "Then it's a job I'll never quit."
When I looked up at him, his gaze had softened—still fierce, but threaded with something tender. His thumb brushed a raindrop from my cheek that wasn't really rain at all. I hadn't realized I'd been crying.
"Come," he said quietly. "Let's get inside before you summon another hurricane."
We walked back toward the palace, his hand clasped around mine, fingers interlaced. The air still carried a faint charge, the garden trembling with the echo of what had just happened. But for the first time, I didn't feel afraid of it. The power within me wasn't a curse—it was part of me, as wild and untamed as the man walking beside me.
Later that night, when the storm returned, it wasn't in the sky.
It was in us—silent, charged, and waiting to break.