One Night
One Nigh 267

Chapter 267

Audrey

I jolted awake with a gasp, still tasting the acrid sensation of ash and rubble on my tongue. Only I wasn’t in the collapsing building anymore.

Harsh fluorescent lights glared down at me, making my eyes burn as I squinted against their brightness. My body felt heavy, every inch of me aching as I slowly became aware of my surroundings.

I was in a hospital.

My heart stuttered in my chest as the memories of what had happened began to rush back all at once.

Edwin.

No, no, no. I shouldn’t be here. I should be with-

Panic took hold of me. I tried to sit up, ignoring the sharp pain that suddenly ripped through my abdomen.

“Edwin!” I rasped, looking around wildly. “Where is he? Where

“Shh, sweetheart.” A familiar voice cut through my panic, and a hand pressed gently against my shoulder, pushing me back down onto the bed. “He’s right here. Look to your left.”

My head snapped to the side so fast that the room spun, my vision blurring for a moment before it settled.

And then I saw him.

Edwin was lying in the hospital bed next to mine, his chest rising and falling slowly. His skin was pale, and thick bandages wrapped around his torso, but… he was alive.

He was breathing.

The sight of him sent a rush of relief through me. A sob caught in my throat, tears welling up in my eyes as the memories of the warehouse came crashing down on me. The blood. The knife. The way I had felt him dying through our bond, slipping away right in front of me.

“But… the knife,” I whispered, my voice trembling as I turned to my mother, who was sitting perched on the edge of my bed, her hand still resting on my shoulder. “I felt it. I felt him dying. How is he–how are we both still…”

My mother’s expression softened, her hand squeezing mine gently. “Whatever you did in there,” she said quietly, “you saved him, Audrey. It was like nothing we’ve ever seen before.”

I swallowed hard, fragments of my memory beginning to resurface–the warmth of his blood on my hands, the overwhelming surge of wild desperation that came over me, the feeling of wanting to save him so badly that I would give anything, everything, to make it happen.

“I remember…” My voice faltered as I reached up to touch my chest, feeling the steady pulse of our bond, still strong, still there. “I kissed him, and I just… I wanted to trade my life for his. I was ready to do whatever it took to keep him alive.”

My mother gently brushed a strand of hair out of my eyes. “Maybe you saved him during those moments. That act of love…” “But how?” I asked, my gaze drifting back to Edwin’s sleeping form. “Was it some kind of… gift?”

“I don’t know,” my mother admitted, her eyes lingering on my face for a moment before flicking to my hair. “But perhaps… it was something more.”

10:52 Sun, Nov 10

Chapter 267

Something about the way she said that made me frown. “What do you mean?”

My mother smiled softly and nodded toward my hair. “Take a look.”

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Confused, I reached up, grabbing a lock of my hair between my fingers–and froze. Instead of the black strands with a single silver streak that I had grown so used to, the hair that now slipped through my fingers was pure, brilliant silver, shimmering like moonlight.

It wasn’t a temporary transformation like I had seen before. This was permanent.

A soft gasp escaped me, my fingers trembling as I stared at the strands of hair. “It’s… beautiful,” I whispered, the words leaving my mouth before I even had time to think about them.

I had spent so long hating that silver streak, seeing it as a reminder of how different I was, how it was once the source of my torment. But now, this… this felt right. It felt like it belonged to me. Like I had finally claimed it as my own.

My mother smiled and leaned down, pressing a warm kiss to my cheek. “I promise I didn’t bleach your hair in your sleep, in case you’re wondering.”

I snorted and went to respond, but before I could speak, a soft groan from the other bed caught our attention. My head snapped back to Edwin just as his eyes fluttered open, that familiar gray gaze locking onto mine instantly.

“Edwin,” I whispered, my chest humming with relief. “I thought

“Audrey…”

Before my mother could stop me, I was suddenly out of the bed my legs buckling beneath me as I stumbled toward him Pain shot through my body, but I barely felt it. All I could think about was getting to him, feeling his arms around me again.

I collapsed onto the edge of his bed, my tears flowing freely as I wrapped my arms around him, burying my face in his neck. “You idiot,” I sobbed, the word coming out without really meaning anything. “Don’t you ever do that to me again. Don’t you ever…”

His hand came up slowly, his fingers tangling in my now–silver hair, and I felt him exhale softly, his breath warm against my temple. “Hm. You’re one to talk,” he murmured, his voice gravelly. “Refusing to leave me like that…”

I pulled back slightly, looking into his eyes as he brushed a thumb across my cheek. “I should be thanking you,” he said softly. “Your love… I think it gave me the strength to get us out. I felt it, Audrey. I felt everything.”

My heart tightened at his words, and for a moment, I was transported back to my own death–to those moments that I had been lost in that void, following that invisible thread connecting us. Our bond had saved me then. Maybe it had saved him this time.

I leaned down and kissed him again, this time soft and slow, savoring the feeling of his lips on mine.

But the door burst open then, and suddenly the room was full.

Betty was the first to rush in, throwing herself at us with a cry of joy, her arms wrapping around both Edwin and me. Peter was right behind her, his eyes lighting up as he joined the hug, his arms wrapping tightly around all three of us.

Then came Tina, who shoved the other two out of the way and slapped me across the face–lightly, but just enough to sting a little–before she threw her arms around me. I reeled for a moment, but hugged her back with a chuckle. “Nice to see you too, Tina.”

“Don’t you ever scare me like that again, you dumb fucking bitch” Tina sobbed into my shoulder by way of greeting.

My mother’s eyes widened. “Tina! If you’re sharing a home with me, you’d better watch your tongue.”

Tina just sniffled into my neck and

SEND GIFT

10:52 Sun, Nov 10

Chapter 267

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Then, finally, came Avis and Gavin. Tina moved to let them come close. Gavin shoved a bundle of flowers into my hands as Avis kissed me on both cheeks, her face streaked with tears. She touched my hair, a tiny sigh escaping her lips, but said nothing. She didn’t have to, though.

I offered her a tiny smile and squeezed her hand before thanking Gavin for the flowers and climbing back into my hospital bed–as per my mother’s orders.

Last came Charles.

He stood in the doorway for a moment, his eyes flicking back and forth between me and Edwin. I thought he might go to Edwin, and he did; but after nothing more than a nod and a handshake, he turned to me, placed his hand over his heart, and kneeled.

“Thank you for saving our Alpha,” he whispered.

I couldn’t help the laugh that bubbled up inside of me. “Get up, Charles,” I chuckled. “Kneel again, and I’ll make you do a hundred pushups.”

Peter snorted. “Luna’s orders?” he quipped.

Edwin and I exchanged glances, my chest tightening painfully at the reminder of those moments in the crumbling warehouse.

But then Edwin laughed. I mean, he threw his head back and laughed.

And soon, we were all laughing, too.

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