Chapter 0192

Isabella

Day after day, I sat waiting.

Thirty days passed without a word.

Total silence.

No mental link, nothing.

Yet I knew he was still alive.

I leaned back against the cold staircase.

The wooden edge pressed into my spine.

Closing my eyes, I tried desperately to force a connection between us.

Nothing responded.

"Why won't this work?!" I snapped at Midnight.

My patience had worn dangerously thin.

"You know exactly why," she murmured back, her voice equally frustrated.

"Well that's a completely ridiculous reason."

I shouldn't need to mark him to establish a link.

He had already claimed me as his mate.

She nodded in agreement.

It didn't comfort me.

Instead, it emphasized our differences.

A Lycan and a Wolf.

Our parents would be horrified.

All three of their children, mated to Lycans.

And I had been bonded to two.

I wish they could see you now," Midnight whispered gently.

"They would be proud of you."

I knew my mother would approve.

She inspired me to become a pack physician.

Sighing, I pushed myself up from the steps.

My leg didn't cramp this time, which felt like progress.

The healing continued, though slowly.

I still walked with a noticeable limp.

The pain came and went unpredictably.

Perhaps I would walk normally by the time Zachary returned.

Just as I stood, Sebastian stumbled through the front door.

A half-empty whisky bottle dangled from his hand.

The amber liquid sloshed as he fought to maintain balance.

He scowled when some spilled onto the floor.

His drinking began two weeks ago.

Even his parents didn't know how to help him anymore.

They mourned their lost grandchildren.

Now they seemed to be losing their son too.

Alexander had tried reasoning with him.

So had other pack members.

But Sebastian's grief weighed too heavily.

He couldn't see beyond his pain.

I wondered about his former mate.

She left some time ago.

I expected her to return, but she never did.

Almost as if she didn't care about her own children.

I never understood how a mother could abandon her children.

"Sebastian," I said softly, limping toward him.

When I reached for the bottle, he released it without resistance.

That itself was progress.

"Where is he?" he slurred, wobbling before collapsing against the doorframe.

"Who are you looking for?"

"Big brother..." he laughed bitterly, sliding down the frame until he hit the floor.

His chin dropped to his chest.

Within seconds, loud snores echoed through the foyer.

Drool trickled from the corner of his mouth.

He smelled terrible and hadn't shaved in days.

Groaning, I tried to lift him.

His dead weight slipped through my arms.

"Alexander!"

The office door opened instantly.

Alexander's eyes fell on Sebastian, and his shoulders slumped in defeat.

He felt just as helpless.

They had been best friends since childhood.

Yet he couldn't help Sebastian either.

None of us could.

How do you help a grieving parent?

"Vodka?" Alexander muttered as he crouched before Sebastian.

"Whisky," I corrected, placing the bottle on the small table near his office.

Through the doorway, I saw Athena curled asleep.

Stacks of books similar to those Theodore had been reading covered Alexander's desk.

Research wasn't typical for Alexander - he usually delegated such tasks.

"Isabella, help me please."

I turned back to find Alexander lifting Sebastian from the floor.

Limping forward, I draped Sebastian's other arm over my shoulders.

"Where are we taking him?"

"Just to the lounge. Let him sleep it off."

"You must find a way to help him, Alexander. He can't continue like this."

"You know he'll metabolize the alcohol within an hour."

"And then he'll start again. This isn't healthy for him."

"Just like sitting on these stairs every day waiting for Zachary isn't healthy for you."

"I'm not hurting anyone," I snapped back.

"You're hurting yourself."

We dropped Sebastian onto the sofa.

He groaned as he sank into the cushions while Alexander and I glared at each other.

"What would you do if it were Athena?" I crossed my arms, already knowing the answer.

He would tear the world apart searching for her.

He should be grateful I simply sit here waiting, hoping, praying to the Moon Goddess for Zachary's safe return.

"You have a point," he muttered.

I studied his tired crimson eyes as he straightened his posture.

"Are you leading the pack run tonight?"