章 9: More Time With You

Everyone turned to look at Safira. They were clearly stunned by her reply.

"Silver leaf? How would you know?" One of the healers asked.

"Now's not the time to discuss that," Safira tried to change the subject, hoping she could shift the focus back onto Damien, "The poisoning has gone on long enough. It could get worse if it's not treated."

The healers agreed with what she said. With a sense of direction, the healers went off to make a cure. Silver leaf was a rare poisonous plant that wasn't commonly found on any packgrounds. As such, the cure for it was rare too.

In the meantime, the healers prescribed Alpha Damien bed rest and a medicinal brew to help suppress the poisoning.

Seth, who watched everything unfold, still could not bring himself to trust Safira. She might have provided the solution they were looking for, but he knew she was keeping secrets from them still.

He didn't believe her to be a rogue either. After the healers left, Seth stuck around. Damien, on the other hand, wanted him to leave. He could tell Seth's presence was making Safira uncomfortable.

"Seth, don't you have other duties to do?" Damien reminded him.

Seth clenched his jaw, "Yes, Alpha. But I think your health is more important-"

"You need not worry about me. I am more than capable of taking care of myself. Besides, Safira here still owes me a debt. She'll take care of me," he mused.

Safira shot Damien a look as she pointed at herself.

"Me? Take care of you?" She gasped in disbelief.

Damien nodded, "Consider it a trade off. I took care of you too, didn't I?"

Before Safira could protest again, Damien shot Seth another look. Seeing as his Beta would not budge, he mind-linked him instead.

'I'll be fine, Seth," he reassured his Beta.

Seth sighed as he responded with a nod. But before he left, he insisted on speaking with Safira. He wanted to speak to her in private. Or perhaps, he wanted to warn her in private. Damien saw right through him.

"Whatever you wish to say to Safira, you can say it here," Damien seethed.

He knew his Beta was just looking out for him, but he didn't appreciate being treated like a child in need of protection either. Safira was quick to read the room too. She could see both men staring each other down, both too stubborn to let the other win.

She sighed as she gave Damien a reassuring smile, "It's alright. I'll be back."

Damien didn't protest any further. His expression softened as Safira followed Seth out of the room. He led her all the way into the living room, making sure they were far enough away from the bedroom before he turned to speak to her.

He came up close to her, glaring straight into her eyes as he gave her a warning.

"I don't know what you're pulling at but listen carefully. If you so much as harm a single strand of his hair, I will hunt you down and rip you to pieces. Do you hear me?"

Despite the threats, she remained unfazed. Her expression did not change, not even for a flicker of a second. Safira was used to threats. She ate them for breakfast.

"I hear you loud and clear, Beta Seth," she said monotonously.

With that, Seth left the house. While the Alpha was recovering, there were many duties that needed attending to. As Damien's in command, the work fell on his shoulders.

Safira bit her lip as she walked back towards the bedroom. Now that both of them were on bed rest, things got a little more awkward. There was only one bed to share between them.

Damien was grinning from ear to ear when Safira re-entered the bedroom. She averted his gaze as best she could but she could still see the smile on his face.

"For someone who's been poisoned, you sure seem chirpy," she mused as she brought him his bowl of medicine.

The healers had left it for Damien to take. He received the medicine with thanks, downing it all in one seating. It was horribly bitter which made him wince.

"It just means I get to spend a little more time with you," he responded without skipping a beat as he placed the empty bowl down on the bedside table and turned to her.

Safira got back in bed next to him, feeling a little awkward and unsure of what to say next. With the way she appeared from hiding near the window to his side, it was clear that she had been eavesdropping on his conversation with Seth.

Yukon, Damien's wolf, was howling with joy over the fact that Safira was now aware of the fact that she was their mate. But that was a topic they had not addressed.

"Sorry about Seth," he started with an apology, "He's just being protective of me."

Safira shook her head, "That's alright. He's loyal, I get it."

"A loyal friend and a loyal Beta."

"It's hard to find someone like that," Safira lamented.

Apart from her adoptive father, Greyson, she could not recall having anyone whom she would consider loyal. Everyone hated her, or seemed to want to use her as a punching bag.

Atfirst, she thought Markus would be like them too. But he was different. He made her laugh, took care of her when they were out together. Then, he revealed his true colors.

"Thank you, Safira," Damien blurted out, hoping to end the silence between them.

He looked over at her, captivated by her features. Though she was not looking her best, to him she looked perfect. Her messy black hair was held together in a singular braid, cascading down her shoulders. Her pupils were dark purple, shining like amethysts under the light.

"Without you, I don't think they would've figured out what was poisoning me," he continued.

"It's nothing. Glad I was able to help." She replied without much thought.

"How did you know what type of poison it was?" Damien asked out of curiosity.

Silver leaf was known to be lethal to werewolves. But as it had been banned across most packs, it was thought to have been close to extinction. The cure of it was not widely known either.

With little information about it, most thought it was a myth.

An unhappy memory from the past resurfaced in Safira's mind. There were things she had kept locked in the deepest recesses of her mind. Things she wanted to forget or never remember.

Damien noticed the conflict of her emotions that were written on her face. He felt a little bad for prying into her personal matters. But he wanted to know out of genuine curiosity.

"That's because I've been poisoned with silver leaf before," Safira explained.