Her patience snaps. “If you want to kill me, just do it already.” The words spill out in frustration, her tone edged with exhaustion. She’s tired of the games. tired of the back-and-forth. If that’s his n, then fine-she doesn’t care anymore. Just get it over with.
“If not, leave me the hell alone.”
Niks doesn’t flinch, doesn’t react the way she expects. Instead, he asks, “Are you afraid of being killed?”
“No.”
“You will not survive out there on your own,” he states, his voice even, unreadable.
“I know,” she admits, her voice quieter now. “I just need to survive long enough.”
Finally, she looks at him again-over her shoulder this time, meeting his gaze directly..
But this time, he isn’t just watching her.
He looks conflicted. As if, for the first time, he truly doesn’t know what to do next.
Saphira holds his gaze, unwavering. “Do you want to kill me?” she asks, her voice steady, though something unsettles her about the way the question lingers between them.
Niks frowns slightly, his sharp eyes narrowing as he considers her words. Then, to her surprise, he exhales.
“For the first time, no,” he admits. “You could have a home after this.”
He leans back, settling into his seat with casual ease, as if the conversation they’re having is nothing out of the ordinary.
She blinks, caught off guard. “Where?”
“With my family. My pack.” His tone is even, unwavering. “We don’t belong to any one supernatural species-we take in those who need a new home, a new family. Everyone pulls their weight, and we live in harmony. But more than that-we trust and protect each other.”
Saphira wants to believe him. It sounds like something she has never had before, something she could have. But reality settles quickly, cutting through the brief flicker of hope.
“But if I leave here,” she says quietly, “I’ll be banished from our world. That’s the rule.”
It would be nice to have the option. To know there was something waiting for her beyond this ce.
But she doubts the world will ever allow it.
Niks’s words linger in the air, heavy with a weight Saphira hadn’t expected. “We don’t follow the rules they create here,” he says, his voice calm but resolute. “There are many who have left after being deemed banished.”
He rises from his seat, his gaze locking onto hers. “The choice is yours.”
Saphira swallows, uncertain whether the offer is a lifeline or a test.
Niks studies her for a moment longer, then tilts his head slightly. “Oh, and I will only offer this once,” he adds, his tone edged with finality. “So choose wisely.”
Without another word, he turns and strides toward his room, disappearing behind the closed door.
And just like that-the decision is hers alone.
If Saphira makes it through these ten days, she’ll have a decision to make-one that will shape the rest of her life.
She could go back with Niks, remain in the supernatural world, and step into a new kind of pack-one that isn’t bound by blood or tradition. It sounds like an opportunity, an escape, but there’s no guarantee she’ll be weed. Her experience with packs so far has been nothing but pain, and the risk of repeating history weighs heavily on her.
The alternative? The human world. A life where she wouldn’t have to wonder where she belongs-but thates with its own set of problems. She has no idea how humans live, what rules govern their society, or how she would even begin to adapt.
It seems like an obvious choice. And yet, nothing about it feels simple.
She never expected to have a choice at all..
Now, she needs to think-carefully. Because whatever she decides, there will be no turning back.
The days pass faster than Saphira expected, each blending into the next with quiet routine.
She only sees Niks at breakfast and dinner-brief encounters where few words are exchanged. He hasn’t brought up his offer again, hasn’t pressed her for an answer, but the weight of it looms in the back of her mind. Time is running out.
She has thought about it endlessly, turning over every possibility, every risk. And after days of contemtion, she believes she has an answer.
But she won’t rush it.
Saphira rises for the day, following the same routine-washing up, dressing quickly, and preparing herself for whatever lies ahead.
She makes a mental note to doundry soon. Her supply of clean clothes is dwindling, and she assumes Niks must be handling his own washing at some point-either when she’s asleep or keeping it tucked away in his room. Whatever the case, she hasn’t seen any evidence of it.
She decides to wait until after tonight’s shower to clean what she’s wearing today. It’s the simplest n.
Moving into the kitchen, she starts on breakfast, deliberately making Niks’s portion nearly three times the size of her own. He eats far more than she does, and after the past several days, she’s learned that much at least.
Once the food is ready, she takes a breath, stepping toward his bedroom door.
Lifting her hand, she knocks lightly. And then she waits.
Saphira knocks lightly on the door before calling out, “Breakfast is ready.”
She returns to the table and sits down, barely settling into ce before Niks emerges from his room and joins her.
“Thank you, Saphira,” he says, and the sound of her name on his lips catches her off guard. It’s the first time he has said it aloud-and oddly enough, she finds that she likes it.
He doesn’t waste time. “So, have you thought about my offer?”
His timing is impable. There’s no avoiding the conversation now.
“I have,” she admits, meeting his gaze briefly. “But I have some questions, if that’s okay?”
Even if she only gets half the answers she’s hoping for, she’ll take what she can get.
?
Niks nods, picking up his fork. “Fire away.”
Saphira exhales, gathering her thoughts. “Okay… if I were toe back with you, what would my role be in the pack?”
It’s the first of many questions-ones she needs answered before she can make her final decision.
The Matchmaker