Chapter 186 Unspoken


    Chapter 186 Unspoken


    TESSA


    I could see Benjamin–Ben, as he had introduced himself and insisted we call him. He did look like Ben. His face was too open and cager, as though he wanted to be trusted without earning it.


    And yet, every time his eyes slid toward me or, worse, toward Ca, I felt my chest constrict. There was something strange about the way he looked at us. It wasn’t hostile, but it wasn’t simple curiosity either<b><i>. </i></b><b>It </b>was like he carried a memory in his stare, one that refused to stay buried.


    I kept moving, brushing those thoughts aside. We had work to do.


    Screening days were always long, and though my hands were sore and my back stiff from leaning over patients for hours, I was determined to push through.


    At least everyone had been seen, and no one went untreated or unheard. That was my silent promise when I took over as doctor for the pack–no one would ever feel like they were a burden.


    We were heading to onest patient now. Ronnie, one of our warriors.


    He was in his mid–thirties and was one of the most dependable men in our small pack. His cottage sat deeper in the forest, and when we arrived, I noticed at once how weary his family looked. His wife, Rosa, met us at the <i>door</i>, her eyes rimmed red. Their twelve–year–old lingered in the corner, offering us some water when we entered their humble home.


    I had checked on Ronnie just the night before. He hadn’t been well, but I thought he had at least another few days before things would tip either toward recovery or decline. My stomach turned when I saw him now. He wasn’t the same man I had seen yesterday.


    “Goddess,” I whispered before I could stop myself.


    Hey on the bed, almost lifeless. His breathing came shallow, but it was his eyes that made my breath catch. They were pitch ck.


    Behind me, I heard the sound of someone stepping back sharply. I nced and saw both Ben and Ingrid retreat a pace. Their faces were drawn tight.


    Fortunately, Sol and Noelle were taking care of Ca at home. No child should see this.


    I moved quickly to Ronnie’s side, kneeling by his bed, and reached for his arm. My fingers wrapped around stiff flesh. He was rigid, muscles locked tight.


    “What happened?” My voice broke out sharper than I intended, panic pressed hard against my chest.


    Rosa, who had been hovering near the doorway, bit down on her lip. Her hands twisted the hem of her apron as her shoulders shook. “I don’t know,” she whispered. Tears welled up in her eyes. “I don’t know what happened. My husband–he was fine yesterday, wasn’t he? You said he just needed rest.”


    “I don’t know what to do without him.”


    The sight of her breaking like that carved into me. I reached out, touching her trembling hands before <b>she </b>unraveledpletely. “Rosa,” I said gently but firmly, locking eyes with her, “<b>we’re </b>going to help him. We


    Chapter 186 Unspoken


    will do everything we can.”


    Her chest rose and fell with shallow sobs, and her son had started crying quietly by the wall. I swallowed hard. Sometimes the hardest part of being a healer wasn’t stitching wounds or mixing herbs, It was seeing the people who loved your patient fall apart and knowing you had to hold them together long enough to fight for hope.


    “You may want to leave for a while,” I told her. “Take your son and give yourself a moment.”


    She hesitated, clutching her apron tighter. Her eyes darted between me and her husband’s still form. For <i>a </i>second, I thought she would refuse. But then her boy looked up at her, wide–eyed and pleading, and that decided it. She nodded, wiping her tears roughly, and ushered him out, though every step away from her husband looked like it broke her in two.


    The cottage felt heavier without them. Quieter, too, except for the faint rasp of Ronnie’s breathing.


    I turned toward Ben and Ingrid. Their faces were unreadable, but they hadn’t moved closer to help.


    “Have you had cases like this before?” I asked.


    Ben cleared his throat, his gaze flicking away before he forced it back <i>to </i>me. “There… might be something,” he said slowly.


    Before I could ask what he meant, Ingrid’s voice cut through the air. “There’s not.”


    I turned to her, wide–eyed.


    Her expression didn’t waver. “There’s nothing we can do,” she said tly. Her gaze lingered on Ronnie’s body. “Except bury the body right now.”


    A small gasp escaped my lips as soon as she uttered those words. Meanwhile, Ben pursed his lips and turned to his wife, the two of them having a silent conversation.


    Ingrid’s shoulders were rigid, her hands crossed firmly in front of her, while Ben ufortably pleaded with his gaze.


    “There’s something to be done, right?” I asked, my voice breaking the silence before I could stop myself.


    Their heads snapped to me instantly. Ben opened his mouth first, cautious. “Ingrid-” he began, but she cut him off with a heavy exhale, dragging her fingers through her dark hair until it fell messily against her shoulders.


    “This is precisely why I didn’t want to do this,” Ingrid muttered in exasperation. “You always want to help all people, Ben. What about our safety?”


    Ben’s eyes lowered to the ground. I stood frozen, caught between them.


    I nced at Ronnie. His broad frame seemed smaller somehow. His wife wasn’t here, his boy wasn’t here, but I thought of them anyway–faces I’d only seen briefly, lives I knew hung by a thread.


    “You still came here,” I said softly, not wanting to sound like I was interfering but unable to keep silent.


    “That must mean something,” I continued. “Because you came here to help us. You didn’t stay away. And maybe I don’t know the details, but I don’t believe you’d havee here if you didn’t care.”


    Chapter 186 Unspoken


    Her lips pressed into a thin line.


    “I don’t know how this would breach your safety,” I added, “but I’ll be here if you need any help. If you need someone to stand with you, or even if you just need to use me as a shield?


    Neither of them spoke for a moment.


    “You see…” I nced at Ronnic, then back to Ingrid. “Ronnie is <i>one </i>of our best hunters. He’s loyal, breve, and everything a pack needs. But he’s not just that. His family relies on him. His son is so young”


    I took a breath. “If you can’t see him as a hunter, then at least see him in the light of <i>a </i>father. If you turn away now, you’re not just leaving him behind–you’re leaving them.”


    Ingrid’s eyes softened, just for a fraction of a second.


    Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Ingrid spoke. “Fine.”


    “I don’t need your help,” she added, turning her eyes to me. “Not yours, not anyone’s. But I’ll do <b>this </b>for his little boy. Wait for me outside, and don’te in until I tell you.”


    Relief washed over me. I exhaled slowly, and a smile tugged weakly at my lips.


    “I trust you,” I said simply.


    Ben and I stepped out together, the wooden door clicking shut behind us.


    We didn’t speak at first. Ben leaned against the wall while I sat on the stairs leading up to their cottage. I was ying with the leaves that had umted there when he suddenly spoke.


    “There’s something I need to tell you.”