<h4>Chapter 339: The Fragile Thread</h4>


    <strong>Kieran:</strong>


    The sound of Draven’s phone ttering against the floor was what finally broke me out of my own frozen state. My youngest brother’s horrified gaze snapped to me, wide and disbelieving, as if he had just heard the most unthinkable words.


    "I-I need to get to her. I need to-" Draven stammered, his voice breaking halfway through.


    I didn’t let him finish. My own chest was tight, my heartbeat a furious drum that echoed against my ribs, but I forced himself to act when my brother could not. "I’ll drive," I said firmly, my voice sounding steadier than I felt.


    Draven didn’t argue. He only nodded, sharp and frantic, and the two of us bolted together - through the garden and into the long corridor, and through another garden path that seemed endless this evening.


    I didn’t care who I shoved past, or how many startled faces turned my way. The only thought filling my mind was Evaline... and the fact that she’s hurt.


    By the time we neared the Academy gates, another figure appeared from the direction of the main administration building. Oscar. His usuallyzy smirk was gone, reced by a pale, tight expression. He didn’t need to say anything. The look in his eyes said he already knew.


    My chest constricted. For a moment, panic threatened to drown me, but I forced my feet to keep moving. I grabbed both Draven and Oscar by the arms, forcing their stumbling bodies to stop.


    <fn7d16> Original content can be found at find{n}ovel</fn7d16>


    "Wait for me at the entrance," I ordered, meeting their wild gazes with his own. "I’ll get the car."


    I didn’t give them the chance to respond before I tore away, sprinting toward the parking lot. Every step felt like a lifetime wasted. My wolf wed inside my chest, begging me to run faster, to get to the woman we loved, to protect what we were supposed to protect.


    The next fifteen minutes were chaos. Tires squealed, horns red as I cut through the streets with reckless speed. My hands were tight on the wheel, knuckles white, while Draven muttered desperate prayers under his breath in the passenger seat.


    Oscar was sitting in the back, silent but tense, his fists clenching and unclenching, his wolf leaking through his aura with every passing second.


    By the time we reached Lakeshire Hospital, my heart was hammering so violently I thought it might burst.


    Jasper was waiting in the underground parking lot, his face pale but his posture steady, as though forcing calm for all of our sakes. "This way, Alphas" he said, already moving toward the private lift. None of us wasted a second.


    The lift was suffocating. The silence inside was filled with only our heavy and uneven breathing. When the doors slid open, the first thing I saw was River.


    Our eldest brother was standing in the middle of the hallway, hands clenched at his sides, his expression carved out of stone. But I could see the cracks - the tightness around his eyes, the faint tremble of his jaw.


    The entire floor had been sealed off, warriors posted at both ends. Not a single stranger was allowed near. A team of the best doctors and healers in the shifter world was already being ushered inside.


    Even in his panic, River had taken care of every detail.


    Before I could open my mouth, Oscar was already striding forward, his voice sharp and desperate. "What happened? Tell us what the hell happened to her!"


    River’s gaze flickered, just for a second, and then he spoke. His voice was steady, but beneath the calm, I could hear the storm.


    * * *


    <i>shback – Third Person POV</i>


    River’s car had just entered the estate when it struck him.


    An excruciating pain, sharp and unrelenting, mmed into his chest. His vision blurred. His wolf howled, wing at him with panic. He knew... without doubt, without reason... that his mate was in agony.


    He didn’t even wait for the car to stop. He threw the door open and was running before the driver could react. His footsteps thundered across the front garden, through the porch, main door, and hallway leading deeper into the mansion.


    Chaos. That was all he saw. Warriors and servants were running around, their voices raised in panic. Some turned toward him, trying to speak, but he didn’t listen. His bond was pulling him, yanking him toward the staircase.


    And then he saw her.


    Evaliney crumpled at the foot of the staircase, her body trembling weakly, surrounded by servants and warriors trying to help. Sera was there, her usually calm face twisted with fear, barking orders to prepare a car.


    River didn’t hear any of it.


    "Move!" His voice thundered, and the crowd parted instantly. He was on his knees, gathering Eva into his arms. Her body was limp, her skin mmy, and her breaths shallow. His heart stopped.


    Her eyes fluttered open, ssy and wet, and she looked at him. Just him.


    Her lips moved, and a mere whisper escaped, but he heard it as if she had screamed the words.


    <i>The baby...</i>


    His vision blurred with rage, fear, helplessness. Before he could speak, her eyes closed, her body falling unconscious against him.


    "No-no, no, no," he muttered, his voice breaking as he lifted her against his chest. "Stay with me, Evaline. Stay with me."


    The next seconds were a blur. He carried her down the hallway, out the doors, and into the waiting car. The moment they arrived at the hospital, she was rushed into the emergency room, doctors and healers flooding around her fragile body.


    And River... River was left standing there, his hands stained with the scent of her fear and pain, his heart breaking with every second she was out of his reach.


    * * *


    <i>Back to Kieran’s POV:</i>


    I swallowed hard as River’s voice fell silent.


    For a moment, there was nothing. No sound, no movement... just the weight of his words pressing down on us all.


    Then Oscar moved. His body shook as he stepped forward, straight into River’s arms, and Draven followed, his ownposure finally breaking. Both of them clung to our eldest brother as though he was the only thing keeping them from falling apart.


    I stood frozen, watching the three of them. I had always known River to be unshakable, the pir the three of us leaned on when everything else failed. But now, even as he held our younger brothers, I could see it - the slight tremble in his shoulders, the way his jaw clenched too tight, the faint, desperate way he gripped them back.


    River was breaking too.


    My chest constricted painfully. And I forced himself to move, each step heavy until I reached them. Without a word, I wrapped my arms around all three of my brothers, pulling them into one tight, desperate embrace.


    For once, River leaned into me. Just slightly. Just enough to let me know how much he needed it.


    And in that moment, surrounded by their fear and pain, I realized how they all were so terrified of losing her. Not just because she was their mate, but because Evaline had already be the fragile thread holding them all together.


    And if that thread snapped, they might never recover.


    And neither would I.