The Warrior’s Broken Mate novel Chapter 40

When I made it upstairs, I headed straight into the bathroom and placed my hand beneath the running water, letting the blood rinse off.

Elias appeared at the bathroom doorway, taking in what I was doing, and the concern on his face was clear. He didn’t understand what had caused me to break the glass.

“Lyra. Talk to me.” he said gently.

“I’m sorry. It’s not a big deal.” I responded, trying not to let my tears show.

“It clearly is. Tell me what’s going on.” he insisted, stepping into the room and assisting me with my injured hand.

“Sometimes memories just come back on their own. I don’t want them to, but they show up anyway.” I explained quietly.

“Alright. Then what made you break the glass?” he asked.

“Neil.” I muttered. Elias gave a small nod, clearly understanding what I meant.

He wrapped my hand carefully, even though we both knew the wounds wouldn’t last–they would heal soon enough.

Elias encouraged me to go downstairs with him to eat something. If we were going to keep up this training, I needed to maintain my strength.

So I ate, though I stayed quiet for most of the afternoon. I didn’t feel like talking much and I was struggling to quiet the thoughts in my mind.

Elias’s concern was obvious, but I couldn’t change that. I had to find a way to stop thinking about Neil and everything that had happened back at my old home. I wished I could block it all out, but that was far from simple.

I really wanted to erase every part of it from my memory, but deep down I knew it was my past that was pushing me now–to work harder, to grow stronger. I wanted to forget, but also I didn’t. If that contradiction made any sense.

After we finished the meal, I stepped out onto the veranda and sat down. I watched people walking around, chatting, just living. In the distance, others were busy with training. Their discipline and structure impressed me deeply.

“Hey there.” a voice said, snapping me out of my thoughts.

“Hey Chris. How are you?” I asked as I turned toward him.

“Doing alright. How about you? You seem a bit off.” he said, noticing my demeanor.

“I’m fine. Nothing to stress over.” I replied calmly.

“I saw a bit of your training with Elias. You’re starting to look impressive out there.” he said.

“Thanks. But honestly, I still suck at it.” I admitted.

“You’ve only just started a few days ago. The guys over there have been training for years to reach that level.” he pointed out, motioning toward the warriors in the distance.

“Yeah, I know. I’ll get there eventually.” I told him.

“We also have a gym, if you’re interested. It’s good for building some muscle.” he offered.

“I’d like that. Where is it located?” I asked with curiosity.

“It’s at the far end of the village, in that house–like building. No one lives there–it’s all gym space.” he explained.

“Alright. I’ll definitely take a look sometime.” I responded. Just then, the door opened and Elias stepped out onto the veranda.

When I glanced up at him, I saw the intense look he directed at Chris.

“Don’t you have something else to be doing?” Elias questioned sharply.

“Yeah, I guess I do. Good talking to you, Lyra.” Chris said before heading off.

“What was that all about?” I asked him directly.

“What do you mean?” Elias replied.

“You scaring him off like that–what was that for?”

“I don’t like him being around you so often. He needs to understand that.”

“How is he supposed to know that?” I questioned.

“Because you’re my mate and he’s an unmated male. That’s how it works. Everyone knows that.” Elias explained, lowering himself to sit next to me.

“I didn’t realize that was something everyone just knew.”

“I didn’t expect you to. But he should definitely be aware of it.” Elias answered.

“Okay. But you do realize we’re only friends, right?” I asked.

“I get that you see it as just friendship. But you shouldn’t underestimate an unmated male who gives you that much attention. It’s not always just friendly.” he said seriously.

“Alright. I’ll try to keep that in mind.” I told him.

“Thanks.” he said simply.

“You don’t have to worry about anything. I’m not going to do anything inappropriate.” I reassured him.

“I know that. But you’re still not strong enough to fight back if something were to happen. And without marking you, I wouldn’t be able to sense if you were in danger.” he said.

“Yeah, I understand. I’m sorry.” I said quietly.

“You don’t need to apologize. I’m not angry with you.” he said, reaching over and taking my hand in his.

We sat there like that for a while, just holding hands in silence, until Elias was called to the training field for his Alpha responsibilities. I didn’t know what exactly he had to do, but he left the house, and I found myself alone again. I made myself a cup of coffee, took my book about the royals, and returned to the veranda to keep reading.

I hadn’t read much on the royal family over the past couple of days, and I really needed to catch up. I was still documenting where each member had been on different dates, still searching for clues about what happened to them.

“Hey Lyra.” I heard Hailey say as she passed by.

“Hey. What are you doing?” I asked her.

“Well, we’re heading into town to do some shopping. Want to come along?” she offered.

“I’d really love to. But I doubt I’d get permission to go.” I replied.

“You can’t stay trapped in this house forever.” she said firmly.

“Well, with that storm rolling in, I don’t think your shopping plans will go too well.” I said, glancing at the dark clouds that were quickly approaching.

“Storms never last. We can always go once it passes. How about tomorrow?” she suggested.

“Sure, I’d really like that. I’m just not sure Elias will be all that thrilled.” I admitted.

“Don’t worry about him. I’ll arrange for security to come with us. But seriously, you need new clothes–no more of Elias’s old stuff or the pack’s hand–me–downs. You need clothes that are your own style.”

“That honestly sounds like a lot of fun.” I said with a smile.

“Hell yeah, it does.” she replied excitedly.

Hailey stayed to chat with me for a while longer, and the clouds moved in even faster than we had anticipated.

The rain started pouring down heavily, and when I looked toward the training field, I saw Elias still pushing the warriors to train despite the weather. Honestly, that probably wasn’t a bad thing–it helped them prepare for any conditions. No one can control the weather, and I suppose this kind of discipline is what makes them the best. It’s because of the way they train.

Not long after that, hail began pounding down, so I grabbed my things and made the decision to head inside. I wasn’t accustomed to this kind of weather. I had never even stepped outside the packhouse back home, so I’d never really experienced rain like this before. I couldn’t tell whether I liked it or not.

The moment I stepped inside, a loud crack of thunder echoed through the air and I let out a startled scream–it had frightened me.

Back in my father’s packhouse, I always knew when there was a storm, but because it was such a massive stone house, the sound never really carried through. Even when I was in the attic, I couldn’t hear it because the roof was made of tile. This house, however, was made of wood, and I could hear everything loud and clear.

Suddenly, I heard screaming coming from outside the house, and I rushed to the window to see what was going on. Was someone attacking us?

When I looked out through the front window, I saw objects falling from the sky and crashing into the ground with violent force, making the earth tremble with every impact.

People were running all over the place, trying to dodge the things shooting down from above.

I opened the front door and looked upward; through the storm clouds, I could just make out the faint glow of the moon. I turned my head and saw Elias sprinting back toward the house with the warriors close behind him, all of them trying to find shelter.

Elias was shouting instructions, making sure everyone knew what to do to stay safe, and I turned back inside, panic rising in me as I tried to comprehend what was happening.

I ran into the living room and crouched in the far corner, curling up tightly and staying completely still, frozen with fear. I had no idea what I should do.

I shut my eyes tightly and silently begged for everything to end.

Elias POV

As soon as the meteor shower began, I took off immediately, needing to make sure my pack was moved to the safest areas possible–if that was even an option. We didn’t know where these flaming stones would land.

I looked up at the sky and noticed the moon breaking through the clouds even while the storm raged on. That wasn’t normal. And then I saw that the meteors seemed to be originating from the moon itself. As if the moon were purposely hurling them at us.

I spotted Lyra on the front veranda of the house, but once I saw her dart back inside, I felt a bit more at ease. At least inside the house, she should’ve been safer. That’s what I told myself.

I ran into the center of the village, shouting to everyone to find safety, to head into the woods if they had to. That seemed like the best chance they had.

But many stayed behind, helping me gather and protect the children, the pregnant women, and those who were currently too weak to move.

Just as I started sprinting back toward my house, the largest meteor yet came streaking down from the sky.

I could hear its sharp whistling as it descended at terrifying speed, and before I could react, it slammed directly into the roof of my house, erupting the entire structure in a violent explosion.

I screamed Lyra’s name, but before I could reach her, a powerful and blinding light burst forth from the meteor and the sky above it.

The light was so intense that I had to shield my eyes, unable to look at it. It was searingly bright–too much to bear–and everyone else in the village did the same. No one could see anything beyond that overwhelming light.