Chapter 442: About Your Husband...

"About your husband..." Caspian began.

Jeffrey stared at him with a frown on his face. He wondered why he had spoken like that.

Even Orion’s face tightened, his brows drawing together as his gaze moved from Caspian to Daniel.

"What?" Jeffrey asked them. "Is anything the matter?"

Caspian hesitated. Daniel shifted beside him.

That alone was enough to let Jeffrey know something was wrong.

His stomach dropped.

"What’s wrong with Eldric?" he demanded.

His eyes were already wide, his chest tightening as a dozen different images slammed into his mind at once—Eldric lying pale on a bed, blood on the floor, someone whispering his name like it was already too late.

He shook his head once.

"No," he whispered. "No—what happened to him? What’s wrong with him? He’s not hurt, is he?"

Daniel opened his mouth to speak, but the words didn’t even come out before Jeffrey turned sharply toward the exit.

His foot barely made it past the bench before Daniel moved.

Fast.

He stepped into Jeffrey’s path and blocked him with his body.

"Jeffrey," Daniel said firmly.

Jeffrey stopped only because he nearly collided with him.

"Move."

"Calm down," Daniel said.

Jeffrey laughed once.

It was short and brittle.

"Calm down?" he repeated.

Daniel lifted his only hand and held it up gently, trying to make him calm down.

"Eldric isn’t hurt."

Jeffrey stared at him.

"If he isn’t hurt," he said slowly, "then why are you looking at me like he is? What’s wrong with him?"

Caspian’s jaw tightened.

Daniel didn’t answer immediately, and Jeffrey’s breathing picked up.

"You’re acting like something happened to him," he pressed. "You’re acting like—"

His voice dropped.

"Like I need to be prepared for something worse than I’m even imagining right now."

Jeffrey glanced around without meaning to.

The few nurses around had slowed down.

One had outright stopped at the edge of a bed, pretending to rearrange folded linens while clearly listening.

A healer stood frozen beside a supply cart.

Daniel noticed too.

So did Caspian.

The pack thrived on gossip, and Eldric’s condition was not one they wanted the whole pack to know—especially not now. There were lots of things they had to settle, after all. Lots of questions to be answered.

Daniel leaned closer to Jeffrey.

"Come with us," he said quietly.

Jeffrey frowned.

"What?"

"Come with us, boy. I’m not having this conversation here," he said in a harsh whisper.

"Come on, boy," Caspian said gently.

Jeffrey looked between them.

At Daniel.

At Caspian.

At Orion, whose jaw was tight now.

At Lysander, who gave him a small, steady nod.

Reluctantly, he turned, and they all walked out of the medical facility together. The doors closed softly behind them.

The cold struck immediately as they stepped back into the compound.

The compound lay quiet beneath the thinning veil of night, torches still burning low along the stone paths.

Snow crunched under their boots as they walked.

No one spoke as they walked together.

Jeffrey’s home stood apart from the busier stretch of the compound. It was just a little distance from Sam’s home, but it was in the quieter part of the pack, where people hardly flicked about.

Eldric had chosen it because it suited them.

Jeffrey had teased him for it once, but he had grown to love their home.

They stopped in front of the house.

Orion, at that point, got an inkling of what was happening. He had come here one time when Eldric had missed numerous council meetings but was able to go with Sophia to the shrine.

Even from the outside, he had noticed something was wrong.

Jeffrey’s heart began to hammer again.

Daniel turned to him.

"Eldric is under house arrest."

"What?" Jeffrey asked in shock.

"House arrest?" he repeated faintly. "Why? What happened? Is he hurt?" he whispered.

"Something did happen," Caspian told him. "But it isn’t something that physically harmed him."

Caspian continued carefully.

"It isn’t extremely serious in the way you’re thinking."

Jeffrey released a soft, broken sound that should have sounded like laughter but hardly did.

"That doesn’t help," he told them.

Daniel stepped closer.

"Jeffrey..."

He waited until Jeffrey looked at him.

"The Eldric you know... isn’t exactly the Eldric who is inside that house right now."

Jeffrey’s brows drew together.

"What does that even mean?"

Caspian and Daniel exchanged a brief look.

"I want to see him," Jeffrey said immediately.

His voice didn’t waver.

"I need to see him."

Daniel studied him for a long moment, then nodded. "Honestly, I think it’ll be better if you see him," he told Jeffrey, then turned to Caspian. "What do you think?"

"It will be better. That will be more believable too," Caspian said in agreement.

Jeffrey turned toward the door, Caspian following him, but then Caspian stopped.

"...There’s a problem," he said.

Jeffrey turned back slowly.

"What now?"

Caspian cleared his throat.

"I don’t have the key."

Daniel winced faintly.

"...I don’t either."

They both looked at Lysander at the same time.

Lysander raised an eyebrow tiredly.

"It’s with Mary."

Of course it was. She was the one who had placed Eldric in the house after all.

Orion released a long yawn at that moment. The weight of everything that had happened hit him all at once. He covered his mouth only halfway through it.

"Sorry," he muttered.

Then sighed.

"I really need some sleep. I’m tired."

Daniel glanced at him.

"You look awful," he said plainly.

Orion snorted.

"I feel worse."

He rubbed at his eyes. "We’ll talk about this in the morning... when the sun is bright up in the sky."

"Yeah, there’s... a lot to talk about," Daniel said quietly.

Orion gave a short, tired laugh.

"You have no idea."

He turned away from them then. "I’ll see myself off."

His boots crunched along the snow-covered path as he headed toward his home.

*Orion,* Noctis spoke up. *The person there... he’s as ancient as the beast we killed.*

Orion paused. "But you said he isn’t dangerous."

*He isn’t,* Noctis told him. *But he may have some ties to the beast.*

"Do you think I should go back?" Orion asked him.

*No. He will still be there when the sun rises, and besides, you are too tired to do anything now,* Noctis told him.

Orion couldn’t deny that. He really was tired. He chose to trust Noctis’ words and continued his walk home.

Caspian looked back at Jeffrey once Orion left.

"I’ll go get the key."

He turned without waiting for agreement and headed down the path leading toward Mary’s quarters.

Lysander rubbed at his face and stifled another yawn.

"I should go too. I’m exhausted. I’ll see you guys when the sun rises."

He offered Jeffrey a small, apologetic smile.

Jeffrey nodded at him.

Lysander inclined his head to Daniel.

"Goodnight."

And then he turned and walked away, his steps slower than before.

Soon, only Jeffrey and Daniel remained standing in front of the house.