A Warrior's Second Chance (Faye and Alexander) novel Chapter 456

* Chapter 455

Chapter 456

ALEXANDER

“I failed you, Alexander,” she added.

Something about hearing those words from her felt strange.

Wrong, almost.

My mother swallowed once before continuing.

“I spent so many years convincing myself I was protecting you… preparing you,” she said quietly.” But somewhere along the line, I stopped being your mother first.”

I looked away briefly.

“I taught you how to survive,” she continued. “But I don’t think I taught you how to express yourself. How to fall apart properly. How to let people carry things with you. And I am sorry for that.”

Honestly, I didn’t even know what she expected me to say to that.

This entire night suddenly felt too emotional.

Too heavy… unnecessarily.

And right now, I genuinely could not afford to sink into any of it.

Not tonight.

Not when tomorrow existed.

Not when Stonevale existed.

I exhaled slowly through my nose before dragging a hand over my face.

“Mom…” I muttered quietly.

She stayed silent.

I shook my head faintly.

“I know what you’re trying to do,” I said.

My voice came out calm.

“And maybe under different circumstances, we would sit here and unpack my entire psychological damage properly.”

A humorless breath left me.

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Chapter 456

“But I can’t afford that right now.”

Her expression softened slightly.

I finally looked back at her.

“Tomorrow I’m walking into a fight with Stonevale,” I said. “I need a clear head.”

And that was the truth.

I could already feel emotions trying to claw their way to the surface, and I refused to let that

happen now.

Emotion clouded judgment.

And tomorrow required precision.

“Maybe when all of this is over…” I continued more quietly, “I’ll deal with all the things I probably should’ve dealt with years ago.”

The words sounded distant even to me.

Because honestly?

I had no idea if I even knew how to do that anymore.

A brief silence followed before I straightened slightly.

“But that’s not why I came here tonight.”

Helen watched me carefully.

My throat tightened faintly before I continued.

“I came to thank you.”

That clearly caught her off guard.

“For what you’re willing to do for Faye,” I said quietly. “For the sacrifice you’re willing to make.”

Even saying it aloud felt heavy.

Because I knew exactly what it cost her.

“I know what it costs,” I added. “And I appreciate it.”

Silence filled the room again after that.

Then she slowly stepped toward me… closing whatever gap was left between us.

I didn’t move

Chapter 456

Didn’t step back either.

She wrapped her arms around me, hugging me quietly.

And for the first few seconds, my body stayed tense automatically.

Because I felt her hold me a little tighter after that.

ROMAN

I had been seeing flashes since I woke up after the binding magic.

At first, I thought it was just my body struggling to recover from whatever the magic had done to

The images came and went in fragments.

Too fast to hold.

Too unclear to make sense of.

A sound here… a face there.

A voice that didn’t belong to any memory I could place.

I told myself it was just exhaustion.

Maybe even hallucinations from whatever that ritual had done to my system.

I didn’t question it too deeply at first because I didn’t have the strength to.

Especially since I was busy thinking about the things Alpha Alexander had said to me earlier.

But now…

Now it was different.

Now it was worse.

I was sitting on the edge of my bed when it hit me again.

This time, it didn’t feel like fragments brushing past me.

It felt like something inside my head was burning.

A sharp pain suddenly tore through my skull and I doubled forward instantly, a broken gasp leaving my throat before I could stop it.

My hands flew to my head on instinct.

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“What-”

The rest of the word never came out properly.

The pain surged again, stronger this time, and my entire body jerked forward as my vision blurred.

Sweat broke out across my skin almost instantly.

Warm.

I stumbled off the bed without thinking, my legs unsteady beneath me as I reached out for the wall

just to stay upright.

Something was wrong.

Not physically wrong in the way I understood pain.

This was deeper.

Like my mind was being pulled apart from the inside.

“No…” I whispered under my breath.

Because fear had started to settle in now.

Real fear, not confusion.

Not discomfort.

My breathing quickened as I pressed my back against the wall, trying to steady myself.

Then I saw her face. A woman’s face.

Painfully familiar in a way that made my heart beat faster. I knew that face, the smile.

My breath caught in my throat….

“Mom.”

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