I Left Before He Learned My Worth novel Chapter 64

**TITLE: I Left Before He Learned My Worth**

**Chapter 64**

**ARIA**

38

+10 Free Coins

The piercing scream that jolted me awake resonated from the depths of the pack house, a raw and terrified sound that sent my wolf into a frenzy of alertness. Beside me, Kael was already in motion, flinging off the covers with a sense of urgency that left me momentarily dazed. He was grabbing for his clothes, his instincts kicking in before I could even fully comprehend the panic that had erupted.

“What—” I began to ask, my voice still thick with sleep.

“Emergency,” Kael interrupted, his tone clipped and focused solely on getting dressed. I could feel his alarm through our bond, a sharp spike of fear that ignited his Alpha instincts into high gear. “Someone’s hurt. Multiple people, from the sound of it.”

I scrambled out of bed, my heart racing, as I hastily reached for my own clothes. The chaos escalated around us; more voices joined the original scream—shouts, cries for help, a cacophony that hinted at a dire situation rather than a mere mishap.

We burst into the hallway, and it was already teeming with wolves, all moving with purpose toward a common destination. Nina emerged from her quarters, her hair tousled from sleep, but her expression was sharp and alert, a stark contrast to her disheveled appearance.

“What happened?” Kael demanded, urgency lacing his voice.

“Rogues,” Nina replied tersely, her eyes narrowing. “They attacked a group of healers who were out gathering herbs at dawn. Four injured, two critically. They’re being brought to the clinic right now.”

Kael cursed under his breath, the sound vicious and full of frustration. “How did rogues breach our border patrols?”

“Unknown. Marcus is investigating,” Nina said, already moving with purpose, leading us toward the clinic. “But right now, we need to focus on the injured. Eliza’s preparing the clinic, but she’ll need help. She’ll need—” Nina hesitated, her expression shifting to one of deep concern. “She’ll need Ivory. Ivory has more experience with critical trauma than anyone else on the healing staff.”

As we reached the clinic, the scene inside was already a whirlwind of controlled chaos. Eliza was barking orders at her assistants, directing them to set up various stations for the incoming wounded. Just moments later, the first of the injured was brought in—a young woman I recognized from the healing gardens, her arm dangling at an unnatural angle, her face pale and stricken with shock and pain.

“Ivory,” Eliza called out sharply, her voice cutting through the noise. “I need Ivory here now. Where is she?”

But there was no answer. No sign of the honey-blonde healer anywhere in sight.

Eliza turned to one of her assistants, urgency etched in her features. “Go get Ivory. She should be in her quarters or the herb preparation room. Tell her we have a code red situation.”

The assistant dashed off while Eliza turned her attention back to the injured woman, her hands moving with practiced efficiency as she began her assessment. Just then, two more wounded arrived—both men, one with deep claw marks raking across his chest, the other with a serious head injury, blood pouring down his face like a crimson waterfall.

“Where’s the fourth?” Kael asked, his voice steady as he helped support one of the injured men.

“Still being carried in,” Nina replied, her brow furrowing with worry. “She’s unconscious. Took the worst of the attack.”

Eliza worked swiftly, her hands steady as she assessed and prioritized the injuries before her. But I could see the strain on her face, the way her eyes flicked toward the door, waiting anxiously for Ivory to appear.

I nodded, moving to where she indicated, pressing clean cloths against a deep gash on the woman’s side. The blood soaked through almost immediately, hot and viscous against my hands, a stark reminder of the urgency of our situation.

“More cloths,” Eliza ordered one of her assistants. “And prepare the cauterizing tools. This is too deep for simple stitching.”

The next several minutes blurred into a frantic mix of blood, urgent instructions, and the desperate attempt to push aside my worries about Ivory. I focused on following Eliza’s directions, on being useful rather than getting in the way, on doing whatever small part I could to help save these women’s lives.

Yet, my thoughts kept drifting back to the herb gardens, to Kael’s fear flooding through our bond, to the haunting image of Ivory lying hurt somewhere while rogues prowled our territory.

It was perhaps ten minutes later—though it felt like hours—when Kael’s mental voice crashed through our bond with such force that I gasped involuntarily.

*Aria. We found her. Herb gardens. Poisoned. We’re bringing her in now.*

Poisoned. Not attacked by rogues. Poisoned.

“Kael found Ivory,” I announced aloud, my voice slicing through the controlled chaos of the clinic. “She’s been poisoned. They’re bringing her in.”

Eliza’s head snapped up from where she was stitching one of the injured healers. “Poisoned? With what? How severely?”

“I don’t know. He didn’t say.”

“Clear station three,” Eliza ordered immediately, her voice steady amidst the turmoil. “Prepare the full toxicology kit. And someone get me every antidote we have in stock—I need to see what we’re working with.”