Wings of Broken Time by Alina Das 59

Wings of Broken Time by Alina Das 59 Summary

Natalia hesitates when Andrei asks her a question, instead borrowing a leather jacket from a nearby Ashmoor warrior to assert her independence. She deliberately wraps herself in the stranger’s jacket, signaling to Andrei that she does not seek comfort from him. Andrei, after a moment of silent observation, puts his own coat back on and accepts her stance with reluctant acceptance. They continue walking along a narrow cliffside path, tension thick between them.

Suddenly, they hear the plaintive cry of a helpless baby, which leads them to find a wounded, starving fawn hidden in the undergrowth. The fawn’s deep gash and fragile state evoke a strong emotional response from Natalia, who kneels beside it, realizing it won’t survive without its mother. Andrei agrees quietly, acknowledging the fawn’s suffering and the inevitability of its fate.

In a surprising display of tenderness, Andrei offers to end the fawn’s pain quickly and mercifully. After a brief moment of hesitation, Natalia consents, and Andrei swiftly ends the fawn’s suffering. He then carefully wraps the small body in his jacket and suggests they bury it to give it dignity. Together, they dig a small grave, and as they work side by side, a subtle connection sparks between them.

Once the fawn is buried, Andrei breaks the heavy silence by asking Natalia a deeply personal and unresolved question about whose body was burned during her funeral years ago. The question carries unspoken emotions and history, leaving the moment charged with tension and anticipation.

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I didn’t answer Andrei’s question right away. Instead, I shifted my gaze toward one of the remaining Ashmoor warriors standing nearby. “Could I borrow your jacket for a while?” I asked, trying to keep my voice casual, though inside I felt a flicker of defiance.

Without hesitation, the warrior shrugged off his leather jacket and held it out to me. “Of course, Laina,” he said with a gentle smile. I returned the gesture warmly and slipped into the coat, relishing the sudden warmth it provided against the crisp air that nipped at my skin.

Turning back to face Andrei, I deliberately wrapped myself tighter in the jacket, making sure he noticed that I wasn’t seeking comfort from him. If anything, I preferred this stranger’s jacket over anything he might offer. It was a small, subtle act of independence—a quiet rebellion.

Andrei studied me silently for a moment, his expression unreadable. Then, with a faint shrug, he pulled his own coat back on. “Suit yourself,” he muttered softly, his voice low but carrying a hint of reluctant acceptance.

We resumed our walk, the tension between us thick and palpable. The narrow path we followed clung precariously to the edge of a steep cliff, the dense forest pressing in on the other side like a dark, silent wall. Suddenly, a faint, plaintive cry drifted through the trees, sharp and heart-wrenching enough to make me stop in my tracks.

Andrei immediately halted, raising a hand to signal silence. We all froze, straining to catch the sound again. Moments later, the soft wail came once more—an unmistakable cry of a helpless baby.

“Over there,” Andrei whispered, pointing toward a dense thicket just off the trail.

We moved cautiously forward, his Beta and the other warriors flanking us protectively. As we drew closer, I spotted a tiny shape curled up among the undergrowth, trembling as it let out that pitiful sound.

It was a fawn—a newborn deer, no older than a few weeks. Its spotted coat was fresh and delicate, and its legs looked fragile, barely able to support its weight. But what caught my attention was the deep gash on its side, crusted with dried blood, and the sharp outline of its ribs beneath the thin skin.

“It’s starving,” I whispered, kneeling down beside it. “And hurt. Someone must have killed its mother.”

The fawn tried to stand when it saw us, as if desperate to escape, but its legs gave out beneath it. Weak and trembling, it let out that heartbreaking cry again—a desperate call for a mother who would never return. Tears pricked at the corners of my eyes.

Andrei crouched beside me, his voice low and gentle. “It won’t survive,” he said softly. “Not without its mother, and not with that wound.”

His words were a painful truth. The little creature was suffering, slowly fading away, and the injury was likely infected. Knowing this didn’t ease the ache deep in my chest.

“We can’t just leave it here to suffer,” I said firmly, my voice trembling with emotion.

“No,” Andrei agreed quietly. Then, to my surprise, he reached out and gently stroked the fawn’s head with one large hand. The animal flinched at first but then seemed to relax under his touch. “I can end its pain. Quickly. Without cruelty.”

I looked up at him, caught off guard by the tenderness in his eyes. “You’d do that?”

“Of course,” he replied, his green eyes steady and sincere. “It’s the kindest mercy we can offer now.”

I nodded slowly, stepping back to give him space. Andrei murmured softly to the fawn, his hand soothing its trembling body.

Then, with a swift, merciful motion, he snapped the fawn’s neck. It was over in an instant; the small body went limp in his hands. I blinked back tears and turned my gaze away, unable to watch.

After a moment, he removed his jacket again and carefully wrapped the tiny form in the leather.

“What are you doing now?” I asked quietly.

“We should bury it,” he said simply. “Don’t you think it deserves that dignity?”

His thoughtfulness caught me off guard once more, but I nodded without a word. Andrei stood and handed me the wrapped fawn.

I watched in quiet amazement as he knelt down and began digging with his bare hands, scooping away the soft earth beneath the trees. Even the other three men exchanged surprised glances, clearly unaccustomed to witnessing such a raw, personal gesture.

When the hole was deep enough—it didn’t need to be large, given how small the fawn was—Andrei took the bundle from me and gently laid it in the grave. He began covering it with earth, his movements slow and reverent.

Without thinking, I knelt beside him and helped push the soil into place. Our hands brushed briefly as we worked side by side, and an unexpected spark of electricity jolted through me at the contact.

“Natalia,” Andrei said suddenly, not looking up from the grave, “there’s something I’ve been wanting to ask you.”

I stiffened, wary of where this might lead. “What is it?”

He finished patting down the last of the dirt, then finally met my eyes. “Whose body was burned during your funeral all those years ago? I deserve to know.”

The question hung heavily between us, loaded with unspoken history and emotions neither of us dared to voice.

Conclusion

The quiet act of mercy they shared in burying the fawn revealed a tender vulnerability beneath the hardened exterior both Natalia and Andrei carried. In that moment, grief and compassion intertwined, softening the distance between them just enough to kindle a fragile connection. The small, wounded creature became a symbol of their own broken pasts—fragile, wounded, and in need of care—mirroring the unspoken pain that lingered between them.

As the earth settled over the fawn’s grave, so too did a new weight settle in the space between Natalia and Andrei. His question, heavy with the promise of truth, opened a door to the past that neither could ignore. The silence that followed was charged with anticipation and a quiet hope that, perhaps, through understanding the wounds of time, they might begin to heal the fractures in their own hearts.

What to Expect in Next Chapter?

The next chapter promises to delve deeper into the shadows of Natalia’s past, as Andrei’s question opens a door long kept closed. The weight of unspoken truths and buried memories will stir emotions that have been simmering beneath the surface, threatening to unravel the fragile balance between them. As they confront the lingering ghosts of that fateful funeral, the tension between them will only grow, mixing pain with a reluctant yearning for understanding.

Meanwhile, the quiet moment of shared grief over the fawn’s fate hints at a subtle shift in their relationship—one that might challenge the walls they’ve built around themselves. Yet, with so much left unsaid, the path ahead is uncertain, and the question remains: will uncovering the past bring them closer or push them further apart? Readers can anticipate a chapter rich with emotional complexity, where every glance and word carries the weight of history and the fragile hope for reconciliation.

Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.

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Wings of Broken Time by Alina Das 59