205: PRETEND YOU DIDN'T KNOW

PRETEND YOU DIDN'T KNOW

Hanna took off her cloak because it was very warm inside the carriage, but Iris was still trembling, despite her body being engulfed in several layers of blankets. Her teeth clattered nonstop while her face was unusually red.1

"Should I add more blankets?" Hanna asked with concern. The lizard curled its small body on top of Iris, but she still couldn't ward off the coldness that she felt.

"It's okay… I will be fine. My body is still adjusting to this." This was the first time for Iris to be out in the open during winter. Usually, she would be well hidden inside her warm bedroom, sleeping close to the fireplace.

Therefore, her body was trying to adjust to the extreme cold. Not to mention the cold wind that constantly seeped into the carriage. Iris was really miserable during this journey and there was nothing Hanna could do.

As shifters, they were born with hot blood coursing through their veins, thus their endurance in this extreme weather could be said to be so great, but for a runt like Iris, who would often fall sick, a long journey during winter was nothing but torture.

"I- I will get more blankets," Hanna decided, as she walked out of the carriage.

Iris grimaced when Hanna opened the door and more wind entered the carriage, causing her to tremble even more. She needed to press her tongue to the roof of her mouth, because she was afraid she would bite it coincidentally, as she couldn't stop her teeth from clattering.

At this point, her consciousness constantly drifted on and off, as she hugged herself and focused on the fire of the brazier inside this carriage. Thankfully, this carriage was spacious enough, because knowing her condition and the harsh weather, she would be forced to spend her time inside, not to mention her weak body, thus they really needed to pay extra attention to the carriage.

But, all of that effort was proven to be inefficient, because Iris still ended up in this condition.

Between her dizzy spells, Iris felt like she was having a dream, a long dream about the time she was still eight, an event that she had buried deep in her mind.

She was standing in front of a man, naked, while he stared at her hungrily, devouring her body with his eyes. She believed this man was one of those filthy Alphas' sons. The Southern Alphas frequented this pack to enjoy the parties Gerald threw and oftentimes, they would bring their sons as well.

This young man was around the same age as Mason or maybe a few years older than him, probably eighteen to twenty years old, but Iris didn't remember what happened after that. Her memory was cut short before he fiddled with her curls and whispered. "Sst, don't tell anyone."

That was it, Iris couldn't remember further from that point, as if she held herself back from trying to remember more.

And then it was another dream with the empty hall and the five swords, but it was also cut short after she tried to take one of the swords.

She opened her eyes and felt so warm, as someone hugged her so tight. This was even warmer than being covered by a few layers of blankets, as his body heat helped her to adjust to the harsh cold weather.

The way he cuddled her was very comfortable, which made Iris close her eyes again without looking at who was the person that had held her so tightly and protectively like this.

And the next time she woke up, she could feel the soft light of the sun on her face while the carriage was moving.

"Hanna?" Iris called with a hoarse voice, as she tried to push herself from the bed that she had been lying in for a long time. She rubbed her eyes with the backs of her hands and lifted her head to see Hanna's smiling face. She was talking too fast and her mind was not yet ready to read anything, thus she didn't know what she was talking about.

"Miss! Finally, you woke up!" Hanna was so excited, her voice could be heard by the warriors out there, and they too knew Iris had finally woken up now. "You worried me so much!" She went to hug Iris before quickly letting her go only to ask a few questions. "Do you want to eat? You must be very hungry! Oh, drink this first, you must be thirsty!"

Hanna rambled about a few things that Iris couldn't quite catch, but she saw her grab a waterskin from near the brazier, so the water was warm and not frozen.

"Here, drink this first, I will reheat the meat!" She said excitedly, as she handed the waterskin to Iris and rummaged through a small box, from inside of which she pulled out a huge chunk of meat. She put it on the brazier, and within a few minutes, a delicious aroma wafted inside the carriage, which made Iris feel so hungry.

She didn't realize how hungry she was until now. Her mouth was watering.

"You know, you have been sleeping for two days straight and if you still did not wake up today, the Alpha said we will stay the night in a nearby pack and look for a healer for you."

Iris blinked her eyes, before Hanna's words finally registered in her mind. "Two days?"

"Yes, you slept throughout two whole days and I have been feeding you with honey and warm water to keep you hydrated." Hanna then leaned her body over, and then lowered her voice, as if she didn't want a certain someone to hear this. "The Alpha has been coming over and warming up your body every night."

With the Alpha's blood coursing through his veins, of course, Cane's body temperature was slightly higher than the rest and it helped him to raise her body temperature as well, helping her to adjust to her environment better.

"But, you need to pretend that you don't know about this, the Alpha said not to mention anything about it."

Iris grimaced. Hanna shouldn't have told her in the first place if that was the case…

pqdm.com