Chapter 259: I don’t know you

Azura’s POV

The warm hallway of the Crescent Moon pack house stretched out before us, bathed in the soft afternoon light filtering through the high arched windows.

Liona was walking right beside me, her arm linked securely through mine. We were talking about nothing and everything at the same time, our shared laughter bouncing off the stone walls.

It felt so incredibly normal, a sweet taste of peace that I had almost forgotten existed after everything we had just lived through. The air smelled of woodsmoke, roasted meats, and the faint, crisp scent of autumn leaves blowing in through the open terrace doors.

It felt good to be back home.

Then my eyes caught a tall figure standing near the end of the stone corridor.

Torin.

My steps slowed as I stared down the hall in surprise. He was supposed to be resting in the healer’s wing, lying flat on a cot while the elders tended to the severe magical burns and blood loss he had suffered during the battle.

Instead, he was standing right there, just a few feet away from us, leaning lightly against a carved wooden pillar as if he had been waiting for us all along. His face was still a little pale, and there were dark circles under his eyes, but his posture was upright and strong.

The moment his brown eyes locked onto us, a slow, radiant smile crept across his face.

Without saying a word, he opened his arms wide, stepping out from the pillar to greet us.

Liona and I didn’t even exchange a look before we broke into a run. We rushed straight at him like a pair of excited kids, throwing our weight into a massive group hug. We collided with his chest together, and despite his lingering injuries, Torin caught us both effortlessly.

He wrapped his long arms around our shoulders, lifting our feet completely off the stone floor and spinning us around in a circle.

The hallway filled with our bright squeaks, breathless giggles, and desperate laughter as we clung to his neck, holding on for dear life so we wouldn’t fall.

He finally slowed down, setting our boots back onto the ground with a soft thud, though he kept his hands resting warmly on our shoulders.

"My girls are back," Torin said, his voice deep, warm, and dripping with raw emotion.

Liona beamed up at him, wiping a speck of dust from her eye.

"I missed you so much, Torin."

"I missed you too, little queen," he answered softly, his eyes sparkling with affection.

Then he shifted his gaze over to me, his lips twitching into a wicked, teasing smirk.

"Look at you, you big, big stonehead."

A loud laugh burst from my throat before I could stop it.

"Funny enough, that is the exact nickname I gave my mate."

Torin threw his head back and let out a rich, hearty laugh that rang down the empty corridor.

"You two really do fit each other perfectly then. Two stubborn, hard-headed stoneheads. What on earth were you even thinking, running off like that?"

I let out a loud groan, slapping my hand over my face in fake misery.

"Okay, okay, please let us not start this lecture right now. I am so sick and tired of explaining to everyone what was going through my head back then."

He chuckled softly, his expression softening as he pulled me into a quick, gentle head-hug, pressing his cheek against the top of my hair.

"I missed you, Azura," he whispered into the silence.

"I know you missed me," I replied, my voice dropping into a soft, sincere tone as I hugged his waist.

"I missed you too, Torin. More than you know."

He pulled back just enough to look me straight in the eyes, his hands holding my shoulders firmly.

"Do not ever scare us like that again. Do you hear me?"

I nodded my head rapidly, offering him a serious smile.

"I promise."

We finally broke apart, all three of us standing there in the hallway with wide, relieved smiles plastered across our faces. The heavy cloud of war felt like it was finally lifting off our shoulders, replacing the tension with bright, light energy.

Then movement down the hallway caught my eye.

Amanda was walking past the adjoining archway, holding a basket of clean, folded linen in her arms.

"Amanda!" I called out, raising my hand to wave her over.

"Over here! Come here for a second; I want to introduce you to someone."

Torin turned his head to look in the direction I was calling. As his eyes landed on her tall, graceful form, the warm smile on his face underwent a sudden change.

It didn’t disappear entirely, but the relaxed ease evaporated, replaced by a sudden stiffness. A strange, heavy wave of awkwardness crept over his entire posture.

Amanda adjusted the basket in her arms and walked closer to our small group. She offered me a sweet, polite smile, bowing her head slightly in respect as she stopped beside me.

"Amanda, this is Torin," I said warmly, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"You do not need to introduce us," Torin interrupted quickly, his voice carrying an unusually sharp, defensive edge.

"She already knows who I am."

Amanda’s brow pulled together in a deep frown. She looked between Torin and me, her face completely blank of recognition.

"Do I?"

Torin frowned back at her, his dark eyes narrowing as he took a step forward.

"Yes. You do. Or are you going to stand there and pretend you do not?"

Amanda shook her head firmly, her expression remaining entirely polite yet completely distant.

"I do not think I know you, sir. I have heard the warriors talk about you around the pack house, of course. But I am fairly certain we have never actually met."

Torin stared at her, his mouth opening slightly in absolute disbelief.

"How can you say that? We met just a few weeks ago before the battle line shifted."

"I do not think I am the person you met, sir," Amanda insisted softly, her voice steady and calm.

Torin kept staring at her, looking utterly confused, as if a sudden ghost had appeared right in front of his eyes.

The silence between them stretched out, growing so thick and uncomfortable that even Liona began shifting her weight from foot to foot.

"Okay," I cut in, stepping between them to break the heavy tension.

"We can figure out all the weird details about this later. But since she says she does not know you yet, this gives me the perfect chance to introduce you properly."

I turned to Amanda, beaming proudly as I motioned toward my friend.

"Amanda, this is Torin. He is my friend. A very, very good friend of mine who helped save us all."

Amanda looked genuinely shocked at how high an honor I gave him in my introduction, her blue eyes widening slightly.

I turned around to face Torin, wrapping my arm around Amanda’s waist to pull her closer to my side.

"Torin, this is my baby girl, Amanda. You can basically consider her my first child, who somehow decided to grow up overnight and is now noticeably taller than me."

Amanda let out a quiet laugh, her cheeks turning a light shade of pink as she nudged my shoulder.

"I am still your baby."

"Yes, you definitely are," I agreed, patting her hand.

Amanda turned her full attention back to Torin. She adjusted the heavy linen basket into the crook of her left arm and extended her right hand out toward him in a polite, formal greeting.

"It is very nice to meet you, Sir Torin."

Torin looked down at her outstretched hand for a long, silent moment. Then his eyes drifted up to scan her face, searching her features intensely as if trying to pull a hidden answer out of her eyes.

Finally, he reached out and took her fingers in his broad palm.

"Nice to meet you, Amanda," he said quietly, his tone low and searching.

He did not let go of her hand.

Five seconds passed, then ten. Amanda tried to gently pull her fingers back out of his grip, but Torin’s fingers tightened just enough to keep her tethered to him. Amanda’s brow furrowed, a faint flash of discomfort crossing her face as she looked up at him.

Seeing the obvious tension, I reached out my hand and gently tapped the side of their joined wrists, physically separating their fingers.

"Okay," I said, inserting a bit of awkward humor into my voice to cut through the heavy mood.

"So since you two officially know each other now, if you pass each other in the halls tomorrow, you can actually greet each other like old acquaintances."

Amanda gave a quick, relieved nod of her head.

"Okay. I really have to go now. Head Healer Clara sent me to fetch these clean linens for the secondary ward."

"Go right ahead, sweetie," I nodded, giving her shoulder a gentle squeeze.

She offered us one last polite bow and quickly scurried down the hallway, her soft boots tapping rapidly against the stone floor until she rounded the far corner.

Torin didn’t turn around. He stood completely still, his eyes fixed on the space where she had vanished.

I crossed my arms over my chest, stepping up beside him.

"What on earth just happened back there?"

Torin kept staring down the empty corridor, his brow locked in a tight, frustrated scowl.

"Something is completely off. There is absolutely no way she could have forgotten me. It is not physically possible."

I tapped my chin thoughtfully.

"Then something strange must have happened between you two while I was gone."

"It is nothing," Torin said firmly, shaking his head as if clearing away dark thoughts.

"I will go talk to Aunt Genevieve about it later tonight. I think she will know something about what is going on here."

"Alright," I nodded, feeling a sudden, fluttery warmth bloom deep inside my chest as my mind shifted back to my own priorities.

"In that case, I am going to head up to the private quarters to see my mate. I am seriously craving his company right now."

Liona let out a loud, dramatic gasp, her jaw dropping open in mock scandal.

"Ooh! Look at you! You are already craving him?"

I smirked back at her, tilting my head with a playful eyebrow raised.

"Oh, please do not stand there and act so innocent. Don’t tell me you haven’t done the same thing with yours."

Liona instantly stopped talking. Her mouth snapped shut, her flushed cheeks turning bright red as she stared at the floor tiles.

Torin and I both turned our heads to look at her at the same time.

My eyes widened in genuine disbelief.

"Wait a second. You two haven’t actually mated yet?"

Torin immediately shifted his posture, throwing his hands onto his hips and giving Liona a dramatic, girlish look of pure judgment, before he folded his arms tight across his broad chest, tossing his head back with an over-the-top sigh.

"I honestly cannot believe you have not mated with that man yet," Torin declared dramatically, his voice dripping with playful disdain.

"I mean, the guy is an eye candy. Not hotter than me, obviously, but still very impressive. Girl, are you actually into men or women at this point?"

Liona looked thoroughly offended, her eyes flashing as she pointed an angry finger at him.

"And since when on earth did you start acting like a gossiping maiden?"

"No, but seriously, Liona," I pressed, my tone turning genuinely curious.

"How come you haven’t done it with him yet? He came all the way out here for you."

Liona shifted awkwardly on her feet, rubbing the back of her neck with a shy, embarrassed sigh.

"Um... it is kind of a long story. But we are getting there, okay? Don’t rush me."

"Okay," I laughed, shaking my head as I took a step back toward the main staircase.

"Before you two ruin my beautiful mood with all your weird awkwardness, I am going to go find my man."

"Hey!" Liona protested instantly, running forward two steps to catch up to me. "I was actually tagging along with you so we could have some quality girl time!"

I offered her a sweet, innocent smile over my shoulder as I placed my hand on the smooth wooden banister.

"Oh, about that... I think our girl time will have to wait until after I finish seeing my mate."

Liona gasped in dramatic horror, putting her hands on her hips.

"Seriously? You are just going to abandon me right here after I literally abandoned my own dragon mate in the yard for you?"

"I never once asked you to abandon your mate," I pointed out, giving her a wink.

I turned around fully and started jogging up the wide stone stairs leading to the alpha suite, my heart beating faster with every step I took.

"That is so not fair!" Liona screamed after me from the bottom of the landing.

I didn’t bother turning back to look at her. I just lifted my right hand high into the air, tossing a playful wave over my shoulder as I reached the upper floor.

"Nothing in this world is fair, Liona!" I called back, my voice echoing down the stairwell.

"When you have a golden opportunity right in front of you, you better use it well!"

Without waiting for her reply, I sprinted down the long, carpeted hallway, eager to lock myself away in Rhydor’s arms.