The Weight of Return

**Angel**

The journey back to the mansion was bittersweet. My heart was still filled with the warmth of seeing Lowrence, but the knowledge that I had to leave him behind again weighed heavily on me. I had promised him we would be together soon, but with everything happening at the mansion and with Kael’s wolves still lurking, that promise felt fragile, almost like a lie.

As the mansion came into view, I felt a mix of dread and determination. So much had changed since I’d last been here. Every step toward the front doors felt like stepping into an unresolved battle—not just with the threats outside, but with Dimitri, and with myself.

Inside, the atmosphere was tense. I could sense the lingering unease among the pack members as I made my way through the halls. Conversations quieted as I passed, and I could feel the weight of their stares, full of questions I wasn’t sure I could answer. They were looking for guidance, but I was still searching for my own footing.

I found Dimitri in his office, surrounded by maps and papers, his brow furrowed in concentration. He was always like this—immersed in strategy, lost in the endless calculations of how to keep everyone safe. But today, his usual stoicism looked different. There was a weariness in his eyes that told me he was feeling the pressure more than ever.

“Angel,” he said, looking up as I entered. His voice was calm, but there was an edge to it, a hint of the tension that had been simmering between us.

“I went to see Lowrence,” I said, closing the door behind me. “He’s safe. He misses us.”

Dimitri nodded, his expression softening slightly, but the tension didn’t fully leave his eyes. “I’m glad you saw him. I know he’s been asking about you.”

I moved closer, sitting down opposite him. “Dimitri, we need to talk. About everything.” I tried to keep my voice steady, but the emotions from seeing Lowrence, from talking to my mother, were still raw.

He leaned back in his chair, exhaling deeply. “I know, Angel. I know things haven’t been easy between us.”

“No, they haven’t,” I admitted, looking him directly in the eyes. “And it’s not just because of Haizel, or Lucian, or Kael. It’s us. We’re not on the same page anymore.”

He flinched at my words, as if they struck a wound he’d been trying to ignore. “I’m trying, Angel. But every time I think I have a handle on things, something else falls apart.”

His honesty caught me off guard. Dimitri rarely showed vulnerability, especially not with me. “I talked to my mother,” I said quietly, feeling the weight of the conversation settling between us. “She knows about Haizel.”

He tensed, his hands clenching slightly on the desk. “What did she say?”

“She said I need to let go of the guilt,” I answered, my voice breaking slightly. “That Haizel’s choices weren’t mine to control, and that I can’t keep carrying the blame for everything that’s happened.”

Dimitri’s expression hardened, not out of anger, but because he, too, was carrying the weight of guilt. “I failed to see what was happening under my own roof, Angel. Haizel was my responsibility.”

“She was all of ours,” I corrected, reaching out to touch his hand. “But we can’t keep punishing ourselves for what she did. We have to move forward. For Lowrence, for the pack, for us.”

He looked at me, and for the first time in a long while, I saw a crack in his armor. “I don’t know how to do that, Angel. I don’t know how to move forward when everything feels so broken.”

My heart ached seeing him like this. Dimitri was always the strong one, the protector, but now, he was just as lost as I was. “We start by trusting each other again,” I said, squeezing his hand. “And by letting go of the things we can’t change. We’ve been fighting side by side for so long, but we’ve forgotten how to be together.”

He closed his eyes, his shoulders sagging as if the weight of the world was pressing down on him. “You’re right. I’ve been so focused on what’s next, on protecting everyone, that I’ve forgotten how to just... be here.”

I moved closer, resting my head against his shoulder. “We’ll figure it out, Dimitri. We have to. But you don’t have to do it alone.”

He wrapped an arm around me, pulling me closer, and for a moment, we sat in silence, finding solace in each other’s presence. It wasn’t a resolution, but it was a start. A small step toward healing the rift that had grown between us.

“We need to prepare for whatever Kael brings,” Dimitri finally said, his voice still laced with determination. “But we’ll do it together this time.”