Bonds at War: The Untouched is Mine novel Chapter 222

Chapter 222 I Can’t Be Mistaken

Chapter 222 I Can’t Be Mistaken

ROWAN

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I didn’t know where these little kids were dragging me, but I knew they were my best shot at survival. Children wouldn’t kill me, right? At least, not on purpose. Their sticks helped them traverse through the forest floors more easily, and if they were planning on using them to ambush me, that would be strange.

I had thought this place was just for humans. I hadn’t scented a pack here when I arrived, and I definitely hadn’t heard rumors of one living in this stretch. But I was clearly wrong.

The tall one, who had pointed the stick at me carlier, puffed up his chest and walked a step ahead. “I’m Max,” he announced proudly.

The boy beside him, shorter but with sharper eyes, gave a short nod. “I’m Dave.”

The littlest one shuffled closer to my side, peering up at me with wide eyes. “And I’m Amiel.”

Max grinned, clearly their spokesman. “What’s your name, mister?”

I hesitated for half a second, then responded. “Rowan.”

“Oh!” Max’s eyes lit up instantly. Then, without missing a beat, he blurted, “My sister is currently single. I know you’re her type. Do you want me to introduce you?”

Hooked at him, caught off guard. “Ah,” I muttered, reaching up to scratch the back of my neck. What the hell was I supposed to say to that?

Max tilted his head, already dissecting my awkwardness. “I get it,” he said with a dramatic sigh. “My sister isn’t too pretty. She’s loud, too. She gets jealous easily. It’s okay, you don’t have to act polite.”

I raised a brow. Did this boy just throw his own sister casually under the bus?

Dave groaned, shoving his friend’s shoulder. “Max, stop embarrassing yourself.”

But Amiel’s voice piped up, soft but clear. “Doesn’t he look like Calla?”

Max’s brows pinched, and then both he and Dave gave me a long, careful look. I shifted uncomfortably, still bleeding from my temple and very much not in the mood to be compared to some random person.

“They have the same eyes,” Dave muttered, tilting his head. “And the hair, too.”

“Calla?” I asked slowly.

Max’s grin returned. “Oh, you don’t know Calla? She’s this cute kid in our neighborhood. Everybody loves

her!”

Well, I’ve never been in this neighborhood, so I definitely did not know their favorite kid.

“She’s the pack doctor’s daughter,” Max continued proudly. “She’s so cute. I want her as a little sister instead of my big sis.”

Whoever Max’s big sister must be having an asthma attack right now.

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Chapter 222 I Can’t Be Mistaken

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“She’s probably playing in the clearing right now. You should meet her so she can take you to her mom, Max continued.

I opened my mouth to protest. No, I didn’t want to meet some neighborhood child. I needed to talk to their leader, or someone with authority who could tell me where the hell I was. But before I could get a single word out, three small hands latched onto my arms, tugging, pulling, and pushing.

“Come on, mister!” Max urged.

“Yeah, this way!” Amiel chirped.

Meanwhile, Dave just shoved me from behind like a soldier herding a prisoner.

I frowned, stumbling along. For pups, they were surprisingly determined. And let me tell you–it was harder than it should’ve been to resist three jumping, tugging children. If I shoved them off, they’d cry. If I used force, their pack would smell the blood and string me up before I could explain myself. So, for now, I had no choice but to let them herd me like a lost sheep.

We broke out of the forest minutes later. My steps slowed when the trees parted, opening into a wide clearing.

It wasn’t crowded. Just a handful of people scattered about–adults and teenagers, most of them tidying or heading off. It was nearing dinner, I realized, and the scent of hearth–smoke drifted faintly in the air. Families were pulling their pups home, kitchens were warming, and the noise of daily life was thinning.

But in the middle of it all was one girl.

She was crouched near the grass, some small object cradled in her hands, her pale hair spilling forward. It wasn’t just blonde. Under the fading sunlight, it shone pale that it was nearly white, a shade so rare that it stunned me into stillness.

“There she is!” Max exclaimed, tugging on my arm.

“She’s not hard to miss,” he added with a chuckle.

“Calla!” he shouted across the clearing.

The girl’s head snapped up. Her pale hair caught the dying sun, and her eyes, sharp and bright, locked on

mine.

And in that moment, my entire being stopped.

This child.

I never thought of having children, not even once. The idea had never taken root in my mind. I had lived my life surrounded by bloodlines and duty. The thought of creating another life–of raising someone who depended on me completely–felt like a burden I was never meant to shoulder.

And yet, the moment I saw her, something tugged at my heartstrings in a way I couldn’t ignore.

Calla

She was small, fragile in her movements, yet precious in every sense of the word. Watching her pick herself up from where she had been crouching in the grass and struggle to run toward me, I felt my chest

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Chapter 222 I Can’t Be Mistaken

tighten.

So this… this was what it might feel like if I had a child.

For a terrifying second, I wanted it.

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My knees bent on their own, lowering me until I was eye level with her. She slowed just in time, stopping before her arms could wrap fully around me. Instead, she drew back slightly, her wide eyes scanning my face with a seriousness I didn’t expect from someone so young.

“You’re hurt,” she whispered softly.

Her tiny hands, so eager to comfort, fell away as though she was afraid of pressing too hard.

When I looked fully at her face, I broke.

A part of me fractured so suddenly that it left me breathless. She looked like me. More specifically, she looked like me and… Tessa.

It was impossible, I told myself. It couldn’t be. My mind was playing cruel tricks on me. Still, the thought rooted deep–could it be?

No. I shook my head fiercely, trying to sever it. I couldn’t let myself spiral into that madness.

However, as Calla looked at me and smiled, I felt my defenses crumbling once more. “We have the same hair,” she giggled, pointing at the pale strands from my head before brushing her own nearly white locks.

Her laughter was sunlight itself.

I found myself smiling back, weakly but genuinely. “We do,” I said quietly.

“Take her to your mommy, Calla,” Max piped up from behind, and the girl gasped.

She nodded enthusiastically, her pale hair bouncing. “Mommy is cooking. Let’s go!”

Before I could even stand on my own, her small hand slipped into mine and tugged hard. I let her drag me forward, helpless against the determined pull of her little frame.

“Bye, handsome man!” Max called with a wave and a mischievous grin. “Tell me if you want to hit it off with my sister. She really wants to have a husband.”

I should have reprimanded him, telling him to stop throwing his poor sister into conversations like this; however, all of my focus was on the little girl’s grip on my thumb.

Her hand was so small and delicate/but her presence filled the air around me. Larger than life, brighter than the clearing. I shouldn’t have been feeling this, not after only a few heartbeats in her company.

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