Chapter 17

Lucy.

The wind rustled through the trees as I stood on the training ground behind Josh, my hands clasped nervously in front of me. Josh stood in front me, arms crossed loosely, trying to act casual but failing to hide the tension coiling in his posture.

My stomach knotted. A sleek black SUV pulled up, its tinted windows reflecting the world like mirrors. It rolled to a stop a few feet from us, and the door opened with that soft, ominous click.

Alpha Ellison stepped out like he owned the damn earth beneath our feet.

His eyes locked on Josh, a storm brewing in that cold, calculated stare. The air grew heavier with each step he took toward us, his tall frame rigid with tightly contained fury. My breath caught. I didn’t need supernatural senses to know what he was thinking.

“Of course,” he sneered, his voice like ice. “So this is the reason you ran away. To meet your boyfriend.”

“What? No!” I stepped forward quickly, heart thudding in my chest. “Josh is just a friend.”

The Alpha’s gaze slid from Josh to me, slow and sharp. “You expect me to believe that?”

“Don't tell me this is who you live with,” Josh muttered, standing his ground.

Ellison ignored him completely. “Tell me the truth, Lucy. Why did you run out of the palace and breach our contract? You were supposed to bear me an heir, not—” His eyes flashed with something darker, uglier. “Not sneak off to play house with a lover.”

My stomach turned. “I didn’t run to scam you,” I said firmly, though my voice trembled. “I left because after the photos leaked, I assumed the deal was already over.”

“The deal isn’t over until I say it’s over.” His voice dropped to a growl. “Who the hell do you think you are to take such a decision?”

“I am nobody and I get it!” I shouted, unable to contain the mix of hurt and anger that exploded inside me. “I thought it was done. The pictures were everywhere, Alpha Ellison. What was I supposed to do? Wait around for you to humiliate me further?”

He took a step forward, closing the distance between us. “You took my money, Lucy. For your mother’s treatment. Did you think I wouldn’t come to collect?”

“That’s not fair—”

“Fair?” He barked a humorless laugh. “I gave you the means to save her life. You repaid me by running.”

I shook my head, a lump rising in my throat. “I didn’t run because I wanted to scam you. I was scared. Everything got so out of control, and I thought it was over. I was going to find a way to pay you back.”

His face twisted into something unreadable. “You’re going to refund every cent. Immediately.”

I blinked. “I don’t have that kind of money right now, but I will—I’ll figure something out.”

He stepped closer still, until I had to tilt my chin up to meet his eyes. “Then I’ll take collateral. Your mother stays under my supervision until the debt is repaid.”

My mouth dropped open. “You’re threatening to take my mother hostage?”

His jaw clenched. “Call it… insurance.”

“No,” I said, voice low and steady despite the tremor beneath. “No, you can’t. She’s sick. She needs care!”

“Then come back to the palace,” he said, each word like a hammer blow. “Reinstate the contract. You still have time.”

“And if I don’t?” I whispered.

His eyes burned into mine. “Then your mother suffers the consequences.”

The air between us felt like it might crack and shatter. I looked at Josh, who’d been standing silently, watching with thinly veiled rage.

“You don’t have to go with him,” Josh said, stepping toward me. “You always have a choice.”

I looked into his kind, steady eyes, the only source of calm in this hurricane. I wanted to believe him. I wanted to run away and leave this whole ugly mess behind. But I knew I couldn’t. Not with my mother’s life hanging in the balance.

I turned back to the Alpha. “Fine,” I said quietly. “I’ll go back with you.”

Ellison raised a brow. “Good. One year, Lucy. You fulfill your end of the contract by then, or the deal becomes permanent.”

My heart dropped. “One year?”

“Starting now.” His tone was final.

I looked back at Josh, and something in my chest twisted painfully. “I’m sorry,” I whispered.

He shook his head. “Don’t be. Just… take care of yourself. Promise me that.”

I nodded, tears pricking at the corners of my eyes. We embraced briefly, his arms wrapping around me like a shield I didn’t deserve. I held on tight, memorizing the feel of safety, because I had a feeling it would be a long time before I felt it again.

“I’ll come visit,” I murmured. “When I can.”

“Just don’t forget who you are,” he said into my hair.

Then it was over. I stepped away and walked toward the car, the Alpha already behind the wheel.

The door slammed shut behind me like a final verdict.

We didn’t speak at first. The tension in the car was thick, and the silence felt heavier than any shouting match. I stared out the window, trying not to think too hard about what I’d just agreed to.

After a while, Ellison spoke, voice surprisingly calm. “You surprised me back there.”

I didn’t look at him. “How so?”

“You had a choice. You made the one I didn’t expect.”

“I didn’t have a choice. You made sure of that.”

A beat of silence.

“Maybe,” he said finally.

The road wound through the woods, trees zipping past in a blur. I could feel the exhaustion settling in now that the adrenaline was wearing off. My hands lay limply in my lap, the fight drained from me.

Then the world tilted.

A blinding flash of headlights came from the opposite direction, and I heard the sickening screech of tires against asphalt. Ellison jerked the wheel instinctively, and everything went wrong at once. The car veered off the road, hit a ditch, and then—

We were airborne.

Time seemed to slow.

I remember the way the seatbelt cut into my shoulder, the high-pitched whine of twisting metal, the sound of my own scream being torn from my throat. The car spun once, then twice, then slammed into the ground with a jarring thud that rattled my teeth.

Glass shattered. Metal screamed.

And then silence.

Pain bloomed through my body like fire, and darkness flirted at the edge of my vision. I tried to move, but couldn’t. The air felt thick, filled with smoke and the scent of burned rubber.

I turned my head—or maybe I thought I did—and saw Ellison slumped over the wheel, blood trickling from a cut on his forehead.

The last thing I heard before blackness claimed me was the distant sound of someone walking away.

And then, nothing.