LOGINAnna's povThe engine hummed softly as the car cut through the dark night, the trees on either side of the dirt road blurring into shadowy lines.Mike kept his hands tight on the steering wheel, glancing sideways at me every few seconds. The quiet between us was heavy, filled with things left unsaid for a whole year."I'm going to support you all the way, Anna," Mike said softly, breaking the silence. His voice was full of deep concern. "No matter what happens in there, you won't be doing it alone this time."I looked out the window, watching the boundary stones of my former Pack territory draw closer. "Thank you, Mike."Mike swallowed hard, his dark eyes shining with guilt. "I'm so sorry, Anna. For what Chris did to you... for everything that happened that night. I blame myself every single day. I should have protected you more. I should have stood between him and you."My chest tightened, but I turned to him with a gentle expression. "It's okay, Mike. You don't need to carry that bu
Anna's povI held up one finger. "First — I get close to Sarah. I reestablish our bond. I remind her who her mother actually is."Second finger. "I help him find his informant and neutralize whoever is attacking the pack, because the faster that's done, the faster I have fulfilled my end of whatever agreement he thinks we're making."Third. "While I'm doing that, I find everything I need to expose Lily. Every lie. Every manipulation. Every single thing she has done since the beginning." I lowered my hand. "And then I burn it all down from the inside. And I walk out of there with my daughter and I never look back."The kitchen was very quiet.Mike looked at me for a long time. His dark eyes moved over my face like he was looking for something — the crack, maybe. The wobble. The place where the brave speech ended and the frightened woman underneath began.He didn't find it. Because I had spent a year making sure he wouldn't.Slowly, he nodded."Alright," he said."Alright?" I repeated.
Anna's POVI made tea because I needed something to do with my hands.Mike sat at my kitchen table and watched me move around the small space without saying anything yet, which told me everything I needed to know about how serious this was.Mike was not a quiet man by nature. He filled rooms easily, with warm jokes, easy smiles, the kind of presence that made people relax without knowing why. Silence from Mike meant he was weighing something heavy.I set the mug in front of him and sat down across the table."Talk," I said.He wrapped both hands around the mug and stared into it for a moment. Then he looked up at me."The attacks started about four months ago," he began. "First one hit the eastern border — a patrol team. Three warriors down, two critically injured. We assumed at first it was a territorial dispute with one of the smaller border packs." He shook his head slightly. "But the second hit came from the north. Different angle entirely. Different style of attack."I frowned. "
Anna's POVI heard him before I saw him.That was always how it was with Dorian, his presence announced itself. Not loudly. Not aggressively. Just a kind of shift in the air, like the room quietly rearranged itself around him without being asked.His footsteps came down the corridor and I had exactly four seconds to look at the state of my office, overturned chair, glass I hadn't bothered to sweep up, rose petals still scattered across the floor like something that had died in here, and decide I wasn't going to explain any of it right now.I stepped out into the corridor before he reached the door.Dorian stopped when he saw me. His icy blue eyes moved over my face with that careful, unhurried attention he always gave me, the kind that made me feel simultaneously seen and deeply uncomfortable."Anna," he said."I know," I said before he could continue. "Don't."His jaw tightened slightly. "He was here.""I know he was here.""In your office. Alone with you.""Dorian." I kept my voice
Anna’s pov"Please don’t do this to me Chris," I begged, but even I could hear how thin my voice had become.He didn't even bother to look empathetic. He just watched me with those calm eyes and waited."I'm engaged to Alpha Dorian," I said, changing tactics. "I'm building a life here. You have no right to walk in and—""About that, how can you remarry when I never rejected you," he reminded me.And the words landed like a slap."We are still mates by werewolf law," he reiterated. "And I never filed for divorce. Which means legally, Anna, you are still my wife. Which means Dorian cannot legally claim you. Not under pack law. Not under any jurisdiction." He met my eyes. "You belong to me on paper. You always will, until I decide otherwise."I wanted to scream. I wanted to flip the entire desk over and watch it crash into him.Instead I stood very still and said absolutely nothing because if I opened my mouth right now I was going to say something that would cost me everything.Chris re
Anna's POVMy blood instantly ran cold, because he was right. I was engaged to the powerful Alpha Dorian now, but I was still legally married to this cruel man who had returned to destroy me again!I was still devastated by this realization when he asked again. "So have you Missed me?" he asked again.I wanted to put my fist through that smile."Get out," I said. “Get the hell out of my office.”But he didn't move. Of course he wouldnt.Arrogant men like Chris never did anything unless they wanted to. He just looked around my office slowly, taking in the walls, the desk, the shelves lined with strategy texts and pack law documents … like he was appraising something he was considering buying."Nice place wifey," he said casually. "You've done well for yourself.""I said get out."He finally looked at me. Those dark piercing eyes were the same as I remembered… intense, calculating, and completely unbothered by the fury radiating off me."Sit down, Anna," he said. "I'm not here to fight.







