Chapter 7

Jeremy's POV

The knock came just after dawn.

I was already up, pacing. Sleep hadn’t come—couldn’t, not with everything Skylar had said still clanging around in my skull like broken glass in a jar. I opened the door expecting Alex, maybe one of the night guards.

It was Erin.

She looked pale, nervous. “Alpha… you should check the cell.”

I was moving before she finished the sentence.

The corridor was colder than usual. Something in the air had shifted, something wrong. My boots echoed down the hallway like warning shots. When I reached the cell, Lisa was standing in the corner, tense, arms folded tightly across her chest. The tray of food lay overturned at her feet, its contents scattered.

“What happened?” I asked.

She didn’t look at me right away. “You tell me.”

I glanced at the mess, then to her. “Did someone—”

“Skylar,” she said. “She brought the food. It smelled… off.”

I frowned. “Off how?”

Lisa’s eyes narrowed. “Like nightshade. Or wolfsbane.”

I stepped back, jaw tightening. “You sure?”

She nodded once. “Not enough to kill me, probably. But enough to make me weak. Enough to give someone else an advantage.”

I cursed under my breath. Skylar wouldn’t—no. No, she would. She’d been furious. Hurt. This was her lashing out.

“Did she say anything?” I asked.

Lisa’s voice was low, tight. “She called me a parasite. Said I didn’t belong here. That you were blind.”

I looked at her—really looked. She was shaken, but not broken. Angry, but still standing. That alone told me more than I needed. Whatever Skylar thought she was doing, she’d just crossed a line.

“Come with me,” I said.

Her eyes narrowed. “Why?”

“Because you’re not staying down here anymore.”

**

Lisa walked quietly beside me, barefoot, her long coat trailing behind her like a shadow. She didn’t ask questions, didn’t push. Just followed. Maybe she sensed what I hadn’t said yet—this wasn’t about pity or guilt.

This was about trust.

I led her through the eastern wing, past the barracks and war room, all the way to the private quarters near my own. I opened the door to the guest suite—simple, spacious, quiet.

“You’ll stay here now,” I said. “No guards. No bars.”

Lisa stepped inside, glancing around like it was a trick. “Why?”

“Because you’ve done nothing wrong,” I said. “And because I trust you.”

Something flickered in her eyes. “That’s dangerous.”

“Yeah,” I said. “It is.”

She didn’t smile, but something in her shoulders loosened. A silent kind of thank you.

**

That afternoon, I took her beyond the compound walls.

The pack lands stretched wide—thick forests, rolling hills, the river that cut through the eastern ridge like a silver blade. I hadn’t planned to show her all this. But after what happened, I needed her to see. To understand.

“This is what I protect,” I said, standing with her atop the lookout bluff.

Lisa’s gaze scanned the trees, the quiet strength of the land. “It’s beautiful.”

“It’s home.”

She looked at me then, head tilted. “And you think they’ll ever let me be part of it?”

I didn’t answer. Because I didn’t know.

But later, when we were sitting across from each other in a quiet corner of the pack’s best restaurant—me with a whiskey, her with a glass of wine—we found something easier to hold onto.

Laughter.

Stories.

She told me about her mother, a healer with strange rituals and an obsession with dreams. I told her about the time Alex and I got stuck in a tree after shifting too fast, too young. It wasn’t easy, but it was real.

For a moment, it felt like something normal.

Then she went still.

Her hand darted across the table, gripping my wrist. “Get down.”

“What?”

But before I could move, she lunged across the table, shoving me sideways. A sharp crack split the air.

The window behind us shattered.

I hit the floor hard, Lisa collapsing on top of me. I caught her just before her head hit the ground. Blood.

“Lisa,” I said, panic flooding my chest. “Lisa!”

She blinked, trying to speak, but only managed a broken gasp. My hand came away soaked red. The bullet had hit her shoulder—but it was silver.

“Medic!” I roared. “Now!”

Voices scrambled, but all I saw was her face.

She’d taken the shot meant for me.

**

I carried her myself, straight to the infirmary, refusing to let anyone else touch her. She was barely conscious, skin pale, lips cracked. The healer worked fast, but silver wounds were tricky—they burned from the inside out, taking longer to close.

“She’s lucky,” the healer said. “But she’ll need time.”

I stayed by her side, ignoring the blood on my hands, the shaking in my limbs. My warriors were already hunting, scouring the forest for whoever took the shot. But the sniper was gone.

No scent. No trace.

Just one silver bullet.

The message was clear.

This wasn’t just about Lisa anymore. This was war brewing in the dark.

**

Hours passed.

She finally stirred just after midnight, eyelids fluttering. I leaned in, brushing a damp strand of hair from her forehead.

“You’re okay,” I said softly.

Her voice was barely a whisper. “You alright?”

I nodded. “Thanks to you.”

She tried to smile. “Didn’t think… I’d be catching bullets today.”

“Next time,” I said, “let me take the hit.”

Her hand found mine, weak but steady. “Not a chance.”

I held on to that grip like it was the only thing anchoring me.

Because maybe it was.

**

Alex found me an hour later, standing by the window, watching the moonlight stretch across the hills.

“No leads,” he said. “They got out clean.”

I nodded. “Keep the search going. No one gets in or out without my say.”

He glanced at Lisa, still resting. “You think this was about her?”

I looked at him. “It was a warning. Whoever did this knew she’d be with me.”

“You think it was someone inside?”

“I don’t know,” I said. “But if they were aiming for me, they missed. If they were aiming for her... they knew what silver would do.”

Alex nodded. “We’ll find them.”

I looked back at Lisa, her chest rising and falling slowly. “We better. Because next time, I don’t think she’ll be the one bleeding.”

And I wouldn’t forgive anyone who tried.