LOGINJolie POVWe're halfway through packing when someone knocks urgently on our door. Ryder moves to answer it, knife already in his hand. He checks the peephole, then opens it just enough to see who's there."It's Gio." He looks back at me. "Alone.""Let him in." I'm too emotionally exhausted to care about security protocols right now.Gio slips inside, closing the door quickly behind him. His face is pale, hands shaking."You can't leave yet." He's breathing hard, like he ran here. "Not until you hear what I found.""We're done here." Ryder zips up a bag. "Your future stepmother just humiliated Jolie in front of half the pack leadership in the region. We're not staying for the actual ceremony.""That's exactly what they want." Gio moves to block the door. "They want you to run, they want you to feel defeated and leave before the real trap springs."I look up from where I'm sitting on the bed. "What trap?""The wedding isn't the endgame." He pulls out his phone with shaking hands. "It's
Jolie pov Celeste moves around the table toward me, and Ryder tenses. But she stops just outside his reach, leaning in close enough that only I can hear her whisper."You should prepare yourself to be a good stepdaughter, Jolie." Her breath is cold against my ear. "What irony—we're practically the same age. But then, your father always did prefer them young."She straightens, her smile public again. "I do hope you'll stay for the ceremony. It would mean so much to have family present."I can't speak neither can I move. The breakfast around us resumes like nothing happened—guests congratulating my father, Celeste accepting well-wishes, everyone playing their parts.Only Gio looks stricken, meeting my eyes with genuine horror."We need to leave." Luna's voice is quiet but urgent. "Now."Ryder guides me toward the door, his body blocking Celeste's view of me. Knox and Cass fall in behind us, Phoenix already moving ahead to secure our exit."Well played, Moonfire Luna." Celeste calls af
Jolie pov "Why would that matter?" But her voice has lost some of its intensity. "If I can't feel, whether I remember feeling is irrelevant.""Is it?" I extend my hand across the table, palm up. An offer, not a demand. "Let me show you something."She looks at my hand like it's a foreign object.”What would you show me?""What empathy feels like." I meet her eyes. "Just for a moment. No damage, no force. Just a glimpse of what connection is supposed to be.""Why?" Suspicion colors her voice—the first real emotion I've heard from her."Because you're not a weapon." I say it firmly. "You're a person who had personhood stolen from you. And I think somewhere deep down, you know something is wrong. You know the emptiness isn't normal."Her hand trembles slightly. The first uncontrolled movement I've seen."Your father said you would try this." Her voice is still flat, but I hear the faintest uncertainty. "That you would attempt to manipulate me with your empathic abilities, definitely I sh
Jolie POVThe after math wedding breakfast is exactly as uncomfortable as I expected.Long table, formal place settings, twenty guests making polite conversation while servants pour coffee and deliver elaborately plated food. Everyone dressed in their finest, everyone playing their roles perfectly.I sit between Ryder and Luna, Celeste directly across from me. She's wearing a cream-colored dress that is so expensive, her hair styled in intricate braids. She looks like a magazine cover model, perfect, polished and untouchable. And when she meets my eyes, I feel absolutely nothing from her.It's not like reading someone who's hiding their emotions. That still has texture—the effort of concealment, the weight of what they're holding back. This is pure void. Like looking into a room where emotions should live and finding it completely empty."Luna Kane." Celeste's voice is pleasant, modulated perfectly for polite conversation. "I hope your accommodations were satisfactory.""They were fi
Jolie POVThe guest suite they give us is obscenely luxurious.Floor-to-ceiling windows overlook manicured gardens, costly furniture, a bathroom with a tub big enough for four people. I walk to the window and look out at grounds I used to sneak through, trying to avoid pack members who thought tormenting me was entertainment."Are you okay?" Ryder closes the door behind us, immediately checking for security threats out of habit."I lived here for years." My voice sounds distant even to my own ears. "And I hated every single day of it.""We can leave." He moves behind me, hands settling on my shoulders. "Right now. Say the word and we're gone.""No." I lean back against him. "I need to do this, I need to see it through."A knock interrupts us. Ryder tenses, hand moving to the knife at his belt."It's me." Gio's voice comes through the door. "Can we talk?"I look at Ryder. He nods and opens the door cautiously.Gio stands in the hallway alone, his hands visible and empty. "Hey." He meet
Ryder POVThe roar of six motorcycles echoes through the mountain pass as we approach Nightshade territory.Jolie rides behind me, her arms wrapped around my waist, silver light barely contained beneath her skin. I feel her tension through our bond—not fear exactly, but anticipation. Like a warrior preparing for battle.Luna and Knox ride to our left, Cass and Phoenix to our right. We form a tight formation, pack colors visible on every jacket. Iron Fangs in bold silver lettering, wolf symbols stitched across our shoulders and backs.We're not hiding who we are, not anymore."Territory line in two miles." Knox's voice comes through our comm units. "Security checkpoint ahead.""Copy that." I feel Jolie's grip tighten slightly. "Everyone stays alert. This is their ground, their rules until we prove otherwise."The Nightshade Estate comes into view as we round the final curve. It's exactly as pretentious as I expected—white marble columns, manicured gardens, crystal fountains. Every inch







