Chapter 11

IRIS POV:

Sarah's living room was warm and cluttered in the way only a best friend's house could be. Throw blankets on every couch, half-burned candles on the coffee table, a mug she'd clearly forgotten about sitting cold on the side table.

She pushed me onto the couch and disappeared into the kitchen. She came back with two cups of hot chocolate and a blanket she threw over my legs without asking.

"Start from the beginning," she said, tucking her feet under herself. "Everything."

So I did.

I told her about standing outside the mansion, looking up at the moon, feeling like everything was finally falling into place. I told her about the phone buzzing. The anonymous email. The video loading slowly on my screen like a nightmare I couldn't wake up from.

Sarah's jaw tightened with every word.

"Two days before the ceremony," she repeated slowly. "He looked her in the eye at that altar knowing what he had done."

"He said his vows boldly, Sarah." My voice cracked. "Like nothing happened. Like I was supposed to stand there and accept it."

She shook her head, her eyes dark with fury on my behalf.

"And your father?"

I laughed bitterly. "He wiped my tears with a handkerchief and told me to make him proud."

"I swear…" She stopped herself, pressing her lips together. "Okay. Keep going. You ran out. Then what?"

I pulled the blanket tighter around my shoulders.

"I ran through the gates and onto the highway. I wasn't thinking. I just needed to get away from all of it." I paused. "Then headlights. A car coming fast toward me. I froze in the middle of the road."

Sarah's hand flew to her mouth.

"It stopped. Barely. And then the door opened and he stepped out."

"Aurelian," she said quietly.

"Aurelian." I nodded. "He just looked at me and said, get in the car. And Sarah…" I hesitated. "My legs just moved. I didn't even decide to. My body just went."

She frowned. "What do you mean your body just went?"

"I mean I didn't choose to move. I just… did. Like something pulled me."

Sarah stared at me for a long moment. "Iris, that's strange."

"I know."

"Maybe it was just shock. Everything that happened tonight, your body was probably running on pure survival instinct, and he offered safety, so you took it without thinking."

I nodded slowly. Maybe she was right. Maybe that was all it was.

But deep down, my wolf stirred quietly, and I knew it wasn't that simple.

I told her about the estate. The iron gates swinging open automatically. The guards stepping out of the shadows with their weapons. The marble floors and crystal lights inside.

Sarah's eyes grew wider with every detail.

"He lives like that?" she whispered.

"Sarah, the wine he poured me in the car alone was worth nearly fifteen million dollars."

She choked on her hot chocolate.

"The Lunar Eclipse Reserve," I said.

She just stared at me.

"I know," I said.

I kept going. The room. The closet. His hands unhooking the buttons of my gown one by one while he sat completely unbothered.

Sarah set her mug down very carefully.

"He undressed you."

"He was very calm about it. Like it was the most normal thing in the world."

"Iris."

"I know."

"And then?"

I hesitated.

"The bathroom had frosted glass," I said quietly. "He could see through it the whole time, but not clearly."

She pressed both hands to her face and made a muffled sound.

"And after I came out…" I stopped. My face burned. "He touched my face. And then he kissed me."

Complete silence.

Then Sarah lowered her hands very slowly and looked at me with an expression I had never seen on her before.

"You kissed Aurelian."

"He kissed me first."

"Iris."

"And I kissed him back," I admitted.

She made a sound somewhere between a gasp and a whispered scream into her blanket.

"It wasn't funny, Sarah."

"I'm not laughing, I promise." She composed herself. "Keep going."

"He backed me toward the bed. The towel I wrapped around my body fell. His hands were…" I stopped, shaking my head. "And then something just snapped inside me. Like I woke up suddenly. I shoved him away and ran."

Sarah stared.

"You shoved him."

"Yes."

"And he let you go?"

"He didn't chase me. When I looked back, he was just standing there. Completely frozen. Like he couldn't believe what had just happened."

She was quiet for a moment, turning her mug slowly in her hands.

"And later he actually asked you how you did it?" she said carefully. "Those were his words? That you weren't supposed to be able to?"

"Word for word. He raised his voice. Said I didn't know who he was or what he was."

Sarah chewed her lip. "What do you think he meant by that?"

"I have no idea," I said honestly. "He never answered me. Just told me the car was ready and walked away."

We sat with that for a moment, both of us turning it over in our heads without an answer to land on.

I told her the rest. Getting dressed in his clothes. Coming downstairs. The name Fiona slipping out and the way the entire room seemed to freeze when it did.

"Who is Fiona?" Sarah asked.

"I don't know. But whatever it is, it's something he buried a long time ago."

She nodded slowly, storing it away the same way I had.

By the time I finished, my eyelids were heavy and my voice had gone thin.

Sarah pulled the blanket up over my shoulders.

"Sleep here tonight," she said. It wasn't a question.

"I wasn't planning on leaving," I murmured.

She turned the lamp off and curled up on the other end of the couch with her own blanket. The room settled into soft darkness.

"Iris?" she said quietly after a moment.

"Mm."

"Nicholas didn't deserve you. He never did."

I didn't answer. I just closed my eyes and let the exhaustion finally pull me under.

I don't know how long I slept.

It felt like minutes before something dragged me back. A sound. Distant at first, then louder. Flashing lights bled through the gap in Sarah's curtains, painting the ceiling in alternating red and blue.

I sat up slowly, disoriented.

Sarah was already at the window, curtain pulled back just an inch, peering outside with wide eyes.

"Sarah?" My voice was rough with sleep. "What's happening?"

She turned slowly. Her face had gone pale.

"Iris." Her voice was low. "Don't panic."

I stood up. I crossed the room and looked past her through the glass.

Outside, six police vehicles were parked across the street, lights still spinning silently. Officers stood near the gate.

And behind them, a convoy of black SUVs lined the road like a wall.

Standing beside the lead vehicle, dressed in a dark coat, was my father.

And next to him, Nicholas stood with his arms crossed.

"They found me," I breathed.

Sarah gripped my arm without a word.

Then one of the officers stepped forward, raised a megaphone, and his voice cut clean through the quiet street.

"Iris Calloway. This is the police. You are being reported as a missing person. Please come to the door."