C3

Serena POV

"He won't eat it," the kitchen maid whispers, her hands trembling as she sets the silver dome over the plate. "Alpha Kael never eats what is sent up after dark. You shouldn't go near the study, Lady Serena."

"I will carry the tray," I say, my voice smooth and calm.

I lift the heavy silver tray into my hands. The rich scent of seared meat and mountain herbs rises into the air, perfectly identical to the meals I used to carry in my past life. Back then, every dish I brought him was laced with silent resentment, every step taken with bitter hatred while Maren's poison whispered in my ear. I used to pray he would choke on every bite. This time, the plate is clean. My heart is completely different. I no longer want to wound him. I only want to survive.

I step out of the warm kitchen and enter the dimly lit stone corridor.

My wolf stirs uneasily under my ribs. The manor’s dominant Alpha scent is everywhere here, growing thicker and more suffocation-heavy as I approach the study wing. Dark pine, crushed ice, and raw lightning. It wraps around my throat like an invisible collar.

He is going to throw it in your face, my past memories scream at me. He is going to push you away just like he always did.

I steady my breathing, tighten my grip on the silver handles, and walk up the wide staircase. My bare feet make no sound against the runner rug. Every torch flickering on the stone walls reminds me of the life I lost, the prison cell I died in, and the lies that tore us apart.

Three steps from the heavy oak door of Kael’s study, I freeze.

The thick wood cannot completely muffle the sound inside. A low, rough voice vibrates through the grain—a rasping, primal tone that is not entirely human. It is Kael’s wolf-spirit, raw, bleeding, and barely restrained behind his ribs.

"She came..." the beast snarls inside the room, its voice echoing through our mental link like tearing metal. "She is in the hall... do not draw near her. I might lose control."

The words strike my chest like a physical blow. My breath catches in my throat. In my past life, I was too blinded by Maren's manipulations to ever hear the spirit speak so openly. The admission is both a lethal warning and a desperate confession.

My own wolf rises in answer, her chest heaving, drawn and terrified all at once.

He is fighting himself, my wolf whispers inside my mind. He wants us, but he is dying to protect us.

Before I can take a step backward to retreat, the heavy iron latch clicks.

The oak door swings open with a low creak.

Kael fills the doorway. He is massive, broad-shouldered, his dark hair messy as if his hands have been tearing through it for hours. The sheer, crushing power of a Supreme Alpha rolls off his skin in waves, thick enough to make my knees tremble. His golden eyes are cold as glacier ice, surrounded by dark circles of absolute exhaustion.

He looks down at the silver tray in my hands. Then his gaze drags slowly up to meet my eyes. His expression remains entirely blank. Granite. Unreadable.

"Take it away," Kael says, his voice flat and devoid of a single drop of warmth. "I did not ask for this."

The rejection is clean. Absolute. It cuts deeper than any screamed insult from my past life.

"You haven't eaten since yesterday," I say, forcing my voice to stay steady, though my heart is slamming against my ribs like a trapped bird. "You need your strength."

"My strength is none of your concern," Kael replies coldly, stepping back to shut the door. "Leave the wing, Serena."

As his hand tightens on the edge of the wood, a violent tremor ripples through the mental link. The wolf-spirit’s voice brushes my mind one last time, leaking out against Kael’s iron will.

She smells different... the beast groans in dark, feral agony inside my head. No bitter scent... no fake smiles... safer... dangerous... get her away before I break the chains!

A sharp gasp slips past my lips. My eyes widen as I stare at him. His control is already fraying because of my presence. In the life I remember, his control was an impenetrable fortress. I never made him break like this.

Kael notices the shift in my posture. His jaw clenches so hard a muscle ticks violently in his pale cheek. "Did you hear me? Go back to your room."

Instead of turning and fleeing in shame like I used to do, I step forward.

I set the silver tray down on the small marble side table right beside his door frame. The metal clinks softly against the stone. I stand up straight, throw my shoulders back, and look directly into his golden eyes.

"I am not the same woman who once brought you poison in a smile," I say softly, my voice carrying a quiet, burning strength that makes him freeze. "Eat or don't. The choice is yours, Alpha."

The words cost me every ounce of courage I possess, but they land with absolute precision.

For a single heartbeat, Kael’s cold, unyielding mask shatters. His golden eyes widen in shock. Something raw, dark, and dangerously close to pure hunger flares in the depth of his pupils. His chest heaves as if he has just been struck in the ribs.

Then, his face slams shut again.

He grabs the heavy oak door and shuts it hard. The loud bang echoes down the empty stone corridor, vibrating through the floorboards beneath my feet.

A second later, the heavy sound of a glass goblet shattering against the far wall explodes inside the study, followed by the low, frustrated growl of a wolf fighting its own soul.

I stand alone in the quiet hall, my pulse hammering in my ears.

I turn and walk away down the dimly lit corridor, my legs feeling like lead. Halfway down the hall, I have to stop and press my shoulder against the cold stone wall. I am shaking uncontrollably—not from fear of his anger, but from the terrifying, undeniable intensity of the pull I felt standing so close to him.

Behind that closed door, Kael stands alone with the untouched tray.

I can still hear his wolf pacing in my mind, restless and wild, whispering the same dangerous truth over and over: She came back different. Do not let her near again... or we will claim her.

I take a deep breath, trying to steady my racing lungs, when the air in the corridor shifts.

Night has fully fallen outside the high arched windows. From the far end of the hallway, near the grand staircase, a second, deeply familiar scent drifts toward me on the draft.

Chamomile, sweet vanilla, and something sharp and metallic underneath.

Maren.

My sister is already moving through the darkened halls of Blackthorn manor. I hear the soft, deliberate rustle of her dress as she glides along the shadow-draped walls, her head tilted, listening for the sound of an argument, waiting like a vulture for the next crack in my marriage to appear.

She steps into the moonlight pouring through the stained glass, a soft, sympathetic smile painted across her face.

"Serena?" Maren whispers, her voice filled with gentle, fake concern as she looks at me standing against the wall. "I heard a crash from the Alpha's study. Did he hurt you? Did he throw you out?"

I lift my head, burying my trembling hands into the folds of my dress. My wolf raises her head inside my chest, baring her sharp white teeth in the dark.

"He didn't hurt me, Maren," I say, my voice steadying until it rings like polished steel against the quiet stone.

"You look terrified," Maren says, taking a soft step closer, her eyes glittering with hidden triumph. "You can tell me the truth. You don't have to protect a monster. If he put his hands on you, we can contact Father right now."

I take my hand off the stone wall and stand fully upright, looking my sister dead in the eye.

"I am not terrified," I whisper, stepping past her toward my bedroom door. "And I don't need Father."

"Serena, wait!" Maren calls out softly behind me, her voice dropping into a desperate, sharp edge. "He will destroy you! You know what he is!"

I stop at my door, my hand resting on the brass handle. I do not look back at her. I listen to her hurried breath, feeling the cold, deadly determination settling into my marrow.

"This time," I whisper to the empty corridor, pressing my hand against my beating heart where Kael's wolf still howls in agony, "I will not be the one who breaks first."

I push my bedroom door open, step inside, and turn the heavy iron key in the lock.

Suddenly, my phone vibrates hard inside my pocket. I pull it out, the screen glowing bright in the dark room. A new notification sits on the display, sent from the same encrypted black market address as before.

My thumb swipes the screen.

‘He chained himself to the floor ten minutes ago. If you want to survive the night, do not touch the tray. —K.’