LOGINLillian’s POVI screamed for help, my voice echoing through the pack house with pure panic. “Help! Someone help! Someone collapsed!”Within seconds, guards came rushing into my room, their expressions alert and weapons drawn as they assessed the situation. Right behind them came Alanna, still in her clinic clothes, her healer instincts immediately taking over when she saw the unconscious form on the floor.“What happened?” Alanna demanded, dropping to her knees beside the maud and checking her pulse.“The tea,” I said, pointing to the cup on my bedside table with a shaking hand. “She drank it and then just collapsed. I think it was poisoned.”Alanna’s expression turned grim. She pulled a small vial from her pocket and waved it under the maid’s nose, then examined her eyes and the color of her skin. “Nightshade extract mixed with wolfsbane,” she said after a moment. “Deadly combination for our kind. Get me my full kit from the clinic, now!”One of the guards ran immediately while Alan
Lillian’s POVTheir words stabbed through my heart like knives, each syllable carefully chosen to inflict maximum damage. I wished desperately that I’d listened to Aiden, that I’d let him stay in the room or refused to meet with them at all. But it was too late now, the damage was done, and I was left standing there processing the revelation that Dorian had an ex who apparently looked like me.How had I not known this? In five years of living in this pack house, of working alongside Dorian, of building our relationship, no one had ever mentioned that he’d had an ex.“Who was she?” I asked before I could stop myself, my voice barely above a whisper. “Dorian’s ex. Who was she?”Elder Carter’s expression shifted to something almost satisfied, like he’d been waiting for me to ask. “That’s not our story to tell. If Alpha Dorian wanted you to know about her, he would have told you himse
Lillian’s POVI stood at the window watching Dorian’s car disappear down the driveway, a hollow feeling settling in my chest as the distance between us grew. A week felt like an eternity right now, especially with everything that had happened with the elders and the strange threats I’d been receiving.“You should have told him,” Alanna said from behind me, her voice tight with worry. “About the shadow, about the note, about all of it. He has a right to know someone’s threatening you.”I turned away from the window, wrapping my arms around myself. “What was I supposed to say? That I think I saw someone spying on me but we searched everywhere and found nothing? That I got a threatening note that could have come from anyone? He would have worried himself sick or worse, cancelled the trip and lost out on important territorial negotiations.”“Better than leaving you here vulnerable and unprotected,” Alanna countered.“I’m not unprotected,” I argued, though I didn’t feel as confident as I
Dorian’s POVI looked at Lillian, seeing the vulnerability in her eyes, the need to know what the elders really thought of her. Part of me wanted to lie, to tell her everything was fine and they’d come around eventually. But I could feel through our bond that she’d know if I wasn’t being honest.“I’ll handle it,” I said instead, reaching for her hand. “The elders are set in their ways, but they’ll learn to accept you once they see….”“Dorian,” Lillian interrupted, pulling her hand away. “This is our life now. I need to be updated too, not sheltered from uncomfortable truths. What did they say about me?”I hesitated, not wanting to hurt her but knowing she deserved honesty. “They think you’ll betray the pack,” I admitted quietly. “They believe that when it comes down to it, your blood ties to Moonstone will override your loyalty to Fangshade. That you’re still connected to your birth pack in ways that make you untrustworthy.”Lillian’s face went pale, and I saw pain flash across her fe
Lillian’s POVI stood at the window watching Dorian’s car disappear down the driveway, a hollow feeling settling in my chest as the distance between us grew. A week felt like an eternity right now, especially with everything that had happened with the elders and the strange threats I’d been receiving.“You should have told him,” Alanna said from behind me, her voice tight with worry. “About the shadow, about the note, about all of it. He has a right to know someone’s threatening you.”I turned away from the window, wrapping my arms around myself. “What was I supposed to say? That I think I saw someone spying on me but we searched everywhere and found nothing? That I got a threatening note that could have come from anyone? He would have worried himself sick or worse, cancelled the trip and lost out on important territorial negotiations.”“Better than leaving you here vulnerable and unprotected,” Alanna countered.“I’m not unprotected,” I argued, though I didn’t feel as confident as I
Dorian’s POVI looked at Lillian, seeing the vulnerability in her eyes, the need to know what the elders really thought of her. Part of me wanted to lie, to tell her everything was fine and they’d come around eventually. But I could feel through our bond that she’d know if I wasn’t being honest.“I’ll handle it,” I said instead, reaching for her hand. “The elders are set in their ways, but they’ll learn to accept you once they see….”“Dorian,” Lillian interrupted, pulling her hand away. “This is our life now. I need to be updated too, not sheltered from uncomfortable truths. What did they say about me?”I hesitated, not wanting to hurt her but knowing she deserved honesty. “They think you’ll betray the pack,” I admitted quietly. “They believe that when it comes down to it, your blood ties to Moonstone will override your loyalty to Fangshade. That you’re still connected to your birth pack in ways that make you untrustworthy.”Lillian’s face went pale, and I saw pain flash across her fe







