تسجيل الدخولKaela’s POVThe safe house was smaller than I expected. It stood behind a closed repair shop on a quiet street, with a metal door at the back and no sign outside. Taren unlocked it with a code, checked the narrow hall first, then pulled me in after him. He closed the door and locked it twice before he let go of my hand.The room inside was plain. There was a table, two chairs, one old couch, and a small kitchen area. There were no family photos and no decoration. It looked like a place made for hiding.“No one followed us,” he said.I took off my coat and placed it on the table. My hands were careful as I pulled out the folder of photos, the copies I had taken, and the black diary marked with K.C.Taren turned when he saw it. For a second, he did not move. “This is what you found?” he asked.“Yes.” I opened the folder first. “The forged papers and photos were in Eleanor’s safe. These were made to frame you.”Taren stepped closer. I spread the photos across the table. He looked at each
Kaela’s POVI stayed behind the velvet drapes and held the black diary against my chest. The lock on the study door had turned from the outside, but whoever did it had not entered. I kept my body still and listened. My phone, the diary, and the forged photos were safe inside my coat, but my heart was beating too fast.Two maids stopped near the corridor outside the hidden study. Their voices were low, but I could hear them clearly through the narrow space near the wall.“Did you see the Blood-Moon fight?” one maid asked.“The one between Mateo Vega and Amélie Veyron?” the other whispered.“Yes. Amélie was furious. She said Mateo ruined everything again.”The second maid made a scared sound. “They were both using Alpha pressure. I thought the windows would crack. Madame Du Bois had to send guards in.”“Amélie threw wine first,” the first maid said. “Then Mateo laughed at her. He told her she had lost control in front of everyone.”“She hates Kaela Hawthorne,” the second maid said. “I h
Kaela’s POVThe funeral was held at the Voss mansion, and every important wolf family in Paris seemed to be there. The house was covered in black cloth and white funeral lilies. Their smell filled the hall so strongly that it covered Eleanor’s real scent. She had planned even that. She did not want anyone to sense too much from her today.I stood near the back of the room, dressed in black, with my hands folded in front of me. My face stayed calm, but I kept watching everyone around me. Madame Du Bois had warned me that the funeral was the final trap. I did not know where Eleanor would act, but I knew she wanted people there to see it.Eleanor stood near the front and gave her eulogy. Her voice shook in the right places. Her eyes watered when people looked at her. She spoke about family, duty, pain, and betrayal, but every word felt prepared. She looked like a grieving woman, but I saw the way her fingers held the edge of the paper too neatly. She was acting.“Taren broke this family,
Kaela’s POVMateo came to the hotel in the afternoon with a file in his hand and two men waiting outside the room. He did not ask if I wanted to see him. He knocked once, then walked in after one of his guards opened the door.I stood near the window and watched him enter. “You’re getting too comfortable.”Mateo looked at the guard. The man stepped back and closed the door. Then Mateo placed the file on the table between us. “I came with an offer. You should hear the number first,” he said.“I’m not interested.” I crossed my arms. “Money does not change my answer.”Mateo opened the file and turned it toward me. The first page showed Thorn Bird’s name, my brand structure, my current contracts, and a purchase offer printed in clean black letters.“One billion euros,” he said. “For your brand, your future production rights, and full control of your aviation designs.”I looked at the number. It was real. Too real. A few months ago, that amount would have made my hands shake. It could buy
Kaela’s POVI met Madame Du Bois at the Tuileries Garden before noon. I had left the hotel through the back entrance, with no guard from Mateo and no message to anyone. After Taren’s warning, I could not let another man decide where I went or who I spoke to. If I needed protection, I would choose the terms myself.Madame Du Bois was waiting near a row of trees, dressed in dark green with a cane in one hand. She did not look surprised to see me. Her guards stood far enough away to give us space, but close enough to move if she wanted. She watched me as I approached, her face calm.Astra was awake, tense and watchful. Her voice came low in my mind. “The old female smells like an ancient forest and cold salt. She is a True Luna.”I kept my face still, but the words made me more careful. Astra did not give praise easily. If she respected Madame Du Bois, then this woman was not only rich or powerful. She had a rank that wolves could feel.Madame Du Bois tapped her cane once against the gro
Kaela’s POVBy morning, Taren’s face was on every screen. The news called him a murderer before any trial had started. Reporters stood outside the Constantine estate, outside the police station, and outside Werewolf Aviation Studios. They repeated Eleanor’s story as if it had already been proven.I stood in my office and watched the headlines move across the screen. My hands were cold, but I kept them still on the desk. I turned off the screen. Eleanor had moved fast, too fast. She had the story ready before the police had even finished checking the study. She wanted the public angry before anyone could ask the right questions.Astra moved inside me in anger. “She is using lies to turn everyone against him.”“I know,” I answered silently. “And she will come for me next.”The elevator doors opened outside the office. Heavy footsteps filled the hall. Then Eleanor walked in with two police officers and three guards behind her. She wore black, as if she was grieving. Her eyes were red, b







