LOGINHayden's POV(Five days ago)“Abby,” I called, walking toward where I knew she was hiding. “Gotcha!”I caught her and pulled her into my arms, spinning her around as laughter spilled from both of us.“I don’t ever want to lose you again,” I murmured, pressing a soft kiss to her nose.Giggling voices broke through the moment. I turned to see Amy and Asher racing through the house, their laughter filling the air, and a smaller baby crawling after them.My chest fluttered with warmth.I turned back to Abby, but she was gone.“Abby?” I called, smiling. “Are you hiding again, darling?”Silence.“Abby?”A cold fear slid down my spine. “Abby!”My eyes jerked open to blinding lights and blurred figures hovering above me.“Alpha?” Lucius’s voice cut through the haze.My head throbbed as I tried to focus.Where am I?Then memory slammed into me. Derek’s trap.Chains. And how Abby saved me.I tried to sit up, but a sharp agony ripped through my torso, slamming me back onto the bed.“Argh!” I gro
Abby’s POV After the conference ended, a wave of relief washed over me. Hayden and his men would finally leave this place. Yet, a gnawing worry lingered. I still didn’t know if Hayden was truly alive.Of course, he must be. There had been no reports of such online. The news only covered his company, which was facing challenges because of the scandal, but nothing about him personally.As the day passed and he still didn’t show up, I concluded he must have returned to Europe. Maybe he was finally letting go of punishing me for Marbel’s death because I saved him… or maybe he had to attend to his business.Either way, I was glad he was away from this place. Even so, part of me still wanted to know he was alive.The days that followed felt like hell. No sales at all. Food kept spoiling. I tried advertising little by little, even using the same strategies I had when I first opened the place, giving discounts, but nothing worked. Only a few of Derek’s pack members came in.It was the opposi
Abby’s POV My legs trembled, weak from standing too long, but Ruby kept me upright, her arms still wrapped around me.“I can help numb the pain in your chest, if you want me to,” she whispered.I shook my head. Tears slipped free anyway. Ruby had always helped ease the weight in my heart with her spells and potions whenever the pain became too much, whenever sleep refused to come.Not tonight.Tonight, I needed to feel every dreadful piece of it.For the first few weeks after I arrived here, I couldn’t sleep. Nightmares stalked me. Marbel lying in a pool of blood, Clara dying in front of me, the wild animal that nearly tore me apart. Every nightmare chased me awake, every horror tied back to one name.Hayden.For the past three years, I had convinced myself I hated him for everything he put me through. But watching him hover seconds from death shattered me all over again. How could I still feel this way when I knew he had never cared about me?And Derek…I had always believed he was
Abby’s POVLaughter drifted to my ears and I limped toward the sound, groping through the darkness with my hands. The voices grew clearer, and a sliver of light leaked from beneath a door.“Over there,” Carla whispered urgently.I stumbled forward and pushed the door open. Derek’s hand froze mid-air, his head snapping toward me.“Who the hell…” His voice caught. “…Abby? What are you doing here?”My gaze flew past him, and my stomach dropped so hard I thought I might vomit.Hayden hung from suspended chains. His body was battered and soaked in blood, his head lolled forward against his chest like he'd already given up.“What are you doing?” I screamed. The sound ripped out of me, ugly and broken. “What the hell are you doing, Derek?!”His eyes were bloodshot, wild. “Abby, stay out of this.”“No.” My throat burned. “I won’t let you kill him.”He scoffed bitterly. “Why? You still have feelings for him? After everything he’s done to you?” His voice cracked. “I’ve always treated you right,
Hayden's POV I parked at the location Abby had sent and stopped the engine. She wanted to talk. To resolve this. The thought alone made my chest ache.I couldn’t waste another second. I needed to tell her I was sorry for everything. For losing control. For the scene I’d caused in her restaurant. For still loving her when I had no right to.I stepped out of the car.She stood alone by the river railings, her back to me, auburn hair stirring in the night breeze.Relief hit me so hard my knees almost buckled.“Abby,” I called softly. “I… I’m deeply sorry for…”She turned. Shock froze me.It wasn’t Abby.The woman’s lips curled into a slow, wicked smirk. A trap. Before I could react, a sharp sting bit the side of my neck, cold and burning. My vision blurred and darkness swallowed the world.*****A splash of cold water slammed into my face, jolting me awake. I sucked in a harsh breath, water dripping down my face and chest. My shirt was gone.My hands were stretched above me, shackled
Abby's POVI tossed my phone onto the bed after ending the call from Ruby. I didn’t care if Hayden was missing or not. He couldn’t fool me into believing that lie.That man had almost killed Derek. In my restaurant, in front of customers. Worse, in front of my children. He would never change. Never.I leaned down and pressed a gentle kiss to Amy’s forehead, then moved to Asher and did the same. I always checked on them before they slept, sometimes even reading them bedtime stories.But tonight, they wouldn’t listen to a story. I’d been soothing them nonstop since we left the restaurant. Amy had even developed a fever from all the crying after witnessing that horrible scene.I hissed softly as I tucked the blanket around them properly, my hands shaking with restrained fury. I wasn’t wrong to call Hayden a monster. No one in their right mind would behave like an animal in front of children.I slipped out of their room and walked down the hallway, my steps sharp, controlled, furious. I n