MYRA
“Please… I beg you,” the words tore out of me, cracked and trembling. My hands pressed together so tightly my knuckles whitened, my nails digging into my palms. I had no other way left, no other weapon but my voice.My chest heaved as my eyes darted around the room, searching, praying for some miracle that Gray would know I was here. But how could he? He had no idea. And Reid… Reid was mad with fury. He meant every single word he had spat at me earlier.His expression was carved from stone, cold and unyielding, his eyes burning with suspicion that cut straight into me.“Talk if you want to be saved,” he snapped, his voice like a whip of its own. He raised a single hand, flicking his fingers at the warriors who gripped the cruel leather whips. My heart lurched as one man lifted it, the sharp edge about to lash into my skin, when Reid’s voice boomed again.“Stop.”The whip froze in the air, inches from my body. My lungs seizGRAY “What did you just say?” I thundered, striding toward him, each step shaking with the storm building inside me. My chest rose and fell fast, my voice raw with rage.Reid hung upside down, blood dripping from a cut on his jaw, his body straining against the ropes. His swollen lips curled into a sneer, his eyes burning with defiance. “You heard me! Don’t make me repeat myself!” His voice cracked, yet he still screamed like he wanted me to break.I didn't expect this from Reid.My patience snapped. I grabbed his head with one hand, my fingers digging into his sweat-slick hair, jerking his face up toward mine. His breath was hot, his jaw tight, his hatred pouring into me like fire.“Don’t piss me off!” I growled, my face inches from his. My teeth clenched so hard I thought they’d break.His chest heaved, but he didn’t flinch. “And what if I do? Huh? What’s going to happen?” His voice rose, daring me. “You’ll kill me like you said? Do it! Kill me! Cause like I said I'll be better off
GRAY “What do you mean by that?” My voice cracked before I could even steady it. My chest tightened, “My dad was your real mate?”I stared at Martha, my face twisting in shock. My mind reeled so violently that I felt dizzy. My family… gods, my family really did have a talent for burying secrets. And this one was worse than all the others.Martha’s blind eyes seemed to lock on me, though they couldn’t. Her lips trembled as she spoke with a mixture of defiance and sorrow. “Yes,” she whispered, her voice carrying centuries of pain in just one word. “That’s right. We were fated mates.”The room tilted. I blinked hard, like maybe I could force reality to bend back into place. “What happened then?” I demanded, heat rising in my voice. My chest rose and fell sharply, my breath unsteady. “How did my mom end up with him if you were fated mates?”For the first time, Martha lifted her chin as if refusing to bow to shame. Her voice shook, but her tone was firm. “No… she didn’t steal him from me.
GRAY “What… what do you mean?” The words slipped out of me in a hoarse whisper, but they carried the weight of a boulder crushing my chest. My voice cracked as I stumbled back a step, staring at Martha as if her blind eyes could somehow meet mine. “How do you mean he’s your son? I never—” My throat tightened. “I never saw you with him.” But even as I said it, my mind betrayed me. Memories flickered like shards of glass, Martha lingering around Reid when we were younger, quietly slipping him food when no one else was watching. I had brushed it off as kindness back then. Now, it cut deeper, carrying meaning I hadn’t seen. “How? How is he your son?” I crouched in front of her, my hand reaching instinctively to help her stand, but she pulled away, staying on her knees, stubborn as ever. “It all happened years back…” she began, but her voice trailed into silence, her head shaking slowly as if dragging herself back into pain she had buried too deep. “Martha,” I growled, desperation bl
GRAY “Alpha… what are you doing?” Reid’s voice cracked through the tension, sharp and mocking, but also trembling with rage.I didn’t even give him time to breathe. My body moved before my mind caught up, I lunged at him, my hands fisting his robe, dragging him forward until our faces were inches apart.“Shut the fuck up!” I roared, my spit hot against his cheek. My voice thundered over the crowd, silencing the whispers. His eyes flinched, and for the first time, I saw a flicker of fear in Reid’s cold stare.“I’ll deal with you later.” My words dripped like venom, and I shoved him back so hard he staggered.Behind me, the men rushed to Myra, tugging at the rope that still dug into her fragile neck. My chest clenched as I turned, stumbling toward her. Her body was limp, her head tilted to the side, lips barely parted. She wasn’t moving.“No—no, no, no!” My voice broke as I reached her, my trembling hand cupping her pale cheek. “Myra… are you okay? Please, answer me.”Her lashes flutt
GRAY The pain in my body was unbearable. Every muscle ached, every breath felt like knives digging into my ribs, but none of it compared to the storm inside my chest. Myra.Where was she now?What had Reid done to her?My thoughts wouldn’t settle. They tore through me like a thousand sharp edges, leaving me raw, restless, afraid. Reid had never once hidden his dislike for her. His eyes always followed her with suspicion, with that cold disdain he thought no one noticed. Only God knew what horrors she was facing now.My heart drummed faster as I staggered through the forest, trying to follow the faint trace of her scent. The ground was damp, littered with crushed leaves, the air heavy with night’s silence. I pressed forward, desperate, every nerve on fire with urgency. But suddenly— I stopped.The trail vanished.I bent low, scanning, sniffing the air again. Myra’s scent wasn’t there anymore. My chest tightened as I realized, he had tricked me. A shred of cloth lay on the damp earth,
MYRA “Please… I beg you,” the words tore out of me, cracked and trembling. My hands pressed together so tightly my knuckles whitened, my nails digging into my palms. I had no other way left, no other weapon but my voice. My chest heaved as my eyes darted around the room, searching, praying for some miracle that Gray would know I was here. But how could he? He had no idea. And Reid… Reid was mad with fury. He meant every single word he had spat at me earlier.His expression was carved from stone, cold and unyielding, his eyes burning with suspicion that cut straight into me.“Talk if you want to be saved,” he snapped, his voice like a whip of its own. He raised a single hand, flicking his fingers at the warriors who gripped the cruel leather whips. My heart lurched as one man lifted it, the sharp edge about to lash into my skin, when Reid’s voice boomed again.“Stop.”The whip froze in the air, inches from my body. My lungs seiz