LOGINChapter 148Skye's POVThen the front door exploded inward.The lock that had been clicked shut from the inside snapped clean off as the door was kicked in with so much force that it slammed against the wall and cracked the plaster. In the doorway stood a man I recognized immediately.Reed.He was across the room before Julia could even turn her head. His hand closed around her wrist‚ the one holding the knife‚ and he squeezed. The sound that followed was something I would never forget. A wet‚ grinding crunch‚ like stepping on gravel‚ except it was bone. Julia's wrist bone‚ snapping under the pressure of Reed's grip like a dry twig.Julia screamed. The knife clattered to the floor. Her legs buckled and she dropped to her knees‚ clutching her broken wrist to her chest‚ her face white with shock and pain. The scream dissolved into a high‚ keening wail that bounced off the café walls.Reed didn't even look at her. He kicked the knife away‚ sending it skittering across the tile until it h
Chapter 147Skye's POVIt was female‚ high and sharp‚ dripping with something venomous that I recognized before I even turned around.Julia.She stepped out of the hallway and into the main room of the café‚ blocking the path between me and the back exit. She was wearing a fitted black dress and heels that clicked against the tile floor with every step‚ and her dark hair was pulled back tight from her face in a way that made her features look even sharper than usual. Her makeup was flawless. Her posture was rigid. Her eyes were locked on me with an intensity that made my wolf flatten her ears and bare her teeth."Funny running into you here‚" Julia said. "Although I suppose it's not really running into you if I followed you from your sad little house‚ is it?""Julia‚ I don't have time for this.""Oh‚ you don't have time?" She laughed‚ though there was nothing funny about the sound. It was brittle‚ too high‚ slightly unhinged. "That's rich coming from the girl who snuck out at dawn to
Chapter 146Skye's POV“Would you be willing to leave Thorne for me?”I stared at him across the table‚ waiting for the smirk to crack into a laugh‚ waiting for him to lean back and say he was joking. But he didn't. He just sat there with his espresso in front of him and that dark‚ serious expression on his face‚ watching me like my answer actually mattered to him."You're out of your mind‚" I said."That's not a no.""It's absolutely a no. Are you insane? I'm not leaving Thorne. Not for you‚ not for anyone. That's not even a real question‚ Kael. That's a manipulation tactic‚ and a bad one."He tilted his head slightly‚ studying me. "You sure about that?""I have never been more sure about anything in my entire life." I pushed my untouched coffee to the side and leaned forward. "Now are you going to tell me what you know or did I waste my morning coming here?"Something shifted behind his eyes. The amusement drained out slowly‚ replaced by something colder‚ more calculated‚ like he wa
Chapter 145Thorne's POVI stared at the text and felt the weight of everything pressing down at once. Drake was still out there somewhere. Skye was gone. Now the media had something‚ though I didn't yet know what‚ and if whatever story they had broke publicly‚ it could be disastrous on every front. I called him back."Alpha Thorne‚ thank you for getting back to me so quickly‚" he said. "We have a serious situation.""I know we have a situation. You just told me we have a situation. What exactly do the outlets have?"There was a pause. "It's not about the island‚ Alpha‚" he said. "It's something else entirely. Something worse.""I don't have time for dramatic buildup. Just tell me.""The article has resurfaced. Someone repackaged it with new details and pushed it to six international outlets overnight. Two have already published. Stock is down eleven percent in pre-market trading. The other four are sitting on it pending comment from us.""What new details?""They've added an allege
Chapter 144 Thorne's POVI woke up reaching for her. My arm swept across the mattress searching for her warmth‚ reaching for the familiar curve of her waist or the softness of her hip under my palm‚ but she wasn’t here.I opened my eyes to an empty bed. The blanket on her side was pulled back‚ the pillow still held the indent from her head‚ but there was no warmth left in the fabric whatsoever‚ which meant she had been gone for a while. I sat up fast and scanned the room. Her hoodie was gone from the desk chair. Her sneakers were gone from the floor beside the dresser. The window was cracked open about three inches‚ just enough for someone to slip through‚ while cool morning air drifted in through the gap and moved the pale blue curtains slightly back and forth.Then I saw the note.It was sitting on the nightstand right next to the clock‚ a small torn piece of paper with her handwriting on it. I grabbed it and read it.Had to step out. Don't worry. I'll be back. - SI read it twice
Chapter 143SKYE'S POVKael was quiet for a moment. He ran his finger along the rim of his espresso cup and looked at me with an expression that was unreadable‚ which was rare for him because usually everything he felt was right there on the surface‚ packaged up in a smirk or a joke or some flirtatious comment designed to throw me off balance. But right now his face was still."No‚" he said. "I had nothing to do with what Drake did to you.""And I'm supposed to just believe that?""You're supposed to use your wolf‚ Skye. You know how to tell when someone's lying. Your senses are sharper now than they've ever been‚ especially after the wolfsbane. So listen to my heartbeat. Read my scent. Do whatever you need to do." He spread his hands on the table‚ palms up‚ open. "I did not arrange your kidnapping. I did not work with Drake. And I did not know it was going to happen until after it already did."I listened. My wolf was right there at the surface‚ raw and exposed and hypersensitive‚ an
Chapter 141Skye's POVI lay there for another hour‚ maybe two‚ waiting for Thorne's breathing to settle into that deep‚ even rhythm that told me he was fully asleep. Now was the best time to sneak out. I glanced at the clock on the nightstand. It was just past five thirty in the morning. The ear
Chapter 140Skye's POV“Baby.”The voice came from somewhere far away‚ soft and low‚ and at first I thought I was dreaming. I had been dreaming about him all night‚ the same restless‚ anxious dreams where I was calling his phone and it just kept ringing and ringing and nobody ever picked up.But th
Chapter 139Thorne’s POVVictor pressed his lips together. The stubbornness was trying to come back. I could see it fighting for space behind his eyes‚ and I reached down and put my hand on the wire still wrapped around his finger.He talked fast."Drake had been planning this for a long time!" he
Chapter 138Thorne’s POVVictor's eyes were locked on the wire around his finger. The defiance was starting to crack. I could see it in the way his breathing changed‚ faster now‚ shallower‚ and in the way his jaw was clenching and unclenching like he was fighting with himself about something."Or‚"







