INICIAR SESIÓNVeronica’s POVThe trapdoor slammed shut above us with a sound like a coffin closing, and for a moment the cellar was so dark I couldn’t tell where the walls ended and the air began. The only light was the narrow beam of Rowan’s flashlight dragging across the dirt floor, across the crates and the old tools, across Mrs. Lloyd’s face where she sat in the corner with baby Zephyr pressed tight to her chest. The baby wasn’t crying anymore. He had gone quiet in that way newborns do when they sense something is wrong, and the silence was worse than any sound could have been.Rowan stood in the middle of the room, water dripping from his jacket onto the ground, blood drying in dark lines down his neck from where I’d gotten him earlier on the road. He hadn’t shifted. Not yet. His eyes were still human, but they were too bright, too gold around the edges, and that meant his wolf was already awake under the skin, waiting for permission. He looked around the cellar slowly, like he was appraising
The text stayed on my screen long after I read it, burning into my eyes until I had to look away. You killed the wrong brother. The real Alpha King is still coming.My fingers went cold around the phone.Chloe took it from me before I could answer, and the color drained from her face the moment she saw it. For a long second none of us spoke, because what was there to say when the worst wasn’t over yet?Callum was already moving, his jaw locked and his eyes scanning the room like he expected the walls to come down. He snatched the phone, checked the number, and cursed under his breath. “Burner. Bounced through Canada. Voss’s old territory.” He looked up at me. “Did you tell anyone we were here?”I shook my head. “Only you. Only Mrs. Lloyd.”Mrs. Lloyd pressed a hand to her mouth. “I didn’t tell anyone. I swear on my life.”Callum didn’t waste another second. “We’re moving him. Tonight. This hospital isn’t safe.”“But his surgery—”“Isn’t finished yet, I know,” he cut in, softer now. “
Trent was standing in the doorway like death came back to collect a debt.“Hello, brother,” he said, rain dripping off his jacket. “Miss me?”Zephyr’s hand snapped around mine. His eyes went from weak to Alpha in half a second.“Get. Out.” His voice was shredded but it still shook the room.Trent smiled. Slow. Crooked. The same smile I remembered from two years ago before he tried to kill me.“I would, but we have unfinished business.” His eyes flicked to me. Then down to my stomach, even though baby Zephyr wasn’t here. “You stole my son. You stole my pack. You stole my life.”Callum moved first. He had his gun out before Trent even blinked.“Hands up. Now.”Trent didn’t move. He just tilted his head. “You really think a bullet stops me, detective?”The air got heavy. The smell hit me next. Wet fur. Blood. Wolf.He wasn’t alone.Two men stepped in behind him. Voss’s men. Their eyes were already gold. Already shifting.The hospital alarms started screaming.“Veronica, behind me,” Zephy
Chapter 85Veronica’s POVThe name felt right the second I said it. Zephyr. My baby opened his eyes like he knew it too. Like he was answering me. “Hi, Zephyr,” I whispered. “That’s you.”He made a small sound and closed his eyes again. Outside, the night was quiet. Inside, my heart was loud.Chloe came in with tea. She saw my face and smiled. “You named him?”I nodded. “Zephyr. After his father.” Chloe didn’t argue. She just sat next to me. “It’s a strong name,” she said. “He’ll need it.”I looked down at him. He was so small. But he already survived more than most adults. I wasn’t going to let anything happen to him.The next morning came fast. Zephyr woke up crying at 4am. I fed him, changed him, and walked with him until the sun came up. Java checked him over. “He’s healthy. You’re doing great.”“Thank you,” I said. But my mind was already at the station.Callum texted: Come by 10. We found something on the burner phone.I left Zephyr with Chloe and Java. Leavi
Veronica's Pov The silence was kind that fills you when something broken starts to fit back into place. He was warm. His head rested on my chest like it belonged there. The tremble in my hands steadied. I looked down at him—so tiny, so peaceful—and felt my throat tighten. He had a full head of dark curls, the kind that coiled at the ends like they’d always be wild. His lashes were thick. His mouth in a little pout. And when he sighed softly in his sleep, it was the single most beautiful sound I’d ever heard. My baby. “My god,” I whispered. “He’s real.” Chloe stepped back, giving me space. I sank down into the porch chair and just held him. I didn’t care that I looked like hell. That my hair was a tangled mess, or that my face was probably still blotchy from crying. I had him. That was enough. “I didn’t think I’d be able to do this,” I said after a while. “You are doing it,” Chloe replied. “I feel like a ghost. I don’t even know who I am anymore.” “You’re someone who crawled
Veronica's POV The night passed with silence and sobs. I didn’t know how long I sat on that thin mattress, curled up in the corner like a ghost in my own skin. Outside, I could hear the ocean’s low murmur through the walls—haunting and beautiful in the way sorrow often is. The baby didn’t cry. Or if he did, Chloe must’ve quieted him quickly. Morning came quietly. The air smelled like salt and damp earth, and for a moment, I wondered if I’d woken up in a dream. My arms were empty, but my chest ached in a way that told me something once precious had been there. My son. The blanket Chloe had given me the night before was bunched at my feet. I hadn't moved it. I hadn’t moved at all. I'd slept sitting up, back pressed to the wall, knees drawn to my chest like a child afraid of the dark. Except the dark was already inside me. The door creaked open. I didn’t look. Java’s voice floated in. Calm, low, kind. “You should eat something. Chloe made tea and eggs.” My stomach churne
Chapter 6Veronica's POVI could almost feel his eyes burrowing holes at the back of my head as he stared at me for what felt like hours but in reality was just a few seconds." So what do you say? Is the big alpha about to reject me?" I asked him, my voice purring and my speech slurred.He pulled
Five How could someone look so handsome yet dangerous at the same time? I watched as he headed my direction and sat in the chair in front of him. I flashed him a drunken grin.“Hi” I said and he ignored me. Or rather just stared, like he was seeing someone for the first time.“Hi” I sai
TwoI stared at the papers like they were relics. This couldn’t be happening, this should be a dream. No way my husband just shoved a divorce paper in my face after caught cheating on me with my best friend. Maybe it was a prank, maybe……“What are you waiting for? Sign the damn papers” Trent’s voic
OneThe house was quiet like a grave, at least at a graveyard you hear the slow swat or breeze or you hear the chirping of birds but in this case the house was just eerily quiet. Trent’s car was in the driveway which means he was at home, probably came by to do something in his study. I headed to







