Chapter 59

SARA

"Please, come this way. Quickly." Paige motioned frantically the moment we exited Tristan's study. She didn't wait for a response, leading me and Khalid through a labyrinthine series of service hallways and narrow stairways that descended deep beneath the industrial-sized kitchen.

The air in the tunnels smelled of damp earth, stagnant water, and ancient, cold grease. It was thick and claustrophobic. Khalid was a complete mess beside me; his breath came in shallow, ragged hitches that echoed off the low stone ceiling like the gasps of a dying animal. He was vibrating with a terror so potent I could almost taste it in the air.

"I'm sorry... Sara, I'm so sorry," Khalid stammered when we finally found ourselves momentarily alone in a shadowed alcove. "The Alpha Conqueror has been searching for you with a madness I’ve never seen. It's truly unfortunate that I helped fake your death. I feel as though all of this—the danger, the lies—is entirely my fault."

"Well, I don't know what you expect me to say to you, Khalid," I told him, my voice flat and my face like a mask. I didn't have the energy to offer him absolution. "Whatever reason made you decide to become a part of my pain, I just hope you got exactly what you wanted out of the deal. I hope the reward was worth the betrayal."

"I don't know if I got anything lasting out of it," he whispered, a deep, hollow sadness reflected in his eyes.

"That's absolute bullshit, and you know it. You nailed Yvonne," I snapped at him, my patience fraying. "And we both know a woman like her is light-years out of your league. You traded my life for a few nights in her bed."

"There's no such thing as 'being out of your league' when it comes to survival and desire, Sara," Khalid countered, a sudden spark of bravado flickering in his gaze. "Everyone has something they are looking for in this life, and most would be willing to risk their very existence for the right reward. Even a man like me has his value."

Khalid wasn't the most handsome man I’d ever seen; he wasn't built like a towering Alpha stud, nor did he possess the kind of sculpted, perfect body that adorned the warriors of the Twilight Zone. I looked at him, really looked at him, and realized the only explanation for Yvonne’s interest was likely a carnal one—he was probably packing a massive weapon between his legs that made her forget his status.

"I see," I said curtly, ending the conversation. I turned away and focused instead on the vibration of the floor beneath my feet, feeling the distant, rhythmic thrum of heavy vehicles moving on the surface above.

Then came the sirens.

"The wail of those sirens... it’s high-pitched and predatory. That’s the signature of the Crescent Moon tactical units," Khalid said, his voice trembling again when he realized I wasn't interested in any more personal revelations.

We huddled together in the far corner of the safe house—a small, windowless concrete room tucked away a few blocks from the main estate. It felt like a tomb. Every time a siren grew louder, Khalid whimpered, burying his face in his shaking hands. I just sat there in the dark, my fingers absentmindedly tracing the silk hem of my sheer kimono. I wondered if the "retribution" Carmen had promised would be my ultimate rescue or my final execution. Part of me wanted Rune to burn it all down; another part of me was terrified of what would be left in the ashes.

But the sirens eventually faded into the distance. The rescue I had half-expected never came. Even though I despised Alpha Rune and had a thousand reasons to hate him, I was open-minded enough to realize that my only true hope for freedom was tied to his power.

I was filled with a bitter disappointment when the door finally creaked open. It wasn't a Crescent Moon soldier; it was Paige, coming to take us back to the lion’s den. "I think it's safe to come out now. Carmen has gone, though I suspect something truly terrible will happen soon. The air feels different."

"Thank goodness," Khalid blurted out before she had even finished speaking, his relief palpable.

She led us back through the dark tunnels and into the penthouse. The atmosphere there was suffocating, thick with the scent of Tristan’s smug, arrogant satisfaction. He was leaning casually against his heavy mahogany desk, a glass of expensive bourbon held loosely in his hand. He looked like a man who had just outplayed a god and enjoyed every second of it.

"No one is coming for you, Sara," he said, his voice smooth, dark, and intentionally cruel. "Carmen left empty-handed. Rune's shadows are chasing ghosts in the wind. From this moment on, you aren't a prisoner, and you aren't a guest. You are a toy. A plaything kept for my exclusive, private pleasure."

Beside me, I saw Paige flinch as if he’d struck her. Khalid looked at the floor in profound shame, unable to meet my eyes. I felt a cold, hard knot form in the pit of my stomach. The tiny flicker of hope I’d nursed in the dark tunnels was snuffed out.

Tristan turned his cold, predatory gaze to Khalid, his eyes narrowing into slits. "As for you, rat... get out. Leave this pack immediately and never return. If you ever breathe a single word of our arrangement to anyone, or if I ever find out you’ve put your filthy hands on Yvonne again, I will have you flayed alive in the town square."

Khalid straightened his back then, a strange, sudden defiance flickering in his tired eyes that I hadn't expected. "I will keep your secrets, Alpha. My word is my bond. But as for Yvonne... if she throws herself at me again, I will happily marry her and take her far away from this gilded cage you call a pack."

Tristan let out a sharp, mocking bark of laughter that bounced off the walls. "Marry her? You? A pathetic messenger?"

"She is a warrior with the heart of a fallen star," Khalid said, his voice turning surprisingly poetic and steady. "She is beautiful in her rage and steadfast in her loyalty. You mock me, Tristan, but you are the one acting like a fool. You are a confused man who has chosen to die on a very lonely hill."

"Are you a poet now, Khalid? Or just a dead man talking?" Tristan sneered, stepping closer.

"I am a man with eyes that see the truth," Khalid countered, standing his ground. "Yvonne is clearly in love with you, yet you treat her like a blunt instrument to be used and discarded. And here you are, forcing yourself on Sara under the guise of 'punishment' because you’re too cowardly to admit she’s the only thing making you feel alive. Alpha Rune is in love with her, too. The path you are taking leads only to massive bloodshed—a war worse than anything the northern packs have ever seen."

"Guards!" Tristan roared, his face turning a dangerous, mottled shade of purple. "Escort this trash out! If he ever sets foot on Twilight territory again, kill him on the spot! No questions asked!"

A tight, bitter smile formed on my lips as they dragged him away. It was possible that Khalid was truly in love with Yvonne, but he had pointed out an obvious truth—the same truth I had felt and others had whispered. But the thought haunted me: was Tristan really in love with me, or was he just obsessed with the power I represented?

It was easy to form opinions about others like an armchair quarterback, but what about me? How was I supposed to get out of Tristan's iron grip? Did I actually feel something for him buried beneath the fear and the anger?

As the guards dragged a shouting Khalid away, the room fell into a heavy, suffocating silence. "Alpha, if I may speak," Paige said suddenly. Tristan glared at her, but she stood her ground defiantly, her chin tilted up. I became hopeful for a moment, thinking she was going to plead my case or offer me some comfort.

But instead, her expression shifted, becoming hard and cold—an expression I didn't recognize.

"You’re too stubborn, Sara," Paige snapped, her voice harsh and dripping with venom. "You constantly disrespect the Alpha and bring nothing but trouble to this house. You clearly don't understand your place in the hierarchy of this world."

My heart shattered. The woman who had smuggled me extra bread, who had begged for my life in the hall just hours ago, was now looking at me with pure, unadulterated vitriol.

"Alpha," Paige said, turning her attention back to Tristan. "Her stubbornness comes from pure ignorance. She doesn't understand what it truly means to be a live-in maid—to be of service to a man of your stature. If you'll allow it, I’ll take her to the lower wings to see the last woman who held that position. A little education might motivate her to serve you properly."

Tristan looked impressed, a slow, dark, and predatory grin spreading across his face. "Excellent idea, Paige. Take her. Make sure she understands the full consequences of being... uncooperative."

Paige grabbed my arm, her grip unnecessarily tight and painful, and marched me out of the penthouse. I felt like a lead weight was sitting in my chest. I was alone. Truly, utterly alone.

But as soon as the elevator doors slid shut and we were out of earshot of the hallway guards, the bruising pressure on my arm softened instantly. Paige leaned in close, her warm breath tickling my ear as she whispered.

"I’m so sorry for the things I just said, honey," she breathed, her voice trembling with a frantic urgency. "I had to play the part. I had to make him believe I was on his side so he’d let us leave without a guard detail."

"Oh... God, I was so scared for a moment," I whispered back, my eyes welling with tears. "Where are you taking me? To see Natalie? Is she the one?"

"We’re going to the old, abandoned infirmary wing. There’s a woman there... she’s broken, yes, but she’s been waiting years for a chance to strike back at the man who ruined her."

She reached into her deep apron pocket and pressed a small, cold object into my palm. It was a folded piece of paper and a jagged stub of lead pencil.

"The former maid isn't just a warning, Sara," Paige breathed as the elevator doors opened with a soft chime. "She knows the secret codes to the external comms—the ones Tristan thinks were disconnected years ago. Write your message. Be brief. I’ll make sure it gets to a Crescent Moon scout before the sun goes down tonight."

A sliver of hope, sharp and bright as a diamond, pierced through the darkness of my despair. I gripped the paper tight, my knuckles turning white. I wasn't just a toy. I wasn't a plaything. I was a survivor, and the message I was about to write would change everything.