LOGINEvangeline POVThe summons came at dusk with no explanation or delay. That alone told me I was in trouble.Tonight wasn't a general assembly but a direct summon, which meant failure.By the time my car passed through the final checkpoint road, my hands had gone cold against the steering wheel.The building sat ordinary among the rest. I parked in the parking lot, stayed in my car to give myself as much breathing room as possible, and got out.My stomach twisted harder. The front entrance stood open already. Two women crossed the corridor ahead of me. Neither acknowledged me.I kept walking. The lower chamber entrance sat beneath the east wing behind a carved wooden door. One operative stood beside it waiting for me. She opened the door without speaking.Cold air hit me immediately. The chamber below was already prepared.Candles lined the walls. Grey fabric covered the stone floor beneath ritual markings I recognized immediately from Dominion preparation rites.But there was more adde
Lisa POVHarry sat in the garden with his sleeves rolled to his elbows, staring past the tree line beyond the mansion’s outer fencing.Evening had settled over the property. The last light from the sunset filtered through the pines and stretched across the stone walkways cutting through the garden beds. White lilies closed against the cold while orchids rested beneath the covered terrace near the house. Purple bougainvillea climbed the walls in thick layers around the iron trellis above the benches. The sprinklers had run earlier, and the scent of wet soil still lingered in the air.Harry sat alone with a folder open beside him and a half-empty bottle of soda. He didn't even notice my presence.“Earth to Harry.”He blinked and looked up as I sat beside him.“You should rest,” I said.“So should you.”I looked down at the folder beside him, realizing he was neck-deep in whatever he was researching.“I hate that they’re trying to destroy your career over this.”He leaned back against th
Lisa POVThe drive into Silver Creek felt long. I spent most of it half asleep with my forehead against the window while headlights cut through empty roads and pine trees.Every time I woke up, my back hurt worse. The baby sat low enough to make any position miserable, and I was too tired to keep pretending I was fine.Nobody talked much. Mom sat beside me in silence. Alpha Kieran drove. I was trying hard to decide whether I trusted him or the fact that my mother trusted him.He lowered his window a few inches hours ago to stay awake. Every now and then, Mom asked if I needed water. Every now and then, Kieran checked the mirrors too long. That bothered me more than anything else. People only checked mirrors like that when they expected trouble behind them.By the time we crossed into Silver Creek territory, the sky had started turning gray. The entrance checkpoint looked more military than residential. Two guards came to the car right away, recognized Kieran, then stepped back without
Cameron POVI woke up clearer than I had all week. The pressure behind my eyes was gone. My thoughts had settled into a clean line I could follow without effort.Sunlight slipped through the curtains and laid pale bands across the floor. I stayed in bed for a while, staring at the ceiling while yesterday’s confrontation ran through my head again. The longer I thought about it, the more irritated I grew.Nadia crying, Franklin acting like I was at death’s door, and Alpha Kieran standing in my living room, talking about mind control and dominion like we were trapped inside some nightmare. Kieran irritated me most. He should have known better.If I was compromised, would I feel this steady?I got dressed and went downstairs. Coffee drifted in from the kitchen. One of the staff members greeted me with a bright smile, then hurried off to set the table for breakfast.Franklin was nowhere in sight. Luna Catherine, who had paid us a surprising visit that day, sat in the sitting room with a cu
Lisa POVI sat at the dining table, picking at a knot in the wood, but my hearing was tuned to the next room. My mother had insisted I stay put until Alpha Kieran and Dr. Harry finished their talk. She didn't want the stress of their conversation to weigh on me, but the silence was doing a better job of that.Nadia paced the length of the kitchen floor, her boots thudding against the tile. She didn't even look at the empty chairs. She raked her nails through her hair and spun on her heel, walking as if she were trying to outrun a ghost.My mother hovered near her, reaching out but not quite touching her shoulder.“Nothing is going to happen to your brother,” she said. “Alpha Kieran and the doctor are going to figure this out.”“That’s the script everyone is reading from,” Nadia snapped. She stopped and looked at the wall. “‘Nothing will happen’ while he sits in that house, refusing to believe he's drowning. Look where that lie has gotten us.”I pressed my palm against the curve of my
Cameron POVThe dream didn't feel like a hallucination. It had a realness to it, so sharp I could taste the fear on my tongue as my eyes snapped open.Lisa was on the ground. A pool of dark red spread out from her. Her lips moved, trying to form words I couldn't catch. I tried to lunge toward her, but my legs felt encased in lead. Something pinned me to the mattress, dragging me back.I fumbled for my phone on the nightstand. With a shaky thumb, I tapped out a message to Franklin.Check on Lisa. Make sure she’s safe. Call me.The phone glowed in my hand, but my focus began to slip almost immediately. A strange sensation moved through my skull. It wasn't exactly dizziness; it was a sudden break in the chain of my thoughts.I stared at the screen, dull confusion rising. Why had I even sent that?I blinked several times, trying to clear the mental cobwebs, but the world stayed soft at the edges. I stood up too fast, my knees nearly buckling. I stumbled to the bathroom sink and cranked th
LISA POVI sat beside my mom at the clinic, watching her stare at the faded landscape painting on the wall. The sadness she carried broke my heart.“Susan Hartwell?” the nurse called.I helped my mother to her feet and guided her toward the doctor’s office. Her grip on my arm tightened as we walked.
CameronI knew returning to the main house was going to be bad, I just didn’t know it would be this bad.Franklin had covered for me. They told Evangeline I’d been called away to another regional meeting and gave her something plausible enough that she wouldn’t question it. I had been gone four days
LisaCameron agreed to let me go, though not without conditions. Security would drive me, I would check in every day, and I would be back in exactly one week. I nodded through all of it because I was too relieved to argue about the details.The drive to Creek Keepers took four hours. I spent most of
LisaTime blurred together until I could no longer tell when night ended and morning began. I lost count of how many times Cameron and I had sex, how many times I begged him to fill me, and how many times his knot locked us together. The only thing that existed was the relentless need and the way he







