LOGINKillian's POV
Smiling was all I could use to answer Isla’s pleas. Not because she was wrong, but because deep down, I knew I wasn’t going to change my mind. What I had decided for Liam was already sealed in my mind, and my wolf agreed with me this time. There was no fighting it. The harder part was pretending to Isla that I hadn’t made up my mind. “Killian, I’m telling you… if he had even a clue of what I wanted to do, he would’ve stopped me. He would’ve knocked me out cold if he had to. That’s Liam. You know that.” Her voice broke slightly, fragile fingers curling around my forearm like she could hold me back with touch alone. I looked down at her hand, so small against me, almost trembling. And for a second, a dangerous second, I almost gave in. I almost smiled and told her I’d listen. But no, my wolf growled right under my skin, and my own thoughts reminded me of the truth.Isla’s POV The entire drive back, I said nothing. Not a word. Even when we arrived and stepped out, I stayed behind and watched Killian walk inside after asking me, again and again, what was wrong with my dull countenance.I had no answer to give him. Or maybe I did, and it was too obvious to bother saying. Daphne was about to be dragged through hell for something that should have ended with me.I stood there a moment longer, letting the distance between us stretch, then turned to follow him inside.That was when Liam stepped into my path.“We need to talk,” he said.“I don’t have the strength for whatever you think is necessary to talk about now,” I replied, already moving past him. “Not tonight.”I barely made it a step before his hand closed around mine.“Let go,” I snapped, tugging, trying to pull free.“I checked Grayson’s records,” he said, his grip tightening just enough to stop me. “E
Isla’s POV For a moment, no one spoke.The compass didn’t just twitch, it settled, the needle locking into place. Thorne’s grip tightened around the object, his thumb brushing the rim as if to be sure it wasn’t playing tricks on him. Daphne stared at her finger, then at the compass, then back at Thorne, disbelief written plainly across her face.“That’s impossible,” she said. “I’m not from your damned pack.”Thorne didn’t answer her right away. His attention was fixed on the needle, his jaw clenched so tightly a vein stood out along his neck. “Blood doesn’t lie,” he said at last. “Names do. Records do. People do. But trust me, blood doesn’t.”Killian stepped forward, placing himself half a step between Thorne and Daphne. “You said the heir was lost,” he said. “Not living comfortably under another name.”“Lost doesn’t always mean living wretchedly or dead,” Thorne replied. “Sometimes it means hidden. Some
Isla’s POV We pulled up in front of Daphne’s house with a shared, unspoken understanding that something wasn’t right. No one said it aloud, but it sat between us inevitably. We stepped out together, moving toward the gate with purpose, not urgency. Whatever Thorne was tangled in, it wasn’t something brute force could fix. If he was trapped inside some illusion, then charging in blind would only make it worse. The goal wasn’t confrontation, it was to pull him back, to shake him loose from whatever had wrapped itself around his mind.Then we saw him.Thorne stood just beyond the gate, motionless, his posture stiff, his gaze fixed straight ahead. He looked present, yet not fully here, like someone caught between waking and dreaming. He didn’t acknowledge our arrival. He didn’t move forward. He didn’t retreat.He just stood there, right at the threshold, as if he couldn’t enter without our permission.
Isla’s POV I was awake before the alarm even had a chance to go off, my body stirring on its own as if it already knew sleep would be pointless. Curiosity sat heavy on my chest, louder than any ringing clock could have been. No matter how hard I tried to lie still, my thoughts kept circling back to one thing, replaying Thorne’s words over and over until they felt carved into my mind.I rolled onto my side, staring ahead, unable to shake the urge pulling at me. Whoever this daughter was, whoever Thorne claimed to have found, must be me.The night before hadn’t offered answers, only questions, and they followed me into the early hours, refusing to loosen their grip.By the time I finally sat up, fully awake, there was no trace of sleep left in me. I wasn’t tired. I wasn’t calm. I was waiting. Waiting to see the truth he spoke of, waiting to see the daughter Thorne said he found.“Are you curious if it's you?” Killian as
Isla’s POV Killian came back without warning, jacket already half off, sleeves rolled like he’d peeled himself out of the world just to get back to me. I was still pretending to be annoyed when he stopped in front of me, eyes dragging over me slowly, like he was cataloguing proof that I was real and still here.“You’re smiling,” he said.“I’m not.”He reached out anyway, hooked a finger under my chin, tipped my face up just enough to make lying pointless. “You do this thing when you’re pretending you’re mad. Right here.” His thumb brushed the corner of my mouth. “It gives you away every time.”I swatted his hand. He caught my wrist easily, tugged me forward, and suddenly I was against him, my palms flat on his chest, feeling the steady certainty of him beneath my hands.“You disappeared,” I said.“I came back,” he replied, immediate, firm, like that was the only part that mattered.He leaned his foreh
Liam’s POV After what felt like forever trapped inside the car, watching time crawl instead of move, I finally saw the front door open. Daphne stepped out first, keys already in hand, Tasha close behind her, laughing about something I couldn’t hear. Mia followed last.They moved together toward Daphne’s car. I stayed where I was, engine off, watching. Daphne unlocked the doors, Tasha slid into the passenger seat, and Mia leaned in through the window to say something that made them both grin.Then the doors shut, the engine came alive, and the car rolled down the street.Mia stood there alone.I waited until the car disappeared completely, until the street returned to stillness, before opening my door. I stepped out slowly, dipping my hand into my jacket out of habit more than intention, and walked toward her.She turned when she heard my footsteps.“I hope I’m not the one stopping you from going out with them,







