Mag-log inBlade’s comforting smile lingered a second too long. That was when Scarlet knew ...really knew ...that something about it was wrong.It wasn’t warm anymore. It felt rehearsed. Plastic. Like a mask glued too tight to his face.She shifted subtly, creating space between them, her shoulders angling away as if her body had decided fuck this before her mind could fully catch up. She forced a smile anyway, the kind women learned early ...polite, harmless, non-threatening.“When do I return to the Lycan’s mansion?” she asked lightly, wiping the last of her tears with the back of her hand. “There’s a lot to be done. Finding the killer shouldn’t be dragged out here. It should happen there.”Blade’s response was immediate. Too immediate.“No.”The word hit sharp.Her wolf snarled softly inside her skull.Blade straightened, his tone firm, clipped. “It’s risky. You shouldn’t go back there yet. Leave everything to me.”Scarlet smirked ...just for a second ...before forcing her face smooth again.
“This was a favour,” Mira said coldly.Then she paused, just long enough to twist the knife deeper. “A final one.”Scarlet felt it hit...harder than any slap.“Whatever you’re fighting,” Mira added, voice low and distant, “fight it without me.” The words sank into Scarlet’s chest like poisoned hooks. She stood there, frozen, mouth slightly open, like a fucking idiot who hadn’t seen the punch coming.Mira didn’t even look back. She just walked away, boots crunching against gravel...like Scarlet had never mattered enough to hesitate for and that… that hurt more than Scarlet wanted to admit.Her throat tightened. Her wolf whimpered, curling inward like a wounded thing. "Why does it hurt this fucking much?" she asked herself bitterly. "Aren’t I supposed to be the angry one?"Wasn’t she supposed to be furious at Mira for fucking Grey? For choosing him? For moving on while Scarlet’s life was collapsing into blood and betrayal and madness?Instead, she felt hollow and abandoned. Left behind
Scarlet didn’t breathe because the air in her lungs felt too loud.She pressed herself harder against the cold marble wall outside Mama G’s chamber, the shadows swallowing her whole. Her heart slammed against her ribs like it wanted to betray her too, like it wanted to scream run.Inside the room, voices carried. “I wanted it quick,” Zeta’s voice snapped, sharp as broken glass. “Clean simple and a peaceful fucking death for my that old hag.”Scarlet’s stomach dropped.Mama G hummed softly, unbothered. “Pain is sometimes necessary, child.”Zeta laughed. A mockery.“You made it so painful,” Zeta continued. “He almost survived. If I hadn’t interfered, he might’ve lived long enough to try to find the murderers of his favourite daughter, Ruby.”Scarlet’s fingers dug into her palm so hard she felt skin tear. Her pulse roared in her ears.Then another voice joined in...male voice. “I’ve wanted that old bastard dead for years,” Thane said casually, like he was discussing weather. “Stingy fuck
Blade’s question hung in the air like a loaded gun.“And what is this sudden desire to get a man,” he asked calmly, his voice low, controlled, dangerous, “if I may ask, Mrs. Lycan… or should I just call you Scarlet?”The swing creaked beneath Scarlet’s weight.Her fingers tightened around the rusted chain, knuckles whitening as her eyes slowly lifted to meet his. There was no softness in her gaze now, only steel wrapped in exhaustion. She felt it in her bones, the weariness she never allowed herself to show.“I do not think it is your job to question my orders, Blade.” The words were sharp, clean and final.Blade did not flinch. He did not bow or apologize. He only nodded once, his jaw tightening like a man swallowing something bitter.“Yes, ma’am.”Scarlet hated silence. It gave memories room to breathe. It let ghosts whisper. It let names surface that she would rather choke on than say aloud.Ronan.Her wolf stirred uneasily."I have not heard from him," Scarlet thought, the realiza
Scarlet gasped, the sound ripping out of her chest like something had torn loose. “You told me yourself,” she said, voice shaking now, no longer calm, no longer controlled. “You told me Grey was just playing around. You said he wasn’t worth shit. You said...” Her throat tightened. “What would it have cost you, Mira, to just tell me you were crushing on him?”Mira rolled her eyes so hard it was almost violent. Her lips twisted into something ugly, something bitter that had been fermenting for years. “And how exactly would I have told you?” Mira snapped. “When you walk around like you’re the main fucking character of the universe and the rest of us are just… background noise?”Scarlet flinched. “What?” Her voice came out small despite her effort. “How dare you say that. I treated you like my sister.”Mira laughed...sharp, humorless, cruel.“Lies.” The word hit Scarlet harder than a slap.“You treated me like your designer handbag,” Mira continued, stepping closer, her voice rising. “Som
The corridor outside Scarlet’s old dorm smelled the same...cheap disinfectant, damp stone, and memories that refused to die.Her boots slowed the closer she got to the door. Blade walked a step behind her, silent as a shadow, his presence heavy. He had that look again...the one that meant he already knew things but was choosing not to speak yet.“This room,” Blade said quietly, breaking the silence, “was never reassigned.”Scarlet didn’t look at him.“Why?” Her voice was calm, too calm.Blade hesitated. “Because Mira personally made sure it stayed empty.”That finally made Scarlet stop. She let out a short laugh...sharp, bitter, and ugly. “How thoughtful of her.”The dorm door stared back at her like a locked mouth. Scarlet tried the handle. It was locked.For a second, something flickered in her eyes. Hope? Expectation?Then it shattered. “She didn’t expect me,” Scarlet murmured, more to herself than to Blade.The laugh that followed was louder...broken, hollow. Pain dressed as humor







