Semua Bab DEAR EX, I AM YOUR UNCLE'S MATE: Bab 41 - Bab 50

“I don’t need your help,” I said, my voice shaking despite my efforts to remain calm. “But I need to stop Elijah.”Damian’s eyes softened, the tension between us shifting as he stepped closer. “Then let me help you. I know how Elijah thinks. I can get you inside before he sets his plan in motion.”I stared at him, my chest tightening. There was a part of me that wanted to turn him away, to reject any offer of help from someone who had once been my greatest enemy. But there was another part of me—a quieter, more desperate part—that knew I couldn’t do this alone. Elijah was too far gone. And if what Damian said was true, we didn’t have time for pride.“Fine,” I said, my voice barely above a whisper. “But if you betray me—”“I won’t,” Damian cut in, his gaze steady. “Not this time.”I didn’t respond. I couldn’t. The words hung between us like a fragile thread, too delicate to examine, too dangerous to trust. But I had made my choice.The council hall loomed ahead, its darkened stone wal

“Elijah, it’s over,” I said, my voice steady even though my heart was racing.His smile widened, something dark flickering behind his eyes. “You keep saying that, Annabel. But if it were really over, you wouldn’t still be standing in front of me, trying to save something that’s already broken.”He stepped forward, slow, calculated, and I held my ground. I could hear the wolves shifting around us, Kara and Zane just out of my line of sight, waiting for the moment to strike. But this wasn’t about them anymore. This was between Elijah and me.“You’ve destroyed enough,” I said, my grip tightening around my blade. “The pack can’t survive under your rule. You know that.”Elijah tilted his head, his smile fading. “You think I care about the pack? About wolves who have betrayed me over and over again? You don’t understand, do you? I’m not here to lead. I’m here to end it.”My chest tightened. This was exactly what Damian had warned me about. Elijah didn’t care about power—he wanted to destroy

“You’re just going to let him go?” Kara’s voice cut through the silence, laced with frustration and disbelief.I felt the weight of her gaze but didn’t turn to meet it. My eyes stayed on the spot where Elijah had been led away, disappearing into the darkness. “It’s over, Kara. There’s no point in dragging this out any longer.”She moved in front of me, her expression fierce, refusing to let me brush her off. “So that’s it? After everything he’s done, after the way he used you and manipulated the entire pack, you’re just going to let him walk away?”My hands clenched at my sides, anger simmering beneath the surface. “What would you have me do, Kara?” I demanded, my voice sharper than I intended. “Kill him? That won’t bring back the lives he destroyed. It won’t undo the damage he caused.”Kara’s eyes narrowed, defiance flickering in her gaze. “Maybe not. But it would make a statement. It would show the pack that you’re strong enough to stand up to him, that you won’t let him walk away af

“Annabel, you’ve lost control.”Zane’s voice was like a slap, sharp and unexpected. He blocked my path the moment I stepped out of the meeting hall, his eyes blazing with accusation.I tensed, arms crossing defensively. “Excuse me?” I didn’t try to hide the edge in my voice, but his words had already struck home. Deep.“You heard me,” he shot back, his stare unflinching. “The pack’s divided, and you’re standing there pretending like it isn’t. You’ve been too focused on—” He hesitated, his eyes narrowing. “On things that don’t matter.”A surge of anger flared in my chest. “Things that don’t matter?” My voice sharpened, cutting through the tension. “I’ve done nothing but try to hold us together! You think that’s easy?”“What I think,” Zane said, stepping closer, his voice dropping to a dangerous tone, “is that you’ve forgotten what it means to lead.”His words twisted in my gut, but I swallowed the hurt. “And what would you have me do, Zane? Elijah’s influence still hangs over us, and y

“I know what you’re hiding, Annabel.”The rogue’s voice sliced through the quiet like a dagger, sharp and precise. I froze mid-step, my heart skipping a beat. I turned slowly, and there he was—leaning casually against a tree, his eyes glinting with a dark certainty.I forced my voice to stay steady. “And what exactly do you think you know?”He pushed off the tree with a smirk, the movement slow and deliberate, like he was savoring every second of this. “You think the pack hasn’t noticed? How you’re struggling to keep control? They’re already starting to see through your act.”I swallowed the flicker of anger rising in my chest, fighting to keep my composure. “You don’t know a thing about me, or this pack.”“Don’t I?” He raised an eyebrow, his smirk deepening. “You’ve been trying so hard to bury Elijah’s legacy, but his grip is still around your throat. And they all feel it—every single one of them.”His words hit a nerve, but I refused to let it show. “Elijah’s gone. His power over th