جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 50

My hands shake as I start the car.The engine rumbles to life with a familiar sound, but everything else is off. Different. As if the world tipped on its axis while I was sitting in that bar, and I'm the only one who noticed."The curse is a trap. Breaking it will bind your life to his. If either of you dies, the other follows."I grip the steering wheel hard enough my knuckles turn white, trying to hold on to something solid. The parking lot is almost empty, just a few cars scattering the ground under the screaming brightness of streetlights. Ordinary. Everything looks so painfully, ruinously ordinary.But nothing is ordinary now.I was already on the main road, heading back toward the woods. Toward Kael and the pack and a battle I'm in no shape for. The city lights blur across my windows as I try to force my thoughts into something coherent.Rebekah's words echo in my mind. "She knew an Alpha like your werewolf would come searching for an Empath one day. And she made sure that when

Kael doesn't say anything for a really long time, his expression distant in a manner that I've never seen. When he finally speaks, his tone is laced with past wounds."Dexter is seven years older than I am. By the time I was old enough to understand what was happening, he was already an issue our father couldn't resolve."I collapse onto the couch, aware this is going to take a while. Kael remains at the window, looking out into the darkness."Our father was the leader of the Draven pack. Respected, old-fashioned, intensely devoted to the Council that keeps packs and humans at peace." His jaw tightens. "He believed in order, hierarchy, rules that had lasted for centuries. And Dexter defied them all.""What do you mean?""I mean he liked destroying everything our dad built." Kael appears, coming closer to me. "From the time he was a teenager, Dexter was violent. Not the contained rage you possess naturally as a werewolf, but something nastier. More sinister. He'd fight wolves twice his

"We should try to have a normal day tomorrow," I say to him, the words almost laughable after everything we just discussed. "Or as normal as things can be given the situation."Kael's expression eases a little, some of the strain easing from his shoulders. "Normal. I don't think I know what that is, but yeah, we should.""Well, we could start with breakfast. Actual breakfast, not whatever protein bar or leftover meat special you wolves have a taste for." I try to maintain a smile on my face. "Maybe a walk that does not involve examination of territory borders or discussion of supernatural politics.""That sounds..."The door slams open.Marcus stumbles in, wheezing, his face pale. Behind him, two other pack members half-drag something between them, wrapped in what looks like an old tarp."Alpha," Marcus exhales. "We discovered this on the northern border."Kael leaps to his feet in a flash, every fiber of his body bracing itself. "Found what?"The two wolves lay their burden on the gr

"Don't. Don't sit there like we're sharing a drink and reminiscing."Dexter slips into the chair anyway, that infuriating grin never wavering. "But we are catching up, don't we? Three years? You've changed. Grown a beard. Been cursed. Acquired an Empath. Very eventful three years for you.""You poisoned Zara.""Technically, Marcus poisoned Zara. I just suggested it. I'm.. not the bad guy." He signals the bartender. "Whiskey, straight. And whatever my brother is having.""I'm not drinking with you.""Matters, not to me." The bartender brings Dexter's drink and he sips it slowly, savoring the flavor. "You know, this bar has excellent whiskey. Elena has a good sense of bars."The casual mention of her name makes me angry. "Leave her out of this.""I already warned her about your curse. So presumably saved her life. You may show a bit of appreciation." His silver eyes, which so closely resembled mine but were colder, bore in

Kael leads me to the small room off the main cabin, the one he has for private conversations when pack business gets too delicate to be handled in front of everyone. The walls are thick in this place, the room intimate in a way that makes everything feel heavier.He shuts the door and for a moment just stands there, his back to me, organizing his thoughts."What did Dexter mean?" I demand, unable to wait any longer. "About me owning something that's his?"Kael steps forward to confront me, his own face worried. "I've been trying to figure that out since he said it. Dexter doesn't make offhand comments. He has an agenda, layers.""So what on earth could I possibly own of his?""That's what's giving me the worry." He moves closer, his fingers extending to sweep a strand of hair out of my face. "He's been watching us. Watching you. For how long, I have no idea. But he's been within range that he knows things about your life, your locations."