جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 20

May life forever guide me away from those unworthy of my heart.Friends who once claimed to love my son proved themselves false when their words turned selfish. They behaved like tantrum children, wounded only because I would not take their advice. Advice that, if followed, would have given his father leverage.Leverage to expose my son. To put him in danger. To take him from me.So I disregarded them. I ignored every suggestion, every so-called concern, and did what I knew in my heart was right—what I had always done. I provided for my son myself. I gave him what he needed, not what others thought would make their own conscience lighter.Yes, it hurt them. Yes, it made them turn on me. But if wounding their pride meant keeping my boy safe, I would do it all over again. Without hesitation.Because no pain compares to losing him. And if I could have spared his life, kept him in my arms, away from anyone who would side with that man—I would have bled myself dry for it.That sacrifice was

“She has her own floor, her own things, and her own money,” Alek said firmly. “She does her job, but she doesn’t sleep with me. I have never slept with anyone in my life—besides sharing a bed with my parents when I had nightmares as a child. Whoever told you otherwise… they weren’t speaking about me.”His tone was absolute, but I didn’t believe him. Alpha Alek had been spotted with women before, countless times, rumors whispered through headlights and shadowed corners. How could a man as attractive as him claim innocence?And me? I wasn’t a virgin either. I knew what people were capable of when desire led them. His words sounded like pretty vows, but to me they weren’t truth—just another line meant to soothe.There were no more tears left for him. No more tears for anyone still trying to force me to open myself to be used, to be fucked, in any way, shape, or form.I was about to snap back when he added, his voice steady but softer, like he needed me to hear it clearly:“I’ve been seen

The plans I had made went straight down the drain before I could even begin them. But at least I learned where my mate stands. I should have known better—these things will only work when she feels ready, not when I decide the timing.I thought I could help her now. I was wrong. And I won’t make it her fault. It isn’t.What I did want to do, however, was punch my twin in the face for laughing at her pain. I should have known he would fuck it up—just like always. Some things never change, no matter what decade we’re in.The pack members already know who she is. They know she’s being treated like a Luna, even if I had to command them not to ask why. They listened, but I could feel the unease in my bond with them—an unspoken weight, as though they thought I was hiding something. Which I am. The curse demands it.I gave them a raise in return, something to lift their spirits, but my thoughts lingered on Lyra’s report.Michail was still hurting herself with her grief, still wishing to join

Ryan moved away quickly, like he’d almost taken the bait of my playful attack. Alek, ever the gentleman, shut off the jeep and walked around to open my door.The cold hit me first when I stepped out, sharp against my cheeks, but then I caught sight of my neighbor. She waved, her curvy frame disappearing back into her house in a hurry—just as the moving truck pulled up in front of my home.I froze.Of course, the entire neighborhood knew about the murder. They all knew about my son. They all knew about me. And yet, here I was—standing again in front of the wreckage of what had once been my life.But there was a shift in me this time.The knowledge that I wasn’t locked away in some institution… but instead living under the roof of the pack house, with my Alpha… it gave me something I hadn’t felt in weeks. A fragile thread of confidence.Even if part of me still whispered how tempting it would be to disappear, to shut the world out, to hide away from all this heartbreak and devastation.

I’ll kill them all for the shit they keep putting me and my fated mate through.It was only a matter of time before they figured out I wasn’t from this pack—but neither is half of Michail’s family. They promised her to me when she was still a teenager. Promised me the cursed one. Promised me power.And she ruined everything. Every step, every choice, she disobeyed me. She destroyed the life that should have been ours.Being locked in this fucking cell, I can feel the walls closing in. If my mate finds out I’m rotting here instead of doing my job—lowering defenses, letting our spies through the cracks—I’ll be the one paying the price.Ryan—or Dahynael, whatever smug name he goes by—already knows too much. He sniffed out that Doniel isn’t real, that I don’t belong here. How, I don’t know, but I can see it gnawing at him.He thinks he’s stronger. And maybe he is. But I’m Alpha-blood. Rogues taught me to survive when we lost our lands to his family’s line. That blood runs hotter than his.