Semua Bab Ruined by my Bully Stepbrother: Bab 41 - Bab 50

Theodora's POVI could not stop reading the ritual details. My hands shook as I turned each page. The words swam together but certain phrases stood out. Silver wolf essence. Power transfer. Blood sacrifice. Immortality. Richard planned to use my blood during the full moon. Planned to drain me somehow. Extract whatever made me special. Whatever genetic marker my father had discovered all those years ago.He was going to kill me.The realization hit like a physical blow. I stumbled backward. Grabbed the edge of the desk to keep from falling. Richard Henderson was going to murder me in three days. And he had orchestrated my entire life to make it happen. Had married my mother. Had brought us into his home. Had positioned me exactly where he needed me for this ritual.Nate snatched the papers from my hands. Read through them quickly. His face went white. Then red. His eyes flashed bright gold and I heard bones start to crack. He was shifting. Losing control."Nate, no." Marcus grabbed his

 Theodora's POV I sat on the couch in Marcus's apartment staring at my phone. The text from Nate glowed on the screen. Emergency. Richard is moving up the timeline. Tomorrow night. My hands would not stop shaking. Tomorrow night. Less than twenty-four hours. I had less than twenty-four hours before Richard tried to murder me in some twisted ritual. Marcus paced back and forth across the living room. Jake sat beside me looking grim. Neither of them had said much since the text came through. What was there to say? We were out of time. Out of options. Out of luck. "We need to call the Pack Alpha," Marcus said finally. "Right now. Show him the evidence. Richard cannot be allowed to do this." "Nate already said no." I kept my voice steady even though everything inside me was screaming. "The Alpha is old. Sick. Richard has been positioning himself to take over for years. We do not know who we

 Nate's POV The silence in Marcus's apartment was deafening. Mila stood there staring at Dora and me with those calculating Alpha eyes. She knew. Somehow she knew that Dora was my mate. That we had bonded. That everything about our arranged marriage was now impossible. "Nate, I am waiting for an explanation." Mila crossed her arms. "Why does your human stepsister smell like she is bonded to you?" I looked at Dora. Felt her fear through the mate bond. She was terrified of what would happen when the truth came out. Terrified that Mila would use her Alpha authority to tear us apart. But hiding it was pointless now. Mila could smell the bond. Could see it in the way we stood together. "Because she is my mate," I said. Kept my voice steady. "Dora is my true mate. The bond formed the day we met." Mila's expression did not change but I saw something flicker in her eyes. Sur

 Theodora's POV The council chamber fell silent. Every werewolf in the room stared at Richard waiting for his answer. I watched his face carefully. Saw the micro-expressions that flashed across it before he could control them. Panic. Rage. Calculation. Then the mask slammed back into place. "Thomas Steele was a colleague as I said." Richard's voice was calm. Measured. "We worked together on pack documentation projects. His death was tragic but natural. He had an undiagnosed heart condition. It took him suddenly." "That is not what the autopsy report said." I pulled printed copies of the emails from my bag. The ones Jake had found buried in Richard's encrypted files. "These emails show you discussing my father with Vincent. Discussing how to eliminate the obstacle. That obstacle was my father." I handed the papers to Mila. She distributed them to the council members. Watched their faces a

 Theodora's POV I heard commotion outside my door. Shouting. Then silence. Too much silence. My heart hammered against my ribs. I grabbed the only weapon I could find which was a pathetic table lamp and positioned myself behind the bed. If someone was coming to hurt me I would at least go down fighting. The door burst open. I raised the lamp ready to swing. Then I saw Marcus and Jake standing there with Nate right behind them. Relief flooded through me so intense I almost dropped the lamp. "We are getting you out of here," Nate said. Moved straight to me. Pulled me into his arms. "Are you okay? Did they hurt you?" "No. I am fine. Just scared." I buried my face in his chest. Breathed in his scent. The mate bond sang with relief at being close to him again. "What about the guards?" "Drugged," Marcus said. "We do not have much time before someone notices. We need to mov