All Chapters of The Wolfless Bride No One Wanted, Except the Alpha: Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

RURIKI felt him before Elira ever mentioned his name to me directly, a foreign, unwelcome presence pressing at the edges of the bond whenever she moved through the estate's public rooms.Dorian Scarlow smelled like ambition and desperation in equal measure, the kind of scent I'd learned to recognize on men who'd run out of good options and started looking for whatever they could scavenge instead.He'd spent the morning in Laron's study. Elira didn't know this yet, but I'd felt Laron's satisfaction ripple through the estate like a stone dropped in still water, and I'd learned enough over these months to recognize when my uncle was pleased about something specific.I pushed further into the bond, straining past the fog the sedation kept trying to bury me in, and caught fragments. Voices. Not clear enough to make out every word, but clear enough to understand the shape of the conversation.Money changing hands. Dorian's voice, eager in a way that made something in my chest curl with dis

RURIKThe bond carried Elira's distress to me before she ever formed a single coherent thought, a raw, unguarded wave of grief and confusion that hit me hard enough to make my own chest ache in sympathy.I couldn't reach her fully, not yet, the sedation too thick tonight to let me push words across the distance the way I had managed once before. But I could feel her, curled somewhere in this vast house, hurting in a way that made the wolf inside me pace and snarl with an urgency that had nothing to do with strategy.What happened, I tried, pushing the thought out weakly, hoping some fragment of it would land. Elira. What's wrong.Nothing came back clearly, just the raw ache of her emotions bleeding through the bond, unfiltered, unguarded in a way she rarely let herself be even in our clearest conversations.I lay there in the dark, furious at my own uselessness, furious at a body that wouldn't move no matter how desperately I willed it to, and let myself feel, for just a moment, every

ELIRANiar found me outside the medical wing an hour later, having slipped away from the chaos still gripping the rest of the estate."How is she?" Niar asked immediately."Stable, according to Dr. Aris. Barely." I kept my voice low, aware of the guards posted at the medical wing's entrance, close enough to overhear if we weren't careful. "But whatever happened to her, it wasn't natural. Rurik said it looked exactly like what was done to him."Niar's face went pale. "The same toxin?""I think so.""Why her, though?" Niar pressed. "Out of everyone at that audience, why would someone target Iris specifically?"I'd been asking myself the same question since the moment I'd knelt beside her convulsing body, and one memory kept surfacing, small and easy to dismiss on its own but suddenly impossible to ignore in this new light."A few days ago," I said slowly, "I saw her near the estate's records office. Late at night, when she should have been in her room like the rest of us. I didn't think

ELIRAThe announcement came two days after Iris's collapse, delivered with the same practiced warmth Laron always used when he wanted the estate to forget something uncomfortable had happened.A gala, he called it, a celebration of the narrowing candidate pool, an opportunity for the final five to be properly honored before the last selection ceremony. Masks would be provided, he explained, a nod to old pack tradition meant to add elegance and mystery to the evening.I recognized it immediately for what it actually was. A distraction, glittering and expensive enough to bury the memory of a girl convulsing on the Council chamber floor beneath layers of silk and candlelight and forced celebration."He's doing this to control the narrative," Niar said that evening, helping me into the plain servant's dress that had once again been assigned to me despite my continued place among the final candidates. "Make everyone remember tonight instead of what happened two days ago.""It's working," I

ELIRAThe ballroom had changed completely since I'd last seen it, and even dressed the way I was, I couldn't stop the small breath that caught in my throat when we stepped through the doors.Silver covered every surface. Candles multiplied through mirrors placed just so, throwing warm light across a sea of expensive silk and jewelry. A string quartet played something soft near the back wall, and servers moved through the crowd carrying trays of pastries and pale gold wine.Heads turned as we walked in. I felt every glance land on the gray wool covering me from collar to wrist. Whispers followed, quiet and quick, meant to be overheard just enough to sting without technically being rude.I kept my chin level and my shoulders back and refused to let my steps slow down.Naya was already holding court near the center of the room, laughing at something one of the Council elders had said, her hand resting lightly on his arm. She caught my eye and gave me a small satisfied smile before turnin