I Kissed The Supreme Alpha By Mistake
I prompted gently.
"But I understand now, hearing this directly, that accepting manipulation—however unwitting—fundamentally undermines the very independence I claim to champion," Vane said, genuine discomfort evident. "If my movement exists only through external vampire faction manipulation, it's not authentic rogue independence at all. It's simply trading one form of dependency for another, considerably less transparent form."
Marcus, listening carefully throughout, finally spoke. "I appreciate your honesty, Kellan. Genuinely. This couldn't have been easy to acknowledge."