Lisa’s POV
I turned slowly. My entire body was locked with fear. Fenric stood in the center of the room. Tha shadows were clinging to him like they belonged there. He didn’t speak at first. He just stared at me, and the silence pressed in like walls.
My heart was pounding so loud I was sure he could hear it. I felt like a rabbit caught in the wolf’s gaze. My fingers trembled at my sides. I had no idea how long he had been standing
there.
How did he get in without a sound? I hadn’t heard the doorknob turn. I hadn’t heard footsteps. There was nothing.
Sierra? I whispered in my mind.
I don’t know how he did that, she replied. But it wasn’t normal. Be careful.
Fenric’s voice cut through the thick silence. “What are you doing here, Lisa?”
I couldn’t answer. My mouth opened, but no words came out. I took a shaky step back.
He stepped forward.
I backed away again, bumping into the desk behind me.
Then he knelt down slowly and picked up the photographs I had dropped. His long fingers brushed over the edges like they were delicate glass. He didn’t seem angry. He didn’t yell. He just looked at the pictures and then back at me.
“So,” he said softly. “You found these.”
I swallowed. My throat felt dry and raw.
“Why do you have pictures of my mother?” I managed to say. My voice was barely more than a whisper. “And of me as a baby?”
Fenric stood. He still held the photos. “I knew your mother,” he said. “She was my good friend.”
He took another step forward.
I took another back.
“You look just like her when she was young,” he added, his voice tinged with something soft.
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Chapter 90
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Regret? Sadness? “It’s a pity she died so young.”
My stomach twisted. Something didn’t feel right.
If you were really her friend, I thought, why didn’t you tell me the moment we met?
I lifted my chin. “Why didn’t you say anything before?” I asked. “You should have told me the first day. That you knew her. That you were close.”
Fenric sighed. “I didn’t want to overwhelm you.”
I frowned. “What do you mean?”
He looked at the photo one last time before gently placing it back on the desk. Then he turned his full attention to me.
“Katherine told me,” he said, “about what happened with your last pack. About the boy you loved. How he had broken your heart and betrayed you. Alexandra spoke of it, and Katherine was worried about your emotional state. I wanted to give you time to feel safe here. To settle
in.”
His eyes met mine. “I didn’t want to throw more at you while you were still healing.”
He sounded so sincere.
But my gut twisted tighter.
Sierra, I murmured. What do you think?
He’s lying, she said flatly. I can feel it.
I stayed quiet for a moment. Then I took a deep breath.
“How did my mother die?” I asked.
Fenric’s eyes darkened. “Her husband, Aaron, killed her.”
The words hit me like a slap.
“What?”
“She found out he was cheating on her with another woman,” Fenric continued, his voice cold now. “She threatened to expose him to her father, the Alpha. Aaron lost control. He killed her in a fit of rage. And then he set fire to the entire pack to hide what he had done.”
I couldn’t breathe. My knees felt weak.
“I thought you had died in that fire,” Fenric said, watching me carefully. “When I saw you at
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Shadowrune, I couldn’t believe it. You looked so much like Althea. That’s when I knew. You were her daughter. You were alive.”
He stepped closer. “But I didn’t say anything right away because I wanted to give you time. Time to get over your heartbreak. Time to settle. And then I would tell you everything.”
I shook my head slowly.
Sierra… I said.
He’s lying, she said again. In the vision we saw with the Seer, Aaron loved Althea deeply. There was no other woman. There was no anger and no betrayal. He held her like she was his
whole world.
I knew it too. Deep down. Fenric’s words didn’t match the truth in my heart.
And he still hadn’t mentioned the tattoo.
The same one he had.
The same one I had.
He was hiding something.
Something big.
“I don’t understand,” I said quietly. “If you really cared about my mother, why did you hide all of this? Why did you lock the photos away?”
Fenric smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes.
“Because you are like a daughter to me now,” he said. “Althea was like a sister. I would protect you as I would my own blood. You don’t need to be afraid here. You don’t need to keep secrets.”
I stared at him.
But you do, I thought.
He checked the time and sighed. “Oh, I’m running late for my meeting. I had only come back because I forgot something.”
He moved to the drawer and pulled out a black folder. I saw him glance at the table. The key I had stolen earlier was gone. He must have found it.
He didn’t mention it.
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He looked at me. “Come,” he said. “Katherine mentioned she wanted to give you a tour of the
mansion.”
I hesitated, then nodded. I followed him out of the room. My legs were stiff.
My heart felt like it had been scraped raw.
He hadn’t yelled. He hadn’t scolded me. He hadn’t punished me.
He hadn’t said anything about the key.
He had just smiled, lied and acted like everything was fine.
But it wasn’t.
It was far from fine.
Sierra whispered, We are in danger. He’s playing a game and we don’t know the rules. Be
careful.
I nodded faintly. I was trying hard to keep my face neutral as we walked down the hall together. My mind was spinning.
What was the truth?
Who was Fenric really?
And what else was he hiding?
