Rylan’s POV
The drive back to Frostbane was heavy with silence.
I sat in the back of the black SUV with Lisa leaning against me. Her head rested lightly on my shoulder. Her hair spilled across my chest. Normally, I would have wrapped my arms around her and breathed her in. Normally, I would have felt that familiar hum in my chest. I would have felt the soft presence of Sierra
brushing against mine. But tonight, there was nothing.
Nothing but emptiness.
Avarok, my wolf, growled inside me. She feels wrong.
I pressed my lips together. My hand twitched where it rested on her arm. Her skin was cool. Too cool.”
Lisa?” I whispered, just loud enough for her to hear.
She tilted her face up. Her lips curved into that soft and strange smile again. “Yes, Rylan?”
“Can you… call Sierra?” I asked, my voice tight. “I can’t feel her.”
”
For a moment, she just looked at me. Then she blinked slowly, as though the question confused her. “Oh. I’m just tired,” she said lightly. “She’s sleeping, that’s all.”
Avarok snarled. That’s not right. Wolves don’t just sleep like this.
I felt my chest tighten. “She’s never been this quiet before,” I murmured.
Lisa reached out and patted my chest almost absently. “You worry too much. I’m here. That should be enough.”
The words sounded wrong. Not like her at all. Lisa was shy, nervous and always stumbling over her feelings. She would never say something so… polished.
I forced a small smile, though my unease deepened. “Yeah,” I said softly. “Enough.”
But it wasn’t. Not for me.
When we reached Frostbane, the mansion loomed ahead, its tall spires glowing faintly under the moonlight. Guards opened the gates quickly, their eyes darting to the second car where Kael’s men followed close behind.
1 clenched my jaw. Why was he still here?
As soon as the cars stopped, Kael climbed out. His chest was still bare and streaked with drying blood, but his brown eyes were sharp as ever. He looked at Lisa the moment she stepped out, and I caught the flicker of his gaze. He was looking at her hungrily as if he was lusting for her.
I moved fast, putting my arm around her shoulders. “She’s staying with me,” I said flatly.
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Kael didn’t argue. He only dipped his head slightly, but his eyes didn’t leave her. “I’ll remain here until I’m
certain the threat has passed,” he said. His voice was steady but hard. “Fenric is moving pieces we don’t see. If Lisa is in danger, I’ll be here.”
The muscles in my jaw locked. “She’s safe here. With me.”
For a moment, we stood toe–to–toe. Two Alphas, both unwilling to step back. The night air between us
crackled with tension.
Lisa broke it. She gave a soft laugh and touched my arm. “Please, don’t fight. We’ve had enough battles for one night.”
Her voice was calm….too calm. And then she glanced at Kael, just a glance, but her lips curved faintly in a small smile.
Something inside me twisted. That was not Lisa. Lisa would have looked away. She would have been flustered, red–faced, maybe even angry. But calm? Smiling at Kael? No.
Still, I led her inside, ignoring the strange weight pressing on my chest.
Later, after Kael and his warriors were shown to the guest wing, I brought Lisa upstairs to my room.
It should have felt like relief. She was safe. She was here. But my heart was unsettled.
I closed the door behind us and turned to her. The firelight cast her face in soft gold. She moved gracefully
to the edge of the bed and sat down, her back straight, her hands folded neatly in her lap.
I watched her closely. That wasn’t how Lisa sat. She usually curled into herself, fiddled with her hair,
hugged a pillow. But now… she sat like a queen on a throne.
I stepped closer. “You’re quiet,” I murmured.
She tilted her head. “Do you want me to talk?”
The answer was strange and detached. I forced a small smile and sat beside her. “You don’t usually need
me to ask. You ramble when you’re nervous. Or when I tease you.”
She blinked at me, then laughed softly. “Do I?”
My chest tightened. “You don’t remember?”
Her gaze slid away. “The battle… it blurred things. Maybe I’ve forgotten some moments. But that is not important now, is it?”
I searched her face. Something in me screamed that she wasn’t telling the truth.
I reached out and brushed her hair back. “I remember every moment with you,” I whispered. “Like the night
I found you in the forest. You were so scared… but you still looked at me with fire in your eyes.”
She looked at me blankly. For a breath, there was no recognition. Then she forced a smile. “Yes. That was … a special night.”
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* Chapte 12
The hollowness in her tone cut me like a blade.
Avarok growled inside me. That’s not Lisa. That’s not her scent, not her voice, not her wolf.
But what other answer could there be?
I tried to push the unease aside. I pulled her gently into my arms. “Rest. You need sleep.”
25 Points
She let me hold her, but her body felt stiff. Not melting into me like before. Not trembling with shy warmth.
Just… still.
I kissed the top of her head. I was hoping that something would feel familiar. It didn’t.
“I love you,” I whispered.
She paused. Then she answered. She was perfectly calm. “I love you too.”
The words should have filled me with joy. Instead, they sent a chill down my spine.
Hours passed. I finally drifted into sleep with her in my arms. But Avarok stirred restlessly. His growls echoed in my head. Wake up. Something is wrong.
My eyes flew open.
The fire had burned low. Shadows flickered across the walls. My arms were empty.
Lisa was gone.
I bolted upright, my heart slamming in my chest. The sheets were cold where she had been. The door
stood slightly ajar, swaying as if touched moments ago.
Avarok roared inside me. She’s not safe. Find her. NOW.
I didn’t even stop to grab a shirt. I stormed toward the door. My wolf was raging and my gut was twisting with fear.
Where had she gone?
And worse… was the girl I had held tonight even Lisa at all?
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