Chapter 372
In a blur of motion, Dallas was on his feet, his hand closing around my wrist. His grip was firm, his skin burning against mine.
“No,” he commanded, his eyes flashing with the gold of his wolf. “He is unstable, Adelia. My beast is clawing at my ribs, demanding I tear his throat out for raising his voice at you. You are not going out there.”
I looked up at him, meeting his fierce gaze without flinching. “I need to finish this, Dallas. Not for him — for me. If I don’t end this cycle today, he will haunt us forever. I need to be the one to close the door.”
Dallas searched my face, his jaw working as he fought his instincts. He saw something in my eyes — perhaps the Luna I was becoming. Slowly, reluctantly, his grip loosened.
“Five minutes,” he said, his voice dropping to a low, dangerous growl. “If I see even a flicker of fear on your face when you come back — if he so much as breathes on you wrong — I will tear him apart. Deal or no deal.”
“I won’t be afraid,” I whispered.
I pulled my hand free and turned toward the open doors, walking out into the dying light to face the ghost of my past one last time.
Adelia
The garden was a graveyard of memories.
Once, this place had been manicured to perfection, a testament to the Hyde family’s wealth. Now the rose bushes were overgrown, their thorns sharp and untended, choking the life from the few remaining blooms. The air was thick with damp earth and rotting leaves, heavy with the humidity of an approaching storm.
I found Braydon by the old iron swing set at the edge of the property. The metal was rusted, shedding flakes of orange paint like dried blood. He sat on one of the swings with his head in his hands, shoulders shaking.
He smelled wrong.
An Alpha’s scent is usually crisp — pine, musk, something commanding. But Braydon’s had soured, curdled by the acrid tang of desperation and fear. It made my nose wrinkle.
“You came,” he whispered without looking up.
“I told you I would,” I said, stopping a few feet away. I didn’t want to get any closer. I glanced at my watch, its face glowing faintly in the dying light. Five minutes. That was all I had. Dallas was waiting, and I knew he was counting every second.
Braydon stood abruptly, the chains of the swing rattling. His eyes were red-rimmed and wild. “He bought us, Adella. He bought my pack. He bought my father. And now he thinks he’s bought you.”
“Dallas didn’t buy me,” I said calmly. “He saved you. He saved your family from ruin.”
“Saved?” Braydon let out a bitter laugh and stepped closer. “He’s a monster. A Lycan beast who uses his power to take whatever he wants. He didn’t win you, Adella. He branded you. That bond isn’t love — it’s a leash.”
“Stop it,” I said, my voice firm. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”