Chapter 224
Denial
Lennox’s POV
“No!” I growled, my voice breaking, pain pouring out from my chest. My wolf’s cry mixed with mine, echoing through the trees in pure agony.
I dropped to my knees and pulled her headless body into my arms. Blood was still dripping from her neck, soaking into the earth beneath us—but I didn’t care. I held her tightly, rocking back and forth, refusing to let go.
“This can’t be real…” I whispered. “It’s a dream… just a nightmare. I’ll wake up. I have to wake up.”
But her scent filled my nose.
It was her.
Olivia.
That soft, warm scent of nutmeg mixed with honey I knew better than my own. It clung to her dress, to her skin… even now.
I looked down at the body again, and my eyes moved to the head lying next to it.
My chest squeezed painfully.
It was her face.
Olivia’s face.
Peaceful, eyes closed like she was sleeping. Her lips slightly parted.
I knew that face. I had kissed that face. I had watched her smile, cry, scream…
And the dress she wore—I knew it. I had seen it on her before.
It was really her.
“Olivia…” I whispered, my voice shaking. “Please wake up…”
Then I heard a scream behind me.
It was Louis.
He pointed, panicking. “Levi! Lennox—look at Levi!”
I turned fast—and my heart dropped again.
Levi had fallen flat on the grass. His mouth opened and closed like he was trying to breathe, but no sound came out.
His hands clawed at his chest. He was gasping, eyes wide and terrified.
“Levi!” I shouted, rushing to him and grabbing his shoulders. “Breathe! Please, breathe! Don’t do this!”
Tears filled my eyes again.
Louis dropped beside us, also shouting his name.
I held Levi tightly, trying to ground him, trying to pull him back.
His body shook, then after a few seconds, his breathing came back in short, painful gasps. He clutched my shirt as he sobbed, hard and loud, like the sound was tearing out of his soul.
“She’s gone…” he cried. “She’s really gone…”
I couldn’t speak.
I turned my head slowly toward her body again and shook my head… I refused to believe it… I refused to believe that my Olivia was gone…
I refused to believe this is her… no… it must be some kind of trick… it’s a trick… it has to be.
I let go of Levi and rushed back to her body.
I dropped to my knees and leaned closer. My hands trembled as I touched her arm again. It was cold—so cold. The blood was still warm, but her skin was ice.
Her scent still clung to the fabric of her dress. That same nutmeg and honey that always made me feel calm…
But this time, it didn’t.
This time, it made me sick.
I looked at the dress again—yes, I remembered it. She wore it before. But as I stared harder, something felt… off.
Yes, the body was hers.
Yes, the scent was hers.
But something was wrong.
I couldn’t explain it, not even to myself. My wolf was in pain, howling inside me like someone had ripped him apart—but a small voice, deep in my gut, whispered something different.
Something didn’t feel right.
I looked at the head again, then back at the body. My breathing slowed.
It looked like her.
It smelled like her.
But it didn’t feel like her.
Not fully.
Was I just losing my mind? Was I in denial?
Everything said it was Olivia.
But my heart screamed something else.
Why did it feel like this wasn’t her?
Was I imagining things… or was something else going on?
Louis knelt beside me, silent now, just staring.
Even he looked confused.
And Levi—he wasn’t crying anymore. He just sat there, dazed, looking at the body like it was a ghost.
Tears rolled down my cheeks, and I didn’t stop them.
I turned to the border patrol guard, my voice hoarse and shaky.
“Who did this?” I asked, barely able to speak. “Who did you see?”
The guard looked shaken. His hands were still trembling as he stepped closer.
“No one, Alpha,” he said. “We didn’t see anyone. A patrol team was making rounds near the east woods. They just found… her. Just like this.”
“Found?” I repeated, my voice rising. “She didn’t just fall here and die! Someone did this!”
He bowed his head. “I’m sorry… we saw no scent trail. No sign of a fight. Just her… lying there.”
I groaned and clenched my fists, blood boiling in my veins. My wolf pushed forward, taking control as a deep, broken howl ripped from my throat.
I howled loudly in pain and Levi joined, so did Louis. We all three howled loudly in pain, announcing to the pack that something was wrong.
We kept howling, so loud that the trees shook, and the air felt heavy from our howls.
I was in pain… my wolf was in pain, but I was still in denial…
I stared at Olivia’s—no, this body’s—face one more time.
And whispered, almost to myself, “What if this isn’t her?”
Louis lifted his head. “What?”
Levi’s eyes snapped up too.
I looked at them both. “What if… someone made this? What if this isn’t Olivia?”
Louis frowned. “But the scent—”
“I know,” I said. “I know it smells like her. I feel it’s her. But my soul… it’s not accepting it.”
Levi furrowed his brows as fresh tears slid down his cheeks. His gaze stayed fixed on the severed head. “I feel it too… yes, I’m hurting, but something feels… off.”
Louis nodded slowly. “We need to see the Seer.”
I didn’t hesitate. “Get a stretcher,” I barked at the guards. “Take the body to the pack house. Lock down the borders. No one gets in or out without my permission.”
They scrambled to obey.
We walked back to the car in silence, heavy with confusion and fear. Levi got in the front passenger seat this time. I sat in the back while Louis drove. No one said a word as we drove off toward the Seer’s cottage.
The road felt longer than usual.
The forest around us was quiet, too quiet, like it was mourning with us.
We reached the small, vine-covered home just as the morning sun pushed higher through the trees.
She was there—standing at her porch with a basket in hand, as if she’d been waiting for us.
“Where were you?” Louis asked, jumping out first.
“I went to gather herbs in the deeper woods,” she answered calmly, placing the basket down. “I returned not long ago.”
I tried to speak, but she lifted a hand gently.
“I know,” she said softly. “I know why you’re here. Forgive me, Alphas… there was nothing I could do.”
I stepped forward, my eyes filled with fear. ” Tell us that body isn’t Olivia’s. Please. Tell us this is some trick, some illusion. Tell us she’s alive.”
The Seer’s pitiful eyes met mine. Her lips trembled just a little.
Then she whispered, “I’m sorry, Alpha Lennox… but that body is Olivia’s.”
She paused—just for a heartbeat—then added, “She’s really gone.”
And in that moment… my world stopped.