Chapter 60

Chapter 60:

My vision swam with red. She was weaponizing my dead parents.

I knew what the mango would do. But I also knew the emergency epi-pen Dallas had forced me to carry was in my clutch. I could take one bite, save my family’s honor, and treat myself in the restroom.

I took the fork. I looked Katherine dead in the eye and offered her a cold, sharp smile.

“To your future,” I said.

Dallas

𝘞e 𝗎𝗉𝗱𝗮𝘵𝖾 𝗲𝗏𝘦𝗋𝘺 wее𝗄 о𝗻

The air in my command center was stale, recycled, and thick with the scent of my own rising fury. On the wall of monitors before me, the Plaza Hotel ballroom played out in high definition — a silent, glittering pantomime of treachery.

“Zoom in on sector four,” I barked.

Vance Decker, my Gamma, didn’t hesitate. His fingers flew across the console, and the central screen expanded. The image sharpened on Katherine Parrish’s hand as she sliced into the monstrosity of a cake.

Ragnar paced restlessly in the back of my mind, scratching at the walls of my skull. Danger. Mate is in danger.

I saw the malice in Katherine’s smile before I saw the weapon. It was subtle — a sleight of hand that would have fooled any human and most wolves distracted by champagne. As she plated the slice, her thumb brushed the edge of the frosting.

A faint, metallic shimmer dusted the vibrant yellow cream.

My blood turned to ice.

“Silver,” I growled, the word tearing from my throat like a curse. “She’s laced it with silver dust p>

Vance swore loudly. “That’s a lethal dose for a wolfless, Alpha. It will burn through her esophagus in seconds p>

“Protocol Omega — now!” I roared, slamming my fist onto the mahogany desk. The wood splintered under the force, a spiderweb of cracks radiating outward. “Get the extraction team in there! Breach the doors p>

“Security is blocking them, sir! The Hydes have locked down the perimeter p>

I looked back at the screen, helpless rage boiling in my veins. I watched Adella — my proud, stubborn, beautiful Mate. She stood before them with her spine steel-straight, refusing to let them see her fear. She knew about the mango, but she believed she had the serum in her purse to counter it. She didn’t know about the silver. She was going to eat it just to spite them.

Don’t do it, Adella, I pushed the thought through our fragile, uncompleted bond. Throw it in her face.

But she couldn’t hear me. She took the fork. She smiled — a cold, sharp smile that mirrored my own — and said something I couldn’t hear. Then she raised the poisoned fork to her lips.

Ragnar howled, a sound of pure, unadulterated agony that resonated through the physical room.

I watched her swallow. I watched her turn her back on them, her dignity intact, while the poison began to dissolve her from the inside out.

“Switch feeds — follow her!” I commanded, my voice dropping to a lethal whisper.