Third Person’s POV

Zara rushed to grab a maid, her voice rising with bpanic/b.

b“/bWhere’s Riley?”

The maid shook her head nervously. “We bhaven’t /bseen Miss Riley since this morning. Luna.”

+8 Pearls

Zara staggered back, her strength leaving her in ba /bwave of dread. She leaned against the wall, her breathing shallow. Just then. Kael Vale stepped out of his room and immediately noticed her disheveled state.

“bMom/b?” he asked, concerned. “Are you okay? What happened?”

Zara looked up at him, her eyes red. Her lips trembled. “She’s gone. Riley’s gone.”

b“/bWhat do you mean gone?” Kael’s voice tightened. “We bonly /bsent her out to cool off–she should’ve been backst night!!”

Zara sank to the ground, tears pouring down her face. “It’s my fault. I… I injected her with the suppressant. She was losing control again. But I didn’t mean to hurt her. Gods–bwhat /bif she—”

Kael suddenly remembered Mia’s call the night before. He pulled out his phone and tried calling. Blocked. He handed it to Zara with ba /bfrown.

“Try calling Mia.”

Her hands trembled bas /bshe dialed. Blocked as well.

Kael exhaled sharply. “Let’s check the surveince.”

They hurried to the security room. As the footage yed out, the horror on their faces deepened.

There was Riley, barely conscious, her body streaked with blood, stumbling into the rain. Behind her was old Mia, no umbre, carrying the girl on her bback /bthrough the storm like she weighed nothing.

Zara let out a broken sob, covering her mouth. “Riley… my child…”

Kael’s fists clenched as he stared at the screen. “She must’ve taken her to Moonhaven Hospital. Let’s

Moonhaven Hospitalolligo./li/ol

Kael bdrove /blike a madman through the thunderous rain. The windshield wipers squealed with effort but barely made a

difference.

Zara sat in the passenger seat, bhands /bwrung btight /bin herp. Her blips /bmoved in a breathless prayer. “Let her be okay.. please, let her be okay.”

Riley stirred in the hospital bed, her eyelids fluttering bopen/b. Her head throbbed, but it was nothingpared to the agony deep in her chest. She stared at the ceiling, memories shing bin /bcruel rity.

Zara’s cold expression.

The sharp prick of the suppressant bsyringe /bdriving into her neck.

let’s face, pale and untouchedb, /bbas /bRiley’s own ws came out, moments from braking /bacross her.

And then the ulence. The usations

almost shredded her own sister someone had shouted.

?tuir wolf—she should ve told us from the beginult

“You know the rules,” Kael bhad /bsnapped “No ws against kin. Not in Ebonw

3:41PM 0

+8 Pearls

“And Scarlet? She didn’t even shiftb. /bShe stood there, didn’t retaliate. That’s what true restraint looks like,” Zara h

had added.

They had praised Scarlett like she was the shining star of the Pack. Noble. Selfless.

But none of them seemed to care–or notice–that Scarlett hadn’t shifted because she couldn’t.

Her scent was wrong. Just slightly off. Riley bcould /bsense it now that her senses were sharper–now that the suppressant was fading from her bloodstream.

Scarlett had a wolf’s scent, yes.

But bno /bwolf inside.

Riley had sensed that emptiness only once before–on the day she was handed to Zara by the cloaked woman with bck /beyes and a voice bthat /bdripped with spells.

A witch.

Scarlett’s “wolf was fabricated. bAn /billusion. A calcted lie.

And if Riley’s instincts were right that witch hadn’t just been giving Zara a child.

She’d been nting ba /bweapon.

Just as Riley wiped away the tears stinging her vision, the hospital door creaked open.

She expected Mia.

But in walked Zara, followed by Kael. Both paleb. /bBoth visibly shaken.

Zara gasped when she saw her awake. “Riley–you scared me half to death!”

“Why would you sneak off like that? It was storming. You could’ve died out there.”

She stepped forward to hug her, but bRiley /bsat bup /band pushed her back without hesitation.

Zara froze.

Kaci flinched.

Riley’s eyes were t. Cold. There was no hatred, no rage. Just… nothing,

That nothingness sent a jolt of panic through Zara. “Please,” she whispered. “I know I went btoo /bfar. But I was trying to protect Scarlett. She’s your sister—”

“She’s not my sister, Riley said, voice low, firm.

bZara’s /bface crumbled. “You were about to bhurt /bher. You transformed in front of family. That’s bnot /bwho we raised you to be.”

“You raised me to be silent,” Riley muttered.

Kael stepped in, voice sharp bwith /bauthority. “Thews are clear. No ws bagainst /bfamily. And you’re a white wolf, Riley. bYou /bhave responsibilities. Poweres with restraint.”

He motioned toward Zara “She didn’t sleep all night. We searched all of Stormridge for you. We were terrified.”

But Riley just turned away..

Karl’s voice hardened. “What do you want from us, Riley?“

“What will make you satisfied?”

3:41 PM

Only the sound of rain tapping the hospital window answered.

But deep down–Kael already knew.

And it terrified him.

Because nothing terrified a Pack more bthan /bba /bbwhite /bwolf with nothing left to lose.

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