(Audrey’s POV)

    My heart pounded against my ribs like a caged bird desperate to escape. Nathan’s words echoed in my mind, each revtion more horrifying than thest. I forced myself to breathe steadily, maintaining an outward appearance of calm while my survival instincts screamed at me to run.

    But there was nowhere to go. The lodge felt like a tomb, and Nathan stood between me and the only exit I could see.

    “What about the results of Lyra and my mother’s blood test?” I asked, my voice surprisingly steady despite the terror coursing through my veins. “Did you orchestrate that too?”

    Nathan’s smile sent ice through my bloodstream. It was a look I had never seen on his face before – predatory, satisfied,pletely devoid of the warmth I had associated with him for so long.

    “Of course,” he said, as if discussing the weather. “I had to ensure that fake daughter remained in position long enough to serve my purposes.”

    My stomach lurched. “You manipted medical testing?”

    “It wasn’t difficult. A few strategic bribes, some falsified samples. Medical facilities are surprisingly easy topromise when you have the right connections.” Nathan’s tone was casual, almost proud of his deception.

    I felt sick realizing how deep his maniption went. “But why? Why keep Lyra there?”

    “Because having your real biological mother find you would have been catastrophic for my ns,” Nathan exined, beginning to pace around me like a wolf circling wounded prey. “The Shadowcrest pack was perfect. Only your elderly grandmother could offer you any support, and she’s far too frail to truly protect you.”

    Each word felt like a physical blow. “You wanted me isted.”

    “Completely isted,” he confirmed. “If you had found your mother earlier – Luna Yvette Riverwind, one of the most powerful wolves in Central Territory – everything would have been ruined.”

    I thought about Yvette’s warmth, her immediate protective instincts toward me. Nathan was right. Having her in my life would have changed everything.

    “The Riverwind Pack Alpha ispletely devoted to Yvette,” Nathan continued, his voice growing more agitated. “You would have be the little princess of one of the most influential packs in the territory. Protected, supported, surrounded by allies.

    “And that terrified you.”

    “It would have made you unreachable,” he snarled, his mask slipping further. “I needed you weak. Vulnerable. Dependent on me for everything.”

    The scope of his maniption was staggering. “How long have you been nning this?”

    Nathan stopped pacing to face me directly. His blue eyes held a fanatical gleam that made my skin crawl.

    “Years,” he said simply. “The Moonstone Pack, your rtionship with Arthur, even your eventual spirit sickness – all necessary elements to make you vulnerable enough to ept my protection.”

    I felt bile rise in my throat. “You caused my spirit sickness?”

    “Not directly. But I certainly encouraged the circumstances that led to it.” Nathan’s tone was clinical, as if discussing a sessful experiment. “Arthur’s emotional unavability, the pack politics that isted you, the constant stress of belonging nowhere – all factors I carefully cultivated.”

    “You destroyed my mental health deliberately.”

    “I had to break you downpletely before I could build you back up in the image I wanted,” Nathan said matter-of-factly.’ You were too strong, too independent when we met at the Academy. I needed you desperate enough to truly appreciate my help.”

    My hands trembled with fury. Everything I had suffered through – the depression, the anxiety, the feeling that I was losing my mind – Nathan had orchestrated it all.

    “It’s just a shame that the explosion didn’t kill that damned Florian,” Nathan’s tone was one of regret, “If he had died, you’d bepletely in my arms by now, wouldn’t you? I’m a lot more gentle and considerate than your ex-mate, and I’m devoted to you.”

    His eyes were deep and tender and I felt nothing but terror.

    I couldn’t breathe. The man I had trusted most in the world had tried to murder Florian. Had seeded in causing two years of agony for both of us.

    “You monster,” I whispered.

    Nathan’s expression hardened. “I’m a wolf who knows what he wants and isn’t afraid to take it. That’s more than can be said for your other suitors.”

    “Florian never hurt innocent people to get what he wanted.”

    “Florian never wanted anything as much as I want you,” Nathan shot back. “His feelings are nothingpared to the depth of my devotion.”

    “This isn’t devotion. It’s obsession.”

    “Call it whatever makes you feel better.” Nathan shrugged, apparently unbothered by my assessment. “The results speak for themselves.”

    I thought about every interaction we’d had over the past two years. Every moment offort he had provided, every rescue, every gesture of support.

    “Even bringing Nova to me was calcted,” Nathan continued, seeming to read my thoughts. “I knew that gesture would increase your emotional dependence on me.”

    My heart shattered. Nova, my belovedpanion, had been just another tool in Nathan’s maniption. Even that pure joy had been tainted by his scheming.

    “Every kindness, every moment of support, was designed to make you love me,” he said, watching my face carefully for my reaction. “I studied your responses, learned what made you feel safe and cherished, then provided exactly what you needed when you needed it most.”

    The betrayal cut deeper than any physical wound. “It was all fake.”

    “The care was real,” Nathan insisted. “My feelings for you arepletely genuine. I just… guided the circumstances to help you see how perfect we could be together.”

    “By destroying my life and manipting my emotions.”

    “By removing obstacles and creating opportunities,” he corrected. “Everything I did was out of love for you.”

    I stared at him in horror. He actually believed his own twisted logic. In his mind, terrorizing me into submission was an act of devotion.

    “But you never did love me, did you?” Nathan’s tone turned bitter, wounded. “Even after everything I did for you, even after I saved you from your own despair, you still preferred other wolves.”

    There was genuine hurt in his voice now. As if he couldn’t understand why his borate psychological torture hadn’t resulted in the love he craved.

    “First Arthur, then Florian,” he continued, pain bleeding through his anger. “Always someone else. Never the wolf who actually earned your affection through consistent devotion.”

    “You didn’t earn anything,” I said, finding my voice despite my fear. “You stole it through maniption and lies.”

    “I gave you everything you needed when no one else would,” Nathan snapped. “I was there when Arthur broke your heart. I provided sanctuary when you had nowhere else to turn. I stood by you when your spirit sickness made you difficult to love.”

    “You created most of those problems!”

    “I created opportunities for us to bond,” he corrected. “The problems already existed. I simply… amplified them.” The casual way he admitted to psychological maniption made me feel sick. How had I never seen this side of him? “Well, that ends tonight,” Nathan dered, his voice taking on a tone of finality that sent new waves of terror through me. He reached into his jacket and produced something that made my blood freeze. Silver-lined restraints. The kind used on werewolves to prevent shifting and escape.

    “You’re going to stay here until you understand that I’m the only wolf who truly loves you,” Nathan said, approaching me with predatory calm. “And if that takes years, so be it. I’m very patient.”

    My inner wolf howled with rage and terror. This was it. He was actually going to imprison me until I submitted to his will. “Nathan, don’t do this,” I said desperately, backing away until I hit the wall. “There’s still time to turn back now. Just give it up.”

    He continued advancing, the restraints gleaming in the dim light.

    “You know Florian and I are fated mates,” I tried, hoping to reach whatever rational part of his mind might still exist. “You let me go now and we can still be friends.”

    Nathan paused, his expression shifting to something almost sad.

    “Fated mates,” he repeated softly. “Do you really believe that? Or is it just another excuse to avoid facing the truth about us?” “It’s not an excuse. It’s reality.”

    “Reality is what I’ve built for us over the past two years,” Nathan said firmly. “Everything else is just fantasy.”

    I attempted one more time to reach him. “Nathan, please. You’re a good wolf underneath all this. I know you are. Don’t throw your life away for an obsession that will never be healthy for either of us.”

    For a moment, something flickered in his eyes. A hint of the Nathan I thought I had known. The one who hadforted me during my darkest hours.

    Then it was gone, reced by cold determination.

    Nathan didn’t respond to my plea. He simply continued forward with methodical precision. His silence was more terrifying than any threat he could have made.

    Before I could react, his hands were on me. The silver restraints clicked into ce around my wrists with a sound like a death knell.

    The metal burned against my skin, sending waves of weakness through my werewolf system. My ability to shift was nowpletely suppressed.

    I was trapped. Completely and utterly trapped by the wolf I had trusted most in the world.