Chapter 265
Chapter 265:
He didn’t even glance at the smoking engine. He pulled out his phone, dialed a number, and spoke with terrifying efficiency. Within thirty seconds, he had a premium towing service en route, a repair center notified, and the bill charged to his account.
“I’m Grant Blackwell,” he said, his dark eyes locking onto mine and pinning me in place. “And you’re going to miss your meeting. Get in p>
Every instinct screamed at me to decline, but the cold reality of my schedule anchored me. Reluctantly, I climbed into the cool leather interior of his SUV. As he merged back onto the highway, his grip on the steering wheel was relaxed, but the atmosphere in the cabin was suffocatingly tight. I hadn’t just been rescued by a Good Samaritan. I was sitting in the passenger seat of an apex predator — and the doors had just locked.
Carmella POV
The adrenaline from surviving the suffocating ride in Grant Blackwell’s SUV and the grueling board meeting finally crashed as I collapsed into my desk chair. My office at The Wolfe Hotel offered a stunning view of Central Park, but I was too exhausted to appreciate it. I had survived the morning, but being wolfless meant I was constantly fighting to prove I belonged in this world.
A timid knock broke the silence. Jenna, Adelina’s new assistant, peeked through the door. “Ms. Golden? This just arrived via Council courier. It requires your immediate signature p>
She handed me a heavy parchment envelope. My blood ran cold. It was sealed with the crimson wax crest of The Continental Pack Council.
I broke the seal with trembling fingers. The words on the official letterhead blurred into a nightmare. Lineage Audit. Asset Freeze. Rogue Status Adjudication.
Quentin. That vindictive bastard.
Because I had publicly humiliated him and severed our ties, his fragile ego demanded my absolute destruction. He knew my weaknesses better than anyone. He had petitioned the Council, claiming my amnesia was a cover and that I was a dangerous Rogue attempting to infiltrate the Silvermoon Pack. Without an Inner Wolf to verify my identity or a Pack to vouch for my past, I was defenseless. I was going to lose my job, my home, and every right I had just fought to secure.
B𝖾 𝘁h𝖾 𝘧𝗶rst 𝘁𝘰 𝗿е𝖺d o𝗇
A suffocating panic gripped my throat. I couldn’t breathe.
Then the temperature in the room plummeted. A heavy, invisible pressure rolled over my skin, followed instantly by that scent — rosemary and rain.
Grant Blackwell stood in my doorway. He stepped into the office, his sheer presence making the spacious room feel like a cage. His dark eyes locked onto my pale face, instantly assessing the threat. Without asking, he plucked the Council letter from my rigid fingers.
He scanned the document, a cold, predatory smile curving his lips — the smile of a king looking at a peasant’s crude trap.
“You don’t need a lawyer, Carmella,” his smooth baritone vibrated through the room. “You have me p>