Chapter 97
Chapter 97:
“I would rather rot in a public shelter,” Maeve cried, her cloudy eyes wide with horror and self-blame. “I will not watch my own flesh and blood wither away in a loveless, soulless arrangement. A wolf without her true mate is a tragedy I won’t let you endure for my sake p>
Carolyn wore a triumphant, sickening smirk. She had backed me into an impossible corner.
“You must end this,” Maeve pleaded, her voice rising in panic, her heart monitor beginning to beep erratically. “Reject him, Adelina. Say the words. Right now p>
My throat closed up. The words of Rejection hovered dangerously on my tongue, trapped in a nightmare where every choice led to my grandmother’s ruin. I was suffocating, drowning in the sheer panic of the moment.
Then a deep, dark rumble vibrated through my skull, sending a sudden jolt of electricity straight down my spine. The mind-link flared to life, carrying the scent of ancient cedar and raw, unyielding power.
𝖭𝖾w 𝘄𝘦𝖾𝗸𝗅𝗒 𝗰𝗁a𝗉𝘁е𝗿𝘀 𝘰n 𝗴𝖺l𝗻𝘰𝘷е𝗹ѕ.𝘤𝗼𝗺
I’m outside.
Adelina POV
The deep, dark rumble of Kain’s voice in my mind was a lifeline thrown into a raging sea. The scent of ancient cedar and raw power bled through the crack under the door, instantly cutting through the rancid, sour stench of Carolyn’s hysteria.
My panic receded, replaced by a sudden, icy calm. I drew in a sharp breath and straightened my spine. When I looked at the woman who had birthed me, I didn’t feel like a cornered, wolfless daughter anymore. I felt the heavy, undeniable weight of a Luna’s authority settling over my shoulders.
“Get out,” I commanded, my voice dropping to a chilling, unfamiliar register.
Carolyn scoffed, her sunken eyes flashing with manic defiance. “You can’t order me around, you ungrateful brat! I am Bryan Parrish’s wife, and I will not leave until p>
I didn’t let her finish. I didn’t even look at her. I simply turned my gaze to the closed door.
“Kain, a little help p>
The door swung open instantly. Kain Blackwell stepped into the cramped room like a dark god emerging from the shadows. He didn’t spare Carolyn a single glance. His jaw was clenched, his imposing Lycan frame dominating the space as he gave a curt nod toward the hallway.
Two massive Warriors in the black uniforms of the Blackstone Pack stepped in. They grabbed Carolyn by the arms, their grips like iron vises.
“Get your hands off me!” Carolyn shrieked, thrashing wildly as they dragged her backward. “He will never love you, Adelina! He loves his Beta! You are nothing but a breeder to him — a pathetic, wolfless womb to pass on the bloodline p>
The door slammed shut, cutting off her venomous screams.
But the poison had already spilled. The silence in Room 302 was deafening, broken only by the erratic beeping of the heart monitor and Elder Maeve’s ragged weeping.
“Grandma,” I whispered, rushing to her side.
She caught my hand, her grip trembling but fierce. Her cloudy eyes searched mine, desperate for a lie she could believe. “Lina — tell me she’s lying. Can he wake your Inner Wolf? Will he give you a true Marking p>
The words lodged in my throat. I couldn’t speak. My silence was the final nail in the coffin of her hopes.