Amir's POV

The room erupted into chaos as Geraldine crumpled to the floor.

My steps quickened and I was at her side in an instant, scooping her up into my arms. Her skin was cold, her body trembling violently.  

“Get the doctor, now!”I barked at the nearest servant, who hurried out of the room without hesitation.  

I laid her down gently on the couch, clenching my jaw. Her lips were already tinged with blue. 

“Stay with me,” I muttered under my breath, the words more a command than a plea.  

I didn't want to have to go over this again—getting married and all. She was the perfect specimen.

The door burst open, and Gregory, my butler, stepped inside.

“Alpha, what's wrong?” he asked, his voice low and worried.  

“She collapsed,” I replied curtly, my focus still on her fragile form. “Poison, most likely. Wolfsbane, if I had to guess.”  

Gregory nodded, already in motion. “I’ll gather the staff.”  

“Good,” I said, my tone ice-cold. “No one leaves this house until I find out who’s responsible.”  

The doctor arrived moments later, a middle-aged man with a no-nonsense demeanor. He knelt beside Geraldine, checking her pulse and examining her pale complexion.  

“It’s wolfsbane,” he confirmed, pulling a small vial from his bag. “But the dose wasn’t lethal. She’ll survive, though she’ll need rest.”  

Relief coursed through me, though it was quickly overshadowed by annoyance. “How long until she wakes?”  

“A few hours,” the doctor said. “Her body needs time to recover.”  

I nodded, standing and turning to Gregory, who had just returned. “Assemble everyone in the dining hall. Now.”  

Someone had tried to kill me, and Geraldine had nearly paid the price. It wasn't the first time I had close shaves with death, but I hadn't given her a heads-up about that part of my life.  

I let my gaze sweep over the room before speaking, my voice cold and commanding. “Someone in this room poisoned the food. If you confess now, I might consider mercy. If not, I will find you, and you’ll wish you had come forward.”  

The tension was palpable, but no one spoke.  

Gregory stepped forward, his sharp eyes scanning the line. “Let’s start with the kitchen staff. Who prepared breakfast this morning?”  

A middle-aged cook raised her hand hesitantly. “I did, sir. But I didn’t add anything to the food, I swear!”  

“Did anyone else have access to the kitchen or the dining room?” the butler asked in a monotone voice I had gotten used to hearing when he scolded me as a child.

The maid glanced nervously at a younger maid standing at the end of the line. “Alice… Alice said she wanted to garnish the pancakes with syrup. I thought nothing of it…”  

All eyes turned to Alice, who stiffened under the scrutiny.  

“Alice,” I said, stepping closer. “Is that true?”  

She looked like a deer caught in headlights, her hands shaking as she clutched the hem of her apron. “I-I only added syrup! I didn’t do anything else!”  

Gregory raised an eyebrow. “And where did you get the syrup?”  

Alice hesitated, her eyes darting to the side. “It… It was in the pantry. The same place we always keep it.”  

I crossed my arms, my patience wearing thin. “Do you expect me to believe that wolfsbane somehow found its way into the syrup by accident?”  

Her silence was answer enough.  

“You’ve already confessed to poisoning the food. Now tell me who put you up to it.”  

Alice shook her head, her lips pressed tightly together.  

I leaned forward, my tone sharp as steel. “Do you think silence will save you? Because it won’t.”  

Tears streamed down her face as she remained silent, her gaze fixed on the floor.  

“Speak,” I commanded, my voice dangerously low.  

Instead of responding, she suddenly lunged forward, jerking her head down as if to bite her tongue, but I was faster.  

I grabbed her jaw with one hand, forcing her mouth open and tilting her head back. She thrashed wildly, but my grip was firm.  

Her muffled cries filled the room as I leaned in, my voice cold and sardonic. “You don't get to die without my permission.”  

Her eyes widened, a mix of fear and despair flickering in their depths.  

With a flick of my claws, I severed her tongue.

The metallic scent of blood flooded the air as she choked and gargled, her eyes wide with terror. Her hands clawed at her throat as crimson spilled from her lips and stained her apron.  

Grabbing the sides of her head with both hands, I focused on the intricate web of her mind.  

Memories flickered like broken film reels, an exchange in a shadowed alley, a bag of coins pressed into her trembling hands, a scarred man issuing cold threats.  

“Who sent you?” I growled, digging deeper, pushing past her frantic attempts to shield her mind.  

And then I saw it—a dark silhouette, his face was hidden, but his aura brimming with malice. 

It was not an enemy I recognised.

My chest tightened, my instincts screaming danger.  

But before I could probe further, something shifted. A foreign force surged through her mind like a roaring fire, severing my connection. 

I barely had time to react before Alice’s head began to tremble violently.

“Alpha, step back!” Gregory shouted, his voice cutting through the haze.  

But it was too late.  

Her head exploded with a sickening crack, blood and fragments splattering across the room