Chapter 106

BREE

For the first time in years, I felt true fear. My entire plan, the careful manipulations, and the decades of secrecy had suddenly crumbled around me in an instant.

Marion’s eyes locked on mine, cold and unforgiving. His lips curled into a bitter, twisted smile. “You thought wrong.”

His voice reverberated through the hall, deep and gravelly, full of unspoken menace. I felt the room shift, the pack’s attention snapping away from me and toward him. The murmurs grew louder, a wave of uncertainty sweeping through the ranks.

“Your time is over, Bree,” Marion growled, his eyes never leaving mine. “I never thought you would go this far. But now I see... I see exactly what you’ve become.”

I gripped the staff tighter, the familiar surge of power flowing through me, but it did little to quell the panic rising in my chest. He wasn’t supposed to be here. He wasn’t supposed to be *alive*.

“You don’t understand,” I spat, my voice rising in desperation. “I did this for us—for the pack. You were