FINN'S POVThe longer I thought about everything, the less sense any of it made. I really needed to find out the truth. I couldn’t let these suspicions eat away at me any longer.Without fully thinking it through, I decided to push a little further. "Doesn't it bother you that we're going to catch the driver?" I asked, keeping my voice casual but watching her reaction carefully.Linda paused, her hand still resting gently on Dante’s arm. She looked up at me, confusion flickering across her face. "What do you mean by that?"For a second, my heart raced in panic. Why did I say that?The question had slipped out, betraying the doubt that had been gnawing at me. I quickly backpedaled, trying to smooth over the tension."I'm sorry, that didn’t come out right," I said, offering an apologetic smile. "My head is a bit all over the place right now. Forgive me if that sounded… strange."She nodded slowly, though her eyes never left mine. There was a hint of suspicion behind her gaze now, and I
ADAM'S POVI had just picked up the call from Finn. I wasn’t expecting anything too serious; maybe a quick update on Dante or something about the text I had sent him.But as soon as I answered, I was met with silence. “Finn, any updates? Hello?” I asked, trying to keep my voice steady. Still, no one spoke.I was about to hang up when I heard a woman's voice on the other end. My body immediately tensed up because the voice sounded like Linda's. I leaned in closer, straining to listen.What was going on?I couldn’t make out everything at first, but the next words hit me loud and clear."Can you uhmm… can you take me with you?" Linda's voice was soft but insistent. “I want to see what he looks like too.”The hairs on the back of my neck stood up, and I knew I had to keep quiet, no matter how much I wanted to jump in and demand answers. I had to listen. I had to understand.I got lost in my thoughts for a moment, but then I heard Linda eagerly say, "Of course. I just want to help.”There
FINN'S POVI arrived at the warehouse, feeling the eerie silence settling over me like a cold blanket.It was completely still, almost too still. The kind of quiet that makes the hairs on the back of your neck stand up.I looked around, turning slowly in a circle, trying to spot any sign of Adam or anyone else for that matter. But there was nothing—no sound, no movement.I was getting pissed. Why would Adam ask me to meet him here, only to be late or worse, not show up at all?I shifted on my feet, ready to storm out when my phone suddenly buzzed in my pocket.It was Adam.I swiped the screen, irritation bubbling up. "Where are you, Adam Griffith?""Relax, Finn." Adam's voice was calm, almost too calm. "I had to make sure you came alone.""Alone? Of course, I came alone!" I snapped, glancing around again. "You think I brought someone to a deserted warehouse for a cozy group chat?"Adam chuckled softly on the other end. “Come upstairs.”I frowned, but before I could respond, the line w
FINN'S POV“Yes, Finn. There's more,” Adam replied, calm and composed, as if what he had just revealed wasn’t tearing my world apart piece by piece. His nonchalance only made my anger bubble closer to the surface, but I held it back, barely.“Where did you get these pictures?” I demanded, trying to keep my voice steady, though it shook with the emotions I was trying to suppress. “And what exactly is your relationship with Linda?”Adam smirked, shaking the glass of whiskey in his hand as if he was savouring the moment. It infuriated me.“I told you earlier,” he said slowly, as though I hadn’t heard him the first time. “I started investigating Linda when Aria was first attacked. That was when I realized things weren’t adding up. Linda was always bullying Aria, pushing her buttons. So, I dug a little deeper and stumbled upon this... interesting situation.”I clenched my fists, my nails digging into my palms. The thought of Linda bullying Aria wasn’t exactly news to me, but it didn’t expl
FINN'S POVI don’t remember how I made it back to the hospital from the warehouse. It was all a blur—the anger, the shock.My mind kept circling around the pictures Adam had shown me, the words he had said, and the revelations that left me feeling betrayed.The moment I walked through the entrance, Linda spotted me and hurried over. She grabbed my arm tightly, her eyes filled with concern. Her tone was almost pleading, almost desperate."Finn, where on earth have you been? You’ve been gone for so long. Mother was worried… I was worried," she said, her voice soft and anxious.Seeing Linda there, looking at me with that same troubled expression, brought everything back. It was almost surreal, watching her try to act like she was genuinely concerned for me after what I had just found out. I felt a pang of disgust, but I held it in.I moved her hands off my arm, letting her fingers slip away. I looked her squarely in the eye, searching her face, waiting for something… anything that would
ADAM'S POV“Adam!” Aria’s raspy voice cut through the room, surprising me so much that I nearly jumped out of my skin. I looked over at her, seeing her eyes wide with an intensity I hadn’t seen since before her accident.“Yes?” I said, trying to keep my voice steady, though my heart pounded in my chest. Something about her look told me she wasn’t asking just any casual question.“You’re not answering my question,” she said softly, her gaze steady and her head tilted in that usual way when she was trying to figure something out. “I asked if there’s something you're keeping from me. I feel like something is going with you, so please, tell me. What’s wrong?”I hesitated, not sure of what to say. Seeing her lying in that hospital bed, so fragile yet so determined, made me want to protect her all the more. She had endured so much already; I didn’t want to add to her pain–that was the last thing I wanted.I forced a smile, but it felt wrong even as I did it. “Aria, I don’t know what you’re
ADAM'S POVThe voice behind me made my blood run cold. I turned slowly, already knowing what I would find but praying I was wrong.There stood Aria, gripping her IV stand for support, her face as white as her hospital gown. Her lips had lost all colour, and her eyes… her eyes were red and fixed on my phone with an intensity that scared me.I quickly looked away not knowing what to say or do."Adam..."Slowly, I looked up, still startled, and saw her swaying, looking like she could collapse at any second.Without hesitation, I rushed forward, reaching out just in time to catch her before she fell. She leaned into me, her weight heavy, fragile, like she had been barely holding on.Her voice was rough, raw, like she had swallowed sand. She struggled to get the words out, each one strained and painful. "Adam...was it Dante who saved me that night?"My heart dropped. There it was. The question I had hoped she would never ask, the one that had haunted me ever since the night Dante threw him
ARIA'S POVAdam’s words kept on echoing in my mind, ripping open memories I had buried. Suddenly, it was as if I were back in that car, overwhelmed by the smell of smoke and burnt metal.The day of the accident... I remembered the rogue slamming into my car. Then, in bits and pieces, like flashes from a bad dream, I felt the fire, the intense heat. I was trapped, tangled in the wreckage, feeling my skin burn as everything faded to a blur.I placed a hand on my head, trying to sort it out, to push the pieces into place. "I… I remember being pulled out. Someone was there," I whispered, almost to myself, but Adam was watching, his eyes guarded.In the confusion, I remembered a voice, calling my name. "I heard… I think I heard his voice. He was calling out to me, wasn’t he?" I looked at Adam, hoping he would deny it, hoping he would tell me it was just my mind playing tricks.But Adam’s face was serious, his silence speaking louder than any words."Oh my goodness! I thought it was just a
DANTE'S POV Linda’s bloodied body had been rushed into the emergency operating room, leaving Finn and me standing in the hallway. The doors closed with a loud slam as the stretcher passed through, the sound echoing like the end of a sorrowful melody.I couldn’t move. My legs felt like lead, and my mind was blank.Finn was beside me, his voice low and urgent. “Dante,” he said, gripping my shoulder. “You know that this wasn’t your fault, right? You couldn’t have stopped her.”I didn’t respond. How could I? Linda’s words haunted me, her cries of desperation echoing endlessly in my head. You don’t believe me, do you? I’ll have to prove my innocence by dying. And then the window. The fall. The blood.“It doesn’t feel that way,” I finally whispered, my voice cracking.Finn shook his head, his grip tightening. “Listen to me. You can’t take this on yourself. Linda… Linda made her choices. You tried to help her. That’s all anyone could’ve done.”Before I could answer, a loud, piercing wail
DANTE'S POV Linda’s cries filled the hospital room like the stubborn pounding of a storm. She was sobbing uncontrollably, her hands clawing at her chest, her voice hoarse as she repeated the same words over and over again: “It’s my fault… it’s all on me… I listened to Ralph and I didn’t protect my child…”I just stood there, rooted to the spot, not sure of what to do or say. Finn’s words echoed in my mind, clear and steady: “The child wasn’t Silas’s, it was Ralph’s!” Those words refused to leave me, even as Linda’s cries grew louder, slicing through my thoughts.“Linda,” I finally said, my voice low, though it didn’t feel like my own. “You really need to stop. You’re only going to hurt yourself.”She shook her head violently, her hair whipping around her face as fresh tears streamed down her cheeks. “No, Dante! You don’t get it! I should have done more! I should have protected my baby!” Her voice cracked, and she fell to her knees, clutching at my shirt. “Please… please don’t hate me
ARIA'S POV The call from Finn came late in the evening, just as the world outside my window turned dark. His voice was calm, but there was an edge to it that sent a chill down my spine.“Aria, Linda’s baby didn’t make it,” he said suddenly.For a moment, I couldn’t breathe. “What… what did you just say?” I whispered, gripping the phone so tightly that my knuckles turned white.“Linda lost the baby,” Finn continued. “And she’s making quite a scene. But, Aria, listen to me… you don’t have to feel guilty about this.”My mouth went dry. “I…I wasn’t…”But that was a lie, wasn’t it? Guilt had already taken a hold of me, tightening its grip with every word he spoke.Finn sighed, his voice softening. “I’m telling you this because I know how you think. Don’t let her manipulate you. She’s good at this… making herself the victim, drawing everyone in. You know this wasn’t your fault.”But how could it not feel like my fault? I could still hear Dante’s voice from earlier that day, blaming me for
DANTE'S POV Finn's words seemed to echo endlessly in my head. There was no humour in his tone, no trace of malice or lies. He wasn’t the kind of man to twist stories for the sake of drama, especially not about Linda. But this? This was too much to wrap my head around.“Are you really sure this is true?” I asked, my voice quieter than I intended.Finn nodded, his expression serious. “I wouldn’t say it if I wasn’t.” He leaned against the wall, his shoulders slumping. “Right after Ralph died, her baby didn’t make it either. That’s not a coincidence, Dante. It’s hard not to suspect that this was all part of her plan.”The burden of his words hung between us, heavier than anything I had ever carried before. Linda? Linda, the woman who I thought I knew better than anyone? Could she really be capable of this? Could she…Goddess help me…be ruthless enough to kill her own child?I shook my head, trying to push the thought away, but it clung to me like smoke. “No. No, I can’t believe that.”F
ARIA'S POV The loud sound of the ambulance siren broke through the chaos, silencing the frantic murmurs of the crowd for a moment. Dante didn’t wait for the paramedics to take charge. With a sense of urgency I hadn’t seen in him before, he picked up Linda in his arms. Her pale, lifeless body looked even more fragile in the bright light of the ambulance as Dante climbed in, shouting for them to hurry. I watched him go, his desperation etched into every line of his face. His eyes never left Linda’s bloodied form as the ambulance doors slammed shut behind them. For a brief, fleeting second, I felt a pang of something close to pity. But it was quickly swallowed by a flood of bitterness as the whispers began. “This is all Aria’s fault,” someone muttered from the crowd, loud enough for me to hear. “Yes,” another voice chimed in, filled with hate. “If Linda’s baby dies, the pack won’t spare Aria. That child is the pack’s future heir.” The words hurt more than I cared to admit. My che
ARIA'S POV Linda’s sudden breakdown into tears left me frozen, the weight of her confession crashing over the room like a wave. Her emotional words rang in my ears, each one crafted perfectly to squeeze sympathy from Dante and the crowd. “I swear on the goddess, I did it to protect you, Dante!” she cried, holding onto his arm like a lifeline. “Ralph had threatened to kill you if I didn’t do what he wanted. Everything I said to him, everything I did… it was all to keep him calm, to deceive him. You have to believe me!” The room was filled with hushed whispers, and the crowd’s uneasiness grew with every word. I could see the doubt flickering in their eyes as they turned to one another, whispering under their breaths. “She looks scared… she must be telling the truth.” “Could Ralph really have been manipulating her?” My hands balled into fists as I stepped forward, my voice cutting through the noise. “I have heard enough!” I shouted, pointing at Linda. “Can’t you all see what she
DANTE'S POV I couldn't wrap my head around what Aria was doing. From the moment she asked to speak with Linda, she had been relentless, accusing Linda of things that seemed so absurd.Claiming that Linda's child was fathered by a rogue wolf? The words were so ridiculous I almost laughed when I first heard them. Almost.Instead, I felt my patience wearing thin with every accusation, every raised voice. Aria wasn't like this. She was calm, collected, and never reckless. Tonight, though, she seemed agitated, lashing out like she was desperate for everyone to believe her. And yet, Finn...Finn wasn't the type to back wild accusations, and yet he had claimed to have proof. He said he had seen Linda go into the silver cell and kill Ralph. Murder. That word hung heavy in the air, causing my chest to tighten as I looked around the room. The air was thick with tension, whispers circulating through the crowd, spreading speculation and doubt. My eyes landed on Linda, standing not far from m
ARIA'S POVLinda’s expression changed the moment she realized that I wasn’t going to back down. That mask of fragile innocence she wore cracked for just a second, but then, to my surprise, she started crying.“I’m sorry,” Linda suddenly said, her voice trembling as her eyes welled with tears. She looked around the crowd, her lower lip quivering in just the right way. “I’m so sorry, everyone. I don’t know what I’ve done to make Aria hate me so much. I…I’ve tried to be kind, but she just won’t stop harassing me!”The crowd murmured in confusion, their eyes darting between the two of us. My mouth fell open in shock, but Linda pressed on, her voice trembling with perfect fragility.“I really don’t know why she’s doing this,” she continued, wringing her hands. “I’ve tried so hard to stay out of her way, but she keeps accusing me of… awful things. And now she’s saying horrible things about my child… my unborn child. I just… I don’t know how much more I can take.” Her voice broke, and she bu
ARIA'S POVLinda stood beside him, her hand resting on his arm, a smug look of confidence flickering across her face.That look—so composed, so sure of herself—ignited something hot and uncontainable inside me.After everything she had done, she could still stand there so calm, so unbothered, wearing that look of triumph? I felt the anger pulse through my veins, louder than the quiet hum of murmurs around us.Before I could stop myself, I took a step forward and grabbed her hand firmly, my words spilling out in a fierce, steady tone. “Didn’t you just kill someone? You killed Ralph, the father of the child in your womb!”The room went deathly silent. It was as if the entire crowd was holding its breath, their shocked expressions frozen in place, eyes wide and darting between Linda and me.I could actually hear my own heartbeat, the loud, insistent thud filling the quiet. The weight of my accusation seemed to hang heavy in the air, pressing down on everyone around us.Linda’s smug expre