“Let go of me,” I hissed.
His grip tightened. “You’re not thinking clearly. If we resist, we die. Caia dies. This is the only way.”
“There’s always another way!” I tried to pull free. “We could run, we could fight—”
He didn't answer. Instead, his hand moved swiftly, striking the back of my neck with precision.
Pain flared white-hot. My knees buckled.
“No—” I choked out, breath shallow.
Darkness swallowed the room as I collapsed. My final thought was of Caia’s terrified scream echoing through the halls… and the betrayal that had already sealed our fates.
When I opened my eyes, an aching hollowness struck me immediately—Caia was no longer there.
I didn't stop to think. My feet hit the ground before my mind caught up, my wolf rising within me like a storm unleashed. Every instinct I had screamed for blood. I was ready to tear down the walls of the Blood Moon Pack, to obliterate anyone who dared touch my daughter.
But Kael stood in my way.
Without hesitation, I struck him. The sound of the slap echoed between us, my trembling hand falling back to my side. My vision was clouded by tears as I stared at him with a fury only a mother could know.