I yanked my arms free from the wolfguards and stood tall, meeting Scott’s cold gaze. “You’ve made your choice, Scott,” I said, my voice steady despite the storm raging inside me. “So have I.”
I knelt by the grave one last time, retrieving my mother’s discarded urn. The warmth of her memory steadied me as I turned my back on them all.
As I walked away, Winona’s laughter rang out behind me, shrill and triumphant. “Poor Ariana,” she cooed mockingly. “Always so dramatic.”
Scott didn’t defend me. He didn’t stop me.
I didn’t look back.
This time, I wouldn’t break.
“Don’t forget,” Scott growled, his voice a low and menacing rumble, “your mother still needs the medication from my company. I told you there’s only one cure for her heart disease.”
The words sent a chill down my spine. This wasn’t the Scott I had once loved, the alpha who had promised to protect and cherish me. This was a man consumed by power and manipulated by Winona, the woman who had come between us.
“Are you saying you would abandon my mother for her?” My voice cracked as I stared at him in disbelief.