LOGINElara's pov Two weeks.It had been two whole weeks since I drove away from Kael.Two weeks since I shot him.Two weeks since I chose myself.Sometimes I still woke up expecting to find him beside me.I'd open my eyes in panic, convinced I would see him watching me with that soft smile that somehow terrified me more than his rage ever did.Instead...I saw a different ceiling.A different room.A different life.The first few mornings, my body refused to believe I was free.Every loud sound sent me reaching for a weapon.Every footstep made my heartbeat spike.Every knock made me think...He found me.Then nothing happened.One day became three.Three became seven.Seven somehow became fourteen.And for the first time in years...I slept.Actually slept.No nightmares.No pretending.No calculating every word before speaking.No wondering what mood Kael would wake up in.Just...sleep.It felt unreal.Our days slowly found a rhythm.The boys woke me up almost every morning by climbing
Elara's pov Two weeks.It had been two whole weeks since I drove away from Kael.Two weeks since I shot him.Two weeks since I chose myself.Sometimes I still woke up expecting to find him beside me.I'd open my eyes in panic, convinced I would see him watching me with that soft smile that somehow terrified me more than his rage ever did.Instead...I saw a different ceiling.A different room.A different life.The first few mornings, my body refused to believe I was free.Every loud sound sent me reaching for a weapon.Every footstep made my heartbeat spike.Every knock made me think...He found me.Then nothing happened.One day became three.Three became seven.Seven somehow became fourteen.And for the first time in years...I slept.Actually slept.No nightmares.No pretending.No calculating every word before speaking.No wondering what mood Kael would wake up in.Just...sleep.It felt unreal.Our days slowly found a rhythm.The boys woke me up almost every morning by climbing
Kael's povI watched them drive away.I didn't move.Didn't blink.Didn't even breathe.The car disappeared beyond the gates of my estate, taking my wife with it.My wife...She had left me.Not because someone stole her.Not because she was forced.She walked away.With him."...Alpha?"Someone called carefully.I looked up.Every member of my pack was watching me.Waiting.Watching to see if today would finally be the day Kael fell.I smiled."Follow them."The guards straightened immediately."Do not let that car out of your sight."I took one slow step forward."When you catch them..."My smile widened."Kill Ronan."A pause."And bring my wife home.""Alive.""Yes, Alpha!"They rushed toward their vehicles.Within seconds, engines roared to life before disappearing through the estate gates.Only my pack remained.Still watching.Still waiting.Good.Let them watch.Blood dripped steadily from my arm onto the stone beneath me.The silver bullets burned inside my flesh, poisoning e
Elara's POV"But before we stop by my house, I have a couple of things to grab," Ronan said, his eyes fixed on the road.I nodded immediately."Okay. But don't waste any time. He must've already sent people after us.""He probably has." His grip tightened on the steering wheel. "I'm not worried. The house is stocked. Guns, ammunition... enough to buy us time if they find us."I nodded again.Outside, the trees rushed past in a blur.Inside...Everything became strangely quiet.The adrenaline that had kept me standing moments ago slowly began to disappear, leaving nothing but a sick, empty feeling in my stomach.My breathing grew uneven.Oh God...What have I done?What have I done?I turned toward Ronan so suddenly he glanced at me."My children."He frowned."What about them?""Where are they?""They're safe.""Safe where?""I'm taking you to them after we leave my house."The knot in my chest loosened, but only slightly."Okay..."Silence settled again.Then it came back.Harder thi
ELARA'S POVShe has been the killer.The words hit me like a physical blow, and I felt everything inside me go still. The pain from the abortion, the exhaustion, the fear of what Kael would do to me—all of it vanished in an instant, replaced by something sharper, more immediate. The truth. The revelation. It crashed over me like a wave, and I couldn't breathe."What are you doing?" I whispered, my voice barely audible. "What are you doing?"My breathing became labored, my chest heaving as I tried to make sense of what was happening. Ronan walked toward me, his eyes soft, and I tried to grasp at his clothes, to stop him, to make him understand what he was doing."Trust me on this," he said.And then he walked away from me, toward Kael.He reached the Beta's body and kicked it. Once. Twice. Again and again, his foot connecting with the dead flesh, each kick sending the body sliding across the ground. He kept kicking it, over and over, until he was close enough to Kael that he could hav
RONAN'S POVThe bullet went straight into the Beta's skull, and the light left his eyes instantly. His body went slack, slumping against the floor like all the fight had drained out of him in that single moment. He was gone. It was over.But I didn't stop. I couldn't stop. I kept pulling the trigger, emptying every bullet the magazine held into his body, into his chest, his stomach, his head, over and over until the gun clicked empty and the only sound left was my breathing and the ringing in my ears.I stood there for a moment, the gun still in my hand, my body trembling with exhaustion and pain. I had won. But it didn't feel like victory. It felt like the end of something I hadn't fully understood until now.I let out a long, shaky breath and walked back to the couch, collapsing onto it. I stared at the ceiling, and I laughed. A low, broken sound that echoed through the wrecked living room. I laughed until my ribs ached, until the tears started streaming down my face, and I couldn't
ELARA'S POV Not because he had been caught. Not because I had interrupted him. Not because he was afraid. The smile on his face belonged to a man who had expected me. A man who had known I would come. A man who had arranged himself exactly where he wanted to be and was now waiting for everyone els
ELARA'S POV "I can explain."The words sounded pathetic the next time they left my mouth.Because explanations only worked when people believed you.And Kael didn't.Not anymore.He stood by the window with his back partially turned to me, one hand braced against the frame, his jaw tight enough th
ELARA'S POV"Elara." Kael's voice was low, too low, and that was somehow worse than shouting. The makeshift security room they had assembled inside the restaurant's private dining area suddenly felt too small, too warm, too crowded. The investigator standing beside the table glanced between us awk
The phone lay abandoned on the bed.Fifteen missed calls.Fifteen unanswered calls.By the time I gave up trying again, I could barely think straight.Every terrible possibility had already taken root in my head, each one worse than the last. Ronan wasn't answering. A body had been found. The body







