LOGINRonan's POV"Who else?"The words lingered in the room long after I'd spoken them.For a heartbeat, neither of us moved.Then I did.I crossed the room almost on instinct, dragging the first shirt I could find over my head as my mind raced faster than my hands. Every movement felt clumsy, rushed, incomplete. My phone was already in my hand before I remembered picking it up. Calls. I needed information before I needed panic.My assistant answered before the second ring."Sir.""Talk to me."His breathing was uneven, voices and sirens bleeding through the speaker. "The fire has been contained, but the building... the west wing is gone. We're still accounting for everyone.""How many?""We're not sure yet.""I didn't ask whether you were sure."Silence.Then a quiet inhale."Fifteen confirmed."My eyes closed."...Names.""I'll send the list immediately.""Is everyone from management accounted for?""Yes.""You?""I'm safe."Relief washed over me so briefly I almost missed it before anot
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
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
ELARA’S POVRonan picked up on the fourth ring.I had started pacing halfway through the second.By the third, I was already imagining ten different possibilities, none of them good, all of them ending with blood somewhere I didn’t want it to be.The moment the line connected, I spoke.“The Beta kn
ELARA’S POVThe weather was too beautiful for death.Sunlight poured across the gardens in long golden streaks, warming the stone paths and catching against the fountains until the water looked almost silver. Somewhere deeper inside the estate, birds sang loud enough to drown out the distant noise
ELARA'S POVMaybe somebody was reminding you that your work isn't finished yet.The words landed somewhere deep in my chest, and something clicked in my head. Not loudly. Not dramatically. Just a small shift, like a key turning in a lock I didn't know existed.I didn't say anything. I just looked a
ELARA'S POV The meeting stretched deep into the night without producing anything useful enough to satisfy anyone in the room.Hours passed beneath cold lighting and growing exhaustion while reports continued piling across the table faster than answers did. Investigators moved in and out carrying f







