Elena POV:
My hands were on fire. The Wolfsbane was working its way into my bloodstream, sending spikes of agony up my arms.
Jackson was cradling Joey, checking for injuries that didn't exist. "Jackson, please," I whispered.
He stood up, towering over me. The air in the room grew heavy, dense with his power.
"Silence!" he bellowed. "Submit!"
The command slammed into me like a physical blow. My knees hit the floor hard. My inner wolf whimpered and forced my head down, exposing my neck. I had no control.
"You will apologize to him," Jackson commanded. His voice was robotic, as if the words were being fed to him.
"I... didn't..." I tried to fight the command. Sweat broke out on my forehead.
"Apologize!"
The word vibrated through my bones.
"I'm sorry," I choked out.
"She tried to hurt the future Alpha," Candida said smoothly. "Maybe she has gone Rogue in her mind."
Jackson looked at her, and his expression softened instantly. It was terrifying-one moment a beast, the next a puppet.
"You are right," he muttered. He looked back at me with pure disdain. "Clean this mess up. Then stay in your room."
"But Jackson, the boy is scared," Candida said. "We cannot stay in the guest wing. It is too far from you."
"Take the guest room next to mine," Jackson said. "I will protect you."
He scooped Joey up and left. He didn't look back at his mate, kneeling on the floor with chemically burned hands.
I dragged myself to the bathroom. I had to bite a towel to keep from screaming as I washed the Wolfsbane off. The water felt like acid. I wrapped the raw meat in gauze, shaking uncontrollably.
I curled up on the tiles. I tried to reach for the bond. It was black. Withered.
Then, the sounds started.
The guest room shared a wall with my bedroom.
I heard the bed creak. I heard Candida giggle. "Oh, Alpha... you are so strong."
I heard Jackson groan.
My mate was mating with another woman twenty feet away.
"Candida..." he moaned. "My Luna."
The name tore through me sharper than the silver dagger.
My inner wolf stopped whimpering. She went completely silent. It was the silence of a heart stopping.
Jackson, I thought, but the Mind-Link was blocked by a wall.
I lay there, staring at the ceiling. The bond didn't just break. It dissolved.
I felt lighter, in a terrible, empty way. The love I had held for five years drained out, leaving nothing but cold resolve.
Tomorrow. Tomorrow I would execute the plan.
