Olivia's POV
Hours passed and the noise faded and the house went quiet. My parents took one guestroom. Mia took the other. And James... I knew exactly where he'd be.
My throat was dry. I needed water, but I waited another half hour, just to be sure.
I slipped out of bed, crept down the stairs, and entered the kitchen. I filled a glass from the tap.
I heard James's low voice coming from his office. "I don't care what it takes. Keep her sedated."
I froze, the glass halfway to my mouth.
"No, I'm not interested in her waking up," he said. "I'm paying you enough to make sure that doesn't happen."
My heart slammed against my ribs.
"The monitoring showed brain activity? So what? Increase the suppressants. I don't want her conscious. Ever."
I set the glass down and crept closer. The office door was slightly ajar.
"You don't understand," James hissed. "Alice is dangerous. If she wakes up, everything falls apart."
A pause. Then: "Yes, I know it's illegal. That's why I'm tripling your fee."
Another pause.
"Because she saw me," he snapped. "She saw me with Mia months ago. She threatened to tell Olivia. So I handled it."
My hand flew to my mouth.
"The rogue attack was a lie," James said coldly. "I attacked her myself and injected her with silver. Her wolf should've died from the silver in her system, but the old bitch was tougher than I thought. Now she's in a coma with silver poisoning, and I need her to stay that way."
No. No, no, no.
"If she wakes up and tells Olivia what she saw, my entire plan falls apart. Keep her sedated with silver until after the gathering. After that... I don't care what happens. Let her die naturally, just make sure it can't be traced back to me."
The call ended. His chair scraped back.
I ran.
I flew up the stairs, heart pounding as my wolf howled in rage. I shut the bedroom door just as his footsteps echoed down the hall. I pressed my back against it, trembling.
James had tried to kill Alice.
He was keeping her sedated with silver.
He was going to let her die.
I grabbed my phone with shaking hands and dialed Asher.
He answered on the second ring. "Luna Grant. It's late."
"I need your help." My voice cracked. "Please. It's Alice—my foster mother. James attacked her some months ago because she caught him with Mia. Now he's paying her healer to keep her in a coma with silver. She's showing signs of recovering, and he's—he's going to let her die."
Silence.
"Please," I whispered. "I need to move her somewhere safe. But I can't do it alone."
"Where is she?"
"She’s in the pack clinic. Room 304. I don’t know how you can get into the pack without being seen."
"Don’t worry, I'll have her moved by morning," Asher said. "She'll be safe."
Relief flooded through me. "Thank you. Thank you so much—"
"But you know what this means, Olivia."
I closed my eyes. "Yes."
"Say it."
"I accept your offer," I whispered. "I'll become your mate."
"Good. I'll come get you in four days."
The call ended.
I sat there in the dark, phone clutched in my hand.
I had just agreed to mate with a man I'd never met. My husband's worst enemy. An alpha wolf I knew nothing about.
James didn't know it yet, but I just became his reckoning.
