Lilian’s POV
The next morning,I was dragged out of sleep by a burst of noise from the courtyard below.
Laughter.Drums.Shouts layered with excitement.
My head was still heavy when I forced myself upright.Before I could fully wake,a servant knocked sharply on my door,her voice carefully neutral.
“Miss Lilian,Sir Brian has invited a troupe to perform in the courtyard.He asked that you come downstairs to watch.”
A troupe.
I let out a breath that tasted faintly of irony.
In the Wyatt Pack,performances were never just entertainment.They were displays.Declarations.Proof of status meant to be witnessed by the entire pack.Brian knew this better than anyone.
And he also knew I hated crowds.Hated noise.Hated spectacle.
Those things had always belonged to Adeline.
I pushed myself out of bed,my injuries protesting beneath my skin.The faint ache along my ribs reminded me that I was still healing,that my wolf had not yet recovered from confinement,fear,and betrayal.
“I won’t—”I began.
But before the words left my mouth,the door opened again.
Adeline walked in first.
She was dressed in a pale dress that flowed like mist,her hair loose over her shoulders.Brian stood beside her,his arm wrapped around her waist with unconscious familiarity.They looked…harmonious.Like a pair meant to be seen together.
Adeline’s smile bloomed the moment she spotted me.
“Lilian,”she said brightly,crossing the room in quick,light steps.She grabbed my hand,her grip warm and intimate,as though we had never been enemies.“Come on,don’t sulk.Brian prepared all of this just for you.”
Her fingers tightened slightly,nails pressing into my skin.
“If you don’t go,”she added softly,“he’ll be disappointed.”
Brian stood behind her,his gaze fixed on my face.There was something in his eyes—expectation,perhaps even hope—as if he truly believed this display could erase everything that had happened.
“Just take a look,”he said.“Alright?”
They were perfectly aligned.
I felt like prey cornered by two wolves who had already decided the outcome.
With Adeline pulling me forward and Brian watching closely,I had no room to refuse.I was escorted downstairs,step by step,my feet heavy,my chest tight.
The courtyard had been transformed.
A circular stage stood at its center,pack members gathered around it in excited clusters.A fire-breather stood atop the platform,flames bursting from his mouth in violent arcs that lit the morning air in blazing orange and red.
The heat washed over me in suffocating waves.
My wolf stirred uneasily beneath my skin.
Adeline clung to Brian’s arm as though frightened,whispering into his ear.Brian leaned down,listening,brushing a stray lock of hair from her face,wiping sweat from her brow with practiced tenderness.
They looked like mates.
I stood off to the side.
Invisible.
Unnecessary.
Brian’s phone rang suddenly.He murmured something to Adeline and stepped away to answer it,his back turning to the stage.
That was when the unease sharpened into something lethal.
I stared at the flames,my instincts screaming.Fire was sacred to werewolves—symbol of purification,of judgment,of destruction.No pack ritual involved flame without meaning.
Then I felt it.
Adeline’s gaze.
I turned.
The sweet smile she had worn moments ago was gone.In its place was a twisted,chilling expression that made my blood run cold.
Before I could step back,she lunged.
Her hand clamped around my arm with shocking strength—far stronger than she ever pretended to be.She shoved me forward,straight toward the safety line that separated spectators from the roaring fire.
“Ah—!”
I screamed as the heat slammed into my face,my skin burning instantly.I struggled,claws threatening to break free,but her grip was merciless.
Then,in a single smooth motion,she released me.
And threw herself even closer to the flames.
“Brian!”she screamed,voice tearing through the courtyard.“Help me!”
Chaos erupted.
Brian spun around,his phone hitting the ground as he charged forward without hesitation.He broke through the cordon,scooped Adeline into his arms,and staggered back,shielding her body with his own.
Gasps rippled through the pack.
The moment Brian steadied himself,his expression hardened.He turned toward me,eyes blazing with fury.
Before I could speak,pain exploded across my face.
His palm struck my cheek with brutal force.
“Why did you push her?”he roared.“Are you trying to kill her?!”
My ears rang.The world tilted.
“I didn’t—”I tried to say.
He didn’t listen.
Brian shoved me hard.
I stumbled backward and fell,my shoulder grazing the edge of the spreading flames.Searing pain tore through me,ripping a cry from my throat.
That sound made him freeze.
For a fraction of a second,something like hesitation flickered in his eyes.
But then Adeline clutched his chest weakly.
“Brian…Lilian looks worse than I do,”she whispered.“Take her to the hospital first…”
The hesitation vanished.
Brian looked at me with open disgust,then turned back to Adeline as if I were nothing more than an inconvenience.
“Take her too,”he ordered the guards coldly.“We’re going to the hospital.”
He carried Adeline away like she was made of glass.
I lay on the ground,firelight flickering above me.The pain in my shoulder deepened,spreading through my body.My vision blurred as the guards rushed toward me.
The last thing I saw before darkness claimed me—
Was the flames still burning.
