Dante POV:
The War Room was chaos.
"She crossed north at 00:15," Security Chief reported. "Patrol guard in Sector 4... found cowering. Claims she Commanded him."
"Commanded?" Isabella scoffed. "Please. The girl couldn't command a toaster."
I turned on her.
I saw her clearly for the first time. Vanity. Cruelty.
I chose her for politics. I thought Seraphina was too fragile for this world.
I was the fool.
"Get out," I said.
"Excuse me?"
"Get out of my house. Engagement over."
"You can't be serious. Over a pet?"
"She was my Mate!"
The confession tore out of me. The room went dead silent.
"I rejected the bond to protect her from you vultures," I snarled. "And instead, I let you torture her."
I pointed at the door. "Leave, Isabella. Before I forget I don't kill females."
She fled.
I turned to the map. "Where?"
"Toronto. Private jet. Rossi Global."
"Rossi," I slammed my fist on the table. Wood splintered. "Marco Rossi."
My enemy.
"He kidnapped her," I reasoned. My brain couldn't accept she went willingly. "He knew she was my weakness."
"Prepare the jets. Mobilize the elite guard."
"Alpha," my Beta, William, stepped in. "Crossing into Rossi territory with a war party is a declaration of war."
"He has my Mate," I said, voice dead. "If he touches her, I will bring the apocalypse."
I shoved the bloody collar into my pocket.
I would get her back. And this time, I would chain her to me if I had to.
Seraphina POV:
Waking up felt like floating.
Soft sheets. Lavender.
I opened my eyes. High ceilings, warm beams.
"Easy," a voice said.
William, the Blood Moon Beta. He was mixing something in a mortar.
"Where am I?" I rasped. Throat raw.
"My home. Toronto. You've been asleep two days."
He dipped a cloth in green paste. "Need to change the dressing. Aloe, comfrey, and a little magic."
I flinched, pulling my knees up. Covering my neck.
"Don't," I whispered.
I expected anger. Force. Stop being weak.
William stopped.
"I won't touch you without permission, Seraphina."
"But... you're a Beta."
"Authority isn't force," he said. "I am a Healer. I fix what is broken, I don't break it further."
He waited. Calm. Patient.
He was giving me control.
I lowered my hands. Tilted my chin.
"Okay."
He applied the paste. Cool relief.
"Silver toxicity was high," he said. "But your wolf... she is strong. She fought it off."
"Dante said I was weak."
"Dante Moretti is a fool," William said, voice sharpening. "He looked at a diamond and saw a rock because he didn't know how to cut it."
He finished.
"Rest. Your father is pacing a hole in the floor downstairs."
He turned to leave.
"William?"
He looked back.
"Thank you."
"You're welcome, Seraphina."
I lay back. For the first time, a high-ranking male touched me with kindness.
I wasn't a prisoner.
Maybe I could be a Queen.
