Alina POV:
Back at the villa, the night air was freezing.
Krystal dumped the dead terrier on the patio table. "Get rid of it," she told a servant.
Something glinted on the dog's collar. A silver medallion shaped like a shield.
"That's my father's!" I lunged forward. "The Medal of Valor! It went missing the day I was sent to the Alps!"
"You put a hero's medal on a dog?" I screamed at Jaxon.
Jaxon looked surprised. "I... I didn't know. Krystal said she bought a vintage charm."
"It's trash," Krystal spat, snatching the collar. "Cursed. Just like her."
She walked to the edge of the patio, overlooking the churning Hudson River.
"Give it back!" I begged.
Krystal smiled. "Fetch."
She threw the medal into the black water.
I didn't think. I jumped.
"Alina!" Jaxon shouted.
I hit the water hard. The cold was absolute, a thousand knives. The current grabbed me. I clawed at the muddy bottom, fingers brushing metal. I grabbed it.
Lungs burning, I kicked upward, dragging myself onto the rocky bank, shivering violently.
I looked up at the balcony.
Jaxon was there. But he wasn't looking for me.
Bright streaks illuminated the sky. A meteor shower.
"Oh, Jaxon! You made the artificial meteor shower happen! Just for me!" Krystal squealed.
"Anything for you, my love," he said, arm around her.
He had forgotten I was in the river.
I clutched the cold medal. The final thread of the Mate Bond snapped.
I didn't feel pain anymore. Just clarity.
"You promised to protect me," I whispered. "But I am less than a dog to you."
I walked toward the city. Tomorrow was my father's death anniversary. And tomorrow, Alina Phillips would die so the White Wolf could be born.
