Maria.
Vincent stepped into the room, and instantly, my anger surged. The sight of him standing there was enough to make my wolf bristle with irritation.
I sincerely hoped he had not returned to persuade again.
He had already made himself clear earlier. He said he would co back when I was calm.
Well, I wasn’t calm.
And even if I was, my answer would still remain the sa.
No.
Nothing he said was going to change my mind.
"What the fuck is this?" Vincent asked, his voice filled with disbelief as his gaze swept across the room.
His eyes moved from the damaged furniture to the shattered objects scattered around, then finally to us.
The aftermath of the chaos was impossible to miss.
"Brother, my head hurts!" Galen complained the mont she shifted back into her human form.
She winced imdiately, rubbing the side of her head before stretching out a hand to gather the torn remains of her clothes.
Quickly, she pulled the fabric around herself, trying to cover as much skin as possible.
anwhile, I remained in my wolf form.
I had absolutely no intention of shifting back, not while Vincent was standing here.
Not while he was looking at like that.
If anyone was leaving this room, it was him.
Vincent had to get the hell out before I even considered returning to my human form.
His eyes settled on .
"Maria, shift back... we need to talk because I don’t understand what just happened here."
The mont the words left his mouth, a low, deep, threatening and unmistakable growl rumbled from my chest.
A clear indication that I had no intention of obeying him, not now and not anyti soon.
The growl echoed through the room, causing the tension to rise instantly.
For a brief mont, nobody spoke, and then Vanessa pushed herself up from the floor.
A pained expression crossed her face as she clutched her stomach tightly.
The impact from earlier had clearly affected her more than she wanted to admit.
"Vincent, this is exactly what I’ve been saying," she said bitterly, glaring in my direction. "Maria is a bitch, and she should be gotten rid of!"
The accusation had barely left her mouth when Vincent’s head snapped toward her.
The look he gave her was deadly, a pure warning. The kind of look that could silence an entire room.
Vanessa imdiately stopped talking and her lips pressed together as she swallowed the rest of whatever she had intended to say.
Even she knew better than to ignore that warning.
"I won’t say this again, Vanessa," Vincent said coldly, his voice barely loud, yet sohow, it carried more authority than a shout ever could. "Nothing is going to happen to Maria."
The firmness in his tone left absolutely no room for argunt.
Vanessa stiffened.
I could see the frustration flashing in her eyes, but she wisely kept her mouth shut.
Vincent took a step forward, his gaze never leaving her.
"And if you mistakenly lay your hands on her again," he continued without hesitation, "I can’t guarantee those hands would remain attached to your body."
The threat hung heavily in the air, sharp, direct and absolute.
For a mont, nobody moved.
Nobody spoke.
Vanessa simply stared at him, looking completely stunned by the seriousness in his voice.
And despite the anger still burning inside , despite my refusal to shift back, I couldn’t miss the way the entire room fell silent after his words.
Because everyone knew Vincent wasn’t making an empty threat.
He ant every single word.
I just kept watching them in silence, my gaze moving between each of them as the tension in the room slowly thickened. All I wanted at that mont was simple—quiet. I was patiently, yet at the sa ti impatiently, waiting for them to leave the room so everything could finally settle.
But they didn’t move fast enough for my liking.
The air felt too tight, too heavy, like it was pressing against my chest and refusing to let breathe properly. Every second they remained here only made my irritation grow stronger, more restless.
"Now, leave my sight!" Vincent ordered suddenly, his voice cutting through the tension like a blade.
His eyes were locked on Vanessa as he spoke, sharp and unyielding. Vanessa, who had just monts ago been so bold with her words, imdiately lowered her head. That simple gesture said enough—she wasn’t expecting that kind of command, not from him, not in that tone.
And honestly, she should have known better.
She had been foolish—truly foolish—to believe she could align herself with the Lycan prince and walk away untouched. Safe. Free. That alone was laughable.
From the rumours I had heard, the Lycan Prince didn’t just work with people. He traps them completely. He caged them, stripped them of every ounce of freedom until they had nothing left but obedience or ruin. There were no in-betweens with soone like that.
And looking at Vanessa now, silent and subdued, I was certain of one thing.
She wasn’t quiet because she was strong.
She was quiet because she was bound by sothing.
Sothing Vincent knew. Sothing he was holding over her.
That was the only explanation that made sense.
"Pathetic," I muttered under my breath, unable to stop myself. The word slipped out before I could even think twice, my disgust barely concealed.
"Yes, I’m leaving now," Vanessa said quickly, almost too quickly, as if eager to escape the pressure building in the room. There was no argunt, no resistance—just compliance.
"Brother..." Galen began, taking a step forward as though she had sothing else to say, but Vincent imdiately cut her off.
"Follow her out, Galen," he ordered sharply, his voice rising just slightly in authority.
There was no room for discussion. No space for delay.
Galen stomped her foot on the ground in frustration, the sound echoing sharply in the room. Her anger was obvious, but she didn’t push further. Instead, she turned on her heel and stord out after Vanessa, her movents quick and rigid with irritation.
One by one, they were finally leaving.
And I thought—just maybe—Vincent would leave too.
That would have been the logical thing. The room would clear, and I could finally shift back without his presence hovering over like a shadow.
But he didn’t move.
He stayed.
Standing there like he owned the space, like he had all the ti in the world.
I kept staring at him, and he kept staring right back at .
Neither of us blinked first.
The silence between us stretched uncomfortably, thick with unspoken tension. It felt like a challenge, though neither of us had voiced it out loud.
Then finally, he spoke.
"What, Maria...aren’t you going to shift back?"
The question hit instantly.
And for a brief mont, all I felt was pure irritation rising sharply inside .
Honestly, I felt like charging at him, sinking my claws into his face just to wipe that calm expression off him.
Was he stupid?
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