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Chapter 325
~Zara’s POV~
The next morning, I sat at the kitchen counter, fingers wrapped around a steaming cup of coffee, but I wasn’t drinking it.
I was staring into space, my thoughts still scattered. The vision I had—the Thorned Crescent, the Shadow Clave, Kent Wayne—none of it was sitting right with .
It was a puzzle with missing pieces, and the more I thought about it, the more frustrated I beca.
Perhaps I should visit the one person who knows so much about all this.
The one person who, since the beginning of everything, knew it all and how to protect .
My mother.
"I should tell her, right?" I murmured, breaking the silence even though no one was right here. "But then again, I shouldn’t."
Astrid huffed in my mind. "Why shouldn’t you?"
"Because Ella doesn’t deserve to know that the man she spent so much ti loving is a traitor."
"True, but keeping it a secret from her isn’t right either," Astrid countered. "She deserves to know how much of a douchebag he is. That way, she can move on. You owe it to her, Zara."
I sighed, running a hand through my hair. Astrid had a point.
After another minute of thinking, I decided to go with her idea. Maybe a change of scenery would do good, too.
I pulled out my phone, scrolling to Ella’s number. Just as the first call rang, I heard footsteps entering the kitchen.
I paused, my fingers hovering over the screen.
I looked up and stood still.
Zade.
He stood by the doorway, his expression unreadable. For a mont, neither of us spoke. The tension between us was thick, just like how it was with Aira yesterday.
I exhaled, ending the call and standing up, leaving my coffee behind.
"Zara..."
"Please, Zade. I need space."
He sighed, shaking his head slightly. "Zar, I—"
"I can’t do this right now," I interrupted, already walking past him. "I need to go."
I didn’t wait for his response.
"You can’t run forever, little sis."
I grabbed my keys and headed out, getting into my car and driving straight to Ella’s place.
The drive was quiet, but my thoughts were anything but quiet.
My mind was all over the place, trying to figure out what to do with Zade.
He was right. I couldn’t stay away from him forever, but every ti I saw him or Aira, it brought back the painful mories of my accusation.
I brushed off teh thought and focused on the road when Ella’s call ca in.
I hesitated, thinking if I should answr it or not and finally I did.
"Hey, girl."
"Sorry, I missed your call. How are you, Zara?"
I shrugged even though she couldn’t see . "I’m fine."
"Wait? Are you driving?" Ella noticed.
"Yes. And you better be ho because I’m coming."
"Oh, okies. See you soon."
She ended the call and my concentration was back. How was I supposed to tell my best friend that the man she had loved, the man she had nearly destroyed herself over, was not just a liar—but a dangerous one?
By the ti I reached her house, my stomach was twisted into knots.
I knocked on the door, and a mont later, Ella opened it.
She looked surprised to see but smiled softly. "Zara."
"Hey," I greeted. "Can I co in?"
"Of course."
She stepped aside, and I entered, inhaling the faint scent of vanilla and lavender that always clung to her ho.
As soon as she shut the door, I turned to face her.
Ella studied for a mont before shaking her head. "You didn’t co just to see . Sothing’s up. Sothing’s bothering you and I can help you?"
"I need to tell you sothing."
Ella’s brows furrowed. "What’s wrong?"
I exhaled. "It’s about Kent. Styles. Whatever na he’s using now."
At the ntion of his na, Ella’s face shifted into sothing unreadable. "What about him?" she asked carefully.
I didn’t sugarcoat it. "He’s not who you think he is, El," I said. "He’s dangerous. And he’s not just so normal guy. Or rogue Alpha."
Her expression changed. "Rogue alpha?"
I paused, inhaling deeply. "He’s the heir of the Thorned Crescent pack."
Ella’s lips parted slightly, but she didn’t speak.
I continued. "I saw him, Ella. I saw him with them. And if he’s working with them, that ans—"
"I know," she cut off.
I blinked. "You... what?"
She let out a heavy sigh and ran a hand through her hair. "Styles sent a ssage yesterday."
My stomach dropped. "What did he say?"
Ella swallowed. "He told he loves . That he hated seeing with another man."
I scoffed. "And you believe that?"
She hesitated, looking away. "I don’t know. The last ti he ca, it was for the cara. I was sure he deleted sothing from it, but when I confronted him, he said he ca back for the mories. That he wanted to hold onto what we had."
I rubbed my temples. "And you believed that?"
"I don’t know, Zara!" she snapped, then sighed. "I don’t know what to believe anymore."
I grabbed her by the shoulders. "You don’t get it, El. He isn’t worthy of you."
"Then no man is," Ella muttered.
I narrowed my eyes. "Are you sure? You sure you aren’t seeing soone right now?"
She hesitated.
Before she could answer, I pressed, "Babe, you cannot. I don’t know much about this guy, but Thorned Crescent is bad news."
Ella exhaled sharply. "But how are you so sure? Kent can change, too. I believe he loves ."
"He doesn’t love you!" I snapped.
Ella flinched at the sharpness of my voice, her expression shifting into sothing almost wounded.
I sighed, pinching the bridge of my nose. "El, I just... I don’t want you to get hurt."
Before she could respond, the door suddenly opened behind us. Both of us turned. A tall, striking man stepped inside, his presence imdiately shifting the energy in the room.
I blinked, my wolf suddenly stirring in recognition. I scrutinised him carefully, trying to figure out why he felt so familiar.
Then it hit . I had seen him before. "Alpha Ares?" I said slowly, my eyes narrowing.
Ella’s head snapped toward . "Oh. Yeah, if he counts for seeing."
Ares smiled faintly. "Oh, Zara’s family and mine go way back."
"Yes. Although I wonder what is your interest now in my best friend?"
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