Riley’s timing was so perfect that for a second, I wondered if Lewis had sent her.
Then she glanced my way, gave a quick wink, and furrowed her brows like she was scolding and comforting at the sa ti.
Okay. She was here for .
Lewis couldn’t co close without putting a target on my back, so he sent Riley instead. Riley had always been the type to make friends like she’d known you forever. She clung to Whitney like they were childhood sisters, laughed too loudly, smiled too brightly, and acted like she belonged.
And because she didn’t look like she belonged to anyone’s pack, she didn’t set off alarms.
Even if the Blackwell brothers found her strange, they couldn’t pin down her purpose. Honestly... neither could I, sotis.
Still, I owed her everything.
That phone she’d hidden for Whitney was the only reason I reached Lewis so fast. Without it, I would’ve been trapped in silence with nothing but fear and prayer.
Riley was my lucky star.
Yael lifted a hand in a lazy greeting. "Mrs. Pearson. Here to see Whitney again?"
Riley nodded hard, full of excitent. "Yes! There’s a high-end fashion show today, and I want Whitney to co with . She’s bonding soon, right? She might even find a better dress."
Vito stepped in smoothly, smiling like a polite gentleman. "Thank you, Mrs. Pearson. But Whitney isn’t feeling well today. She can’t go."
Of course he would say that.
He would never let her walk out unless he was holding the leash himself. So he dressed the leash up as concern.
Riley didn’t even blink. "Is that so? Are you her spokesperson? She hasn’t said a word. How do you know she doesn’t want to go?"
I swear, if I could speak, I would’ve scread her na like a cheer.
Girl, you’re insane.
Vito’s usual pressure didn’t work on her. Riley talked to everyone like they were equal everyone except .
With , she had that protective tone. Like she’d already decided I was her person.
Under the sun, she looked fearless. Bright. Like she didn’t know what it felt like to live with a blade at your throat.
It made happy.
And jealous.
Even knowing the future could hurt her again, she still chose to live like she owned her days. Unlike , always weighed down by what happened and what might happen.
Whitney’s voice cut through my thoughts.
"I want to go."
Vito turned sharply, his gaze darkening.
Whitney lifted her chin. Her voice shook, but she didn’t lower it. "I said I want to go."
Sothing in my chest tightened.
Whitney knew Riley and I were on the sa side. And maybe just maybe my presence had stirred sothing awake in her. A small stubborn spark.
The three of us had been broken in different ways. But pain has a strange way of shaking a person loose. Riley had been the first to rise. Under Lewis’s care, I was learning how to breathe again.
Now Whitney was the priority.
Not only did we need to pull her out of this nightmare, we had to pull her back into life. Real life. The kind that doesn’t sll like fear and locked doors.
Her defiance was a first step.
Vito was so used to her obedience that he froze for a second, like he didn’t recognize her.
That second was all Riley needed.
She rushed over, grabbed Whitney’s hand, and bead. "I knew you’d say yes! Let’s go!"
With the Blackwell brothers watching, Riley led Whitney away like she was taking a friend out for brunch, not dragging soone out of a cage. I moved quickly behind them, keeping my head down, keeping my breathing steady.
"Whitney."
Vito surged forward and blocked the path.
Riley planted herself in front of Whitney like a guard dog with lipstick. "She said she’s going. What’s it to you? Keep acting like this and you’ll never find a mate not even in so forgotten village!"
I almost laughed out loud.
Riley had been binge-reading those dramatic romance stories again. She sounded like soone’s loud aunty at a family eting.
Whitney hesitated, then spoke softly, like she was asking permission to exist. "I’d like to go to the fashion show... please?"
That "please" stabbed .
Vito’s jaw tightened. Then, finally, he said, "Fine. I’ll go with you."
The mont he agreed, my stomach sank.
Because n like him didn’t agree unless they were holding control in their palm.
Riley didn’t waste ti. She dragged Whitney toward her car and yanked the door open, pulling in too. "We girls will ride together. You can take another car."
Before Vito could answer, Riley slamd the door and snapped at the driver, "Step on it!"
We barely moved before five cars slid into place behind us like a shadow.
Riley’s eyes sparkled. "That was easier than I thought! Whitney, I’m getting you out of here."
Whitney didn’t smile.
She looked out the window like she was staring at a world she wasn’t allowed to touch. Then she murmured, so low I almost missed it, "It’s no use. We can’t escape."
Riley’s grin faltered. "Why?"
Whitney swallowed. "There’s a chip inside . It’s not just tracking. It can... detonate."
My skin went cold.
"And he planted explosives at the Morrigan residence," she added, voice hollow. "If I run... my parents and brother will die."
So that was it.
That was the real chain.
Not locks. Not guards. Not threats whispered in the dark.
A trigger buried under her skin, and a knife pressed to the people she loved.
No wonder she kept her distance from before. No wonder she lived like a ghost. She wasn’t just trapped.
She was being used as a living hostage... against her own blood.
My hands curled into fists so tight my nails bit my palms.
Riley’s voice dropped. "Does it record sound? Can we talk safely?"
Whitney shook her head. "It’s old. No audio."
I reached for Whitney’s hand and held it tight, pouring every ounce of strength I had into that grip.
Whitney gave a faint smile. "It’s okay, Elena. Just breathing fresh air makes happy."
My chest ached so hard it felt like it might split. I signed a question where is it?
Whitney shook her head again. "I don’t know. It was put in when I was very young."
Riley cursed under her breath. "These psychos. Whitney... you’re too pitiful."
Then she turned to and smirked like she couldn’t help herself. "And you, Elena. That stranger face was funny."
Only Riley could crack a joke in a mont like this.
Before I could react, she called Lewis. "We’ve got her, but Whitney has a tracking chip. The original plan won’t work."
Lewis’s voice ca through calm, steady, like a hand on my shoulder. "Bring her to the venue."
Riley nodded. "Got it. I’ll stay close. These Blackwell freaks are relentless."
There was a pause. Then Lewis’s voice softened. "And her? Is she with you?"
Riley glanced at . "She is, but she can’t talk. She looks so pitiful you’ll see."
Riley switched to video and pushed the phone into my hands. My throat tightened. My eyes stung.
I mouthed one word.
"Carl."
Even without sound, his gaze changed. Like sothing deep inside him had been clawing at the walls, and finally found the door.
He didn’t waste ti. His voice ca low and firm. "Elena, don’t be afraid. I’ll find a way to get you all out."
I nodded fast.
Even though I’d seen him last night, it felt like I’d lived a whole lifeti without him since then. My body reacted before my mind did heat in my chest, relief in my bones, a fierce pull that made my instincts scream mine, mine, mine.
I ended the call before I could break.
When we reached the show venue, the Blackwell brothers and their guards hovered behind us like they owned the air.
Riley rolled her eyes. "Seriously? I’m not trafficking people. I just brought Whitney out for fun. Do you have to hover like this?"
Vito smiled politely, like he was a normal man with a normal heart. "Mrs. Pearson, my apologies. My fiancée has fragile health. I’m just protecting her. Thank you for your kindness. Whitney, co here."
Riley hooked her arm through Whitney’s. "She’s sitting with in the front row. I didn’t buy your ticket, so you can stand in the back."
Vito looked like he’d never been spoken to that way in his life.
My pulse thudded. I kept watching his hands, his shoulders, the small shifts that ca before violence.
I signed that I needed the restroom.
Riley waved like it was nothing. "I’ll have soone take you."
An escort moved with . Yael trailed behind, not too close, not too far. Close enough to remind I was owned. Far enough to pretend he was kind.
He couldn’t co into the won’s restroom, so he waited outside.
I walked to the last stall, just like we planned. My hands were shaking as I reached for the door.
The mont I pushed it open
A strong arm wrapped around and yanked inside.
I slamd into a familiar chest.
The scent hit first. Smoke, cold night air, and him. Like the world finally made sense again.
My whole body went weak.
Lewis’s hand cupped the back of my head, holding tight, like he was afraid I’d vanish if he loosened his grip.
His voice was a rough whisper against my hair. "My Elena."
My throat burned. I clung to him with both arms, shaking.
His palm pressed to my back, steadying , calming the wild panic under my skin.
Then his tone sharpened Alpha-low, no room for argunt. "Look at ."
I lifted my face.
His eyes were red with hunger and worry, like he hadn’t slept, like he’d been chasing my scent through hell.
He touched my cheek gently, then glanced at my throat.
I nodded.
No voice.
His jaw tightened, but he didn’t waste ti on anger. He leaned in, forehead to mine, breathing slow, grounding . "You did well. You stayed alive."
My eyes filled. I nodded again, harder.
His thumb brushed under my eye, catching a tear before it fell. Then his gaze turned cold, focused. "Listen to . We move smart. No hero moves. No sudden runs."
I swallowed and pressed my fingers against his chest Whitney then pointed outward danger.
Lewis’s eyes flicked once, like he understood every word I couldn’t say. "I know. I’m here for both of you."
Outside, footsteps shifted.
Lewis’s arms tightened around one last ti, quick and fierce. His mouth brushed my temple barely a kiss, more like a promise.
"Stay steady," he murmured. "When I call you, you co to . No hesitation."
I nodded so fast it almost hurt.
He released , but his hand stayed on my wrist for half a second longer like he was morizing my pulse.
Then he slipped out with the quiet ease of soone who owned shadows.
I stood there, breathing hard, trying to get my body back under control.
Because the mont I stepped out, I had to beco "Mute Girl" again.
But inside my chest, sothing had shifted.
I wasn’t just surviving anymore.
I had my mate back in the world.
And I wasn’t alone.
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