I couldn't breathe. Couldn't move. Couldn't think.
Olivia was alive.
My mate-the woman I'd mourned for two years, whose absence had left a gaping
hole in my
chest-stood before me, more beautiful than my tortured memories had preserved.
"Olivia," I whispered, the name falling from my lips like a prayer.
My wolf howled inside me, desperate to reach her, to touch her, to confirm she was real and
not another cruel dream. Joy surged through me, so powerful it nearly brought me
to my
knees.
Victoria's hand gripped my arm, her nails digging into my flesh. I barely noticed. âEthan,â she hissed, her voice tight with fury. "Everyone is staring."
I couldn't tear my eyes away from Olivia. The chestnut hair I'd run my fingers through
countless times. The emerald eyes that had once looked at me with love, now cold and
distant.
Victoria's grip tightened painfully. Her thoughts were practically screaming in my head through our pack bond.
This she-wolf, she's actually still alive. The moment she returns, she starts trying to reclaim
her mate. How dare she!
(Olivia's POV)
I felt Ethan's eyes on me like a physical touch, but I refused to acknowledge him.
Instead, I walked with deliberate confidence toward Gwendolyn Pierce, aware that every eye in
the gathering was fixed on me. The whispers followed in my wake-the dead Luna, returned
from the grave.
I stopped directly in front of Victoria's wheelchair. Her face had gone pale, her eyes wide with
shock and fear. She seemed to shrink in her paralyzed body, no doubt remembering our last
confrontation.
"Victoria," I greeted her with cold politeness. "I see you've survived."
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From the corner of my eye, I saw Ethan moving toward me, concern etched on his
face. For a moment, our eyes met, and I saw the Alpha's protective instinct flare in his amber gaze.
Then Victoria cried out.
She had attempted to stand from her wheelchair and deliberately fallen to the
floor, her face contorted in apparent pain.
"Ethan!" she called, her voice breaking. "Please, help me!"
I watched as Ethan hesitated, torn between coming to me and returning to Victoria. His sense of responsibility won out. He turned back, kneeling beside Victoria's crumpled form.
"I'm sorry," she whimpered loudly enough for everyone to hear. "I thought I could stand for a moment. I just wanted to be normal again."
Ethan lifted her gently, cradling her against his chest. "It's alright," he murmured.
"I've got you."
Victoria clung to him, burying her face against his neck. "Can we go home now? Please? I can't bear to be here anymore."
Ethan nodded, his expression conflicted. As he carried her away, Victoria glanced over his shoulder at me, her eyes gleaming with triumph.
The message was clear: she still came first.
(Olivia's POV)
"You need to have that treated," Gwendolyn said, gesturing to my bleeding leg.
"The Moonlit Glade Refreshment Pavilion has a first-aid kit."
I nodded, allowing her to guide me to the elegant pavilion at the edge of the gathering. Once inside, I sat on a plush sofa, examining the cut on my leg while waiting for the first-aid kit.
The sight of my own blood triggered memories I'd fought to suppress. Two years ago, after Lily's death, I'd been consumed by despair and rage. The knowledge that Ethan and Victoria were happy together while my daughter lay cold in the ground had driven me to dark places.
I remembered the cold bite of the blade against my skin, the momentary relief as physical pain drowned out the emotional agony. I'd nearly succeeded in joining Lily that night, bleeding out in a bathtub far from home.
But my mother had found me. Evelyn Winters, the woman who had spent years searching for the daughter taken from her, had recognized me from news reports about the Luna of Silvercrest Pack. She had nursed me back to health when nothing else could reach me through my grief.
< Chapter 126 Unhealed Woun...
1+15 Points)
The sound of footsteps pulled me from my dark memories. A familiar cologne-
sandalwood and pine-announced Ethan's presence before I saw him.
"Let me help you," he said, kneeling before me with the first-aid kit.
"Don't touch me," I warned, my voice low and dangerous.
He reached for my leg anyway. I kicked out, my foot connecting with his chest,
sending him stumbling backward.
"I said stay away from me," I hissed.
Ethan straightened, his amber eyes sad but determined. "Wasn't stabbing me
enough to quell
your anger, Olivia?"
I maintained my composure as I reached for a bottle of water on the nearby table.
With
deliberate slowness, I uncapped it and poured the entire contents over his head.
"Are you awake now?" I asked coldly as water dripped from his hair and face.
âI'm sorry,â he said, not bothering to wipe away the water. âI've been sorry every day for two
years."
"Sorry doesn't bring Lily back," I replied, my voice steady despite the storm of emotions inside me. "Sorry doesn't change the fact that you let our daughter die while you played house with
Victoria and Emma."
Ethan's face paled with guilt. "Let me at least treat your wound," he said quietly.
"Then I'll take
you home."
"She doesn't need your help."
Lucas Blackwood stood in the doorway, his tall frame blocking the entrance. His
gray eyes
were cold as they assessed Ethan.
"I'll take care of my fiancée," Lucas continued, his voice carrying a hint of mockery. "Though I question your judgment, Stone. Abandoning an injured woman to tend to one who miraculously tried to stand despite being paralyzed from the waist down?"
Ethan's eyes widened at the word "fiancée."
"You're engaged?â he asked, looking between us in disbelief.
Lucas didn't answer. Instead, he approached me, lifting me carefully into his arms.
"Let's go
home, Liv."
As Lucas carried me away, I caught a glimpse of Ethan's face-shock, pain, and
something
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that looked almost like betrayal.
(Lucas's POV)
+15 Points
In my armored SUV, I gently cleaned Olivia's wound with antiseptic wipes from the
first-aid kit I
kept in the glove compartment. The cut wasn't deep, but I hated seeing her in
pain.
"This might sting," I warned before applying the antiseptic.
Olivia barely flinched, her emerald eyes watching me work. I bandaged the wound
with
practiced efficiency, my fingers careful not to press too hard against her delicate
skin.
"Thank you," she said softly when I finished.
I looked up, meeting her gaze. "Always."
We sat in comfortable silence as my driver navigated through Shadow Creek.
Finally,
I turned
to her with news I knew would be difficult.
"We're going to Moonstone County Correctional Facility," I said gently. "Connor
Blackthorn has agreed to see you."
Olivia's eyes widened. "The man who tampered with my brakes?"
I nodded. "Yes."