Chapter 188
Chapter 188
JAX
I knew something was up the second I saw her slip through the back gate, eyes flicking around like she was trying not to be seen. Isabella wasn’t the type to sneak around without a reason, and after the attack, I didn’t like the thought of her moving about the territory without backup. So I kept my distance, shadowing her as she took the narrow, wooded trail running along the outer boundary of the pack’s land. She was moving with purpose, and that had my guard up immediately.
After a few minutes, I could see where this was going. She was heading toward the old road at the edge of our borders—the place you’d go if you were trying to leave pack grounds without anyone noticing. My jaw clenched, and before I could rethink it, I stepped onto the trail behind her, letting my footsteps be loud enough for her to hear.
Her shoulders went tense, and she stopped in her tracks, glancing back at me with narrowed eyes. “Jax. You’re following me?”
“I could ask you the same thing, Isabella,” I said, crossing my arms. “Why don’t you tell me where you’re heading off to? Or should I guess?”
She let out a short breath, shaking her head. “I don’t have time for this, Jax. I just need to take care of something.”
“With the hunters?” I felt the edge in my voice, that heated frustration rising up as I took a step closer. “I know that’s what this is about.”
Her face tightened, and she squared her shoulders, stubborn as ever. “Yes, with the hunters. I need to make contact. I need to try, Jax.”
I looked at her, trying to keep my tone calm but feeling anything but. “And you thought it was smart to run off alone? Without telling anyone?”
She huffed, hands clenching at her sides. “I tried talking to Asher about this yesterday, but he wouldn’t even listen to me! He just shut me down, flat out. Didn’t want to hear it.”
“Because it’s reckless!” I ran a hand through my hair, forcing myself to keep my voice steady. “They just attacked us, Isabella. They’re dangerous. Going to them alone is asking for trouble.”
Her eyes flashed, and I saw that fierce resolve that only came out when she had her mind set. “You don’t get it. If I don’t at least try, then we’re stuck in a cycle we’ll never break. The pack spirit made it clear that I’m the one who has to bridge this. If I don’t do this, who will?”
“Then let me come with you,” I said, sighing. The words came out before I’d fully processed them, but there was no chance I’d let her go off alone. “At least let me be there. If you’re set on doing this...”
Her defiance softened, her gaze searching mine. “I know it’s risky, but I can’t stand by and watch us fall into another war. If we don’t start somewhere, nothing changes.”
I couldn’t argue with that, not entirely. But the thought of her stepping into hunter territory, even with me beside her, set me on edge. Still, it was better than letting her do it alone. “Fine,” I muttered, feeling a touch of resignation but not letting go of the worry. “But you’re not going without me.”
She looked relieved, though she was doing a good job of hiding it, and she nodded. “Thank you.”
“Yeah, yeah,” I muttered, falling into step beside her as we headed toward the edge of the woods. “Just don’t make me regret this, alright?”
She shot me a small smile, one that made my chest tighten in spite of everything. “I wouldn’t dream of it.”
We kept walking, the tension thick between us, but at least now we were in this together. And no matter what happened, I wasn’t going to let her face it alone.
ISABELLA
I didn’t know whether to be relieved or on edge as the hunters led us deeper into their camp. The smell of damp earth and metal hung heavy in the air, the kind that scraped at my senses, itching for me to flee. But this was exactly why I’d come: to face them, to find a thread of peace between our worlds.
Jax kept close, his posture taut with tension, eyes sweeping over every movement around us. Neither of us had spoken much since we’d agreed to this, though I could feel the quiet concern pulsing off him. And here we were, shoulder to shoulder, surrounded by people who might be planning our demise.
One of the hunters pushed through the gathered crowd, eyes sharp as he glanced between me and Jax. “Follow me,” he said, and something told me he recognized me. I could feel Jax’s quiet unease, but I held steady, reminding myself that this had to be done.
The tent felt stifling, every inch of space crowded with tension. Jax and I had been led through the camp without any reassurances, and now, sitting across from Emilia, the air felt almost electric. I took in her cold gaze, her features so familiar yet distorted by a hardness I’d never seen growing up.
Emilia looked at me with unveiled disgust, as if I were some stranger who had betrayed her. She crossed her arms, her lip curling slightly. “I can’t believe I even have to listen to you like this, Isabella. That you’d come here, begging for a truce, after what you’ve become.”
I felt Jax’s silent support beside me, a presence that kept me steady in the storm. My voice was calm, even if my heart wasn’t. “Mother, I didn’t choose to become a werewolf. But that doesn’t mean I want to be part of this endless fight. There’s another way, if you’d just see it.”
She snorted, her expression unyielding. “You are nothing more than one of them now—a creature. To think I once thought you might carry on this family’s purpose, protecting humanity from wolves like you. But you’re a traitor, Isabella.”
Her words struck a bitter chord, each one slicing at the fragile line I’d been holding onto. She was looking at me as though I were an abomination, a shadow of the daughter she’d once loved. But I couldn’t let her disgust deter me.
“We don’t have to live like this,” I said, my voice steady despite the sting of her rejection. “I know the hunters are angry, that they’ve suffered losses. But the wolves are not mindless beasts—there’s more to this than the violence we’ve seen. There’s a chance for peace.”
The tent flap shifted then, and I glanced over to see Nicole standing there, a smirk firmly in place, her arms crossed. She looked at me with the same disdain as Emilia, but it was sharper, tinged with the bitterness of her own grudges.
“Nicole?” I said, almost a hiss. “What are you doing here?”
She gave a careless shrug, her gaze flicking to Emilia with a conspiratorial gleam. “I’m here because some of us know that peace isn’t an option. You may have fooled the wolves into following you, Isabella, but here, they’ll never trust you. You’re one of us—” she paused, letting the weight of her words sink in—“and yet, not.”
The revelation sent a chill through me, connecting dots I hadn’t realized were there. Nicole hadn’t been acting alone—she’d been working with the hunters, stoking their fear and hatred, twisting the already-fragile balance to serve her own agenda.
“You’ve been feeding them information,” I said, the accusation leaving my lips before I could stop it. “You’re the one who’s been keeping the hunters on edge, pushing them to attack.”
Nicole’s smirk only widened. “Someone had to show them what you really are—a traitor to your own blood.”
I felt Jax’s fury radiating beside me, a protective force that grounded my spinning thoughts. But I couldn’t back down now, not with the truth so close. I turned back to my mother, desperation and anger warring in my voice. “Is this what you want, Emilia? For Nicole to keep fueling this war? To pit us against each other endlessly?”
Her face hardened, and for a moment, she looked so foreign—no longer the mother I’d cherished in my memories, but a stranger consumed by duty and regret. “It’s what’s necessary, Isabella. Peace isn’t possible with those who’ve done so much damage.”
Before I could respond, footsteps pounded outside, voices rising in alarm. The tent flaps flew open, and a group of hunters stormed in, weapons drawn, their expressions fierce and unyielding.
Jax stepped in front of me, his shoulders taut, and I felt his growl more than heard it, low and protective. But as I glanced back at my mother, her expression told me all I needed to know.
She wasn’t going to stop them. And neither, it seemed, was Nicole.