Chapter 124: No Way Out

Seraphine's POV

I took a step toward him. Then another.

My hands trembled at my sides. Not from fear. From calculation.

"I'll cooperate." I kept my voice small. Scared. "I promise. Just don't hurt her."

He pulled something from a pack tied around his waist. A length of rope. Dark. Braided tight.

The scent hit me before he even unwound it.

Wolfsbane. Woven into every fiber.

Special rope designed to restrain werewolves. To suppress our power. Make shifting impossible.

Fuck.

"Hands." He ordered.

I held them out. Let them shake convincingly.

The rope wrapped around my wrists. Tight. Burning.

The wolfsbane seared my skin like acid. My wolf recoiled deep inside me. Her power dampening. Retreating.

Can't shift with this on. Can't break free with wolf strength.

The man tied a complicated knot. Gave it a sharp tug to test.

I stumbled forward slightly. Caught myself.

He looped the other end around his hand like a leash. "Move."

He started walking. The rope pulled taut. I followed.

Each step took me farther from those lights. Farther from safety.

My mind raced. Looking for options. For any opening.

That's when I remembered.

The dagger.

Come on, buddy, your time comes again.

The wolfsbane stopped me from shifting. But it didn't stop my hands from moving. Didn't stop me from using a blade.

I needed a distraction.

"You know," the man said. "This doesn't have to end badly for you."

I looked up. Kept my expression confused. Hopeful.

"What do you mean?"

"Help us." He stopped. Turned to face me. "Help Damien get what he wants from Kaelen. Give us information. And maybe he'll let you go. You and your sister both."

My fingers worked slowly. Carefully. Sliding toward the hidden pocket.

"What kind of information?"

"Everything." His eyes gleamed. "You're Kaelen's mate now. You have access. To his plans. His weaknesses. Things we could never learn otherwise."

He wanted me to betray Kaelen. To spy for Damien.

To sell out the pack that had protected me. Given me a home.

"And if I do this..." I made my voice shake. "You'll really let Lyra go?"

"That depends on how useful you are." He tilted his head. Studying me. "How much you give us."

My fingers found the pocket. Slipped inside.

The knife's handle was cool against my palm. Familiar weight. Reassuring.

"I'll do it." I said quickly. "I'll help you. Just tell me Lyralei is okay. Please."

"She's fine." He started walking again. "For now."

I pulled the knife free slowly. Held it against my wrist. Hidden by my sleeve.

The blade pressed against the wolfsbane rope.

Started cutting.

One fiber at a time. Quiet. Careful.

"Where did you grab her?" I asked. Kept my voice worried. "Lyralei. Where was she when you found her?"

The man's stride faltered. Just slightly.

"Does it matter?"

"It matters to me." I put emotion into every word. "She's my baby sister. My only family. At least tell me where she was. What she was doing."

Silence.

The rope was fraying. Slowly. Too slowly.

"She was near the eastern border." He finally said. "Wandering around. Made it easy."

Lie.

The answer came too uncertain. Too vague.

If they'd really captured Lyralei, he would've given details. Specifics. How she fought. What she said.

"What was she wearing?" I pressed.

"What?"

"When you took her. What was she wearing?"

More silence.

The knife worked faster. Cutting deeper.

"I don't remember." He said. "It was dark."

Another lie.

No one forgets what their prisoner looked like when they captured them.

"Was she scared?" I asked. "Did she fight back? Did she—"

"Enough questions." The man snapped. "You'll see her soon. Then you can ask her yourself."

No, I wouldn't.

Because they didn't have her.

The earring. The blood. All fake. All planted.

If they'd really captured Lyralei, they wouldn't need this elaborate trap. They'd just send word to Kaelen. Demand a trade.

The fact that they'd done all this—the midnight setup, the fake trail, the careful deception—meant Lyralei was still free.

Still safe.

Relief and rage flooded through me.

Relief that she wasn't hurt. Wasn't suffering.

Rage that I'd been played. That I'd fallen for it so easily.

The last fiber snapped.

The rope fell away from my wrists.

I shifted.

Fur exploded. Bones cracked. My wolf took over in seconds.

The wolfsbane rope hit the ground. No longer touching me. No longer suppressing my power.

"What the fuck—" The man spun.

Too late.

I was already running.

Four legs pounding earth. Full speed toward Shadowmere.

Toward those lights and safety and home.

"Fuck!" The roar echoed behind me.

The sound of shifting. One wolf transforming. Giving chase.

Heavy paws thundering. Fast. Furious.

But I had those crucial seconds. That head start while he'd been caught off guard.

I pushed harder. Every muscle burning.

The trees thinned. I could see the boundary line ahead.

Could feel where Kaelen's power began. Where his protection started.

Almost there.

My paws hit familiar ground. The scent changed.

I was back in Shadowmere.

The protection should've wrapped around me like a shield. Should've made me untouchable.

But something was wrong.

The familiar pulse of pack energy felt thin here. Weak. Like someone had torn a hole in it.

The traitor.

The realization hit a second before the wolf did.

Something massive crashed through the trees on my left.

A second wolf.

Black fur. Dark markings across its face—a cross shape visible even through the fur.

It had been waiting. Hidden. Ready for exactly this scenario.

And it was inside the boundary. Inside Shadowmere's protection.

Because someone had let it in.

The ground was too slick. Mud and melted snow.

I tried to dodge.

But there was no time.

The black wolf slammed into me.

Its jaws closed around my right hind leg.

Bone crunched. Shattered.

Pain exploded through my body. White-hot. All-consuming.

I screamed. The sound came out as a howl.

My legs collapsed. I hit the ground hard.

The shock forced me back to human form. Fur receding. Bones reshaping.

I lay in the mud. Gasping. My leg twisted wrong.

Broken. Completely broken.

The first wolf caught up. Shifted to human.

He stood over me. Chest heaving. Eyes blazing.

Then he raised his foot.

Brought it down.

Hard. On my shattered leg.

The scream tore out of my throat. Raw. Primal.

Every nerve lit up. My vision went white.

"You fucking bitch!" He pressed harder. Grinding the bone. "You think you can trick me?"

I couldn't speak. Couldn't breathe.

Just writhed as pain consumed everything.

Tears streamed down my face. Mixed with mud and blood.

The second wolf shifted back. Stood beside the first.

Shorter. Stockier. A black cross tattooed across his face. Vertical line from forehead to chin. Horizontal across his cheeks.

The first man laughed. Actually fucking laughed.

"You really thought you could run?" He crouched down. Got in my face. "You think I'm that stupid?"

I spat blood. "Clearly."

His hand shot out. Grabbed my jaw. Squeezed hard enough to bruise.

"I had him waiting there the whole time." He jerked his head toward the tattooed man. "Knew you'd try something. So I made sure someone was ready."

My stomach dropped.

He'd planned for this. All of it.