Chapter 164: Silver and Betrayal

Seraphine's POV

Vespera's face went blank. Then something ugly twisted across her features—rage mixed with sick satisfaction.

"She wouldn't betray our friendship, but she wouldn't give up her love either," Vespera said, her voice eerily calm. "Someone had to make the choice for her. Things had already gone too far."

My wolf snarled. Gold bled into my vision but I forced it back, forced myself to stay calm. Any second now. Lucian and Orion had to be close.

"Enough of this shit." Damien's voice cut through the clearing like a blade. He stepped forward, impatience radiating off him. "We don't have time for your therapeutic confession, Vespera. Finish this."

Vespera's expression shifted. The manic energy faded, replaced by something colder. More focused. She looked at me with dead eyes.

"You're right," she said quietly. "I did kill her. And I'd do it again."

The first slap came so fast I didn't see it. Pain exploded across my already bruised cheek, snapping my head to the side. Before I could recover, her hand cracked across my other cheek. Then again. And again.

My vision blurred. The taste of blood filled my mouth. I staggered, trying to keep my feet, but she just kept hitting me. Each blow landed with the full force of her rage—years of jealousy and resentment packed into every strike.

"This is for taking what's mine," she hissed.

Her boot slammed into my chest. The impact drove the air from my lungs. I flew backward, crashing into the dirt. Pain radiated through my ribs. I gasped for air that wouldn't come, curling on my side as my vision swam.

Get up. Get up. They're coming. Just hold on.

Through watering eyes, I watched Vespera yank at her cloak. The fabric tore with a sharp ripping sound. She wrapped the torn cloth around both hands methodically, like she'd done this before. Then she reached into her cloak and pulled something out.

Silver. A collar made of pure silver.

My wolf recoiled in terror. Every instinct screamed to run, to shift, to fight. I tried to push myself up, to scramble away, but my body screamed in protest.

"No." The word came out as a wheeze. "Don't—"

I rolled onto my hands and knees, tried to crawl. Had to move. Had to get away from that thing.

Damien's boot came down on my back, slamming me flat. The air punched out of my lungs. Before I could recover, his hands clamped around my arms, wrenching them behind me with brutal efficiency.

"No! Let go!" I thrashed, kicked, tried to wrench free. My wolf surged forward, desperate to shift.

Damien's knee pressed into my spine, pinning me. His grip was iron, crushing my wrists together. I couldn't move. Couldn't break free.

"Hold still," he said, bored. Like I was a child throwing a tantrum.

Vespera walked toward me slowly, the collar dangling from her cloth-wrapped hands. Moonlight caught the metal, making it gleam. Beautiful. Deadly.

"Get away from me!" I bucked against Damien's hold, twisting my head, trying anything to avoid what was coming.

His hand fisted in my hair, yanking my head back at a painful angle. My neck stretched taut, exposed. I felt Vespera kneel beside me.

"Please," I gasped. "Please don't—"

The collar snapped around my throat.

Agony. White-hot, blinding agony. The silver seared into my skin like a brand. I felt my flesh bubble and burn, smelled the sickening scent of cooking meat. My scream tore through the clearing—raw and primal and broken.

My wolf thrashed inside me, trying to surface, trying to escape the pain. But the silver blocked her. Choked her. I felt our connection waver and snap like a severed rope. The empty space where she'd always been suddenly gaped wide and hollow.

No no no no—

Damien released me. I collapsed forward, hands flying to my throat. But touching the collar only made it worse—the silver burned my fingers too. I yanked my hands away, gasping and sobbing.

I couldn't shift. Couldn't heal. Couldn't fight back. I was just human now. Weak and fragile and utterly powerless.

"There we go." Vespera's voice was sickeningly sweet. She smiled down at me, that same gentle expression she used to wear around the pack. But her eyes were dead. Empty. "Much better."

She reached into her cloak again. This time, she pulled out a syringe. Clear liquid gleamed inside the barrel.

"Time to sleep, little Luna," she whispered.

The needle caught the moonlight. I tried to scramble backward but my body barely responded. Pain lanced through my neck with every movement. The silver collar felt like a ring of fire, burning deeper with each second.

Vespera leaned over me, bringing the needle closer. I could see my reflection in her pupils—bloody, broken, terrified.

Kaelen. Lucian. Orion. Someone. Please.

The needle descended.

A gray blur exploded from the tree line.

Orion's wolf form crashed into Vespera like a freight train. She went flying, the syringe tumbling from her hands into the grass. Her scream cut off abruptly as she hit the ground hard.

Relief flooded through me so intense it felt like drowning. Orion. He came. He actually came.

I tried to speak but only managed a strangled sound. The collar tightened with each breath, silver digging into burns.

Orion didn't waste time. He lunged at Vespera as she tried to scramble away, his jaws clamping down on her thigh. The crunch of teeth meeting flesh was sickeningly wet. Blood sprayed across the grass in dark arcs.

Vespera's shriek pierced the night. She clawed at the ground, trying to drag herself away, but Orion held firm. His eyes met mine for just a second.

He looked at me, and I felt his silent judgment even in the chaos.

"Orion," I choked out. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

His wolf's expression didn't change. He couldn't answer in this form. But I felt his judgment anyway, sharp as any words.

You didn't listen to Lucian and me. You forced this. And now look where we are.

A boot connected with Orion's ribs. The impact sent him skidding across the ground, leaves and dirt spraying up around him. He yelped, tumbling several feet before crashing hard into a tree trunk. The collision knocked the air from his lungs. Blood sprayed from his mouth as he coughed, struggling to his feet.

Damien stood over Vespera, his expression flat. Bored, almost. Like this was a minor inconvenience.

Orion's wolf shook itself, legs trembling. His eyes locked on Damien, and I saw confusion flash across his face. Recognition, but not quite.

"Run!" I screamed, my voice raw. "Orion, run! He's Damien! He's not dead! Vespera's a traitor!"