Chapter 67 67
Sofía stood rigid in the corner of the unfamiliar room, her back pressed to the wall like a frightened kitten trapped with nowhere to run. Tears streamed endlessly down her cheeks, hot and unstoppable.
She felt betrayed.
Used.
Played.
As though the fragile trust she had placed in him had been ripped apart into countless jagged pieces, leaving nothing behind not even the comfort of illusion.
He had promised her.
Promised he would never hurt her.
And yet
Her fingers trembled as her thoughts returned to the night before.
He had bitten her.
The realization alone sent a fresh wave of terror crashing through her.
Then another memory surfaced, sharp and sudden.
He had saved her.
Her breath hitched as clarity struck.
He had told her to close her eyes back then.
He hadn’t merely beaten those men no. He had probably killed them. And now that she knew what he truly was, she finally understood why he had walked away without a single scratch, without a single mark on his body.
Everything began to fall into place.
Piece by piece.
The wolf pendant he never took off. He had said it was part of his roots.
This was what he meant.
When she had asked where they were going, he had smiled and said to a fantasy world.
God.
How blind had she been?
Her chest constricted painfully at the thought of how long he must have been pretending. All the laughter, the quiet moments, the tenderness was it all an act?
A carefully constructed lie?
He could have taken whatever he wanted from her. And when he was done, he could have discarded her body without consequence.
So what did he want from her?
Where had he brought her?
And that man the one who followed them
Was he connected to Fernando too?
The horror clawed so deeply into her chest that breathing itself became a struggle.
A sudden knock at the door made her flinch violently.
The door opened just a crack.
She braced herself for the worst.
Instead, a girl stood there, smiling brightly.
The sight stunned her.
The girl was around her height, with light brown hair, sun-kissed skin, and warm chocolate-colored eyes. She was undeniably pretty. But all Sofía could think was
She could be one of them.
The girl closed the door behind her and stepped into the room, stopping a few feet away.
“Hi! I’m Corinne,” she said cheerfully, lifting her hand in greeting. “And you?”
Sofía couldn’t speak.
“Please don’t be afraid,” Corinne added gently. “I’m harmless.”
“A-are you like him?” Sofía asked hesitantly.
Corinne nodded softly.
That was enough.
“W-what do you want?” Sofía forced out, summoning every ounce of courage she had left. She felt small. Exposed. Completely at the mercy of this place.
“I just thought I’d keep you company,” Corinne replied casually, settling onto the couch across from her.
“You can sit down,” she added kindly. “And trust me no one here will hurt you. We’re not animals.”
The words rang false.
They were werewolves. Animals by nature.
“D-don’t lie,” Sofía whispered, tears flooding her eyes as her fingers drifted to her neck right where he had bitten her.
Corinne noticed immediately.
She let out a soft giggle. “Oh my God you’re adorable.”
Sofía frowned, confused and hurt.
“That’s a mark,” Corinne explained gently. “Alpha marked you last night because you were in heat.”
Confusion clouded Sofía’s face. None of this made sense.
“Okay,” Corinne said, inhaling slowly. “Let me explain.”
She spoke calmly, patiently like someone recounting an old legend.
“We’re werewolves. We live in packs. Ours is the Ancient Blood Pack. And the man who bit you he’s our Alpha. That means he’s the leader. The strongest. The most authoritative.”
Corinne paused, then continued.
“In your world, you choose who you love. You marry someone because you feel connected to them. In ours, we believe in the Moon Goddess. She pairs us.”
Sofía’s heart thudded painfully.
“We have mates,” Corinne said softly. “Mates are soulmates.”
The word echoed in Sofía’s head.
MATE.
Her breath caught.
No.
This couldn’t be happening.
Fate couldn’t be this cruel.
She felt like she was sinking into an endless abyss, with no surface in sight.
“You’re probably wondering how we even know who our mate is,” Corinne went on. “When we reach a certain age eighteen, nineteen, sometimes twenty we can find them. Some find theirs early. Some take their whole lives.”
She smiled.
“Just like our Alpha found you.”
It felt as though the life had been sucked straight out of Sofía’s body.
“For humans, it’s a little different,” Corinne continued. “We can’t recognize you as our mate until you reach that age too. The first sign is scent.”
She gazed out the window dreamily.
“It’s the most beautiful scent in the entire world.”
Sofía slowly slid down the wall until she was sitting on the floor, arms wrapped tightly around her knees.
Now it made sense.
His sudden interest.
His fixation.
You smell so fucking delicious.
The memory stabbed her.
“The mate bond is sacred,” Corinne said with a blissful sigh. “The sparks, the pull, the need it’s impossible to fight. You can’t keep your hands off your mate. It’s the most beautiful thing there is.”
Sofía felt numb.
He hadn’t fallen for her.
He had identified her.
From the very beginning.
It was all a plan.
To lure her in.
To make her trust him.
To make her fall.
That was why he hadn’t told her the truth. He had wanted to trap her wrap her in affection and lies until escape was impossible.
Her feelings hadn’t mattered.
They had been entertainment.
He knew she was alone. He knew she craved love, safety, someone to rely on.
And he had struck precisely there.
At her weakest point.
Her chin trembled. Her hands shook uncontrollably.
What if he was connected to that man?
But why would it matter?
They were all the same.
He had broken her.
Completely.