Chapter 22 Trust and Suspicion
LISA'S POV
Emma stumbled into Moonstone territory at dawn, her naked form covered in dirt and bruises, shifting from wolf to human in a collapse that looked like exhaustion and trauma. She was crying, big sobbing gasps that should have broken my heart, claiming she had escaped Viktor's prison through someone's help and desperation.
My instinct screamed at me to run to her, to wrap my arms around my best friend and promise her safety and revenge. But my new Alpha senses were louder than instinct, louder than emotion, louder than years of friendship and love. Emma's scent was wrong. Tainted with something chemical and dark, a corruption that clung to her skin like oil on water.
Ryan's hand closed around my arm, gentle but firm, his touch conveying caution through our fresh mate bond. He smelled it too. Something was not right with Emma, something dangerous lurking beneath thosetears and trembling.
But Nathan and other pack members rushed forward before we could stop them, their compassion overriding their warrior training. They wrapped Emma in a blanket, pressed water to her lips, and murmured comfort and promises of protection. She leaned into their kindness like a drowning woman clutching a lifeline.
"Lisa," Emma sobbed, reaching for me with shaking hands. "Thank the gods you are alive. I thought Viktor would kill you before I could warn you."
I stepped closer but did not take her hands. I just couldn't ansbu hated myself for that. My wolf was growling inside me, recognizing a threat even when it wore a familiar face.
"What did he do to you?" I asked, keeping my voice soft but watching her with Alpha perception that missed nothing.
Emma launched into a story of torture and cruelty, of being chained in dark chambers and questioned about Moonstone's defenses. The details were convincing, her fear seemed genuine, and her hatred for Viktor rang true in every word. But I saw micro-expressions that did not match the narrative. A flicker of something cold in her eyes when she mentioned Viktor's name. A tension in her muscles like a predator ready to strike rather than a victim seeking shelter.
"You cannot go to the ruins," Emma said, her voice taking on desperate urgency. "It is a trap, Lisa. A massacre waiting to happen. Viktor has hundreds of rogues there, weapons you cannot imagine. If you attack, everyone will die."
Ryan's grip on my arm tightened. Warning. The information was too convenient, too perfectly designed to make us abandon our rescue mission.
"Emma needs medical attention," I said carefully, not agreeing or disagreeing with anything she had said. "Take her to the medical wing. Have Dr. Rivers examine her injuries."
"No!" Emma's response came too fast, too sharp. She caught herself, softening her tone. "I mean, I am fine. Just tired. I need to stay close to you, Lisa. Viktor is planning something terrible, and I need to warn you about everything I learned."
Before I could respond, Daniel appeared at my shoulder, his expression firm and knowing. He had been standing back, observing, and whatever he saw made his wolf rise to the surface in his eyes, we were siblings for a reason.
"Lisa, a word," he said quietly. "Now."
I followed him several steps away, leaving Ryan to watch Emma with the other warriors. Daniel's voice dropped to a whisper meant only for Alpha ears.
"I have seen this before," he said, each word heavy with terrible certainty. "In the eastern territories, twenty years ago. Viktor corrupted wolves, turned them into sleeper agents who could infiltrate packs and destroy them from within. Emma is compromised."
The words hit like physical blows. "Are you sure?"
"Her scent, her micro-expressions, the way her wolf feels wrong through pack bonds. Yes." Daniel's face showed the same anguish I felt. "But killing her would destroy you emotionally, which is exactly what Viktor wants. He is betting that your love for Emma will blind you to the danger she poses."
I looked back at Emma, seeing my childhood friend, my sister in everything but blood, the girl who had stood by me through every hardship. The girl who was now a weapon pointed directly at my heart.
"What do we do?" I whispered, hating how broken my voice sounded.
"We should restrain her without triggering whatever commands Viktor planted in her mind. Sedate her. Keep her contained until we can figure out how to break his hold." Daniel's hand settled on my shoulder, offering the strength I desperately needed. "It will be delicate and heartbreaking, but it is the only way to save both Emma and the pack."
I nodded, swallowing against the tears burning my throat. This was what it meant to be Alpha. Making impossible choices that broke you. Hurting people I loved so I could protect everyone else.
"Emma," I said, returning to where she sat wrapped in blankets and surrounded by concerned pack members. "You have been through terrible trauma. We need Dr. Rivers to examine you properly, make sure Viktor did not do any lasting damage."
"I told you, I am fine," Emma said, and this time I heard the edge beneath the exhaustion. I saw her muscles coiling. I watched her eyes track my movements with predatory focus. A smirk almost appeared on my face, Viktor thinks he is wise.
"I am not asking," I said gently, using my Alpha command for the first time on my best friend. "Guards, please escort Emma to the medical wing. Make sure she is comfortable and safe."
The guards moved forward, their approach non-threatening but firm. Emma stood slowly, still wrapped in the blanket, and for a moment I thought it would work. That we could contain her without violence, without triggering whatever Viktor had planted in her corrupted mind.
Then everything happened at once.
Emma lunged at me with inhuman speed, the blanket falling away as her claws extended and her eyes went completely black. Not wolf black, but empty black, like someone had scooped out Emma's soul and replaced it with darkness. She moved faster than any wolf should move, covering the distance between us in a heartbeat.
Ryan intercepted her, his own wolf rising to protect his mate, but Emma fought with strength that should not exist in her frame not at her level. She threw him aside like he weighed nothing, her focus locked entirely on me with killing intent that radiated from every pore.
Her mouth opened and Viktor's voice poured out, deep and mocking and triumphant, using Emma's vocal cords like a puppet master pulling strings.
"You cannot hide behind your mate bond forever, silver wolf!"