Chapter 224

Chapter 224
WREN

Derek was still alive. Thankfully. A part of me was thankful that he was.

“He’s still alive,” Sybil whispered, kneeling beside him. “Barely.”

“Cassian?” I called into the phone still clutched in my hand. “He’s alive, but he’s dying, I'm going to take him to the Doctor. See what they can do."

“Good. Keep him breathing,” Cassian’s voice came through, low and tense. “I’ll send for Alexander.”

“Alexander?” I repeated.

“She has to take him,” he said. “He's her responsibility. If other packs or his pack members find out he's in our pack and dying, we'll have another problem on our hands."

The line went dead.

.......................

Derek was hanging on. Barely. But he had lost a lot of blood.

An hour and a half later, a convoy of two sleek black cars pulled into the courtyard.

Alexander stepped out first, tall and regal in her dark coat, her hair silver as frost. Her men followed behind her, dressed in black.

“Where is he?” she asked coolly.

“In here,” I said, my voice shaking. I led her into the annex, where the doctor had turned into a makeshift hospital room to briefly accommodate Derek.

“Wren,” he croaked, his voice barely a whisper.

“Quiet,” she said, crouching beside him. “You’ve caused enough trouble for one lifetime.”

She motioned for her men to lift him. They obeyed without a word, hoisting Derek onto a stretcher.

I stepped forward, heart pounding. “Wait, before you go.”

Alexander turned her piercing eyes on me. “Yes?”

“The curse,” I said, forcing my voice steady. “You promised that once Derek was captured, it would end. We've done our part."

She smiled faintly. “Did I?”

My chest tightened. “Yes. You promised you would."

Alexander straightened, brushing invisible dust from her sleeve. “I said what I needed to say to get Cassian to deliver those alphas to me.”

“What do you mean?” My voice cracked. “You’re not breaking the curse?”

Her smile widened, cold and cruel. “Oh, Wren. You really believed that?”

The air left my lungs. “What?”

Alexander stepped closer, her heels clicking on the tile. “You foolish little creature. From the very beginning, when I found out that Alpha Cassian had found you and claimed you, I knew I had to put an end to it.”

My throat felt dry. “Put an end to what?”

“Your union,” she said simply. “You see, I couldn't take any chances. Cassian was meant to suffer. His kind, his bloodline, was cursed for what they did to my family. But then you came along… You gave him hope. You gave him a chance.”

Her tone sharpened. “I couldn’t allow that.”

I took a shaky step back. “You… you mean..."

“Yes,” she interrupted, eyes flashing. “I started looking for ways to tear you two apart. I captured an Alpha from a lesser pack. I used him to turn humans into wolves, rogues, to hunt you. I hunted you for months."

Sybil gasped behind me. “You created the bitten wolves who are now rogues?"

Alexander looked almost pleased. “Of course I did. Every war, every death, every fear, it all traced back to me. And it worked for a while. You ran, didn’t you? You feared Cassian. You doubted him.”

I swallowed hard, memories flashing through my mind, the battle, the kidnappings, the pain, the fear. “Why?” I whispered. “Why do this?”

Her smile faded, and something darker crept into her expression. “Because I needed to keep the curse in place. I don't have any intention of breaking it, or reuniting our kind with his kind after all they had done to us.”

“Isn't it enough?!" I asked, tears blurring my vision. “He’s not his ancestors. He’s tried to make peace. He never hurt a fox.”

Alexander tilted her head. “Maybe. But peace doesn’t erase centuries of bloodshed.”

I stepped closer, desperation clawing through me. “You promised, Alexander! You said the curse would break if we helped you. Please—end it!”

She looked down at me like I was something small and pitiful. “All I've done up to this moment, was to make sure the curse stays intact."

I shook my head. “That can’t be true…”

“It is,” she said coldly. “Derek being on the run for months was the perfect excuse for me not to break the curse. I could have caught him if I wanted to. But I didn't need to."

I felt my legs weaken. “You… you planned all of
this."

“Of course,” she said, smiling faintly.

Sybil’s voice shook with anger. “You lied to us! You used us!”

Alexander ignored her. Her gaze stayed fixed on me. “You believed so easily, Wren. You believed in bargains and mercy. What made you ever think I would pity Alpha Cassian, a bloody wolf?”

I couldn’t breathe. The room tilted. “You can’t do this,” I whispered. “Please. I’m begging you.”

Alexander laughed softly, the sound like ice breaking. “Begging won’t help you. Cassian’s bloodline will continue to suffer the sins of what they did to my family. For as long as I live, his heirs will carry that curse.”

“No,” I said, shaking my head furiously. “No, I won’t let you..."

“You don’t have a choice,” she said simply. “The curse isn’t tied to you. It’s tied to me.”

I dropped to my knees before her, tears spilling down my face. “Please, Alexander,” I begged. “Please, if there’s even a shred of kindness left in you, end it. Let him go. Let our child be free.”

For a moment, she looked down at me without a word. Then she crouched, her hand gripping my chin hard enough to hurt.

“You still don’t understand,” she said softly. “This isn’t about you or that halfbreed you carry. It’s about vengeance. And vengeance is the only thing that’s kept me alive this long.”

"Please, I’ll do anything.” I cried.

Her eyes glittered, full of something unreadable. “Anything?”

“Yes,” I whispered.

She smiled faintly and let go of my chin. “You already have.”

Then she stood and started walking away.

I reached for her sleeve, my fingers trembling. “Alexander, please!”

She stopped, looking over her shoulder one last time. “Goodbye, little fox. You were never meant to save him. You'll always have a home in Artemisia when you're ready to come back."

And then she walked away.

The door closed.

I stayed kneeling on the floor, trembling, unable to process what I’d just heard. The air felt heavy, wrong. The curse… still lived.

Sybil crouched beside me, voice shaking. “Wren… what did she mean? What does this mean for us?”

I didn’t answer. My vision blurred at the edges, and the room began to spin.

“I..” I tried to speak, but my throat closed. My hands went to my stomach. The baby moved sharply inside me, like she could sense my fear.

“Wren?” Sybil’s voice echoed faintly. “Wren, breathe...”

But the world tilted completely.

The last thing I heard was Sybil shouting my name before everything went black.