Chapter 90 – The Scent of Lies

Chapter 90 – The Scent of Lies
Jared stood rooted in place, his wolf pacing violently inside him as Kori’s words echoed in his skull.

Matt.
Her husband.
A bear shifter.

None of it made sense. Not when Jared had combed every inch of the room for lingering scents, not when the air had carried nothing but the faint tang of Kori’s blood, and the stale musk of sleep. No trace of bear. No trace of intruder at all.

His hand flexed into a fist against his thigh as his mind raced. How could a bear shifter hide his scent so completely? Was it even possible?

Before he could voice the question, Frank’s voice broke the silence. Low, steady, but laced with weight. “I don’t understand it either.” His eyes dropped to the floor, as though dragging up old memories he’d rather leave buried. “I looked into Matt when they first started seeing each other. There was no sign of bear in his family. And when I met him… there was no bear scent on him at all.”

Kori’s head snapped toward him, eyes wide, confusion and betrayal twisting her features.
“You met him?” Her voice cracked as she spoke, as though the revelation itself hurt worse than the memory of Matt’s hands.

Frank winced, running a hand through his hair, his expression softening as he looked at her. “Yes. I met him. Once. Briefly. I couldn’t stay close—I couldn’t risk revealing myself or you. But I had to be sure. I had to know who you were tying yourself to.”

“You… you knew?” Kori whispered, disbelief thick in her tone. “All those years I was with him, all the things he did to me—and you knew who he was?”

Frank’s shoulders slumped, his face etched with regret. “Kori, I didn’t know. I only saw a man—a human man. He smelled human. He was human. I thought…” He swallowed hard. “I thought maybe, finally, you’d found someone who could love you, someone who could give you a better life than the one fate dealt you.”

Kori shook her head, her body trembling with the weight of the words. “But he wasn’t human. He wasn’t safe. He was a monster. And you let me marry him.”

Jared’s chest ached at the rawness in her voice, his protective instincts flaring even stronger. He wanted to step in, to shield her from the storm unraveling between them—but he forced himself to hold back. This was between them, between father and daughter, even if she didn’t fully see it that way yet.

Frank’s gaze didn’t waver, his voice rough when he finally answered. “I failed you. I see that now. And if I had known what he was capable of, if I had seen even a shadow of what he’d do to you…” His jaw clenched, his eyes flashing gold. “I would have torn him apart with my own hands.”

Silence stretched between them, sharp and suffocating. Kori’s lips pressed together as if to keep words from spilling out, words she wasn’t sure she could ever take back.

And Jared, watching the exchange, felt the truth settle heavy in his gut: Matt wasn’t just a threat—they knew almost nothing about what he truly was.

Jared forced himself to cut through the storm between Kori and Frank before it swallowed them whole. His voice came out low, rough, threaded with the iron edge of command.

“Kori,” he said, drawing her eyes to him. “Are you sure it was Matt? Sure he’s a bear?” His jaw tightened. “What made you think that?”

She scoffed, the sound sharp and brittle. “Am I sure?” Her hands trembled, but her voice did not falter. “I’m more than sure, Jared. The claws he dug into my stomach were proof enough.” Her fingers brushed absently against the healed mark on her side, as if the phantom pain lingered beneath her skin.

A snarl built in Jared’s throat, his veins igniting with fury. The idea of another man’s claws tearing into her—of Matt’s touch on her, in any form—set his blood to boil. His wolf pressed hard against his skin, demanding to be released.

But Kori wasn’t finished. Her lips parted again, her eyes flashing with remembered fear. “He said… he wanted to take me away. Said it was time for us to be a family again.” The word came out like poison. She swallowed hard, shaking her head. “He even tried to trick me into bringing Carter.”

Jared’s breath hissed between his teeth, his fists clenching so tight his claws threatened to burst free.

Kori’s voice broke as she forced herself to keep going, each word heavier than the last. “When I refused, he attacked me. Told me he’d kill Carter.” Her throat tightened, her next words catching as tears welled in her eyes. “And he said… he said he’d take Megan.”

Jared’s heart stopped cold in his chest.

Kori’s voice cracked on the final revelation, barely a whisper as it left her lips. “She was meant to be given to Alaric… as his bride.”

The room froze.

A savage growl ripped out of Jared’s chest, but it wasn’t only his voice—it was Zeus, surging forward with all the fury of an Alpha protecting what was his. “He will not touch what is MINE!” The words shook the walls, deep and raw, vibrating with the fury of his wolf’s possessive claim.

The wolves nearest the doorway instinctively bowed their heads, submitting to the storm of power that radiated from their Alpha. Jared’s body trembled with the force of holding Zeus back, his vision flashing gold as the beast inside him demanded blood, demanded vengeance.

No one would lay a hand on Kori.
No one would touch Megan.
Not Matt. Not Alaric. NO ONE.