Chapter 36
Kane's POV
I knew she'd come.
Ella had always been stubborn to the bone. Even after all those years in Blood River that ground her down to nothing, she'd still throw herself on the line for people she cared about. Ruby's situation must've pushed her over the edge.
Commotion erupted outside, guards' footsteps scrambling in chaos. I leaned back in my chair and spoke unhurriedly: "Let her in."
The door burst open and Ella stormed in, fury written all over her face. Before I could say a word, a sharp slap cracked across my cheek.
Damn. That actually hurt.
I touched my face and laughed. This girl might look fragile, but when it mattered, she had guts. Ruby getting force-fed that abortion drug today must've really gotten under her skin.
"Omega lives matter too!" Her voice trembled, but every word came out crystal clear. "Are you really going to stand there and watch Ruby die at Victoria's hands? Does that make you happy?"
I raised an eyebrow, taking my time to answer. Instead, I looked her over with interest—eyes red-rimmed, lips bitten white, like a hissing kitten with its fur standing on end.
"You want me to save her?" I rose slowly, closing the distance between us step by step. "That's not impossible. Just be a good girl and go back to being that obedient little doll you were in Blood River. Do that, and I'll save her. How about it?"
I knew how cruel that sounded, but I wanted to see what she'd choose.
Ella glared at me, rage in her eyes hot enough to burn through steel. "In your dreams!"
She turned and walked out without another second's hesitation. I watched her back disappear through the doorway, my smile fading slowly.
Fine then.
I headed toward Victoria's room. Originally, I'd planned to tell her not to take things too far—Ruby was still a useful chess piece. If she actually killed the girl, I'd lose my leverage over Ella.
But as I passed Victoria's door, the conversation inside made me stop cold.
"...about one more week, and we'll completely drain the elemental power from Ella's body." That was Stella's voice, carrying a twisted sort of excitement.
The shadow witch Uma's voice followed, cold and low: "Then we'll set the war to begin one week from now. By then..."
The words grew fainter. I couldn't make out the rest.
But those two words were enough to make my chest tighten—war? What war?
I was about to lean in closer when Victoria's voice came from behind me: "Kane? Why aren't you coming in?"
I turned to see her looking at me with confusion. Pushing down my unease, I forced a smile. "I was just about to find you."
Victoria pushed open the door. Uma's form melted instantly into the shadows. Stella sat on the sofa, composed as ever, as if nothing had happened.
"Things have been quite chaotic around the manor lately," Stella began, her tone laced with mockery. "Getting a servant pregnant, creating bastards—Kane, you really are full of surprises."
I sat across from her, replying lazily: "She's just a tool to control Ella. Besides, you need to extract her elemental power. You want Ella under our control too, don't you?"
Stella nodded with satisfaction. "One more week, and I'll drain every bit of elemental force from Ella's body. When that happens, the Dark Flame will rival the five great elements. Then you'll finally be able to go head-to-head with Julian's ice powers."
I fell silent for a moment before asking the question that had been weighing on me: "If her fire element is drained... will Ella die?"
The moment the words left my mouth, Stella laughed coldly, her eyes full of contempt. "With success so close at hand, you're still worried about some woman? Kane, your sentimentality is pathetic."
I gritted my teeth. "Use Ella however you want. But she cannot die."
The words came out harder than I'd intended.
Stella studied me for a while before speaking slowly: "Relax. Draining her fire element will only destroy the wolf spirit inside her. She'll become wolfless, but it won't kill her."
Wolfless... wasn't that the same as being dead?
My mind flashed to Ella back in Blood River—how desperately she'd hidden the fact that she had no wolf, how she'd done everything possible just to survive. If she found out she'd never been wolfless, only to lose her wolf spirit now—what would that do to her?
"Mom! Look at him!" Victoria complained with a pout.
Stella patted her daughter's hand soothingly. "Don't worry. Men are all the same. Once he gets bored of that slave, he won't spare her a second glance. You can make her as miserable as you like. Kane will allow it, won't you?"
She looked at me, eyes naked with challenge.
I met her gaze and slowly nodded.
In that moment, I realized—there was no turning back.