Chapter 141

Chapter 141
Warning: The following chapter may contain content that some readers may find sensitive. I recommend reading with discretion. It may contain: aggressive language, use of firearms, insinuations of abuse, psychological abuse, death, etc.

Sofia Bliss

I woke up in pain.
Not the normal, tolerable kind.
It felt like my head was splitting open from the inside, like someone had taken my brain in both hands and decided not to let go.
A groan escaped my throat before I could even open my eyes.
“Sofia… Sofia, are you okay?” — the voice came from far away, trembling, cracked from crying.
“Please… wake up…”
It was Letícia.
Forcing my eyes open was almost impossible.
The light hurt.
Everything spun.
The floor was too cold, too hard.
And when I finally managed to focus, I saw my cousin’s swollen, red face, her eyes wet and desperate.
“Thank God…” she whispered when she realized I was conscious.
“I thought you weren’t going to wake up…”
I tried to move.
My body didn’t respond.
It was even weaker than before.
Panic came slowly at first.
I hadn’t yet understood the situation I was in—
until I felt it.
My hands—bound.
My feet—bound.
Cold metal biting into my skin.
And when my eyes finally processed what they were seeing, I almost threw up.
I was inside a cage.
One clearly made in advance.
It was large, tall, and built to contain something that needed space—or strength.
The bars shone in a way I had learned to recognize in the worst possible way.
Silver.
“No…” my voice came out small and trembling.
The collar was still around my neck.
There was no way to take it off with my hands tied behind me like that.
My arms felt useless, numb, heavy.
My legs barely held me up.
It was like my body had forgotten how to obey.
My wolf…
Was silent.
And that—
That was what terrified me the most.
“Letícia…” I whispered, my heart speeding painfully.
“Where… where’s Adrian? How long have I been asleep?”
She looked away.
“Letícia…” I insisted, my voice breaking.
“Where is he?”
My mind was a mess.
I remembered flashes—sounds—
But there was a gap, a huge gap in my memory…
And also in my chest.
It felt like something was missing.
Like something had been torn out of me.
Then she started crying again, covering her face with both hands, her body curling in on itself like the weight of everything was crushing her.
“Sofia… you… you don’t remember?”
Remember?
I didn’t know.
Maybe it was the blow to my head.
Possibly the fall.
Or… potentially my mind refused to accept the truth.
“They…” she swallowed hard, meeting my eyes.
“They killed him.”
“No.” I shook my head, horrified, the memories finally clawing their way back, ripping through me.
“No… that’s not true. He promised!” — My voice broke, shattered.
“He promised we would get out of here. That everything would be okay.”
Letícia cried so hard she could barely speak.
“He… he was shot, Sofia.
In the head.”
“Nooo!” I screamed with everything I had.
“This can’t be true!”
I understood that hole now.
That sensation of being split in half.
It was like an invisible thread had been ripped violently from inside me.
The bond.
“Edgar…” I snarled, feeling tears burn down my face.
“That bastard… I’m going to kill him. I’m going to kill all of them.”
I pulled at the shackles again, the metal cutting deeper into my skin, blood dripping.
But I didn’t feel pain—
only rage and emptiness.
“Sofia…” Letícia whispered.
“Stop, please… you’re hurting yourself…”
My body was far too weak, but even then I kept trying.
My regeneration was almost nonexistent.
I felt my wolf… distant. Lost.
“Hey…” I murmured, resting my forehead against the cold floor.
“Please… talk to me. Don’t leave me alone. Not now.”
But there was no answer from him.
Only silence.
Then the door opened.
People walked in, and Letícia curled in on herself.
I lifted my face slowly, hatred pulsing through me.
She walked in.
My grandmother.
Or at least the woman who should’ve acted like one.
Janine Hines.
All that sweetness and smiling was gone.
Only the cold eyes remained.
Behind her, two women carried boxes, walking fast and obedient.
“Hurry up,” she ordered. “We don’t have all day.”
“What—” my voice came out hoarse.
“What are you doing? Let me out of here!”
She looked at me like I was some kind of pet.
“Preparing you,” she answered simply.
“The full moon is in a few days. We need to start the ritual.”
What kind of madness was this?
“Full moon…?” I whispered.
She turned to the women.
“Clean everything. Change her. I want everything perfect.”
“Perfect? Perfect for what?” I shouted, feeling panic finally overpower the rage.
She looked back at me.
“For the conception of the new heir of the Hines family.”
I thrashed, pushing myself up, managing to get onto my knees even though it hurt.
All that silver—the shackles, the collar, the cage—was consuming me completely, but I couldn’t stop, couldn’t just sit there while these lunatics planned whatever they wanted.
“You’re insane!” I screamed, trying to stand.
“I’m not doing this! I refuse!”
She stepped closer to the bars, her face nearly entering the cage so she could look at me properly.
“You will do exactly what needs to be done,” she said coldly.
“Exactly what your mother should have done.”
That bullshit again.
Not even dead would they let my mother rest in peace.
“Don’t talk about my mother!” I snarled, teeth clenched.
“If she had obeyed,” she continued, ignoring my rage,
“None of this would have happened. But she chose to run. And look where that brought us.”
“Do you have any idea what you’re saying?” my voice cracked.
“You killed your own blood!”
“I killed?” she scoffed.
“No… she killed herself. She refused to fulfill her duty. The rest was simply the consequence of her choices.”
She shrugged, indifferent.
“You should feel honored. You’ll secure the future of this family.”
I couldn’t even respond anymore.
Talking to them would get me nowhere.
She stepped back, as if my words carried no weight at all.
“Just remember— for your own good— if you don’t cooperate willingly, we’ll use the old method.”
“Old method?” I repeated, fear creeping up my spine.
She stopped at the door, looking at me over her shoulder.
“When they arrive,” she said,
“You'll understand exactly what I mean.”
What?
“The moon always teaches things you’ll never learn by being gentle, Sofia.”
And she left.
The women approached the cage.
Letícia tried to stop them, but it was useless.
When they reached me, I closed my eyes, feeling the tears run down my face in silence.
Adrian… was really dead.
My wolf was lost.
And now, I was truly alone…