Chapter 36
Chapter 36
I WOKE UP in an unfamiliar place.
A damp, cold chill clung to my skin like a second layer. The darkness swallowed everything—there were no windows, no hint of natural light, only the dim flicker of a failing bulb that cast long shadows across cracked concrete walls.
My arms were stretched wide, chained tightly to opposite ends of the room. My wrists ached from the tension. I tried to move my feet—
I winced in pain. Even my ankles were chained. Iron cuffs dug into my skin, raw and bruising. I let out a trembling breath, trying to suppress the panic rising in my chest.
Was this real?
Is this like what I’ve seen in movies? Where the kidnapped victim is tortured until they break—until they beg for mercy?
Am I the victim now?
Suddenly, fragments of memory surged forward like a tidal wave crashing into my skull. I had left my room to use the bathroom. No… I had left the Pack House altogether. There was an argument. I heard shouting echoing from the woods. The Raven siblings… I followed the voices. I wanted to know what was happening.
Then I saw her—Keira. Her eyes locked with mine.
And then… everything went black.
My chest burned with rage as I remembered.
KEIRA IS THE TRAITOR!
I cursed her name in my mind. How could I have been so blind? I thought it was Josh. He was always the quiet one, the secretive one. But it wasn’t him.
It was her.
They always say never trust a gentle face, because sometimes it hides the ugliest soul.
She had laughed with me, trained beside me, protected me in battle—only to stab us in the back when we least expected it.
I trusted her with my life.
And she shattered it like it was nothing.
I tried to move again, but the pain in my limbs was unbearable. A sickly warmth pulsed through my veins, slowing my movements.
Wolfsbane. I could smell it in my blood. The metallic tang was undeniable, but it wasn’t just any wolfsbane.
No—this one was different. Stronger. More lethal. Far worse than the kind the rogues used on Crater. This wasn’t meant to weaken me.
It was meant to kill me slowly.
My heart pounded with fear, but I couldn’t allow myself to break. Not yet.
I reached inward, searching for the bond—the connection we Aeon siblings shared.
“Moon,” I called out weakly in my mind, “Moon, what happened to us? Why can’t we connect with them?”
Silence.
The kind of silence that screams louder than any voice.
I tried again. And again. Desperation clawed at me. I reached deeper, cried louder, begged for even the faintest whisper of my wolf’s presence.
“Moon! Moon! Please…”
But there was nothing.
No warmth.
No voice.
No her.
A sob escaped my lips.
They took her away from me.
My best friend… my protector… the soul tethered to mine since birth—gone.
Emptiness. That’s all I felt now.
Like something inside me had been ripped out. I didn’t feel whole anymore.
It was worse than the chains. Worse than the pain. Worse than the betrayal.
And then—
“Tsk, tsk. The strong and bubbly Aeon is crying. What a sight to see.”
Her voice slithered into the room like venom. I didn’t need to look to know who it was.
But I did. I forced myself to look.
Keira.
There she stood in the doorway, smirking like she’d already won.
My tears stopped instantly.
I couldn’t show weakness now. Not in front of her.
“Are you happy now? Huh?!” I screamed, the chains clinking as I fought against them. “We did nothing but good to you! And what did we get in return? Your betrayal? Your lies?!”
She just laughed—a twisted, unrecognizable sound.
Gone was the Keira who braided my hair, who protected the pups, who stood beside me when we buried our dead.
That person never existed.
“First of all,” she said, her voice laced with venom, “I never once considered you my friends. I was never part of your Pack. My loyalty has always been to Master Logan.”
Master Logan. The name made my stomach churn.
Now it all made sense. Her odd disappearances. Her distant stares.
She was never one of us.
And now, only one thing consumed me:
Revenge.
Without hesitation, I spat in her face.
The glob of spit hit its mark. She flinched, then wiped it off slowly, glaring at me with pure hate.
I seared the image into my memory. I would never forget that expression—because one day, I would wipe it from her face forever.
“Wait for me, Keira,” I growled. “Because once I get out of here, the only thing on your body that won’t be bruised is your tongue.”
Her eyes narrowed. She stepped forward, slowly—tauntingly—then raised her whip. The leather struck hard across my shoulder. I bit my lip, refusing to scream.
Another strike. Then another. My shirt tore. My skin burned. But I stayed silent.
I will not give her the satisfaction.
She cackled madly, eyes wild with delight.
This wasn’t just betrayal anymore—this was hatred.
Her rage. Her loyalty to Logan. It turned her into a monster. Not the friend I once knew, but a weapon meant to destroy me.
I forced a laugh through my gritted teeth.
“Is that all you’ve got? How weak,” I spat.
She lost it.
Her fist slammed into my stomach. I doubled over, gasping. Pain bloomed like fire in my core.
Still… I smirked.
“Better than sobbing like a child,” I whispered through the agony.
She raised the whip again, ready to break me.
But then—
“Stop it, Keira.”
A new voice entered the room.
Cold. Commanding. Male.
Keira froze.
My eyes widened as a silhouette appeared behind her, stepping into the light.
And then—
“Hello to you… my dear daughter.”
The air was sucked from my lungs.
My what?