Chapter 106

Declan’s POV

“You marked me?”

Her voice was full of hate and pure disappointment. She couldn’t believe I’d betrayed her like this. I didn’t care. Let her hate me, as long as she stayed. I couldn’t let her go. I needed her.

Smart little wolf.

“Why?” she asked.

“This was always my plan.”

Emily tensed, her muscles locking up. “What was the plan?”

“To take you for myself. Did you really think I pulled all those strings just to hand you over to my father? That I’d let him have you without lifting a finger?”

“You kidnapped me from my ceremony,” she spat.

“Yes. Tessa was just a tool I used to get it done.”

“You killed Nathan’s father.”

‘Yes.”

A flash of real pain crossed her face. Even with the bond blocked, she still hurt for him. “You’re insane,” she

whispered.

“No.” I leaned in. “I’m just patient.”

Her heart was racing now. I could hear the rhythm–fast, wild, and beautiful. My fingers brushed the edge of the

silver collar, and she flinched as if the metal had burned her.

“Careful,” I said. “The silver gets nasty if you fight it.”

The hatred in her eyes burned hotter. Good. I liked the fire in her.

“We were supposed to run away,” she said, her voice shaking. “You could have been free from all of this.”

I let out a low laugh.

“You don’t get it, little wolf.”

I leaned close enough to smell the scent of strawberries buried under the bitter tang of wolfsbane.

“I didn’t want to run from this. I wanted to own it. All of it.”

I hooked my fingers under her chin, forcing her to look at me. My thumb brushed slowly over the fresh, raised skin

1:17 pm PPTM

“And now, you’re mine too.”

The thought settled deep into my bones. It wasn’t just a win. It was everything.

Emily’s POV

I lost track of the days. Two, maybe three–it didn’matter. The black stone walls of the tower were starting to

feel less like a prison and more like a grave.

Declan kept sending food. He kept asking me to come down for breakfast or dinner, but I refused every time.

“I don’t feel well,” I told Cindy through the door again that morning.

It wasn’t even a lie. I felt drained. My body still remembered him, and that was the worst part. The mark burned every time the memory surfaced.

And Nathan… Goddess, Nathan. Every time my fingers brushed the fresh bite on my neck, guilt surged through me. It was a jagged, sharp feeling that made me want to scream.

A knock sounded against the door again. I closed my eyes, exhausted.

“Cindy, go away. I already told you I’m not going to see him.”

The door creaked open anyway. I turned around fast and froze.

Stella stepped inside.

She looked different. She was still beautiful and perfectly put together, but something was off. She seemed fragile. Her dark hair was styled and her makeup was flawless, but the silver ribbon around her neck looked like a chain pretending to be jewelry.

Her hand never moved from her stomach, resting there protectively. Watching her made a knot tie itself in my gut. I realized, with a jolt of pure dread, that she was looking at her future–and I was looking at mine.

Stella closed the door softly behind her. “How are you, Emily?”

I let out a tired, dry laugh. “Since when do you care how I’m doing?”

Something flickered in her expression.

“We were never friends,” I said, my voice flat. “And we both know we never will be.”

Stella looked down at the floor for a second. “You’re right.”

The honesty caught me off guard. She moved into the room slowly, but she didn’t sit down. She stood near the fireplace, her fingers gripping the fabric of her dress while her other hand stayed over her stomach.

She looked like she wanted to say something but couldn’t find the right words. For the first time, Stella looked

1:18 pm P PTM.

nervous around me. That had never happened before.

couldn’t take it anymore, so I snapped.

“Do you have anything else to say, or can you just leave my room?”

Stella took a shaky breath. When she finally looked at me, I saw it. Real fear. It wasn’t me she was afraid of,

though. She stepped closer to the bed, her voice dropping to a whisper as she glanced at the door, checking for

listeners.

“I can help you,” she said.

I just stared at her. “With what?”

“Escaping.”

My face turned to stone. She moved even closer, her words hurried. “I’ve been here long enough to learn things.

Hidden passages. Guard rotations. There are spots even the rogues don’t bother watching.”

A dry laugh escaped me. “You’ll have to forgive me if I’m not exactly rushing to trust anyone in this castle.”

Stella winced. “Emily-”

“The last person I trusted here drugged me, messed with my head, marked me, and chained me to this room.” I didn’t hide the edge in my voice. “And you? I never trusted you to begin with.”

Stella looked at her feet. “I know we didn’t start off well.”

“You wanted me dead,” I reminded her. “Or at least gone, because I ruined your perfect life with Nathan.”

Stella’s fingers tightened over her stomach. “I loved him,” she whispered. The words sounded hollow. “It hurt watching everything break because of you.”

I didn’t back down.

“But things are different now,” she said quietly.

“Of course they are.” I looked pointedly at her stomach. “Your protectors are either dead or barely breathing.”

Stella flinched.

“The baby is Silas’s, isn’t it?”

She didn’t say a word, but the look in her eyes was enough. I stared at her in horror.

“I’m not a strategist like Declan,” I said slowly. “But even I can see what this means. Tessa brought you here. Silas got you pregnant. And now Tessa is dead, and Silas is barely clinging to life.”

Stella’s breathing got choppy.

“Which means your baby is a threat to Declan’s throne.”

Pure, raw survival fear flooded her face. For the first time, she looked just as trapped as I was. But I was too

drained to give her any sympathy.

“Honestly?” I said. “That sounds like a you problem.”

Her eyes welled up instantly. “Emily, please-”

“No.” I cut her off. “You don’t get to play the ally just because you’re scared.”

Stella looked like she’d been struck. Good. I was tired of being the only one hurting. But honestly, I didn’t care. I

wouldn’t believe a word she said if I had a hundred years to think about it..

“I don’t believe you,” I said quietly. “And I never will.”

I pointed toward the door.

“If you’re smart, Stella… you’ll leave before Declan finds out you were even here.”