My eyes fluttered open, a splitting headache pounding against my skull. The sedative hadn''t


    kept me under for long. I found myself lying on therge bed in the master bedroom of


    Imperial Gardens, the familiar ceilinging into focus above me.


    Memories of the previous night crashed through my mind like violent waves. Victoria at Lily''s


    grave. The ck dog blood sshing across my daughter''s tombstone. The ancient


    talismans meant to curse my baby''s spirit.


    White-hot hatred surged through my veins. I was about to sit up when Ethan''s voice drifted in from the balcony.


    "Don''t be afraid," he said softly into his phone. "Last night was an ident. It won''t happen


    again."


    My body froze. I knew exactly who he was talking to.


    "I''ve arranged for bodyguards to protect you," he continued, his voice gentle in a way it never was with me anymore. "She won''t have a chance to hurt you and Emma again."


    His voice dropped lower, and I couldn''t make out his next words. But I''d heard enough.


    Bodyguards. For Victoria. The woman who had killed my daughter and desecrated her grave.


    A crushing sense of powerlessness washed over me. The boulder pressing on my heart grew heavier, almost suffocating me. I couldn''t touch Victoria now. I couldn''t make her pay for what


    she''d done to Lily.


    Tears welled up in my eyes and silently slid down my cheeks. I was truly helpless against


    Victoria Frost.


    I heard Ethan end his call and step back into the bedroom. Just as his footsteps approached


    the bed, his phone rang again.


    "Maxwell," he answered. "What is it?"


    "Alpha King, it''s all arranged," Maxwell Chen''s voice came through clearly. "Luna


    Winters will be very touched when she sees it."


    "Good," Ethan replied, his tone softening slightly.


    +TS Points


    I kept my back to him, pretending to be asleep. Through barely-open eyes, I saw him nce at me before turning away.


    "After today, she should understand that mypensation to Lily isn''t just empty words," he murmured, more to himself than to Maxwell. "In the future, she won''t target Victoria and


    Emma for Lily''s sake anymore."


    He ended the call and left the room without another word.


    Compensation? For Lily? What was he nning? Whatever it was, it wouldn''t bring my


    daughter back. It wouldn''t punish the woman who had stolen her chance at life. My phone rang, startling me from my thoughts. I reached for it on the bedside table, my


    movements sluggish.


    "Ms. Winters?" A soft female voice came through the speaker. "Do you have time toe by


    today?"


    It was my psychiatrist, Dr. Reba Winters-no rtion, despite the shared surname. She


    specialized in emotional trauma among werewolves.


    "I noticed you should have finished your medication yesterday," she continued.


    "You missed your scheduled appointment, and I''m concerned."


    I closed my eyes, suddenly remembering. Without those pills, my emotions would


    be increasingly unstable. Grief was difficult enough to manage with


    medication; without it, patients prone to negative emotions could spiral dangerously out of control.


    "Yes," I replied, my voice hoarse. "I''lle in today."


    After hanging up, I forced myself out of bed. My body felt heavy, as if gravity had doubled overnight. I washed quickly, changed my clothes, and drove to the psychiatrist''s office.


    Dr. Winters examined me with concern in her eyes. "You''re not in good condition, Olivia."


    I stared at the prescription she handed me. More pills to numb the pain, to keep


    me


    functioning.


    "You should find an outlet for venting," she suggested gently. "Find friends or family you trust.


    Talk to them more. Don''t carry everything alone."


    Her words echoed in my mind. Friends? Family? Who did I have left?


    "You''ve been depressed for too long," she continued. "You''re like a tightly stretched string


    reaching its limit. If you don''t rx, you''ll copse.”


    "I understand," I murmured, taking the medicine. "Thank you."


    +15 Points >


    Instead of returning home, I drove to the Silvercrest Pack Medical Den. There was only one person I could think of who might listen without judgment-even if she couldn''t respond.


    Who could I tell about Victoria killing Lily? I had no rtives; my adoptive mother had passed away years ago. My only true friend, James Knight, was in closed training for an uing race. I couldn''t burden him with this.


    James had loved Lily like his own daughter. If he knew Victoria had deliberately killed her, he


    would certainly go after her. And if he harmed Victoria, Ethan would destroy him. James


    wouldn''t just lose his chance at next year''s championship; he might never race again.


    Racing was James''s dream. I couldn''t implicate him.


    As for Lucas ckwood, our rtionship was merely a pretense. We weren''t close enough for


    such confidences.


    So I carried the burden alone. The remorse for failing Lily, the burning need for justice, the


    resentment toward Ethan''s blindness and Victoria''s viciousness-it all pressed down on me


    like a physical weight.


    The psychiatrist had asked me to find someone to help relieve my nearly copsing emotions.


    The only person I could think of was Matriarch Evelyn Stone, whoy unconscious in the


    medical den.


    She was one of the few people who had protected and loved me. And because she was in a


    I parked my car at the Silvercrest Pack Medical Den and went directly to Matriarch Evelyn''s


    ward. The elderly woman remained motionless, her breathing steady but shallow. Margaret Shepherd looked up as I entered. Her kind face creased with concern when she saw


    1. me.


    "Ms. Winters, did you not sleep well because you were worried about the matriarch?" she


    asked. "I''m here to care for her, you needn''t worry."


    "I''m fine," I forced a smile. "I just miss her. I''ll sit with her for a while."


    I hesitated, then added, "Mrs. Shepherd, may I speak to Matriarch Stone alone for


    a moment?"


    Understanding flickered in her eyes. "Of course! I actually have something to


    attend to. I''ll leave the matriarch in your care."


    She patted my hand gently. "I''ll ask the security detail to keep watch and ensure


    no one


    216


    < Chapter 96 Matriarch Awake...


    disturbs you."


    "Thank you, Mrs. Shepherd."


    She smiled lovingly at me, then left the ward with the nursing assistant, instructing


    the


    security guards to maintain position outside.