(Victoria''s POV)


    The phone nearly slipped from my trembling fingers as I recognized the voice on the other end.


    "Connor ckthorn," I whispered, my heart racing. "How did you get this number?"


    His dark chuckle sent shivers down my spine. "I have my ways, Victoria. Did you miss me during my time in Moonstone County


    Correctional?"


    I nced nervously at Emma''s bedroom door, making sure it remained closed. "You shouldn''t be calling me. If Ethan finds out


    11


    "If Ethan finds out what?" Connor interrupted, his voice hardening. "That you orchestrated the ''ident'' meant for his precious


    mate? That you promised me we''d be together once she was out of the picture?"


    I moved toward the staircase, keeping my voice low. "Things areplicated right now. I''m in a wheelchair after the elevator


    incident."


    "A wheelchair?" Concern immediately reced his anger. "What happened?"


    As I started descending the stairs, my attention divided between the conversation and my footing, my heel caught on the edge of


    a step.


    I lost my bncepletely, tumbling down the remaining stairs with a piercing scream. Pain exploded through my body as I


    "Victoria?-Victoria!" Connor''s panicked voice came


    ugh the phone that had


    fallen nearby. "What happened? Are you


    I groaned, reaching for the phone with shaking hands. "I fell down the stairs."


    "I''ming over," he dered immediately.


    hurt?"


    "No!" I shouted, then winced at the pain the sudden movement caused. "You can''te here. Ethan''s security would detect your


    scent."


    There was a pause on the other end. "You''re still with him, aren''t you?" The hurt in his voice was palpable. "After everything we


    nned together."


    I needed to regain control of the situation quickly. "Connor, please understand. I''m doing this for Emma."


    "For Emma?" His voice grew suspicious. "Or for yourself?"


    I forced tears into my voice, a skill I''d perfected over years of maniption. "How can you say that? I''ve sacrificed everything for


    our daughter. Look at me now-paralyzed and alone while Ethan chases after Olivia."


    "Our daughter," he repeated softly, the anger draining from his voice. "How is she?"


    I seized the opportunity, shifting the conversation to Emma. "She misses you, even though she doesn''t know who you are. She keeps asking why she doesn''t have a father like the other pups."


    It was a lie, of course. Emma had never questioned Victoria about her father, content with the attention Ethanvished on her.


    But Connor didn''t need to know that.


    "I want to see her," he said, his voice thick with emotion.


    I winced as I pulled myself into a sitting position against the wall. "It''s too


    dangerous right now. Ethan is watching me closely


    after the incident with Olivia."


    "What incident?" Connor demanded.


    I sighed dramatically. "She pushed me into an elevator shaft. That''s why I''m in this wheelchair. The doctors aren''t sure if I''ll ever


    walk again."


    The lie flowed easily from my lips. In reality, I had orchestrated my own "ident"


    to gain sympathy from Ethan and the pack.


    But Connor''s protective instincts would be useful to me.


    "She tried to kill you?" His voice had turned deadly calm. "And our daughter could have been left motherless?"


    "Connor, please don''t do anything rash," I pleaded, secretly delighted by his reaction. “Emma needs me. And I need you to be


    patient."


    I could almost hear his internal struggle through the phone. "Give me the security code to Rosewood Haven. I need to see you


    tonight."


    I hesitated, calcting the risks. “2-4-7-8. Come after midnight when the guards change shifts. But you must be gone before


    dawn."


    After ending the call, I pulled myself back into my wheelchair, smiling despite the pain from my fall. Connor would be the perfect


    weapon against Olivia-and once he served his purpose, I would ensure he disappeared permanently.


    Emma was never his daughter. The child was merely a convenient tool in my arsenal, one I tolerated only because of her


    usefulness in manipting Ethan.


    Soon, I would eliminate both Olivia and Connor, securing my position as Ethan''s only option. And Emma? Well, boarding schools


    existed for a reason.


    Later that night, I heard the soft beep of the security system being disarmed. Connor had arrived.


    He appeared in my bedroom doorway, his tall frame silhouetted against the hallway light. Despite his time in prison, he remained handsome in a dangerous way.


    "Victoria," he whispered, crossing the room in three long strides.


    His lips found mine with desperate hunger. I responded with equal fervor, pulling him closer despite my supposed paralysis.


    "I''ve missed you," I murmured against his mouth. "Every day."


    Connor''s hands tangled in my hair as he deepened the kiss. "I thought of nothing


    but you and Emma while I was locked


    away."


    I guided his hands to my body, letting him believe that my paralysis hadn''t


    affected my ability to feel pleasure. In truth, I felt


    nothing for him beyond his usefulness to my ns.