Finisher


    Ronan Duskcliff stood silently, his face calm yet unreadable–neither fully convinced nor skeptical of the usations made by Alpha ric and Luna Zara. His eyes lowered slightly, as if deep in thought, and he said nothing.


    Suddenly, a dry, raspyugh shattered the heavy silence, echoing down the dim corridor like the howl of a wounded wolf.


    Alpha ric, Luna Zara, and Ronan all turned instinctively. Pushed forward by a nurse was Ronan’s sister Tessa, her frail figure seated in a wheelchair.


    The sight of her caused ric and Zara’s pupils to constrict sharply. The fierce arrogance and harsh words they had just thrown at Riley vanished instantly, reced by palpable dread and fear.


    ric’s face paled, sweat beading down his temple, while Zara’s body trembled as if gripped by an invisible hand clutching her heart. Her eyes were wide and filled with terror.


    They knew the truth better than anyone.


    Scarlett had cunningly lured her deep into the ck Forest under the pretense of a peaceful walk. Once isted in the shadowy, twisted woods, Scarlett struck with ruthless cruelty, leaving Tessa severely injured and unconscious.


    She was found dayster by hunters, barely clinging to life, and had since been trapped in a vegetative state, her body broken but her spirit slowly stirring beneath.


    Zara had never witnessed the attack, but when Tessa begged for help before slipping into unconsciousness, Zara coldly turned her back and immediately used Riley of causing her fate.


    Together, Zara and ric conspired to me Riley, fabricating lies to cover Scarlett’s heinous betrayal.


    Zara even deleted the only surveince footage that could have proved Riley’s innocence.


    The guilt they carried was as heavy as iron chains, and seeing Tessa alive–though fragile–filled them with a deep, gnawing anxiety.


    ric, experienced in the brutal politics of the Ebonw Pack, masked his inner turmoil quickly, but the unease hidden behind his calm eyes was like a river of darkness flowing beneath a frozenke.


    Zara was lessposed–since marrying into the Ebonw Pack, she had be a delicate, frightened wife, easily shaken.


    Her trembling voice broke the silence, “What… what do you want now?”


    Tessa’s eerie smile faded into a hollow, haunting nkness. Years of unconsciousness had drained the blood from her face, leaving hollow cheeks andrge, ghostly eyes that seemed to pierce the shadows like a wolf stalking its prey.


    Ronan rushed forward, concern carved into his features. “Tessa, you shouldn’t be up yet. Your body isn’t healed. You need rest.”


    Tessa’s gaze locked onto Ronan’s with icy intensity, eyes sharp as silver daggers.


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    Finishe


    “Tessa, what’s wrong?” Ronan’s voice wavered as he searched her impassive expression.


    Though she had just awakened after five years trapped in darkness, she fought tirelessly to speak–for Riley’s sake, to clear her name and reveal Scarlett’s true nature.


    What cut her deepest was that Ronan, her own brother, had never once asked who destroyed her life.


    Had he asked, she could have blinked or nodded, or given any sign.


    It was Scarlett.


    Her brother needed to avenge her, to send Scarlett to justice.


    But no question ever came.


    The brother who once cradled her like a cherished pup had be distant, cold, and cruel- unrecognizable and despised.


    Her heart shattered into a thousand bloody shards.


    With a twisted, grim smile, Tessa summoned all her remaining strength to force two rasped words from her parched throat:


    “Retribution.”


    Her voice was faint and cracked, but in the oppressive silence, it rang out like silver ws tearing flesh, sinking deep into every soul present.


    Then a dry, wildugh erupted–madness and pain entwined in a haunting howl.


    Ronan’s face went pale as death.


    He burned with rage and sorrow but dared noty a hand on his own sister. Instead, he snapped at the nurse, “Wheel her away! She’s too weak <i>to </i>cause a scene.”


    The nurse hurriedly pushed the wheelchair.


    Tessa slumped back, powerless, but her eyes never left Ronan’s. The loathing and hatred zing there were as tangible and sharp as silver fangs, aimed straight at his heart.


    Though broken in body, her spirit screamed silently, repeating over and over like a cursed wolf’s howl –“Retribution… Retribution…”


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