Page 69 of Ruthless Moon
“Quietly now.” His voice slithers into my ear. “Or she’ll pay for it later.”
The way he mentions “she” sends my heart into a frenzy, its frantic rhythm echoing a sharp pang of fear in my chest. There’s no mistaking it.Gen.
He heard my conversation with Aiden.
A quick sweep of my surroundings reveals the harsh truth—escape isn’t an option. The stern faces of Oliver’s enforcers surround me, their eyes as unforgiving as the steel pressed against my spine.
My wolf thrashes within me. But with every snarl, every plea for violence, I tighten my grip around its fury. This isn’t our battle to win, I remind it. Gen’s safety...that’s the only victory that matters now.
I allow Noah to lead me away, steering me from the square, from the heartbreaking sight of the wedding-to-be. An ache builds in my chest, a slow throb of dread and despair that has nothing to do with my physical state. This isn’t the first time such a scenario has crossed my mind—that Oliver would find out about our mate bond.
Gen knew it too.
It’s why she fought so hard to keep our connection a secret.
But this...this might make it easier. If I’m gone for real, she’ll be able to grieve, she’ll heal and eventually move on, right?
The beast within me howls at the thought, but the man knows the bitter truth. It’s better than a life lived with the overwhelming desire to kill my cousin.
Strong hands force me into the back seat of a sleek, black SUV. My wolf surges to the surface again, wanting to lash out, but I force it back. It takes all my focus to sit there, back straight, my gaze fixed on the man now sliding in opposite me.
Oliver.
His ice-cold eyes bore into me, a smirk playing on his lips. There’s a certain satisfaction in his gaze, a twisted delight at my predicament. It chills me more than the barrel of Noah’s gun ever could.
“So,” he begins, breaking the smothering silence that fills the vehicle. “I hear you and my daughter have been keeping quite the secret.”
I meet his stare unblinking, a silent battle of wills.
Disgust twists his features, turning his smile into a grimace. “Whatever plans you had with Imogen, consider them ruined. I will have your pack bound to me as soon as the wedding is over.”
I swallow and take several shallow breaths.Bind the pack? Oliver becoming our alpha wasn’t part of the arrangement. Aiden never would have agreed to this.
A cruel sneer curves Oliver’s mouth. “I always get what I want, O’Connor.”
A brief nod is his command to Noah.
I barely have time to react before a crippling wave of pain detonates in my temple. The world lurches and spins. My vision blurs, my mind spirals into a hazy darkness, and the last thing I see is Oliver’s villainous grin.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Here Comes the Bride
IMOGEN GALLAGHER
Each step toward the floral arch feels like a stone sinking into my chest. I can’t look at Aiden. Not yet.
My father’s hand on my arm is both an anchor and a shackle—tight, hard, and devoid of any parental warmth. My heart beats a rapid staccato against my ribs.
But there will be no freedom for me.
This is the moment before I lose the life I should have with Liam.
My gaze sweeps the audience, my neck rigidly facing forward. I search for Liam among the sea of faces. And yet a part of me hopes I don’t spot him, because the sight of him might shatter the fragile composure I’m holding on to.
My father can never know about Liam. Ever.
Instead of the face of the man I love, I see Meredith, and Emma, and Finn, and... Lucas? My oldest brother hasn’t been back to Colorado in years. He looks the same, maybe a few specks of early gray in his beard. But otherwise, he has the same hard jaw. The same coldness in his eyes. He hates my father. Hates me. Blames me, my birth, for our mother’s death.