Chapter 55
CHARLOTTE’S POV
I’ve been staring at the text for two minutes just to be sure my eyes weren’t playing tricks on me.
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“Can we trust this guy?” Leslie asked. She sat on the sofa in my office with me at the hospital, watching my face.
“I don’t have a choice. This is the only chance I have to figure out who I really am.” I dropped my phone on the table and stared at the burger, french fries, and milkshake sitting in front of me. My stomach turned, I suddenly wasn’t hungry anymore,
“At least tell Ace about it,” she said, her voice rising. “Doesn’t it sound strange that this Gavin… or whatever his name is, wants you to come alone and drop your guards? And how will you even find the place? That address is non–existent. I looked it up.” She stood up and started pacing my office.
“He’s sending his driver to pick me up in an hour,” I said, even though it sounded wrong in my ears. “He said the place is far and we need to leave early.” I let out a slow breath. “I can’t tell Ace. He’ll try to stop me.”
“Then I’m going with you,” she shot back.
I walked over to her and gently made her sit on the couch, then I sat beside her. “I understand how you feel. I really do. I feel the same way,” I said softly. “But this might be the only chance I have to find myself. I need answers.” I swallowed. “I have to find Liam’s father. Liam doesn’t deserve to be mocked at school just because he doesn’t have one.” I placed my hand on her shoulder. “And you can’t come with me. If Gavin turns out not to be who I think he is and something happens to me, Liam should at least have you to take care of him.”
She sighed deeply, rubbing her face. “I can’t believe I’m letting you talk me into this,” she said. “Fine. But you have to stay alert. If anything feels off, you call me or mind link me immediately.” She paused, then grabbed my phone. “Actually, you’re sharing your location.” She started flipping through my phone without waiting for my answer.
I let out a small laugh despite the tight feeling in my chest. “There might not even be a network there,” I said. “You said it yourself, the place almost doesn’t exist.”
I had my assistant quietly bring me some clothes from the house. I took a quick shower in my office bathroom and changed into a new pair of jeans and a white crop top. Then I slipped out of the hospital before the guards could notice. I pulled on a nose mask and kept my head down.
Gavin’s car was waiting for me a few steps down the street. I got into the car and it drove off almost immediately. As we moved farther away from the city, I watched the road in silence, knowing we were heading to an unknown place.
ACE’S POV
I stood there and watched as Gavin walked into the arena. The crowd went wild the second they saw him. Unmated female wolves rushed toward him, calling his name, pushing each other just to get closer. He soaked it all in like he was born for it.
“Damn you, Gavin. You’re really enjoying the attention, aren’t you?” I muttered with a scoff, my jaw became
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tight as I watched him grin.
A few minutes later, the noise slowly died down. A man stepped out from the crowd holding a big wireless microphone. His voice echoed through the arena as he announced the duel, calling out names and rules like this was some kind of shit show.
I barely heard any of it. My wolf stirred hard inside my head, pulling at me. I didn’t even realize how long I had zoned out talking to him until a familiar voice brought me back.
“I know you’re going to beat him, Ace.” Elder Gaius stood beside me, his eyes fixed on my face like he was searching for doubt. “You’re Ace Virel.”
I gave him a short nod. Right then, I heard my name carried through the arena. “…Alpha Ace Virel.”
The rules were clear. No weapons.
The moment I stood facing Gavin, he wore that cold smile on his face. Then he turned away from me, looking into the crowd like he was searching for someone. It looked like he found whatever he was looking for because his smile widened. To my shock, he started moving backward, putting a huge distance between us.
I was
still trying to understand what was going on when the field suddenly flooded with armed men. One look was enough for me to see they were Draven Kael’s men. They all looked the same, the long marks on their faces from their pack’s initiation, their dark lips which looked like they’d been burned, they looked cruel.
“You should have trained when you had the chance,” Gavin mouthed, his eyes locked on mine before he stepped farther back and disappeared behind them.
He had me cornered. He wanted me not to use any of my Alpha abilities, no weapons, yet he brought Kael’s men, fully armed to fight me first. Men who clearly used the powers they got from their initiation.
“Let me snap all their necks immediately,” my wolf pressed in my head.
“We talked about this, Arix. I don’t want to kill anybody tonight.”
“This is a blood thirsty land, there is no way there won’t be bloodshed.”
The first man lunged at me without warning and the crowd went wild. Three small blades were fixed to his fingers, aimed straight for my neck. I ducked just in time, grabbed his wrist, twisted hard, and heard a sharp crack as the blades fell from his hand. I slammed my elbow into his chest and sent him flying back into two others. Another rushed me from behind, but I spun, kicked his legs out from under him, and knocked him unconscious before he even hit the ground. They kept coming, one after the other, but it was too easy. I dodged, blocked, disarmed. I broke bones, knocked them out cold, but I didn’t kill a single one, I didn’t want
- to.
The last man was different. He circled me slowly, his eyes burning with hate. Kael’s third commander. I knew him well. He believed I killed his brother. His brother had challenged me five years ago, unprovoked, and I had asked him to withdraw. It was at the time my curse was pushing hard on me, I had no control of how I reacted to things. He wanted me dead. I remembered choosing mercy that night, I wanted him to live so badly but it was as if he was in another realm, I ended up killing him. That decision made wolves all over the world start fearing me more than necessary. They avoided getting on my wrong side. I became a monster beyond redemption. All the mercy bones in my body disappeared. This man, his brother, never forgot it.
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Chapter 55
Sy youendre
Now he stood before me, grunting like an animal ready to tear me apart. His eyes were red with hate. He wanted to avenge his brother’s death. I didn’t blame him. If it were me, I would want the same. But tonight was not the night.
“You don’t have to do this,” I said to him. “Walk away with your life.” That was my last grace. I desperately didn’t want to go back to the monster I used to be. That raging beast inside me had been kept under control the moment Charlotte came back into my life. Right now, standing in that field, Charlotte is not here to put me in check, I was afraid. Afraid that if I let go even a little, I would lose myself again.
“I promised my brother I would bring him your head,” he spat. “I waited for years. Then I heard you had become weak. Not weak enough though,” he added, glancing around at the bodies on the ground. “Seeing that you beat a hundred men without flinching.”
“It would be a pity if I died by your hand,” I hissed.
He screamed and charged at me. We clashed hard. His fists were fast, heavy, and driven by rage. I blocked, twisted his arm, slammed him to the ground, and knocked the air out of him. He didn’t stay down for long. I hit him again, harder this time, and he finally collapsed. I turned my back, already done with him.
That was my mistake. I sensed it a second too late. He lunged for me from behind, aiming to kill. I didn’t turn around. I reached back, grabbed his head, and snapped his neck in one clean motion.
The arena went dead silent.
Kael roared wildly, and more of his men poured into the field. They were all armed, all ready to kill. Something inside me snapped. I felt it break loose before I could stop it.
I moved without thinking. Fast and brutal. Their bones cracked under my hands. Blood sprayed the cursed sand, turning it darker. I tore through them like they were nothing, my strength exploding out of control. Screams filled the arena. One after the other, they fell. Some tried to fight back, some tried to run. By the time I was done, the rest fled the field in fear, dragging their wounded men with them, while the others were dead. No one dared to come close again.
My chest was heaving, my vision red when Gavin walked back into the field.
Rage burned through me. This was his plan all along. Let Kael’s men push me until I lost control.
“Congratulations, brother,” Gavin said with a triumphant smile that made me boil. “You fell right into the trap I set for you.” He smiled slowly, dark and pleased. “Even if you survive me tonight, Kael won’t rest until you’re on your knees.”
I was in no mood for his nonsense. “You’re a coward, Gavin,” I spat. “I used to think highly of you, but you’re nothing but a coward, making me do your dirty job. This is the lowest I’ve ever seen you…”
He didn’t let me finish. He lunged at me and his fist connected with my face, snapping my head to the side and sending me stumbling back. He gave me no time to breathe. Punch after punch came fast and swift. I shook it off and hit back just as hard. We crashed into each other, fists flying, pain exploding through my body, I was sure I was giving him back exactly what he gave me. I landed blows that would drop any other man, but Gavin refused to stay down. He hit me back with the same fury. Neither of us was willing to accept defeat.
In between the fight, I noticed something strange. Gavin kept glancing toward a particular row in the stands,
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too many times. I followed his gaze without thinking. The moment my eyes met that familiar pair of brown eyes, my body froze. The shock hit me so hard I staggered backward.
No. I had to be seeing things. There was no way that was Charlotte. She was wearing a nose mask, but when I looked closer, my heart dropped. It was her.
Something darker rolled through me, very slowly. My jaw tightened. My hands curled into fists. The noise around me faded as heat rushed through my veins. I could feel my control slipping, feel that familiar rage clawing its way up.
Gavin was smiling. He spat blood to the side and laughed. “I told you I would mess you up. This is only the beginning,” he said coldly. “Now she sees you for who you truly are. A beast with no redemption. You just killed an innocent man who was trying to avenge his brother, and went ahead to kill more men. That’s who you truly are, you show no mercy in the battlefield.” His smile widened. “You’re destructive, dark–hearted, and vile. And look at her… she’s a doctor, she saves lives while you destroy.” He chuckled. “After tonight, she won’t want to see you or speak to you again. And I’ll be there to console her.” He started laughing hysterically like he had already won.
My eyes became bloodshot. He was pushing me to lose complete control and it was working perfectly well.
He kept talking, enjoying it. “Yes, Ace, show her how cruel you can be. You once asked if I was in love with her.” He stepped closer. “Yes, I was. I’ve always been and will always be in love with her. I left her for you because I thought it was the right thing to do.” His eyes burned into mine. “I’m back now. And I’ll take everything from you. Including Charlotte.” He paused, then smiled darker. “And your son, Liam.”
That was all it took, I snapped. He came at me first, wild and reckless. I met him head–on. We tore at each other. He slammed his elbow into my ribs, I felt something crack but I grabbed his wrist and twisted until he howled. He kneed me in the stomach, I staggered, then rammed my shoulder into his chest and sent him crashing into the dirt. We rolled, choking, grabbing, striking anywhere we could. Blood ran down my face.
My wolf was raging inside me, screaming to be let out, threatening to rip through my skin. I clenched my teeth, fighting him back. I had to stay in control. I had to show Gavin, show everyone, that I didn’t need to lose myself to be strong. If anything, being with Charlotte has made me stronger and deadlier.
I caught Gavin when he tried to rise. I grabbed him by the throat, lifted him off the ground, and slammed him down again. He clawed at my arms, desperate, but I didn’t let go. I twisted his arm behind his back, drove my knee into his spine, and forced him down. He hit the ground hard and stayed there, dropping to his knees, gasping, broken. I stood over him, shaking with rage, my wolf finally quiet.
As my eyes snapped back to Charlotte, I felt suffocated. She had removed her nose mask, she wanted me to let me see her properly. Her eyes were filled with distrust. I had spent weeks building trust, trying to show her who I truly was, trying to make her fall in love with me and Gavin had shredded it all in a few cruel hours. She stood up and left her seat.
He wanted her to see me like this, bloodied, furious, merciless. He wanted her to witness the side of me she may never accept. The person I became after I lost her.
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Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
