Vaelora.
She moved slowly into the chamber, her silver eyes glinting with dark amusement as they swept over each prisoner. Every second of silence pressed like a knife’s edge against Evelyne. Yet to her surprise, Vaelora barely looked at her. After all the warnings, all the threats, she had expected to be the focus.
But Vaelora’s gaze locked onto Kaldrek instead.
“I’m so glad we can finally meet, Kaldrek,” she drawled softly. “And it seems you brought the girl right to me, just as I’d hoped.”
Evelyne’s blood ran cold.
Kaldrek’s snarl tore through the silence, but Vaelora only smiled, tilting her head. “Is that any way to greet me,son?”
The word hit like a punch to the chest.
Son?
Evelyne couldn’t move. Couldn’t breathe. Her heart slammed against her ribs as she looked to Kaldrek, but it was Holden’s expression that shattered her. He wasn’t surprised. He had known.
Her throat tightened with betrayal, confusion clawing at her thoughts. Had Kaldrek lied to her? Had he led her into Vaelora’s hands on purpose? Had she been nothing but a pawn in something far darker than she’d ever imagined?
Alaric stared at Kaldrek in stunned disbelief, his mouth slightly open. Ty and Obren stood frozen, tension radiating off them, their expressions tight with shock. But Kaldrek… He didn’t react with anger or denial. He turned to Evelyne, his eyes full of raw guilt. And in that instant, she knew it was true.
She slowly shook her head, collapsing under the weight of heartbreak. Kaldrek looked away, shame etched into every line of his body. Then he lifted his chin and turned to face Vaelora.
“I’m not your son,” he rasped.
Vaelora laughed, the sound curling through the chamber like smoke. “Oh, but you are, Kaldrek,” she purred. Her eyes swept across the room once more, daring anyone to argue. “You mean to tell me no one’s ever noticed the signs? The white fur of your wolf? Its black, silver-rimmed eyes, when all others glow red? Your ability to sense my magic? Surely someone wondered where that gift came from. But this one,” she added, her voice almost sweet as she nodded toward Holden, “this handsome one—he knew, didn’t he?”
Kaldrek remained still, clearly seething beneath the surface. His silence said more than any words could.
Vaelora’s eyes sparkled with glee. “He must be important to you, if you trusted him with such a truth.”
The fury radiating from Kaldrek was unmistakable—Evelyne could feel it rolling off him in heavy waves. Or maybe it was her own anger rising, burning hot at the thought that Holden, her friend, had known and, like Kaldrek, said nothing.
Vaelora’s gaze shifted back to Evelyne, her smile curdling into something more sinister as she crouched down.
Without warning, she struck. Her hand lashed out, sharp nails slashing across Evelyne’s cheek.
“This little bitch just can’t help sticking her nose where it doesn’t belong, can she?”
Pain seared through Evelyne’s face as warm blood filled her mouth. But she didn’t cry out. Wouldn’t give her that satisfaction.
A feral growl erupted across the dungeon as Kaldrek exploded in a violent thrash against his restraints, his body trembling with the effort to hold back the shift. Wild rage poured off him, but Vaelora only smiled with delight.
“Oh? Did I touch something precious?” She traced a delicate finger along the fresh wound on Evelyne’s cheek, smearing the blood. “I guess killing your father wasn’t enough of a message, was it,girl?”
Evelyne’s heart pounded so hard she swore it might shatter. Then her eyes landed on a figure standing just inside the doorway.
Cillian.
He was alive.
Relief surged through her, and a quiet sob slipped past her lips before she could stop it. He was here—but was any part of her brother still in there? Dread yanked at her stomach as she noticed his pale gray complexion and distant eyes.
Vaelora’s voice broke through the fog of emotion. “Perhaps my son couldn’t bring himself to let you go,” she said, turning to Kaldrek. “Tell me, do you love her?”
Evelyne’s eyes snapped to Kaldrek, her pulse roaring in her ears. But he didn’t answer. He only narrowed his eyes at Vaelora and kept his chin up.
“I guess not as much as your handsome friend here. Because the look on her face tells me you withheld the truth from her.” She clicked her tongue and shook her head. “Now now, Kaldrek, lying is never the way to a woman’s heart.”
