The confidence in his smirk flickered for a moment, and a muscle in his jaw twitched.
Her tone turned almost affectionate. “I bet you wonder where all your missing packmates went that night. Don’t you?” She let the silence stretch, savoring it. “If you swear allegiance to me, I might let you see them again. Though there weren’t many left to keep after my army finished feeding.”
Obren’s restraint snapped. His face flushed red with rage, and without hesitation, he spat at her feet. “You fucking demon.”
Vaelora laughed and turned away, her gown sweeping across the bloodstained floor. She raised a hand, curling her fingers lazily. “Cillian, my love, come.”
Evelyne’s brother obeyed, stepping forward with that same vacant stare, his blackened eyes fixed on Vaelora.
Panic rose in her chest like a scream she couldn’t release. What was Vaelora going to do to him? Was she going to force him to kill her—make the others watch as he murdered his sister, powerless to stop it?Please, gods, no—
Vaelora leaned in, and whispered one lethal word in Cillian’s ear.
“Kill.”
Evelyne’s stomach plummeted, her heartbeat thundering in her ears as she followed the line of Vaelora’s gesture.
Not at her.
Not at Obren.
Ty.
She had nearly forgotten he was there. He had been so quiet, so still, saying nothing as the chaos unfolded around him. He had watched from the sidelines, likely analyzing every moment, calculating the best move to protect his alpha and his friends.
Cillian’s brow furrowed, his breathing growing ragged, sharp teeth—Noskari teeth—elongating from his mouth. Black veins snaked along his neck and arms as he moved forward, step by step, closing in on Ty.
The room exploded in a storm of fury and anguish.
Kaldrek and Holden thrashed against their chains, snarling, teeth bared, rage cracking through the air, but Cillian didn’t look at them. His eyes never left Ty.
Ty, Nathan’s younger brother. Ty, who had never known cruelty. Ty, whose mate was still waiting for him in the tunnel, trusting he’d return.
He remained silent on his knees, his chin lifted with quiet defiance. He didn’t beg. He didn’t flinch. He just turned to Kaldrek and said, voice steady, “Tell Nathan to keep our mate safe. And tell Reyna… Tell her she was my everything.”
“NO!” Kaldrek wailed.
Evelyne lost control of her voice. “Cillian!” she screamed. “Cillian, stop! Please!”
The throne room blurred, sound warping and stretching, but she could only focus on her brother. The same brother who once braided her hair when she was sad, who had read beside her for hours in the library, who had always been gentle.
She pleaded, desperate for something to reach him.
Time stilled.
And Cillian lunged.
Ty didn’t flinch. There was no cry of pain, no gasp. Just the sickening sound of flesh tearing as Cillian’s arm plunged straight through his chest. But he didn’t stop there. With a horrifying, wet crack, he ripped upward, splitting Ty’s body clean in half.
Blood sprayed, flesh peeled, and in a heartbeat, Ty was nothing but ruin.
Evelyne wailed so loudly she thought her throat would shred to pieces. Kaldrek and Holden roared alongside her, their howls ripping through the air like those of wounded animals. Obren and Alaric stared, their faces frozen in pure horror.
Evelyne’s vision blurred with tears, her body trembling so violently she thought she might break apart, but then her eyes snapped to Alaric as she caught Cillian turning his way.
Oh gods, please. Not him.
Cillian stepped back to Vaelora’s side, obedient and unfeeling, his hands and chest drenched in blood. He didn’t even look down at what he had done.
