Page 44 of Abandoned By My Alpha Husband

A werewolf and his wolf share one mind. Which meant deep down, I still wanted to spare her—even after she'd been tied to the Butcher Squad, even after she'd hurt Liam.

My knuckles went white against the sill. What was I doing? Did I have a weakness now? Was I this goddamn emotional?

I didn't know.

I was a mess.

"Lucifer."

Lina's voice came from the doorway. She didn't knock, just pushed in with a cup of tea in her hands. She walked over and set it on the corner of the desk, then her hand landed on my arm, fingertips pressing lightly against my sleeve.

"The healer said Liam's not out of danger yet." Lina's voice was soft, thick with concern. "Are you okay?"

"I know."

"Lucifer, how could Luna be connected to the Butcher Squad?" Her voice dropped lower, like she was thinking it through for me. "The assassin at the banquet last time, and those two today—all from the Butcher Squad."

I turned. Lina's eyes gleamed strangely in the moonlight, and for a split second, her worried expression seemed to vanish into the dark. "Done?"

She paused, fingers still on my sleeve, and didn't pull back. "I'm just thinking, maybe everything she did before—being good to us, to Liam—maybe it was all calculated. Maybe she was just building trust so she could—"

"Enough!"

My growl bounced off the walls. Lina flinched. I yanked my arm away. She stood there, the hand that had been on my sleeve now hanging at her side. She bit her lower lip like my tone had wounded her, eyes beginning to redden.

"Leave."

"Lucifer—"

"I said get out!"

I was running. Even as the accusations screamed louder in my head. Elena's deceiving you. She betrayed your trust. She's connected to the Butcher Squad. She wanted Liam dead, wanted Hale destroyed. Maybe the Gray family's in on it too—

Lina looked at me, lips moving, but said nothing more. She didn't leave either. I was breathing hard, moonlight streaming in, her words still hanging in the air—"calculated," "building trust."

My mind flooded with images from the past weeks. Her tenderness. The way she cared for Liam. How she threw herself in harm's way. The fragrance she made, the food she prepared, the "I love you" she'd whispered in bed, fingers tangled in my hair. Was it all fake?

A knock at the door.

"Come in." I pulled myself together as best I could. "How's Liam?"

My beta and the healer entered together, faces tense. My heart jumped. "He—"

"Liam's out of danger," the healer said. "The bleeding's stopped, most of the wolfsbane is cleared. As long as he rests, he'll be fine."

My shoulders dropped—just for a moment, like a rope had been cut. I nodded, tried to speak, but my throat was too dry.

The deputy and healer exchanged a look. The healer stepped forward and cleared his throat. "Your Majesty, there's something else..."

"Say it."

"About Luna." The healer's voice lowered. "When we were treating her wound, we found something... unusual."

I looked at him. Unease spread like an invisible net closing in. "What?"

"She's a hybrid."

The words landed like a bomb. The room went silent. I stood there, hand still on the windowsill, unmoving.