Ch. 326..330: A Warrior Luna's Awakening Chapter 326-330
Chapter 326
Freya’s POV
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The moment we stepped into the grand ballroom, the weight of it pressed down on me like a heavy cloak. Crystal chandeliers glittered above, casting fractured light across polished marble floors, and the air reeked of perfume, ambition, and wolf musk.
My pulse quickened. I wasn’t here for spectacle. I was here for one reason: Parker Williams. If Silas’s intel was right, he would be at this gathering tonight. The thought alone made my chest tighten. Parker might be the only lead to my brother, Eric Thorne. Or… perhaps Parker was Eric.
My eyes swept the crowd, nerves taut like a bowstring. Behind me, two shadows moved in sync -Kade and Silas. They flanked me like bodyguards, but their presence was anything but simple. Their raw Alpha energy pressed against my skin, prickling like sparks of lightning, drawing curious stares the moment we crossed the threshold.
Whispers rose immediately. Two Alphas in one room was enough to stir gossip. Add me between them, and it was a storm waiting to break.
Silas drew the lion’s share of attention; the Whitmor name carried weight in the Ironclad Coalition, and his striking looks weren’t easily ignored. Yet to my surprise, Kade also drew recognition. Of course–his WolfComm ties to Victor Ashford’s legal empire extended far beyond the Capital. It made sense that some of D–Nation’s power brokers would know his face.
But for me, all of this was noise. Every handshake, every lingering stare, every simpering smile from a woman drawn to either of them–it all slowed me down. And I couldn’t afford delays.
“We should split up,” I said sharply, eyes scanning for even a flicker of Parker’s silhouette. “We’ll find him faster that way.”
Kade’s brow furrowed. “But-”
“No buts,” I cut him off. “Time isn’t on our side.”
Before I could step away, Silas’s hand wrapped around my wrist, firm and hot. His grip was more than possessive–it was a tether. His voice, low and steady, brushed my ear. “I’ll come find
you later.”
I swallowed, uneasy at the intensity in his gaze. “Fine.”
Only then did he release me.
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Chapter 326
But others had already noticed. A local pack elder leaned closer to Silas, voice curious. “Rare to see you bring a companion, Whitmor. Who’s the lady?”
Silas didn’t hesitate. “She’s my mate.”
The words struck me like a blow. My lungs stalled; even Kade’s eyes hardened in disbelief. The men nearby blinked, startled.
“Your mate?” one murmured. “Then she must be truly fortunate.”
Silas’s gaze never left me. “Fortunate? No. I’m the fortunate one.”
His tone was reverent, almost desperate, as if by claiming me before witnesses, he could bind me back into his orbit.
Kade stepped forward, seizing Silas by the arm, dragging him aside. His voice was low, edged with steel. “She ended things with you. Stop calling her your mate.”
Silas’s lips curved in a humorless smile. “We’re only apart for now. She’ll return to me. She has
to.”
Kade’s jaw clenched. The temperature between them dropped to ice. “If you so much as think of forcing her, Whitmor, I swear on my bloodline–I’ll tear your Coalition down stone by stone. Don’t test me.”
Silas’s eyes narrowed, shadows curling in their depths. “Do you really believe you could bring down my family?”
“Try me,” Kade said, gaze unflinching, his wolf prowling just beneath his skin.
The two of them locked in a silent battle, Alphas radiating hostility so thick the nearby crowd instinctively shifted back, giving them space.
I didn’t wait for it to escalate. My focus had to remain on Parker. Heart hammering, I pushed deeper into the sea of glittering gowns and sharp suits.
Everywhere I looked, faces blurred, but none of them were his. Doubt gnawed at me. What if Silas had lied? What if Parker wasn’t even here? What if I lost the chance to find my brother all
over again?
My wolf paced restlessly inside me, nose lifting, desperate for a familiar scent. The thought of Eric–his laughter, the shadow he cast over my childhood, the way he had vanished- tightened my throat. If Parker was him, if I could just see…
I turned another corner, breath shallow. And then-
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Chapter 326
My steps faltered. My entire body froze.
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There, across the room, in the flood of lamplight, stood a figure I knew too well and not at all. The tilt of his head, the line of his shoulders–it was Eric’s posture, Eric’s presence. But the air around him was darker, more guarded, stamped with authority that didn’t belong to the boy I remembered.
Parker Williams.
Or Eric Thorne.
Or both.
My heart seized. Every rational thought scattered. Instinct took over. My feet moved before my mind caught up, propelling me across the ballroom. I couldn’t lose him again. Not this
time.
The crowd blurred around me, voices drowned beneath the rush of my own pulse. My wolf howled inside me, urging me forward, clawing at my ribs with need.
Closer.
Closer.
And then–I was there. My hand shot out, trembling but sure, and clamped onto his wrist.
His skin was warm, solid, alive.
He turned, startled, eyes widening as he saw me.
For one breathless moment, the world stopped.
I stared into his face, torn between hope and dread, and whispered the word that had been clawing at my chest for years:
“Brother…?”
Chapter 327
Freya’s POV
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The man turned toward me, his deep, steady voice cutting through the hum of the ballroom.
“Miss, do you need something?”
My breath caught. That voice–low, composed, with the same faint rasp that used to carry through the corridors of Stormveil Hall when my brother called my name. My chest tightened as my vision blurred.
Could it be him?
For a heartbeat, the lights, the crowd, the orchestra–all faded into silence. All I could hear was the sound of my pulse drumming in my ears. I took a shaky step forward, my throat tightening.
It wasn’t a dream this time. He was standing right there–alive, real, within reach.
“Eric…” I whispered, though my lips barely formed the word.
My hand lifted almost of its own accord. I wanted–no, needed–to touch him, to feel the warmth of his skin, to confirm that he wasn’t a ghost conjured by my desperate mind.
But just as my fingertips brushed the air near his cheek, another hand smacked mine away with sharp force.
“Who do you
think you are? How dare
you touch
my brother!”
The voice was sharp, young, and venomously possessive.
I blinked, jolted back into the chaos of the ballroom. The girl at his side–dressed in glittering silver, her fingers coiled around his arm like a claim–was staring at me with pure disdain.
“He’s your brother?” My voice trembled, disbelief twisting through me.
“Who else would he be? Certainly not yours,” she shot back with a sneer.
A few people nearby turned their attention toward us. I caught the glint of amused, cruel smiles–the kind that always gathered when blood scent hit the air.
“Everyone knows Parker only has one sister–Jenny,” a man nearby said, his tone laced with mockery.
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Chapter 327
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Another woman laughed softly, lifting her glass. “This one’s clearly trying to climb her way into his pack. Pathetic, really.”
“She doesn’t even look like she belongs here,” another added, eyes raking over me.
Their words fell like shards of ice around me, but I barely heard them. My gaze was locked on the man before me.
“Parker Williams,” I said, forcing my voice steady. “My name is Freya Thorne.”
The name hung between us–my name, our name–something that once tied us together by blood. I searched his eyes for recognition, for even a flicker of memory.
But his expression didn’t change. He only looked at me with calm indifference, like a stranger who’d been inconvenienced.
A cold ache spread through my chest. My heart sank lower with every heartbeat.
No… it couldn’t be.
If he wasn’t Eric, then who was he? And if he was–why did he look at me as though I didn’t exist?
“Ha!” Jenny’s voice rang sharp with laughter. “She even knows your name, Parker! She’s definitely been planning this.”
“She’s bold, I’ll give her that,” someone else snickered. “Shameless little thing.”
“She’s probably just some nobody sneaking in to hook a rich Alpha,” a man said loudly. “Security should throw her out.”
“Your name,” Parker said finally, his voice low, detached. “What does it have to do with me?”
“Let go.”
Only then did I realize I was still holding his wrist, my fingers trembling against his pulse. I gripped tighter, desperation burning through me.
I couldn’t let go–not yet. There were too many questions clawing at my throat.
“Wait-“I began.
But the sharp crack of a slap silenced me.
My head snapped to the side, my cheek stinging, the world spinning for a second before I
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Chapter 327
caught my breath.
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Jenny stood before me, eyes blazing, her hand still raised. I hadn’t even seen her move.
“You disgusting woman! If you don’t let go of him right now, I swear I’ll have someone break your hand!” she shrieked, lifting her arm again.
This time, I caught her wrist before her palm could reach me.
“Ah-!” she yelped, face twisting in pain.
I could feel the tremor in her bones beneath my grip, the scent of her fear breaking through her arrogance.
Then a stronger force seized my other wrist. Parker. His fingers locked around mine with a strength that made my breath hitch.
“I don’t know what you want,” he said evenly, though a shadow passed through his gaze, “but the Williams family isn’t someone you can afford to provoke.”
A sharp pain shot through my wrist. I gasped and instinctively loosened my hold.
Jenny immediately yanked her hand free, clutching it with a whimper before turning to him. “Parker! She hurt me! She actually hurt me–look at this! You should crush her hand for that!”
Her shrill voice scraped at my ears. My heart hammered painfully.
“Crush my
hand?” I repeated quietly, staring at him. “You’d really do that?”
He didn’t answer, but the silence between us said more than words ever could.
I saw nothing in his eyes–no recognition, no warmth. Just distance,
If this man truly was my brother… he would never have stood by while another woman struck me. He would never have let her insult me without a word.
Once, Eric Thorne had been my shield. When others mocked me for being the unwanted child of Stormveil’s fifth branch, he stood in front of me and dared anyone to lay a hand on
me.
Once, he’d nearly lost his life protecting mine.
That brother would rather bleed than see me cry.
This man—this Alpha before me–looked at me as though I was nothing but trouble.
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Chapter 327
Unless…. there was something I didn’t understand. Unless he had to do this.
My chest ached, confusion warring with a faint, fragile hope.
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If he was my brother–if he had to pretend not to know me–then I wouldn’t let him make the mistake of hurting me for the sake of his lies.
I twisted my arm sharply, slipping out of his hold, using his own momentum to free myself.
I stepped back, steadying my breathing. My wolf stirred uneasily beneath my skin, its instincts prickling with warning and pain.
If he wasn’t Eric, I wouldn’t allow him to harm me.
But if he was… then I wouldn’t let him bear the guilt of doing it.
Either way, I would not stand there and break beneath his hand.
I straightened my spine and met his eyes head–on. “If you’re truly who I think you are,” I whispered, voice trembling but sure, “then you already know–I won’t fight you. But I won’t let you destroy me either.”
Chapter 328
Freya’s POV
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The moment Parker froze, I knew he hadn’t expected me to break free from his grasp so easily. His eyes flickered–sharp, calculating, a predator caught off guard.
Before either of us could speak, Jenny’s shrill voice cut through the tension. “Where are the guards?!” she snapped, fury twisting her perfect features. “What kind of place is this—letting strangers just touch my brother?”
The room shifted. I felt dozens of eyes burn against my skin as uniformed security wolves began closing in. Jenny Williams wasn’t just anyone–her name carried weight even here, far from her homeland. The Williams family might have been C–Nation’s exiled purebloods, but in D–Nation’s high society, she was still a glittering jewel—vain, loud, untouchable.
“She hurt my hand,” Jenny declared coldly, flashing her wrist for sympathy. “Throw her out.” Then she stepped closer, the sharp scent of her floral perfume stabbing my senses. “Or,” she said, smiling, “you could just apologize. Maybe I’ll be generous enough to forgive you.”
I stared at her, anger simmering low in my chest. “Shouldn’t you be the one apologizing to me?”
Jenny’s laughter rang like shattered glass. “You? Apologize to you? Don’t be ridiculous.”
“Everyone is born equal,” I said quietly. My voice was steady, but inside, my wolf growled against the restraint.
“Equality?” Jenny scoffed, tossing her hair back. “Only lowborns say that to make themselves feel better. In the real world, power decides everything. If I want you to apologize, you will.”
She flicked her gaze toward the guards, giving a small nod. Instantly, two of them stepped forward. “You heard Miss Williams,” one said gruffly. “Apologize, or we’ll have to remove you by force.”
The air thickened. Even they knew what it meant to cross the Williams siblings. Parker Williams wasn’t just any Alpha–he was the sole heir of the C–Nation lineage, a wolf whose name still made the old packs tremble.
I clenched my jaw. I didn’t want to make a scene. Not yet. Not before I got answers.
“I’m Silas Whitmor’s guest,” I said evenly.
A murmur rippled through the crowd. The guards hesitated.
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Chapter 328
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Jenny blinked, then smirked. “Silas Whitmor? The Alpha of the Ironclad Coalition? Oh, please. Everyone knows he never brings companions to public events. If you’re going to lie, at least pick something believable.”
The laughter that followed was cruel. Sharp.
Jenny leaned closer, voice dripping with venom. “You know what? I changed my mind. I don’t want your apology anymore. I want your hand.”
I could feel it then–the malicious satisfaction radiating from her. For some reason, she hated me on sight. Or maybe she just couldn’t stand the way Parker had hesitated when I’d looked at him.
Before I could react, a cold, commanding voice rolled through the hall.
“If Miss Williams wishes to lose a hand tonight,” Silas Whitmor said, stepping into the light, “then I’ll be happy to oblige her.”
Gasps echoed. I turned toward the familiar voice, relief flooding me like a wave.
Silas was striding toward us, his expression carved in frost. Beside him, Kade Blackridge moved like a shadow, his eyes darting between me and the others.
“Freya,” Kade breathed when he reached me, his tone laced with concern. “What happened?”
“It’s nothing,” I said quietly.
“Nothing?” His gaze hardened when he noticed the bruise marring my cheek. “You were hit.”
“Who did this?” Silas’s tone dropped, lethal and low.
The crowd had gone silent now. For years, the Ironclad Alpha had been known as detached, untouchable–a wolf whose emotions were locked behind iron walls. And yet here he was, fury radiating off him in waves, his gaze cutting like a blade.
Every witness understood instantly: this wasn’t just anyone to him.
Jenny stiffened, color draining from her face as she realized the shift in power. Still, she tried to keep her voice steady. “I did. She grabbed my brother out of nowhere, and I—”
“Ten times,” Silas interrupted coldly.
Jenny blinked, “What?”
“You hit her once. You’ll repay it tenfold.”
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Chapter 328
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Before anyone could stop him, Silas raised his hand. The movement was swift, ruthless-
“Stop!” The shout came from Parker.
But it wasn’t Parker’s hand that stopped Silas–it was mine.
I caught his wrist, fingers trembling slightly from the force of his aura. “Don’t,” I whispered.
Silas looked down at me, disbelief flickering through his expression. “She hit you, Freya.”
“I know.”
“Then she should pay.”
“I’m fine,” I said, though the sting on my cheek burned with humiliation. “This isn’t worth it.”
“Freya-”
“I said I’m fine.”
Kade’s jaw clenched beside us. “No, you’re not. She humiliated you in front of everyone. You can’t just―”
But I barely heard him. My focus was on Parker–the man who looked so achingly familiar, the man whose face mirrored my brother’s so precisely it made my chest ache.
He pulled Jenny behind him, meeting Silas’s glare head–on. “If you want to fight,” he said evenly, “then I won’t back down. The Williams name isn’t one you can trample over.”
For a moment, it felt like the air itself trembled between them–two Alphas, two worlds colliding.
Silas’s
eyes
narrowed. Kade shifted his stance, ready to move. And I–caught between them- felt my pulse hammering in my throat.
Because somewhere beneath the tension, beneath the fury and pride and pack posturing, I could feel it again-
that same pull.
That same spark I’d felt years ago before my world burned down.
Was he really my brother?
Or just a ghost wearing his face?
Chapter 329
Freya’s POV
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I stepped forward, my heart thundering in my chest as I faced Parker. My voice was low but steady, trying to mask the storm inside. “Jenny’s slap… I’ll let it pass. But I hope… Mr. Williams, you can give me a moment alone. There are things I need to say to you.”
Parker’s gaze flickered, a flash of curiosity crossing his otherwise unreadable face. “You… knew me before?”
I hesitated. My throat tightened. Did I even know him? Did the man standing in front of me truly belong to the memories that haunted me–the soft warmth, the protective presence, the brother I once knew? My mind wavered, unsure, and I let my words stay neutral. “I… don’t know.”
That simple admission seemed to deepen the confusion in his eyes. It wasn’t a yes or a no, but the truth–an admission of uncertainty. For now, it was wiser to tread lightly. I didn’t want this moment to explode into chaos. Just a few minutes, a small, quiet conversation, and maybe I could turn this storm into something manageable.
“Very well,” Parker replied calmly, his voice like ice brushing steel.
I exhaled, the tiniest flicker of relief passing through me. “Then, may we go to the balcony over there? It’s quieter… more private.”
He inclined his head. But Jenny’s sharp voice cut across the space. “Parker, you’re really going to go alone with her?”
“I’m only going to talk for a moment. I’ll return shortly–nothing will happen,” he said, his tone soft, almost protective.
Watching him speak to Jenny like that–the patience, the gentleness–I felt my eyes sting. Memories I had buried deep clawed their way to the surface. When I was young and reckless, Eric–my brother–would always say, Don’t worry, Freya. Even if the sky falls, I’ll hold it up for you. Those words, once warm and comforting, rose like smoke in my chest.
Satisfied that Jenny was calmed, Parker turned to me. “Shall we go, Miss Thorne?”
I blinked quickly, trying to hold back the tears threatening to spill, and followed him toward the balcony. The crowd behind us was a mixture of curiosity and disbelief, but I didn’t care. Silas Whitmor’s presence at the edge of the room, Kade Blackridge’s alert stance—they were my shadow guardians, ready if the situation turned violent.
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Chapter 329
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Jenny scowled at my back, her voice dripping with frustration. “That woman… isn’t she Silas’s companion? And you’re just letting her flirt with another man? I didn’t expect Whitmor to be
so tolerant.”
Silas’s cool gaze met hers. “You should be grateful. Freya stopped me, or even if she hadn’t, you’d have paid for that slap yourself, regardless of your Williams blood.”
Jenny’s lips pressed into a thin line. I could sense the unease in her stance. The way Parker looked at me… the same lingering, protective instinct he had for Jenny–it pulled at the corners of my memory, the faint echo of my brother’s love.
The balcony was a quiet refuge, removed from the glittering chaos of the gala. Moonlight spilled across the floor, washing Parker’s angular face in silver. The contrast to the harsh golden light of the ballroom was stark. Here, under the quiet gaze of the night, I could study him, look for the hints of familiarity I so desperately needed.
“Miss Thorne,” Parker’s voice was calm, formal, breaking the silence behind me. “What did you want to speak about?”
I drew a breath, steeling myself, and turned to face him. Moonlight softened the hard edges of his face, but his eyes… they were still distant, cold. Not the warmth I remembered, not the softness my heart ached for.
“You… don’t recognize me?” My words were barely a whisper. I searched his face for even the smallest flicker of recognition.
His lips pressed into a flat line. “Why would I know you?”
I swallowed hard. My hands, at my sides, curled into fists as I fought the urge to reach for him, to confirm, to feel him. “Because… you look like someone I once knew. Someone I… trusted. I heard you returned to the Williams family three years ago. Before then… what did you do? Where were you?”
He shifted slightly, a shadow of tension passing through him. “That’s private. I don’t see why it concerns you.”
I didn’t falter. “Just now, you were so protective of Jenny. You must have a close bond. Do you have other sisters?”
Parker’s reply was swift, cutting. “No. Only Jenny.”
My chest tightened violently. My eyes stung with tears I could no longer hold back. My brother had said the same words once, almost in the same tone: My sister… only Freya.
It couldn’t be a coincidence. But how could I be sure?
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Chapter 329
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“You… alright?” His voice was low, tentative, almost cautious.
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I shook my head, unable to speak for a moment. Memories crashed over me–the nights I had wept alone, the times Eric had shielded me, the moment I had failed to protect him when he needed me most. “I… I was thinking of my brother,” I whispered. “He always protected me. If anyone harmed me, he’d make them pay. But… when he needed me… I couldn’t protect him.”
The floodgates broke. Tears streamed down my face, unchecked. Each drop fell like silver beads, clattering softly onto the balcony floor.
Parker froze, unprepared for my sudden outpouring. He reached into his pocket, pulling out a crisp handkerchief, offering it gently. “Don’t cry.”
I looked at the handkerchief, but my hands remained at my sides, useless against the torrent of emotion. I couldn’t take it. The tears kept falling, faster and heavier.
And in that moment, in the quiet silver glow of the balcony, I saw him–him. Not Parker, not this distant Alpha of the Williams pack, but the brother I had lost. The warmth, the protection, the quiet strength that had cradled my childhood fears. Every gesture, every word, every protective instinct mirrored him.
Could it be him? Could this man, this Alpha whose eyes were a stormy mirror, truly be my brother… returned from the shadows of the past?
Chapter 330
Third Person’s POV
Parker’s gaze lingered on Freya, her tears glinting in the moonlight like scattered pearls. There was something strange stirring within him–a feeling he couldn’t quite name. This woman, this Freya, shouldn’t be crying like this. She should be resolute, fierce, soaring above the world with the freedom of the storm–wind in her veins. She should not be reduced to trembling beneath the weight of the moment.
He sighed softly, almost unconsciously, reaching out with the handkerchief he carried and brushing the tears from her cheeks. Even Parker himself didn’t understand why he did it. Perhaps it was the remnants of instincts long buried, or the echo of a brother’s memory he had never admitted to himself. His fingers were careful, almost reverent, and for a moment the chaos of the gala faded from his mind.
Then a sharp voice pierced the night. “What are you doing?!” Jenny Williams‘ cry jolted him back into reality.
Freya hastily wiped at her face, her hands trembling slightly as she murmured a soft, “Thank you.”
Jenny, furious, lunged at her. “You shamelessly trying to seduce Parker! How dare
you-”
But Freya was ready. One swift motion and she caught Jenny’s wrist in a firm grip, unyielding yet controlled. Jenny yelped in pain, struggling against her hold.
“Miss Thorne, please–be careful,” Parker said, his voice calm but threaded with authority, his gaze unwavering.
Freya released Jenny, letting her step back, her eyes sharp. “Fine. Out of respect for Mr. Williams, I won’t do anything rash. But if she dares to strike me again…” Her voice was firm, the edge of warning unmistakable.
By then, Silas and Kade had approached, having sensed the tension from across the room.
Jenny rubbed her wrist, glaring at Freya with venom. “Silas, your girlfriend—she’s making a play for
my brother right in front of you! Can you really just stand there and watch this?”
“Jenny,” Parker’s voice cut through sharply, a warning in its calm precision, “Freya isn’t trying to seduce me. I won’t hear another word of this nonsense.”
“But–bro-” Jenny’s protest faltered under his icy stare.
“And apologize to Miss Thorne,” Parker added, his tone brooking no argument.
Jenny’s face twisted in disbelief. “Apologize? To her? Why should I?”
“Lies spoken without care often require accountability,” Kade said, stepping closer, his gaze piercing. “If you don’t apologize, Jenny, I guarantee that tomorrow, the Capital’s feeds will be filled with stories about your recklessness. Whether true or not, the damage will be done.”
Jenny’s color shifted violently. Threats carried weight in the wolf packs, and Kade radiated the kind of authority that made even the wealthy pause. Her instincts, honed over years of navigating elite circles, screamed that this wasn’t an idle warning.
“Silas… you agree she should apologize?” Jenny tried to use him to sway the situation, hoping to regain control.
Silas’s expression remained calm, his voice as steady as ice. “If she truly desired Parker, I’d ensure he was at her side–bound if necessary. She’d have him, no matter what.”
Jenny’s jaw tightened, teeth clenched. “You… you’re insane!”
Silas let out a humorless chuckle. Perhaps he was. Or perhaps only those like him and Parker truly understood the lengths some would go for what–or who–they wanted.
“Apologize. Now,” Silas said, his voice leaving no room for argument.
“Jenny, you went too far,” Parker said, placing a hand lightly on her shoulder, guiding her toward the retreat from the balcony.
Reluctantly, Jenny’s scowl softened into a forced semblance of humility. “Fine… I’m….. sorry. I shouldn’t have spoken recklessly today.”
Freya nodded, the sharp sting of tension in her chest easing slightly. “I hope next time, you’ll think before you speak.”
Jenny’s lips pressed into a tight line. She wanted to argue, to strike again, but the presence of Parker and the unwavering gaze of Silas held her back.
“Let’s go, Jenny,” Parker said firmly, guiding her away. But as they passed Silas, he paused, turning toward him with an almost imperceptible smirk. “Silas, not every man can be made to bend. If you want me in front of someone, you’ll have to earn it.”
“Is that so?” Silas replied lightly, his gaze flicking toward Freya. He was testing the waters, evaluating whether Freya’s influence over Parker extended far enough to sway even him.
“Mr. Williams, don’t take him seriously. He’s just joking,” Freya interjected hastily, a nervous
laugh betraying the flustered panic inside her.
“Fine. I’m joking.” Silas said, almost immediately falling in line, as if prompted by her words. The case of it unsettled Parker slightly; he knew Silas rarely bent so readily, yet Freya’s presence seemed to wield that effect.
Parker led Jenny away, his steps measured and controlled. Freya lingered slightly behind, still reeling from the rapid escalation of events.
Kade came to her side, concern evident in his sharp gaze. “Freya… why were you crying just now?”
She blinked, unsure how to explain the flood of emotions that had overtaken her. The rawness wasn’t from humiliation, nor from the confrontation–it was the echo of memories she had thought long buried. Memories of Arthur, of the times he had protected her, and of the helplessness she felt the day she had failed him.