Chapter 271
(Connor’s POV)
“Lily’s death was not an accident, Victoria deliberately killed her.” The words left my mouth with a finality that seemed to freeze
time itself.
The effect was immediate. Ethan Stone’s amber eyes widened in disbelief, his grip on Victoria loosening involuntarily. She
collapsed to the floor with a thud, a small cry escaping her lips.
Despite the pain from her fall, Victoria’s focus remained solely on regaining Ethan’s attention. I watched as she deliberately
projected distress, whimpering pathetically while clutching at his pant leg.
Her performance was flawless–the trembling lip, the wide, fearful eyes–all calculated to trigger his protective instincts.
“Ethan, please…” she whimpered, her fingers digging desperately into the fabric of his pants. “Don’t listen to him. He’s lying!”
I’d seen this act countless times before. For years, I’d been the one rushing to comfort her, to shield her from imagined threats.
Not anymore.
“What did you just say?” Ethan’s voice was dangerously low, a growl rumbling from deep in his chest.
His attention was fixed entirely on me now, Victoria’s pitiful whimpers fading into background noise. The Alpha King’s eyes
flashed with barely contained rage at the mere mention of his deceased daughter.
“Repeat that!” he demanded, taking a threatening step toward me, his fists clenched so tightly his knuckles turned white.
“You heard me,” I replied, meeting his gaze steadily despite the pain radiating from where he’d thrown me against the wall. “Victoria deliberately sabotaged your daughter’s treatment. Lily’s death wasn’t inevitable–it was engineered.”
Victoria remained seated on the floor, her shoulders visibly trembling. Her eyes, when they met mine, were no longer filled with contempt but with something else–fear.
“Connor,” she whispered, her voice breaking. “Please… don’t do this.”
For a moment, I faltered. Despite everything, there was still a part of me that responded to her vulnerability.
Ten years of loving someone doesn’t disappear overnight, no matter how toxic that love might have been.
Memories washed over me unbidden. Victoria at nineteen, bold and beautiful, approaching me at a pack gathering. Our first night
together, her skin glowing in the moonlight.
The day she told me she was pregnant, her eyes shining with a mixture of fear and excitement.
I remembered holding Emma for the first time, this tiny miracle with Victoria’s eyes and my chin. I had vowed then to protect
them both with my life, to be the mate Victoria deserved even without a formal ceremony.
For ten years, I had kept that promise. I had loved Victoria through her mood swings, her ambitions, her schemes.
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I had accepted her obsession with Ethan Stone as a phase that would pass. I had believed that deep down, she loved me too.
But as I looked at her now, pleading with me to keep her secrets, I realized that my love for Emma had to come first.
My daughter deserved better than a mother who would use her as a pawn, who would teach her to lie and manipulate, who would risk her safety for personal gain.
“I’m sorry, Victoria,” I said quietly. “But I can’t protect you anymore. Not after what you’ve done.”
“You don’t know what you’re saying!” Victoria cried out, her voice rising hysterically. “Connor, stop this madness right now!”
I turned back to Ethan, whose patience was clearly wearing thin. “Victoria intentionally harmed Lily and, fearing exposure, she
had Roland Wamer killed to silence him.”
Ethan’s face contorted with grief at the mention of his daughter’s name. For a moment, the powerful Alpha looked utterly
broken.
“My Li
“My Lily…” he whispered, so softly I barely caught it. Then his expression hardened again.
“What proof do you have?” he demanded, his voice hoarse.
“I don’t have it with me,” I admitted, wincing as I shifted position against the wall. “The evidence is at Blackwood Alpha’s Guest Villa. Lucas granted me sanctuary there after I escaped from Shadowfall ”
Victoria seized this opportunity like a drowning woman grasping at driftwood. She turned to Olivia, who had been watching
silently from the doorway.
“You’re colluding with Connor to frame me!” she snarled, her mask of vulnerability dropping to reveal the aggression beneath. “You’ve been looking for someone to blame for Lily’s death, and now you’ve found your scapegoat!”
Her eyes flashed dangerously as she struggled to her feet, her movements no longer hampered by her supposed injury.
“You think I don’t see what you’re doing?” Victoria continued, her voice rising. “You want revenge because your precious
daughter died, and you need someone to punish!”
She pointed an accusing finger at Olivia. “She put him up to this! She’s been planning this all along!”
Without warning, Victoria lunged toward a nearby table, grabbing a Silver–Edged Hunting Knife that had been left there. The
blade glinted menacingly in the dim light.
“Victoria, what are you doing?” Ethan demanded, alarm evident in his voice.
Before anyone could react, she pressed the blade against her own wrist.
“I would rather die than admit to something I haven’t done!” she declared through gritted teeth, tears streaming down her face.
With a swift motion, she slashed the knife across her wrist. The silver edge burned her skin on contact, making the wound tar
more dramatic and dangerous than a regular cut would be for a werewolf.
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Blood immediately began to flow, the scent of it filling the room. The silver’s effect was visible in the way the wound smoked. slightly, preventing her werewolf healing from activating
“Victoria!” Ethan shouted, horror replacing anger in his eyes.
He reacted instinctively, rushing to Victoria’s side as she swayed dramatically. He caught her before she could fall, applying
pressure to the wound while snarling at Olivia.
“Call Dr. Harold Bennett immediately!”
Olivia remained frozen in the doorway, her emerald eyes wide with disbelief at the lengths Victoria would go to maintain her
deception.
I pulled out my phone, my hands steady despite the chaos unfolding before me. “I’m calling emergency services,” I announced,
dialing quickly.
“Yes, this is Connor Blackthorn. We need immediate medical assistance at The Forsaken Room. Silver–inflicted wound,
significant blood loss…”
Victoria’s face had gone pale, whether from actual blood loss or exceptional acting, I couldn’t tell. Her eyes fluttered as she
looked up at Ethan.
“I didn’t do it,” she whispered weakly, her voice barely audible. “I would never hurt a child… especially not yours…”
Her voice trailed off as she appeared to lose consciousness, her head lolling against Ethan’s chest.
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