Page 98 of Awakened

Gods, the way she looked when she admitted how terrified she was that I might wake up and deny our Bond—the memory still guts me. I’ve replayed those moments a million times, trying to recall every second. I can still feel her in my arms—thin, exhausted, sobbing with fear.

Fear for herself, yes, but mostly… fear for me.

Because of course no one would tell her anything about my condition.

I don’t realize how pissed I am until I hear my grip tear holes in the fabric of the sheets. I force myself to calm down. Unclench my fists.

The only good thing about waiting for her is that it gives me a chance to talk to my Pack and get the whole story.

Not because I think Idril’s lying.

Because I strongly suspect that she kept the worst things she’s gone through a secret.

Fuck, I’m going to kill my Pack.

Once I discover how much damage they’ve truly done, I’m going to rip apart our Bonds until nothing remains of them. I don’t know how I’m going to do it, but there’s got to be a way. Just because it’s not something people talk about doesn’t mean it doesn’t happen.

In my mind, a plan begins to unfold, laying itself out piece by piece until I can see it spread out in front of me.

It’s practical, efficient, and, most importantly, brutal.

Recon. Then control. Then extraction. Nothing flashy. Flashy isn’t the goal.

The goal is vengeance.

Step one: information extraction.

I know the only way to make this work is to play up my disorientation. Nothing extreme—they’ll see right through that—simple things I can easily blame on side effects from coming out of a coma.

Confusion. Maybe a memory slip or two.

I need to ask questions, but keep them simple. How long? Who knew? Who ordered the abuse? Who watched and did nothing?

Once I know each part my Pack—and the rest of my supposed family—played while my Mate was systematically abused and cut down…

I’ll decide what to do with them.

But until then, I have to pretend to be clueless. The second I show my hand, Dax will turn defensive. It’s just how his mind works—always playing chess while everyone else is playing checkers.

Not this time.

This time, he won’t even know we’re on opposing sides of the board.

I can feel the arrival of my Pack, even before the door swings open so forcefully that the glass rattles. Our Bonds light up like the fucking Las Vegas Strip, and only now do I realize something was done to mute them.

Whatever it is, it’s gone now. And I’m not going to get a chance to ask what it is regardless, because Vae explodes into the room with a grin so large it splits his face in half. He runs his shaking hands through his hair, eyes bright with excitement and joy.

Two weeks ago, seeing him this happy to see me would have brought me so much relief.

Now, I feel nothing but disgust.

Dax is right on his heels, walking in my room the way he arrives everywhere—with all the confidence of a male who’s never met a door he couldn’t unlock. Confident. Controlled. Self-righteous as fuck.

For centuries, I’ve admired that part of him. The way he’s always been so sure of who he is and what he believes in. Confident in his ability to back up those beliefs with evidence.

Now, I’ve never wanted anything more than to see the look on his face when he discovers how bad he’s fucked—how wrong he’s been about Idril—since the beginning. I want to burn the memory into my brain for eternity.

Daxen’s cold, grey eyes land on me and soften. He exhales a breath of relief, almost like he wouldn’t let himself truly believe Lenora was telling the truth until he saw for himself.