Chapter 126: Hidden Knives
The door hadn’t even closed behind Sterling when Magnolia turned and shoved her fists into the edge of the old library table. The brittle wood cracked under the force, splinters biting into her skin. She didn’t feel it. All she felt was the echo of his words still rattling through her ribs like broken teeth.
Your wolf. Give it up. Save Camille.
It wasn’t just betrayal , it was infection. She could feel it crawling beneath her skin, coiling through the bond she’d once shared with Sterling so easily. His presence had always been a steady warmth at her back. Now it was a cold knife, pressed against her throat, waiting for her to slip.
The door opened again, the hinges creaking as Beckett stepped in. He didn’t knock , he never did when the air smelled like blood and something worse.
He took one look at her hands , red, splintered , then at the cracked table edge. "You’re bleeding."
Magnolia didn’t look up. "It’s nothing."
He crossed the room in three strides, took her wrist gently, and turned her hand over. Thin splinters stuck from the base of her thumb. He plucked them out, one by one, his touch surprisingly careful for fingers that had snapped necks before dawn.
"What did he say?" Beckett asked. His voice was too calm. That was how she knew the wolf in him was already pacing.
Magnolia met his eyes. "He wants my wolf."
Beckett stilled. His jaw ticked once, then twice. "He what?"
"He says it’s the only way. Give it up. Break the curse. Camille lives, the pack survives."