Page 57 of His Mate

She waved the guard away, shutting the door behind her with a quiet thud. The room felt suddenly smaller with just the two of us inside. Sorin’s cold, calculating gaze settled on me, and I felt a shiver run down my spine.

“What’s your name?” she asked, her voice smooth, but with a sharpness that made it clear she wasn’t here for pleasantries.

“Kendra.”

She crossed the room slowly, her boots scuffing the worn floor as she came closer.

“Tell me, Kendra,” she said, her tone almost conversational, though there was nothing casual about the way she watched me. “How did you end up with a wolf?”

I swallowed, unsure how much to say. “Rowan—he’s not what you think. He’s?—”

“A wolf,” Sorin interrupted, her eyes narrowing. “He’s dangerous. We’ve seen it before, over and over again. Wolves take humans. They control them. They keep them as prisoners.” She tilted her head slightly, her eyes flicking over me like she was trying to figure something out. “That’s what happened to you, isn’t it? He captured you and wouldn’t let you go.”

The assumption hit me like a punch to the gut. She thought I was Rowan’s prisoner? My mind raced, and I struggled to find the words.

“No,” I said, shaking my head quickly. “It wasn’t like that. Rowan—he saved me. We were traveling together.”

Sorin raised an eyebrow, clearly not convinced. “Saved you?” she echoed, her voice dripping with skepticism. “That’s what you think? Or what he made you think?”

I opened my mouth to protest, but she didn’t give me the chance.

“I’ve seen it before,” she continued, pacing slowly in front of me now, her voice growing colder with each word. “Wolves taking humans, keeping them close, convincing them that they need each other. It’s a twisted form of control, Kendra. They make you think you’re safe with them, that you’re protected, but really, you’re just trapped. A pawn in their games.”

I shook my head again, my pulse racing. “That’s not what this is. Rowan… he cares about me. He’s not using me.”

Sorin stopped in front of me, her expression hardening. “How long were you with him?”

I hesitated. “A few days.”

“And in those few days, you became convinced he’s different?” Sorin asked, a cold smile tugging at her lips. “That’s how good they are at manipulating you. He didn’t have to keep you locked up, didn’t have to tie you down. But he made you believe you couldn’t leave him, didn’t he?”

I felt a flare of anger at her words. She had no idea what Rowan and I had been through, no idea how much he had risked to keep me safe. But I could see it in her eyes—the utter certainty that I was just another human caught in a wolf’s web. She wouldn’t believe anything I said.

“Look,” I said, forcing my voice to stay calm, even though I could feel the panic rising inside me. “I’m not his prisoner. I stayed with him because I wanted to. He protected me when no one else could.”

Sorin’s eyes flickered, but her expression remained cold. She stepped back, crossing her arms over her chest.

“Whether you realize it or not, you’re still under his influence. Wolves don’t protect humans out of kindness, Kendra. They always have an agenda. And I don’t intend to let you go until we figure out what his is.”

My heart sank. There was no convincing her. She’d made up her mind.

Sorin studied me for a long moment, and then finally, she sighed. “Here’s what’s going to happen. We’ll keep you here, under close watch. You’ll be allowed out of this house, but you’ll be monitored closely. If you step out of line or try to contact him”—her voice hardened—“we’ll assume you’re a spy too.”

I opened my mouth to argue, but the words stuck in my throat. It was clear Sorin wasn’t going to let me leave until she was sure I wasn’t a threat—or until she dealt with Rowan, whatever that meant.

Sorin stepped toward the door, her hand on the knob as she gave me one last glance.

“You’re lucky, Kendra,” she said coldly. “If we’d found you with any other wolf, we wouldn’t be having this conversation.”

And with that, she turned and walked out, the door shutting behind her with a final, ominous thud.

What did that even mean?

“Any other wolf…”

All I knew was that I had to find a way to reach him before it was too late.

CHAPTER 18

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