Page 58 of Framed and Forgotten
Koen lowered his head, releasing a bitter, humorless laugh. “While the family bond was there from the beginning, it was never that intense. Not as intense as a bond between father and son should be,” he revealed. “At first, I blamed it on how long we’d been apart. It should be normal to feel a little distant from him, right? But then, I realized… Maybe it wasn’t as strong as it should’ve been because I wasn’t really his father - but his uncle.”
Goddess, this whole story was just insane. Simply listening to everything this psycho bitch had orchestrated to lure him in made me nauseous. I couldn’t really blame him for falling into her trap.
But I did enjoy witnessing her fall from grace. It was like watching a castle crumble from the inside out. Every lie Nerine had built her reality upon was turning to ash. I couldn’t tear my eyes away. Even without comprehending exactly the damage she’d done to my relationship with my mate, Iwantedto see her fall.
So when footsteps whispered too close and a breath ghosted just behind my ear, I reacted a second too late.
“Look what we’ve got here,” came a voice I knew too well, though the pitch was slightly off.
My head snapped around to find Koen standing right behind me. Only it couldn’t be him. How could he possibly have gotten here this quick when he was just talking to Nerine?
My breath caught, my body stiffening as I sensed that something was wrong. Yes, it was his face, and those were his eyes. But that malicious smirk… This wasn’t my mate.
I blinked, and that was all it took.
The stranger plunged a needle into my neck, piercing my skin before I could even register it. Pain ignited in my veins instantly, making me feel as if my insides were boiling. I couldn’t stop the scream that tore from my throat. As adrenaline surged, instinct took over, and I let Kea loose without a thought for the consequences. She burst forth in a flash, seizing control and exposing our true nature to someone we didn’t yet know was a dangerous enemy.
My vision blurred, the world tilting as the drug overwhelmed me. My head throbbed with every heartbeat, the ground swaying beneath me. Maybe if I hadn’t already burned through my strength just getting here, I would’ve had something left to fightwith. Unfortunately, all Kea managed was one staggering leap before our legs gave out. We crashed to the ground, coiling as the poison surged through us like liquid fire.
Darkness gripped me, no matter how hard I tried to fight it. I could no longer see, my senses quickly shutting off quickly, my limbs growing numb as the effects of the wolfsbane kicked in. I could barely hear him as his voice slithered through the haze like venom.
“The alpha of Golden Valley will be very pleased when I bring you to him, Ashen Wolf.”
35
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K O E N
Everything was goingaccording to plan - until it wasn’t.
After cornering Nerine, I was ready to start my interrogation. She had nowhere to run to. No one to save her. No lie to hide behind as I exposed every single one of them. I would get the truth out of her, even if I had to torture her. But, just as I opened my mouth, the only scenario I hadn’t prepared for disrupted my meticulous plan.
Suddenly, the quiet of the hollow lands was pierced by a sharp cry, making my heart jump. I knew it was her. Alert, I spun around to see Kea slamming into the dirt, twisting and writhing in agony. The sight destroyed my control, my heart hammering as my focus zeroed in on her. I was ready to rush to her when a figure came in a blur, blocking my path toward her.
My twin.
“What’s the rush, brother?” he said with a smirk, arms crossed in front of his chest. “In a few minutes, you’ll be dead. Might as well enjoy the last few moments of your life.”
I couldn’t begin to understand what he meant - nor did I care to. My only priority was getting to Avril, even if I had to run him over. Then, Kea stopped thrashing, her body going limp. Col clawed to take over, and I nearly let him. I almost gave into the bone-deep panic, but something in me held firm. I looked again, forcing myself to focus. She was alive. Unconscious, but not hurt.
“We need to go!”my wolf urged.
It took everything in me to contradict him.“No. We don’t know exactly what we’re up against. If we run straight to her and it’s a trap, we’re done.She’sdone,”I said, a cold rush running through me as fear settled in.“We’re the only ones who can protect her right now - and we protect her best by keeping our heads.”
Before he could argue, Nerine desperately chimed in, “No! That wasn’t our deal!” she complained fearfully. “Koen lives - he’s supposed to be mine! You promised!” she insisted, making me question just how fucked up she was.
“You can killher,” she added viciously, pointing at Kea, and that nearly made me lose it. My teeth cracked as Col surged beneath the surface, desperate to tear out the bitch’s throat. Again, I held him back - as much as I despised Nerine, I didn’t wish to leave Elias without a mother.
“Change of plans, blondie,” he huffed, gesturing with his head toward my mate. “Don’t you see it? She’s one of them.”
From the corner of my eye, I watched Nerine frown before her eyes gradually widened. She hadn’t noticed it before, but from Kea’s size to her coat color, everything about her appearance betrayed the truth of who she was. And as I let that crucial realization sink in, I froze. In that moment, my stomach sank as I sensed the weight of Avril’s burden upon my shoulders.
Now that Nerine and my twin knew what Avril was, they had become liabilities.
And it was on me to eliminate them.
As I tried to rearrange my plan in a blink, Kael went on, “This one gets to live - at least until boss renders her useless.” He shrugged casually, as if he hadn’t just shown no regard formy mate’s life. “And my brother… Well, I lied.” Nerine gasped beside him, stunned and betrayed, but he didn’t even glance at her. Completely ignoring her reaction, his grin curled. “There was no way I’d ever let him just walk away.”
