Chapter 91
Theo Hale stood at the edge of the dimly lit room, watching the she–wolf in the hospital bed. Tessa Blackmaw looked more like a porcelain doll than the feared daughter of the Blackmaw Pack. Pale. Fragile.
Hollow.
He exhaled slowly, then stepped closer. “Tessa,” he said softly, his voice a careful blend of warmth and resolve. “I know what happened in your room yesterday.”
Tessa didn’t respond. She didn’t flinch. She just stared at the ceiling, expression vacant.
“You don’t want justice for yourself?” Theo asked, his tone tightening. “For Riley?”
She wanted it. Goddess, she did.
But the truth was clear–carved into the expressions she had seen yesterday. Alpha Alaric. Luna Zara. Kael Vale. Maddox. Even her own brother, Ronan Duskcliff. All of them had shielded Scarlett.
All of them had silenced her.
They stopped her from speaking when she had the chance. Held her back. Warned her with their eyes, their words, their unspoken threats.
Scarlett wasn’t just the pampered foster daughter. She was the golden child of the Ebonclaw Pack’s carefully constructed facade.
And Riley Vale?
She was the stain they tried desperately to scrub away.
So no–Tessa couldn’t trust them. And she didn’t trust Theo Hale either. He’d always been friendly with the Ebonclaws. He had never stood on Riley’s side before.
So she lay still.
Theo kept talking, trying everything–logic, sympathy, even anger. But Tessa remained silent, unmoved. She was the perfect picture of a lifeless puppet.
It frustrated him deeply.
Until he changed tactics.
“Riley’s missing.” Theo said suddenly.
That word–missing–shattered something in the room.
Tessa’s pupils dilated, just for a second. Her fingers twitched. Her eyes, once dull, flickered with a pain so raw it nearly made Theo flinch.
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He caught it. That flicker of soul.
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And he pressed forward.
“She disappeared last night,” he said, voice low. “No one knows where she is. Alaric, Maddox, even Ronan- they’re all searching. But you know what’ll happen if they find her first.”
Tessa’s breath hitched. Her throat made a strangled sound–more sob than word. And then tears. Hot and fast, trailing down her temples into her dark hair.
She tried to speak, but nothing came out. Her vocal cords failed her–either from trauma or magic Theo couldn’t see. All she managed were broken, muffled vowels and the desperate thrash of a silent scream.
Theo stepped closer, grabbing a tissue and gently wiping her tears.
“Don’t push yourself,” he said softly. “Just rest. When your strength returns, you can still speak the truth. You can help clear Riley’s name.”
Tessa wept silently, curled like a dying ember, while Theo gave her one last nod and turned to leave.
By the time he stepped out into the hallway, Theo’s mind was spinning.
He was going to the Second Mooncrest Hospital to follow a lead. But as he approached the hospital’s underground garage, he spotted two familiar figures through the windshield–Dean Elira Blackthorn, the sharp–eyed Pack Medical Alpha who ran Mooncrest First Hospital, and a man standing too close to her: Scarlett’s driver.
Theo’s brows lifted.
Strange pair, he thought. Elira was always professional to a fault. Why would she be meeting with a lower- ranked enforcer?
Still, he didn’t stop. He had other things to do.
He drove through the late afternoon traffic of Mooncrest, heading toward the Second Hospital–but halfway there, a thought struck him like lightning.
He parked at the curb beside a flower shop.
Today was a weekend, and the place was packed with couples and sweet scents.
Theo–tall, lean, dressed in casual slacks and a fitted black tee–was instantly noticed. With his styled dark hair and effortless swagger, he gave off that careless heir vibe that turned heads.
A young florist immediately rushed over. “Sir, shopping for someone special?”
“Yeah,” he muttered, hands in his pockets.
He didn’t want to admit it even to himself, but visiting Riley empty–handed didn’t sit right. She’d been. through too much–and he’d treated her like trash for years,
This bouquet was his… apology. Sort of.
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He wasn’t the kind of guy to say I’m sorry. But maybe the flowers could say it for him.
“Is it for a man or a woman?” the florist asked sweetly.
“Woman,” Theo replied.
The florist grinned knowingly. With his looks and aura, she assumed it was for a lover.
“Leave it to me, sir. I’ve got just the thing to help you win her heart.”
He gave her a skeptical look but didn’t stop her.
As the florist disappeared to prepare the bouquet, Theo stepped out for a smoke.
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He leaned against the post, cigarette between his lips, gaze lazy but sharp. Passersby slowed down. Girls nudged each other and giggled. A few bold ones lingered, whispering.
One particularly brave girl approached, phone in hand, clearly about to ask for his contact.
Before she could speak, the florist rushed out with a flourish.
“Your order’s ready, sir!”
She handed him an enormous bouquet–ninety–nine perfect red roses, wrapped in crimson silk.
Theo stared at it.
Even a romantic idiot knew what red roses meant.
This wasn’t a neutral bouquet. It was a full–on confession.
Seriously? He groaned internally. She’s a patient recovering from trauma, not someone I’m about to propose to.
He wanted to return it. Badly.
But people were watching. And Theo Hale, prideful Alpha–born and one of Mooncrest’s top–ranking Pack physicians, wasn’t about to be seen making a fuss over flowers in public.
Besides… Riley probably didn’t even know what red roses symbolized.
She’ll just think they’re pretty.
With that self–justifying thought, he took the bouquet.
The florist winked. “Go get her, Alpha.” ◇□◇
Theo sighed.
Yeah. Thanks.”