Chapter 109

Ava’s POV

The part of me I’d encountered in that unconscious state—the part I still refused to accept, even after regaining consciousness—was a wolf. I felt her now, lurking beneath the surface like a predator, ready to pounce. And, for the first time, I didn’t hate her for it. I welcomed her presence because I was ready to tear Jeremy apart for daring to do something that could hurt Grayson.

Grayson.

The thought of him slammed into me like a physical force. Grayson would burn down the entire world for me without hesitation. The realization hit me hard, and as I stared down at Jeremy—his body shaking with pure, unadulterated fear—I knew I would do the same for him.

Isabella must have sensed a shift in me because she grabbed my arm and pulled me back, her own expression flickering with fear. That alone snapped me back to reality. I wasn’t that Ava. I wasn’t the monster that part of me seemed determined to unleash. I took a deep breath, forcing calm into my voice as I said, “We aren’t going to hurt you.”

Isabella didn’t miss a beat. Her tone was sharp and biting: “But you had better start talking.”

Jeremy, still trembling, struggled to his feet. His mouth opened and closed several times, and for a moment, all that came out was stuttered nonsense. Finally, he managed to choke out, “What… who… what are you people?”

“That doesn’t answer the question,” Isabella growled, her eyes gleaming dangerously. Jeremy’s shaking intensified.

I stepped in front of him, softening my voice slightly. “We aren’t going to hurt you, but you will tell us everything. Who was that man? What have you told him? Why is he going after Grayson? And why have you been using Eliza?”

Hearing Eliza’s name seemed to strike a nerve. His expression crumbled, pain flashing in his eyes. “I didn’t mean for this to happen,” he croaked. “Eliza is the last person I wanted to hurt. I bought a ring—I was going to ask her to marry me.”

“So you could worm your way in even further?” Isabella snapped, venom lacing her voice.

“No!” Jeremy’s face crumpled, and tears streamed down his cheeks. Watching a grown man cry was unsettling, even for me. He wiped his face roughly and continued, his voice raw: “That man approached me a month ago. He already knew who I was. He knew I was with Eliza, and that she was Grayson Blackwood’s PA. All he wanted was dirt—anything I could get from her because, you know, couples talk. He figured she would tell me something useful. I said no. I tried to walk away.”

“But then he offered you money,” Isabella finished, her voice dripping with contempt.

Jeremy nodded miserably. “It wasn’t just money. My mom… she’s sick. She needed surgery. I thought it would just be one time. Just one piece of information, and then it would be over.” His voice cracked, and he looked at me like a broken man. “But it never ends, does it?”

“They never stop coming,” I murmured, more to myself than to him.

He nodded, tears trailing down his face. “He started forcing me to pry things out of her—threatening my family, saying he’d tell Eliza what I’d done if I didn’t cooperate. I couldn’t handle it anymore. I broke up with her because I couldn’t keep hurting her. I thought… I thought it would stop.” His shoulders sagged, the weight of his guilt and shame pressing down on him. “I didn’t know it would get this bad. I swear.”

I crossed my arms, my wolf stirring uneasily in the back of my mind. “Do you know who he works for? Or why they’re after Grayson?”

Jeremy shook his head furiously. “No. I swear I don’t. He never told me.”

“Has he ever shown signs of being like us? Different?” I asked, narrowing my eyes.

He blinked, as if the thought hadn’t occurred to him. “No,” he said quickly, taking a shaky step back. “He’s… normal. Just a man. Not like you. Not like… whatever you are.”

“We’re werewolves,” Isabella said bluntly, her voice a low snarl. “And you’re about to see what happens to people who betray one of our own.”

I shot Isabella a sharp look. “We’re not touching him.” Then, turning back to Jeremy, I said, “This feels more human than supernatural. Werewolves don’t scheme like this. They attack with force, with bloodshed. Humans, on the other hand? They’re calculated. Conniving. And if Eliza was the target, then this has something to do with Grayson’s company.”

Isabella huffed, crossing her arms. “So what? Someone in our world wants to dethrone Grayson, and someone in their world is digging for dirt to take his company down? It must really suck to be Grayson right now.”

Or to have a wolf that was slowly unraveling, I thought grimly.

I turned back to Jeremy, who looked ready to bolt. “You made a mistake,” I said quietly. “A terrible one. But I think you want to fix it. I’ll have some men offer you protection in case that man comes back. In the meantime, call Eliza. Tell her the truth. Hurting her for something you did isn’t fair. If she decides to give you another chance, that’s her choice. But she deserves the truth.”

Jeremy swallowed hard. “You’re not… you’re not going to tell Grayson Blackwood?” His voice trembled. “I heard he’s…”

I smiled, slow and cold. “Whatever you’ve heard, Grayson is far worse than that.”

His face drained of color.

“But I’m going to leave out your name. For now. So clean yourself up, call Eliza, and don’t do anything stupid. Like telling anyone what you saw here tonight.”

Jeremy nodded so quickly I thought his head might fall off. Then he turned and stumbled out of the alley, disappearing into the darkness.

I let out a heavy sigh, closing my eyes for a moment. “It never ends, does it?”

When I opened them, Isabella was staring at me with a strange look on her face.

“What?” I asked.

She shrugged, a smirk tugging at her lips. “Nothing. I just never thought I’d see this side of you. This whole protective Luna thing suits you.”

“Except I’m not going to tell Grayson anything,” I said, surprising even myself.

Isabella blinked. “What?”

I smirked. “Jeremy was terrified. People do stupid things when they’re scared. He’ll reach out to that man again—try to trade the truth about us for his freedom. And when he does, we’ll be waiting. We’ll catch the man, and then you can beat something up. I’ll get the information I need about who’s targeting Grayson.”

A wide grin stretched across Isabella’s face. “I am really liking this new you.”

“That makes one of us,” I muttered.

But the truth was, I didn’t have the luxury of being the old Ava anymore. Grayson might be my biggest source of frustration, but a war against him was a war against me. And maybe it was time I stopped pretending to be the naïve girl who didn’t see what was happening. Because if the world was going to burn, then I would do everything I could to stop it before the fire consumed us all.