Deric POV

The estate loomed like a monument to all the wrong things in my life. Tall wrought-iron gates opened without resistance as I approached, the guards stepping aside with little more than nods. Maybe they still remembered I once handed Carlton everything I had, my title, my pack, my pride. In return, he locked Ava away like a secret he could keep forever.

It had been three weeks since I last saw her.

Three weeks of silence. Three weeks of hell.

I ...