~~Olivia's POV~~

The maid didn’t deny it.

Instead, she turned her hands upward. Right before my eyes, her fingers began to twist and grow. The soft skin stretched and cracked as claws pushed through where her nails had been. A faint ripple ran under her skin, and for a moment, fur spread along her arms before fading again.

My throat went dry again as the same feeling from before returned. Was anything—anyone, normal around here?

She looked calm, like what she had just done was nothing at all. “I’m Claire,” she said softly. “And yes, I am one of them.”

I stared at her hands, watching them return to normal. The claws disappeared. Her fingers were smooth again, as if it had never happened.

She lifted the plate of apple slices and placed it carefully on the small table beside the bed. Her movements were gentle, controlled. A contrast to her true identity.

“All of us who serve in this house are like me,” she continued, her tone light, almost casual. “We are werewolves. But there is a hierarchy. Alphas, Betas, and Omegas. I fall under Omega, the lowest rank. The weakest.”

I blinked, trying to take it all in. “Pack? Hierarchy? What does that even mean?”

“Every werewolf belongs to a pack,” she explained patiently. “And this house, this entire estate, belongs to the Blood Moon Pack. Our Alpha is Fenrir.”

My jaw clenched when she said his name.

“He is one of the most feared Alphas in this region,” she went on, her voice filled with respect. “To the outside world, he is a powerful businessman, the head of the Lycaon Empire. But to those who know the truth, he is our Alpha Fenrir, leader of the Blood Moon Pack, and one of the most feared Alphas on the continent.”

I sat at the edge of the bed, the mattress dipping under my weight. My mind was spinning. Everything she said sounded like something out of an old story. Wolves, packs, ranks, it all felt too strange to be real.

“Was that why…” I paused, forming my words. “Was that why his blood healed me?”

Claire nodded. “Partly, yes. But there’s more to it than that.”

“Then tell me,” I pressed. “Why me? From what you’re saying, you people don’t just show yourselves to anyone. So why did he bring me here? I’m just… ordinary.”

Claire hesitated. Her eyes met mine, and for the first time, her calm expression wavered. “Because you’re not ordinary, my lady.”

My heart skipped. “What do you mean?”

She lowered her gaze for a second, then said quietly, “Because you’re his second chance mate.”

I froze.

Mate. That word again. The same one he’d said when he spoke in my head. And now this—second chance mate.

“What does that even mean?” I began, but before she could answer, the door opened.

The air shifted at once. It felt heavier, thicker.

Fenrir stepped in.

He filled the doorway easily, his tall frame impossible to ignore. His dark hair was slightly messy, his shirt half-unbuttoned, showing the hard lines of his chest. He didn’t have to say anything, his presence alone changed the room.

Claire bowed instantly. “My lord.”

He gave her a small nod. “Leave us.”

She placed the knife down neatly beside the plate of apples and slipped out, closing the door quietly behind her.

The silence that followed made my heartbeat loud in my ears.

Fenrir’s eyes found me. They swept over me, calm but searching. “How are you feeling?” he asked, his voice low.

I stared back, anger and confusion mixing inside me until they almost hurt. “I want answers,” I demanded, though my voice shook a little. “I don’t understand anything that’s happening.”

He exhaled, a tired sound. For a moment, something gentle flickered in his expression, then disappeared.

“This is who I am, Olivia,” he said slowly. “I didn’t mean to frighten you. I hid it because I knew what your reaction would be. And at the time… we had other things to deal with.”

I laughed bitterly. “That’s your excuse? You turn into some creature and didn’t think I had the right to know? We literally got married.”

His eyes narrowed slightly. “It was a contract marriage. Don’t forget that.”

His words hit me like a slap.

“You wanted freedom,” he said evenly. “I wanted an heir. That’s all this is. An exchange. Nothing more.”

A painful ache seared across my chest. I shouldn’t have cared. I knew what this was. I agreed to it. But hearing him say it that way, so cold and distant, it hurt in a way I couldn’t explain.

I looked away, blinking hard, trying not to let him see how much his words had stung.

He watched me for a while, then his tone softened. “You know the truth now. That’s all there is to it. The choice is yours.”

I frowned. “Choice?”

“Yes.” His arms crossed over his chest. “You can walk away from all this. I’ll even take you home myself, and you’ll never hear from me again. Or…” His voice dropped slightly. “You can stay. Finish what we started. Fulfill the contract, and earn your freedom.”

My voice came out smaller than I meant. “And my sickness?”

“The reason my blood healed you,” he said, “is because you’re my mate. My blood recognizes yours. As long as you take it, your body will continue to heal. By the end of our agreement, you’ll be free from your illness, strong enough to live without it.”

I stared at him, unable to say a word.

“You have until tomorrow to decide,” he said finally. Then he turned and left, the door closing softly behind him.

When the sound of his footsteps faded, the silence filled every corner of the room.

I sat there, unmoving, trying to breathe. My thoughts were too many, too heavy.

Werewolves. Mates.

It all sounded impossible, yet I had seen it with my own eyes.

I pressed my hand against my chest, feeling my heartbeat. The same heart that had been failing me for years, now steady. Strong. His blood was inside me.

Could I really leave?

I closed my eyes as the memory of him…of it, came back. The black fur, the glowing silver eyes, the power in every movement. It should have terrified me. And it did. But beneath that fear was something else, something strange, something that made my skin warm.

I thought of my old life; the quiet, lonely room I never left; my father’s cold eyes; Susan’s sharp tongue; and Lucas’s betrayal. That world had never felt like home. It was a place that kept me trapped, feeling small and unwanted.

Even when I had been running earlier, desperate to escape the beast, home never crossed my mind as a place I wanted to go.

That realization hit me hard.

Maybe this world, even with all the wolves and secrets, wasn’t as cruel as the one I came from. At least here, everything was real. Honest.

I already had my answer.

I would stay.

Not because I trusted him. Not because I wanted to.

But because I needed his blood to live. I would fulfill the contract.

I would survive.

And when it was done, I would walk away free.

I stood up slowly, steadying myself. My body felt stronger than before.

The hallway outside was oddly quiet. Daylight poured through the high windows, a warm gold bathing across the marble floor.

I turned a corner and found a maid arranging flowers near the staircase. “Excuse me,” I said softly. “Do you know where I can find Fenrir?”

She looked up, surprised, then pointed toward the east wing. “The Alpha’s chamber is that way, my lady. Last door at the end.”

“Thank you.”

I walked down the hall, my footsteps echoing lightly. The air grew warmer the closer I got. The corridor here was more decorated—dark wood, silver frames, the scent of pine and smoke.

When I reached the last door, I paused. It was tall and heavy, carved from oak, with black iron handles. Of course this was his room. My hand hovered near the wood. I was about to knock, then I heard it.

A sound.

Soft at first, then louder. A faint gasp, followed by another.

My brow arched as I tried to decipher the sound.

I leaned closer. The door was slightly open. My fingers brushed against it and pushed it just enough to see inside.

Fenrir was there.

His back was to me, muscles tensed, skin glistening under the warm light of the chandelier. His body moved rough and powerfully, a rhythm that commanded the air in the room. Beneath him, the redhead I’d seen earlier arched her back, her teeth biting her lips to suppress her moans as he thrusted in and out of her with force.

I couldn’t breathe.

My hand flew to my mouth as my stomach twisted. My heart hurt so much I thought it might break.

I took a step back, causing the floor to creak under my foot. I froze, but they didn’t stop. He said something low against her skin, and she moaned his name.

Fenrir.

The sound of it hit me harder than I expected.

We had a contract. That was all. He had made that clear. And yet, standing there, watching this, I felt something tear inside me.

My heart shook in my chest, and for the first time since I came into this house, I was afraid of something other than the wolves.