Gifted

Chapter 30 - Sage

Barely able to breathe, the room felt hot around me, suffocating me.

Not daring to glance towards Victor, now stood beside me. He slid his warm hand into mine. Coming closer, he leaned in and whispered in my ear.

"I feel so lucky that you chose me, Sage," he said.

I swallowed, still not able to look at him, I could scarcely muster the will to hold his hand. Not able to respond, I instead tried to engage with my wolf, she'd been silent since the visit to the red room.

Nothing. Only silence.  Had he done something to her—the Dream-walker?

A weird sensation shifted inside me, I hoped it might be my wolf, but this was something else. A coldness slithered down my spine, the feeling familiar and unwelcome.  It was him. He was inside my head, listening to my thoughts.

Shivering, Victor mistook my shiver to be coldness and moved his hand from mine, sliding it around my waist, pulling me closer to him.

Bile rose up my throat. This was wrong—so wrong.  As I tried to move away, I heard his voice in my head, instructing me to relax. It was the Dream-walker, the link we shared allowed him access to every thought, every feeling.

I felt violated.

My stomach dropped. I shouldn't have done this, never given him permission. My eyes glanced up to see he was in the corner hidden behind a screen, his eyes on me, watching, listening.

My grandfather cleared his throat, stealing my attention.

"Reigning Alphas, Betas and ladies and gentlemen. I welcome you to my home and today is a special day. Not only do I have a family announcement to deliver, but I also want to welcome you to a future that will usher in a new era for wolves."

My heart hammered in my chest. Was I going to go through with this, agree to marry a man I felt nothing for? But what choice did I have? Shutting myself off from my thoughts, I returned my attention to my grandfather.

"Friends. For too long we have pandered to humans. They have treated us as second-class citizens—but no more.  Today that ends. Today I offer you an alternative."

He paused as his attentive audience whispered. I didn't have a clue what he was talking about.

He continued. "But firstly, we have two uninvited guests with us tonight, that have been systematically bringing us down from the inside. You trusted them, gave them your loyalty and they in return have weakened you... us, to where they have killed to hide their secrets."

The room fell into a deathly silence.

My grandfather continued his speech. "You have lost loved ones and I know you need answers. Well tonight I have those...  I offer your those answers."  He stopped and raised his hand pointing. "The heads of Wolfe Industries— here to answer for their crimes against us."

What?  My head shot up. No, surely not. He couldn't be talking about Hunter?

Looking to the crowd, freezing, I was rooted to the spot.

The crowd parted, allowing him a clear path through. I tried to move away from Victor, but his fingers curled into my waist, holding me tighter.

Mon Dieu.  What would he think?  I should have told him.  My racing heart caused my chest to ache.

I couldn't believe he was here. A moment of craziness filled my head, I wanted to run and let him swallow me up in his arms. He looked as breath-taking as ever. Fierce, muscular and powerful. But there was something else today—something I'd never seen before. He looked dangerous. My stomach flipped.