The Pack's Doctor

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Elara Vance POV:

I painted my face like a porcelain doll, using concealer to hide the dark circles under my eyes and blush to fake a healthy glow. I had to be perfect. I had to be the same Elara he had seen yesterday. Ignorant. Trusting.

When I entered the dining hall, Ryker was already at the head of the table, a newspaper in his hands. He looked up and smiled, a brilliant, false smile that didn't reach his cold, steel-grey eyes. It was as if last night's filth had never happened.

He rose, pulling out my chair with a gentlemanly flourish and tucking my napkin into my lap. Each gesture was a masterpiece of deception.

A maid served my favorite-blueberry pancakes with fresh cream-but the sweet smell made my stomach heave. The scent of wild ginger was still on him, a faint, sickening undertone beneath his cologne.

"What's wrong, darling? Is the morning sickness bad today?" he asked, his brow furrowed with a perfect imitation of worry.

I forced a brittle smile. "Yes, just a little queasy."

*Don't fall for it!* Lyra snarled in my head. *He is a butcher!*

Ryker reached across the table and took my hand. His touch was warm and strong, but to me, it felt like the cold, slick skin of a snake. "I was thinking," he said, his voice a soft, persuasive purr. "You've been cooped up in the Packhouse for too long. Your moods have been... unstable."

My heart began to hammer against my ribs. Here it comes. The main act.

"I've arranged a surprise for us," he continued, squeezing my hand. "A short hunting trip to Gloomfang Peaks. How does that sound?"

Gloomfang Peaks. The name tolled like a funeral bell in my mind.

I looked up, straight into his eyes, and for a split second, I saw it. A flicker of cold, predatory intent behind the loving facade. It was gone as quickly as it came, but I had seen it.

Fear, cold and sharp, pierced my heart. But I couldn't refuse. To refuse was to show my hand, to admit I knew. My mother's voice echoed in my memory, a lesson from long ago: *Sometimes, the most dangerous path is the only one that leads to an escape.* I had to go. It was a trap, but it was also my only chance.

I widened my eyes, feigning a delighted surprise. "Really? Gloomfang Peaks? Oh, Ryker, I've always wanted to see the vistas from there!"

A slow, satisfied smile spread across his face. It was the smile of a predator that had successfully cornered its prey. "Just the two of us," he added, his voice dropping to an intimate murmur. "A trip for just me and my mate."

No guards. No witnesses. The perfect place for an "accident."

I pretended to blush, lowering my gaze. "Whatever you wish, my Alpha."

As soon as breakfast was over, I retreated to my room. My hands moved with frantic purpose. I opened a secure channel on my mind-link, one only a few trusted people had. My best friend, Sabine Kane.

*Sabine, if you don't hear from me by midnight tomorrow, please look after my mother. And investigate Ryker. Investigate everything.*

Her reply was a burst of alarm in my head. *Elara? What's going on? Where are you going?*

I severed the link before I could say more, before I could endanger her. I couldn't drag her into my grave.

Then, I packed. Not hunting gear or fine clothes. I packed for survival. A small, sharp skinning knife hidden in the lining of my boot. A flint and steel. And a small leather pouch of my mother's high-energy herbal pills, each one capable of sustaining a wolf for a full day.

I looked at my reflection in the mirror. My face was pale, my violet eyes huge and dark, but within them, a new, hard light was dawning.

"We will survive, "Lyra whispered, her voice a promise of violence. "For our pup, we will drive them all out, tear them all apart-leave not a single one standing."

When Ryker came to my door, dressed for the outdoors, I was ready. I smiled my sweetest, most loving smile and looped my arm through his. I was the picture of a happy, expectant mother, excited for a romantic getaway.

As our car sped away from the Packhouse, I watched the familiar landscape blur past the window. This wasn't a hunting trip. It was a high-stakes gamble for my life, and the life of my child, against the man I was fated to love.