"Dispose of the bodies," Lila's voice was cold, final, utterly devoid of emotion as she looked at Dr. Hart, then at Ariana and the small, still form of the second twin.
"The vehicle is ready," Dr. Hart confirmed, her voice clinical, professional. She checked the small syringe one last time before placing it back in her kit. "Under cover of night. she will be disposed Far from here."
They moved swiftly, efficiently, preparing to wrap the forms, to make them disappear. Darius, consumed by his grief and holding the surviving heir, was already being led away, believing the lie. The midwives, silenced and terrified, averted their eyes.
Later that night, a vehicle left Blackthorn territory, moving under the cloak of darkness along disused service roads, carrying its grim cargo. Lila and Dr. Hart weren't present, having delegated the task to trusted (and well-paid) personnel loyal to Vincent and their agenda. Their intent: to dump the bodies where they'd never be found, burying the truth and all its complications.
But Dominic Fenrir was still watching. He hadn't left the area, a primal hunter sensing the shifts in the territory, drawn by the lingering scent of the Old Blood, sensing the raw aftermath of the birth, of Ariana herself. He had spies, eyes in the shadows, embedded closer than the Blackthorns knew, waiting for any opportunity.
"Alpha!" A rogue warrior appeared before Dominic in the deep woods, his voice urgent. "The transport! It's moving! Just as planned!"
Dominic Fenrir's single eye gleamed in the darkness. "Planned?" he growled, a cruel smile touching his lips. "It was my plans. Not theirs." He had anticipated the Blackthorns wanting to move things, to cover tracks. He just hadn't expected this. "Intercept them," he commanded. "Bring the cargo to me. Undisturbed."
His scouts moved like phantoms through the trees, intercepting the lone vehicle on a secluded logging road miles from the manor perimeter. The two personnel inside offered no resistance against the pack of wild rogues.
"Dominic!" Drake's voice was rough as they opened the back of the transport. He sounded surprised. "They are Bodies? Two of them."
Dominic arrived, stepping into the dim light cast by the vehicle's headlights. He looked at the forms laid out – one larger, wrapped in a blanket, one small.
"Bodies, what do you mean?" Dominic rumbled, walking closer. He sniffed the air, a deep, long inhale. His single eye fixed on the larger form. The scent. The Old Blood. It was faint, yes, the scent of trauma and stillness, but it wasn't the scent of death. And the light... it wasn't entirely extinguished. He moved to the smaller form. The twin. He sniffed again. A whisper of that same, unique scent.
"ohhhhh, this is so nice, They tried to dispose of her," Dominic growled, a terrifying understanding dawning in his eyes. A twisted admiration. "And the pup. They thought they were getting rid of the problem. They thought they have finally Buried their mistake." He saw not death orchestrated by nature, but a deliberate discarding orchestrated by cold calculation. And he saw an opportunity that fate had just dropped into his lap.
"But She wasn't supposed to die," Dominic stated, looking at Drake. "They made it look that way.'." He chuckled, a harsh, unpleasant sound. "Those fools."
He had wanted Ariana. He had been searching for The Key. Now, fate, in the form of the Blackthorns' own ruthlessness, had delivered her. Injured. Vulnerable. And she had brought a bonus – a second heir carrying the coveted bloodline, the one the Blackthorns deemed disposable.
"Bring them," Dominic commanded, his voice sharp, decisive. "Bring the woman and the small one. To the Hidden Clearing, and make sure to Secure it. So No one enters. No one leaves. She is mine now. The Key. And the pup is hers. And mine." He saw them not as victims, but as his prize, objects of his long-standing obsession, a means to unlock the power he craved and to strike a devastating blow against Darius Blackthorn unlike any territorial war could achieve.
They brought Ariana and the baby boy to a hidden, secure location deep within Fenrir's territory – a place of holding, of waiting, not of healing. Ariana remained in a deep state of physical and mental shock. The trauma of the brutal birth, the lingering effects of the poison from her past reacting under immense stress, the sheer emotional overload of recent events – it all combined, causing a complete dissociation, a protective shutdown of her mind.
Days passed. Dominic watched her from the shadows of the rough, makeshift dwelling they'd placed her in. Watched for a sign. For movement. For recognition.
One morning, Ariana stirred. Her eyes fluttered open slowly. She looked around, her gaze vacant, confused. Her hand instinctively reached for the small baby boy crying softly beside her. She gathered the baby into her arms, murmuring soft, soothing sounds.
"Mama's here," she whispered, her voice weak, unfamiliar even to herself.
Dominic watched from the entrance. He spoke to her. "you awake, Do you know what happened?" he asked
"who are you?, and where am I?" Ariana questioned
"I am Alpha Dominic, and I saved you from dying after you gave birth" Dominic responded
"An Alpha?, that rings a bell" she murmured to herself... But Dominic had more questions for her"Do you know blackthorn?" he asked, "who is that " Ariana doesn't remember, Her responses were simple, basic. Her eyes held no recognition when he mentioned Blackthorn Manor, or wolves, or Darius, or family, or even the birth. Her memory was gone. Wiped clean. The trauma had taken it all.
Her mind clung only to the most basic, primal instincts: survival, protecting herself and the one small, perfect baby who was now her entire world. She remembered nothing of the life she had lost, the husband who was mourning her as dead, the twin son she had also given birth to.
Dominic watched her, a cruel fascination in his single eye. The Key was broken, yes. Her memory lost. But the scent remained. Faint, but growing stronger now that the Blackthorns' hold was gone. The power was dormant, waiting.
"She remembers nothing," Dominic stated to Drake, who stood nearby. "Just the pup."
"What do we do now, Alpha?" Drake asked, his voice wary.
"We wait," Dominic growled, his gaze fixed on Ariana and the baby. "We keep her. Keep the child." He smiled, a slow, cruel expression. "And We figure out how to awaken the power. How to control it. How to use her. She is finally mine now. The Alpha's mate, the Key, reduced to a woman with no past. Raising one child, completely unaware of the life she had lost. Unaware of the husband who believes her dead. Unaware of the son she birthed." He had her. And the game had just entered a terrifying new phase.
"I won't let her leave my side".