Aria’s POV
Ever since I was released from prison, he’s had these monts where he acted strange and unexpectedly, making wonder if I ever knew him at all. But every ti a spark of hope appeared...it died just like now.
“What do we have to say?” I asked coldly. I didn’t bother hiding my frost. I didn’t want to speak to him.
Nathan flinched, actually flinched. A tight, painful expression crossed his face, as if the air itself had beco too heavy for him to breathe.
Our gazes clashed in the space between us. His was conflicted, dim, almost lost. Mine was ice.
Before he could speak, Rowland stepped between us, his voice firm.
“No need, Uncle Nathan. Whatever you need to say might have to wait. We should leave for now.”
I blinked quickly, forcing down the whirl of emotions under my ribs. I didn’t argue. I didn’t look back at Nathan.
I simply walked to Rowland’s car and got inside, putting distance between us without hesitation.
Nathan’s POV
I watched them leave...Aria slipping into Rowland’s car without a second glance and sothing inside my chest twisted sharply.
I raised a hand to my sternum, my fingers pressing over my heart as a dull, heavy ache throbbed beneath my ribs.
She used to follow behind so obediently. She used to scent the air for my moods before I even spoke.
She used to look at like I was her entire world.
That Aria... had been gone for a long ti.
My wolf paced restlessly, snarling at my inaction. Go to her. But my legs felt like stone, and I stayed rooted to the ground, watching her the car disappear around the corner.
Collins finally lost patience. After escorting Sophia away, he rushed forward, shooing off the crowd that still lingered around us.
The farce that began with four people had dwindled down to just , Nathan Hemsworth, Alpha, CEO, the richest damn wolf in Asterfell. No one dared say anything to . They bowed their heads and fled. Collins and I made our way straight to my vehicle.
“Alpha Nathan,” Collins whispered near my shoulder, “shall we go to the archives again?”
My eyelashes twitched. I must’ve been staring at nothing for too long. My wolf’s growls faded into a confusing haze.
When I lifted my gaze, my vision snapped back into focus.
“Go,” I said.
I slid into the car, the leather cold beneath . Collins climbed into the front, glancing at through the mirror the sa way a doctor watches a dying patient who refuses treatnt.
He’d been with for years—my assistant in the comlany world and my Beta in general, my shadow since I first took control. He’d witnessed everything. My indifference toward Aria. The way I kept her at arm’s length. The way I couldn’t even give her a proper mate’s warmth.
He’d also noticed the way I’ve been looking at her lately.
The way my wolf goes still when she steps into a room. The way I lose my breath when she speaks.
Collins sighed quietly. He must think I’d lost my clarity.
He was wrong.
I’d only just begun to see things clearly, and that clarity terrified .
Aria’s POV
On our way, Rowland kept throwing glances at . My silence made him worry.
“What’s wrong?” he finally asked . “Are you in a bad mood?”
He reached out to touch my forehead.
I moved away from him.
Rowland’s hand hung awkwardly in the air before he dropped it, disappointnt clinging to his scent.
“Aria... are you blaming ?” he asked quietly.
These words made my heart lurch. I looked up at him in surprise eting his gaze. His gaze was filled with complex and unfathomable emotions.
“Rowland,” I murmured, “have we t before?”
Rowland’s entire aura lit up. He leaned closer, reaching for her hand.
“Aria—have you rembered sothing? Look at again!”
Rowland’s eyes glowed too bright and intense.
He stared at like he was searching for... sothing. Sothing buried deep inside .
His sudden surge of hope made my wolf bristle. Instinctively, I looked away from him.
The mont i looked away, i noticed Rowland freeze, his hand suspended in the air, as if reaching for sothing that no longer existed there.
My brows pulled together.
“What do you an?” I asked sharply, suspicion rising like cold smoke in my chest.
What exactly am I supposed to rember? Or... who does he think I am?
Ridiculous scenarios from those over-the-top romance novels I used to read flickered through my mind.
I shook my head. No way, absolutely not. I don’t think I have t him before. If I have, I should have rembered him
The uneasy feeling that had crawled under my skin monts ago suddenly evaporated.
When Rowland t my gaze, the gaze of soone who saw him as a stranger, his expression twisted painfully, as if invisible claws were tightening around his heart.
He forced a smile, swallowed whatever he’d been about to say, and murmured:
“It’s nothing.”
It was a lie, even my wolf could sll it.
Silence swallowed the car. It was heavy and suffocating. Rowland stared ahead, his face shadowed, while I sat stiffly beside him, Lana curled in my arms, her little wolf scent grounding .
I thought about asking him where he was taking us but the words never made it past my lips.
By the ti the car rolled to a stop, I realized I had climbed in just to avoid Nathan... and completely forgotten to ask Rowland what his plan was.
Then Rowland pushed open his door, ca to mine, and held out a hand.
“Co and take a look.”
Lana perked up imdiately. I glanced at her. She looked alert and curious, not scared.
And strangely... neither was I.
Despite barely knowing Rowland, my wolf wasn’t wary of him. If anything, she was oddly calm... almost drawn to him.
Did we know him? Did I forget sothing?
Or is this... sothing else?
I masked my confusion, sidestepped his offered hand, and climbed out with Lana in my arms.
Cold air hit my face as the world opened up around .
We stood before a silent, deserted villa Not even the wind dared trespass. The whole atmosphere was thick with old energy... mories... ghosts.
Rowland led us inside.
Wall lamps flicked on automatically, revealing a long corridor lined with paintings that were carefully arranged, crafted with love and skill. The deeper we walked, the more of them appeared, until the corridor felt like a shrine.
I stopped at the last painting.
Rowland’s voice was soft behind , as if dredged up from another lifeti.
“Aria... do you know why I ca to Asterfell?”
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