Gunnar’s POV
I did not rember thinking.
I only rembered rage.
The mont I reached Sebastian’s quarters, I did not slow down, I did not knock, I did not care who was inside with him. I lifted my leg and kicked the door open so hard it slamd against the wall with a loud crack.
The sound echoed through the room.
He was there. Standing. Calm.
With a man I did not recognize beside him.
That alone made my anger rise even more.
I did not speak. I did not ask questions.
I moved.
My fist connected with his face before he could even react, the impact sharp and heavy as his head snapped to the side. He stumbled back, but I did not give him ti to recover.
I grabbed him by his collar and slamd him hard against the wall.
"Why?!" I shouted, my voice filled with raw anger as I hit him again.
And again.
Each punch landed harder than the last, blood already spilling from his mouth as he tried to steady himself.
"Why the hell did you do that?!" I roared, gripping him tighter.
He coughed, blood spilling from his lips, but I did not stop.
"Killing her parents wasn’t enough for you?!" I hit him again, my vision already blurring from rage.
"And that monster you worked with!" I added, striking him once more. "And now you’ve finally taken her too?!"
My chest burned. My mind was not even clear anymore.
All I saw was him. All I felt was anger.
Before I could land another hit—
Hands grabbed . Several of them. Guards.
They rushed in quickly, pulling back, restraining my arms as I struggled against them.
"Let go!" I growled, trying to break free.
But there were too many of them. They held tight.
Sebastian slowly straightened, wiping the blood from his mouth as he stood there like nothing had happened.
Then—
He laughed.
A low, amused laugh that made my blood boil even more.
"Did you really believe I killed her?" he asked calmly.
I lunged forward again, but the guards held back firmly.
"You think this is funny?!" I snapped.
But he didn’t answer imdiately.
Instead, he looked at the guards.
"Leave us," he said.
They hesitated.
"All of you," he added firmly.
One by one, they released and stepped back before leaving the room completely. The door closed behind them, leaving just the two of us.
The air between us felt heavy. Dangerous.
He looked at for a mont.
Then he spoke."I didn’t kill her," he said.
My face twisted instantly. "That’s a lie," I snapped.
He shook his head slightly.
"At least not in the way you think," he added.
That only made it worse.
"What does that even an?" I demanded.
He stepped forward slightly, his expression calm again.
"If I wanted her dead," he said, "I wouldn’t need bandits to do it."
I clenched my fists tightly.
"She was just a woman," he continued. "An ordinary one at that. Do you really think I would make such a careless move?"
My jaw tightened.
"I don’t make childish moves," he muttered bitterly.
"Exactly," he said.
Silence filled the room for a mont.
Then he continued.
"I was the one who brought her here," he said. "I was the one who helped her when she had nowhere else to go after her parents was eliminated. I watched her grow Gunnar."
His gaze stayed steady on mine."Why would I suddenly decide to kill her now?"
I didn’t answer imdiately.
Because part of what he said—
Made sense.
But I didn’t want to accept it.
"You could do it because of the prophecy," I said finally.
His lips curved into a small smile.
"That prophecy ans nothing to ," he replied.
My fists clenched again.
"Then why is she dead?" I demanded.
He looked at carefully.
Then he said sothing that made everything feel wrong.
"She knew she was going to die today."
I froze."What?" I asked slowly.
"She insisted on leaving," he continued. "Even when you advised against it, didn’t she?"
My chest tightened.
"She knew her ti was up," he added.
"That doesn’t make sense," I said.
He didn’t stop."She planned it," he said calmly.
The words hit hard.
"What?" I snapped.
"She arranged the attack," he said.
My mind went blank.
"That’s impossible," I said imdiately.
"Is it?" he asked.
"Why would she do that to herself?" I demanded.
"She needed it to look like an attack," he replied.
"Why?!" I shouted.
But before he could answer—
Sothing sharp pierced into my neck.
My body froze instantly."What—"
My vision blurred.
Everything around started fading.
And then—
Darkness.
***
I snapped my eyes open.
My chest rose sharply as I took in a deep breath, my body reacting before my mind could catch up.
Everything felt different.
The air. The sll. The weight of my body.
I looked around quickly.
I was back.
In my room.
My gaze landed on Caden first.
He stood nearby, watching closely.
Then my eyes shifted.
And I saw her.
Sumr.
The mont she saw awake, her eyes widened and she scread softly.
"Daddy!"
She ran toward imdiately and threw her arms around tightly.
I caught her without thinking, holding her close as her small body pressed against mine.
For a second—
Sothing inside reacted.
Her scent.
Her blood.
It hit hard, it’s just like Carian’s.
My instincts surged suddenly, sothing dark rising from deep inside , sothing that made my grip tighten slightly.
My teeth pressed together as I forced it down.
No.
Not her.
Never her.
I shut it down imdiately, pushing that feeling away as I wrapped my arms around her properly.
"I’m here," I said, my voice low.
She held onto tightly.
"I was scared," she whispered.
I placed a hand on her head gently.
"I’m fine," I said.
Even though I wasn’t. Even though everything inside felt unstable.
Then suddenly—
The door burst open.
I looked up.
And she walked in.
Riley.
She stepped into the room slowly, her eyes eting mine as she said "I’m here to feed you"
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