CHAPTER FIFTY SEVEN - The Taste Of Sacred Knowledge

Back in her room, Aria sat motionless on the bed for hours, staring at nothing. The shock of seeing her mother, alive and relatively well, had shattered something inside her—both healing and breaking her anew. When Victor returned that evening, she was still in the same position. "Does your offer still stand?" she asked without looking up. "It does." "I want to send a message to Lucas. To explain what happened." Victor's expression tightened almost imperceptibly. "I'm afraid that's not possible. Any communication with the Kane pack would compromise our security." "Then your offer of cooperation is meaningless." "Not at all. I'm offering protection, reunion with your mother, a chance to help end this conflict without further bloodshed." Victor approached, his shadow stretching unnaturally across the floor. "But I cannot allow you to reveal our location or defenses to a potential enemy." "Lucas isn't your enemy." "Perhaps not intentionally. But he serves his father, and Alexande