CHAPTER 9

ALEX’S POV --- The forest was unnaturally silent as I ran through the trees, my heart pounding in my chest. The scent of blood was thick in the air, and my wolf was on edge. I had followed Diana’s scent here, a trail of pain and suffering leading me to the truth I had ignored for too long. I had been a fool. A blind, arrogant fool. Ryan’s words still echoed in my head, each one cutting deeper than the last. She never betrayed you. She sacrificed herself for you. She suffered because of you. And I let it happen. I pushed forward, ignoring the branches that scratched at my arms. My breath was ragged, my pulse racing. Then, through the thick trees, I saw her. Diana. She lay on the ground, her body curled in on itself. Her clothes were torn, her skin bruised and bloodied. She looked so small, so fragile. For a moment, I couldn’t move. I had seen Diana in pain before, but never like this. Never this broken. Guilt crushed me like a weight, but I shoved it aside. Now wasn’t the ti