Patricia.

"Darren, can you come to your senses?"

My voice came out strained as I stared at him from across the room. My fingers curled anxiously at my sides as I tried to keep my emotions steady.

"Forget about the competition," I continued, shaking my head slightly. "There is no need for it anymore."

Everything that had happened today still hung heavily in the air. The attack, the chaos, the fear that had spread through the pack, it was impossible to ignore.

Nothing felt normal anymore.

But Darren stood there as if none of it mattered.

As if nothing had changed.

"And why should I forget, Patricia?"

His voice was calm at first, but there was an edge to it I didn’t recognize.

He took a slow step closer to me.

"Answer me."

The sudden sharpness in his voice made my heart skip.

He was closer now, his eyes fixed on mine with an intensity that made my chest tighten.

"Why should I forget?"

The last words came out louder.

A yell.

I flinched instinctively.

The reaction surprised even me.

In all the time I had known Darren, he had never raised his voice at me before.

Not once.

He had always been patient, steady... someone I could talk to without feeling afraid.

But right now, the man standing in front of me didn’t feel like the same Darren.

"Darren..." I said slowly, my voice softer now. "What’s wrong with you?" My brows drew together as I searched his face. "You’re yelling at me."

He exhaled sharply, running a frustrated hand through his hair before turning away for a moment like he was trying to gather himself.

"Patricia," he muttered, his shoulders tense. "Can you just stop all this?" He turned back to face me again. "I’m tired."

The exhaustion in his voice caught me off guard but the worry in my chest didn’t ease.

"I still don’t understand," I said carefully, trying to keep my tone calm. "Why are you so hell bent on taking part in this competition?" My hands lifted slightly as if trying to make him see reason. "Can’t you see it’s no longer safe here?"

The image of the attack earlier flashed in my mind again.

Someone had been bold enough to attempt an assassination in the middle of the arena.

That wasn’t something we could just ignore.

Yet Darren was acting like the competition was still the most important thing in the world.

His lips curled slightly into something that wasn’t quite a smile.

"Oh really?"

The words came out slowly.

His gaze sharpened as he looked at me.

"I was about to ask you something myself."

A strange uneasiness crept into my stomach.

"What do you mean?"

He paused for a moment, studying my expression carefully.

Then he spoke again.

"Are you behind the incident that happened today?"

The question landed like a sudden slap.

My eyes widened.

For a second, I wasn’t even sure I had heard him correctly.

"What?" the word slipped from my lips in disbelief. "What do you mean?" I stared at him, completely stunned.

The idea that he would even think something like that... felt unreal.

But Darren’s expression didn’t soften.

If anything, he looked more serious than ever.

"Come on, you know what I mean, Patricia."

Darren’s voice was low, but the sharp accusation in it cut straight through me.

"You can do anything to have your way," he continued, his eyes narrowing slightly as he looked at me. "I know that."

He paused for a brief second, almost like he was measuring the effect his words were having on me.

"Because that’s exactly how I ended up getting mated to you."

I froze.

The words struck harder than I expected.

For a moment, I couldn’t even breathe properly.

My body felt stiff, my chest tight as the weight of what he had just said settled painfully inside me.

I really couldn’t take it anymore.

Yes, I had done things in the past that people didn’t approve of. I knew that. I wasn’t naïve enough to believe that everyone saw me as innocent.

I could be manipulative.

I could be ruthless when I needed something.

But taking someone’s life?

The thought made my stomach twist violently.

I had never crossed that line.

Never.

My jaw tightened as anger and frustration built inside me.

Damn you, Maria.

Everything had been fine before we saw her again in this pack, before she started turning everything upside down.

"I don’t know what you are talking about, Darren," I said quickly, turning my face away from him so he couldn’t see the storm of emotions rising in my eyes.

I refused to let him see how much his words had shaken me.

The silence that followed felt suffocating.

I could still feel his gaze on me.

Heavy.

Suspicious.

"You better be telling the truth, Patricia," Darren said after a moment.

His tone was colder now.

I heard his footsteps as he moved past me.

"Because I get impatient recently."

My heart clenched painfully at the distance in his voice. By the time I looked back, he was already walking toward the door.

He didn’t hesitate.

Didn’t slow down.

It was like he couldn’t leave the room fast enough.

Something inside me snapped.

"Darren..." The word slipped out before I could stop it.

He paused just as his hand reached the door.

My throat felt tight, but the question forced its way out anyway.

"Did you actually ever love me?"

For a brief moment, the room went completely still.

Darren stood there with his back turned to me.

Then he scoffed. "Loved you?"

The word sounded almost mocking when he repeated it. He didn’t even bother turning around to face me.

Instead, he pulled the door open roughly, the hinges creaked loudly as he stepped out.

And just like that...He was gone.

The door slammed shut behind him, the sound echoed through the room like a final answer.

For several seconds, I just stood there.

Frozen.

The silence felt unbearable.

Then suddenly the frustration inside me exploded.

"Arrrghhhhhhhhhhhh!"

The scream tore out of my throat as I grabbed the nearest object on the table and threw it across the room.

It crashed loudly against the wall before falling to the floor. My chest rose and fell rapidly as anger burned through me.

Everything had gone wrong.

Everything.

And there was only one person responsible for it.

Maria.

My nails dug into my palms as hatred twisted deep inside my chest.

It was all her fault.....If she hadn’t been here...If she hadn’t interfered with everything...None of this would have happened.

My breathing grew heavier as the bitter thought filled my mind.

Why didn’t she just die?