She sank into the companion chair, the salt of her tears marking the sterile air. For a long interval, the only sound was the jagged rhythm of her breathing.
"How?" she finally whispered, her voice trembling. "How did the pride of my bloodline end up rotting in a burrow like this?"
Nathan, stripped of the arrogance that once shielded his soul, could only lower his head in a gesture of absolute submission.
"I heard whispers in the pack... that you returned to a common apartment in the city center?" Mrs. Hill’s voice rose, sharp with dread.
"I sold the sanctuary," Nathan rasped, his voice sounding like dry leaves skittering over stone. "The villa is gone."
Mrs. Hill’s eyes flared with a predatory fire. She stood abruptly, her hand striking Nathan’s face with a c***k that echoed like a b
