Page 118 of The Reaper's Vow

Damien sets his untouched whiskey down with deliberate care. “And you're agreeing to this?”

“Do I look like I have a choice?” Elias lifts his head at last, squaring himself to Damien. “My father’s word is law.”

“Who is she?” Damien asks.

Elias shifts uncomfortably, suddenly finding the contents of his empty glass fascinating. The firelight catches on his profile, highlighting the tension in his jaw.

“That's the thing...” he begins, then stops, running a hand through his hair again. “I don't think you're going to like this part.”

“Just tell us,” I press, unease crawling up my spine.

Elias takes a deep breath. “It's Bella.”

The room temperature seems to drop ten degrees instantly. I feel the shock pulse through our bond before Damien's face even registers the emotion. The glass slips from my fingers, shattering against the hardwood floor with a sharp crack that echoes through the sudden silence. Amber liquid spreads across the wood like spilled blood, but I barely notice. All I can focus on is the way Damien's entire body goes rigid beside me, fury radiating from him in waves so intense I can taste it in the air.

“My own sister,” he snarls at Elias, jerking away from my grip. “The sister who was kidnapped and tortured while I was being punished for failing to protect her. And now you want to claim her like a fucking prize?”

I step between them, feeling the tension crackling in the air like electricity before a storm. Elias rises from his chair, hands raised in a placating gesture that only seems to infuriate Damien more.

“I didn't ask for this either,” Elias declares. “But I thought you deserved to know?—”

“To know what?” Damien cuts him off. “That our fathers have been plotting behind our backs? That my sister is being traded away like property? That my best friend—” his voice breaks slightly on the word “—is going along with it? When were yougoing to tell me?” Damien demands, his body vibrating with barely contained fury. “After the ceremony? Or were you hoping I'd just accept it once it was done?”

“Damien, let him explain.”

“Explain what? How he's going to fuck my traumatized sister because daddy told him to?”

“It's not like that,” Elias protests, his own temper flaring. “You think I want this? You think I want to be tied to someone who doesn't choose me?”

“Then don't do it,” Damien growls, taking a step closer. “Tell my father and yours to go to hell.”

“And watch my pack fall apart?” Elias shakes his head. “Watch my father lose what little respect he has left after the Saloma disaster? I can't do that.”

I watch this confrontation unfold, feeling helpless as two of the most important men in my life tear each other apart. The broken glass crunches under my feet as I move closer to them, whiskey seeping into the soles of my slippers.

“There has to be another way,” I interject, looking between them. “Some compromise that doesn't involve forcing Bella into a mating she doesn't want.”

Elias's laugh is hollow, empty of any real humor. “That's just it,” he says, his shoulders slumping as the fight seems to drain out of him. “Bella's already made her choice.”

“What do you mean?” Damien demands, taking another step forward.

Elias meets his eyes directly, and I see something there that makes my stomach drop—regret, guilt, and something else I can't quite name.

“She's gone, Damien,” he says quietly. “Bella took matters into her own hands. She disappeared last night after hearing about the arrangement.”

The silence that follows his words is deafening. I watch as Damien's expression transforms from rage to confusion to something like dread in the span of seconds.

“Gone?” he repeats, the word falling between us like a stone. “What do you mean, gone?”

“She left a note,” Elias continues, reaching into his jacket to pull out a folded piece of paper. “For you.”

The look on Damien's face as he takes the letter from Elias makes my blood run cold. I've never seen that particular expression before—a mixture of dread, hope, and barely contained rage that makes his hands tremble slightly as he unfolds the paper.

“What does it say?”

Damien's jaw works silently for a moment before he hands me the letter.

“Read it.”