Isla's POV
"Do you ever get tired of men deciding what I'm worth?"
My voice cracked through the cabin, sharp and trembling, as I shoved the newspaper across the table at Kyree. The headline screamed at us both in bold black letters:
COBY WINTERS' MYSTERY GIRL: WHO IS SHE?
A grainy photo of me, caught in the blur of stadium lights, stared back from the page. My hair was tangled, eyes wide, and mouth parted in fear and I was captured like prey. Underneath, human reporters spun their fantasies: a hidden lover, a scandal, a secret woman dragging the world's brightest hockey star into shadow.
Kyree leaned back in his chair, cigarette dangling from his lips. His storm-grey eyes flicked to the paper, then to me, cold as steel. He didn't even look surprised.
"You think saving me from Drake makes you my savior?" I hissed, my hands shaking as I shoved the blanket tighter around me. "You think choking your men into silence makes me safe? Now I'm in the papers, Kyree. Humans know my face. Logan knows. Drake knows. I'm not hidden anymore. I'm a target."
He blew smoke toward the ceiling, slow and deliberate. "You were always a target, little wolf. Your actions just painted the bullseye brighter."
My chest ached and my throat tightened up. "And what happens when Logan finds me? What happens when Drake storms your gates? What then? You'll hand me over? Or kill me yourself before they get the chance?"
The chair screeched as he stood, towering over me, cigarette glowing red between his fingers. His jaw tightened, his tattoos shifting with the clench of his muscles. "Don't compare me to Drake."
I swallowed hard, refusing to flinch, even as Ava stirred inside me.
"Test him," my wolf growled. "See if his fire protects or consumes."
"You're all the same," I whispered, voice breaking. "Chains dressed in different skins."
The air between us sparked, the bond flaring hot. My knees wobbled as heat tore through my veins, Ava clawing against my chest. Kyree's nostrils flared, his wolf pressing against the edges of his skin, storm and fury threatening to spill free.
Then, the cabin door banged open.
"Boss," a biker gasped, panting. His vest was torn, mud streaking his boots. "Scouts back from the northern ridge. Word is… Logan's called a hunt."
Kyree's head snapped toward him. "What hunt?"
The biker's eyes darted to me, then back to Kyree. "Pack law. The cursed Omega is exposed. Logan petitioned the elders and they agreed. She's marked, open prey. Anyone can take her before the next moon and claim the favor of the Ivory Moon Pack."
My stomach dropped. Blood drained from my face. I staggered back until my spine hit the cabin wall.
"No," I whispered. "He wouldn't…"
But I knew he would. Logan's voice echoed in my memory, venom dripping: Defy me again, and I'll make you beg for death.
Kyree's cigarette snapped in half between his fingers. Ash spilled onto the floor as his wolf surged. His eyes glowed, storm-grey edged with silver light. "The bastard means to wipe her out under Pack Law."
The biker nodded, nervous. "And… there's more. Drake's men were spotted near the border. And human reporters, already sniffing around Iron Fang's grounds, cameras and questions."
Kyree cursed under his breath, shoving past him out the door. I followed, heart hammering.
The camp outside was restless, with engines rumbling and blades sharpened against stone. The Brotherhood muttered in clusters, glancing at me with suspicion, hunger and fear. Cutter's throat still bore the bruises from Kyree's hand, but his eyes burned with resentment. Mutiny simmered hot and near-boiling.
I heard the whispers:
"She's cursed."
"She'll bring the Pack Law down on us all."
"Trade her to Drake and end it before it starts." Kyree's boots crunched over dirt as he stood in the center of camp, cigarette gone and fists clenched. "Listen up. Logan's declared a hunt, Drake's circling and the humans are already on our doorstep. Anyone who thinks I'm handing her over, step forward now. See if you survive me."
There was fear in the air, uneasy and brittle silence, but I saw it in their eyes: doubt, fear, and betrayal brewing in shadows.
That night, the camp drank harder than usual, with laughter too loud and voices too sharp. I kept to the cabin, pacing, while Ava was restless inside me.
"They'll never stop seeing me as a curse," I whispered.
Ava growled. "Then make them choke on the curse. Teeth, Isla... You have teeth." Later, when the fire died down, I overheard voices outside the cabin.
"…Drake sent word. Trade her and he'll leave us standing. Keep her and we burn."
"…Kyree won't trade. He's already chained to her." "…Then maybe someone else makes the trade for him."
My chest tightened up and bile rose in my throat. I pushed the door open and found Kyree bent over his bike, grease streaking his hands, with his jaw clenched.
"You're not my savior," I said, my voice shaking. "You're just waiting for the right price."
He froze, then lifted his head, storm-grey eyes locking on me. "You don't get it, little wolf. In my world, you're claimed or you're eaten."
"I'd rather be eaten than owned."
The bond roared between us, sparks tearing through my chest. Ava howled inside me. His wolf surged too, Darius pressing against his skin.
Kyree stepped forward, looming until his shadow swallowed me whole. His hand slammed into the wall beside my head, cracking the wood. His voice was rough, jagged. "Careful. You'll choke on your own defiance."
Tears burned my eyes, but I shoved him back, trembling. "If you're going to chain me, just say it. I'd rather die knowing than keep waiting for betrayal."
For once, he didn't answer. He just stood there, chest heaving and his fists shaking. His silence was worse than threats.
That night, I curled on the cot, knees pulled to my chest. Outside, I heard the hiss of Kyree's cigarette and the crunch of his boots pacing the dirt.
Through the thin walls, his voice reached me, low and broken.
"She'll be my undoing," he whispered. "And I'll still choose her."
I pressed my forehead to my knees, Ava whispering in my mind: If the Goddess made you a curse, maybe the only way to survive is to become one.
The fire outside hissed low, the Brotherhood muttered in uneasy sleep and in the darkness, the hunt had already begun.
When three Alphas close in, one who wants her dead, one who wants her chained, and one who can't let her go, which bond will Isla break first?