Chapter 55

**ROSALIE**

Chaos. That's the first word that comes to mind. After Leila left me, I had a bad feeling but I couldn't put my finger on it, but when I heard Cassisus' bestial howl... I knew.

When I got to the pack house, everyone was running around, Cassius carried his little sister over to the doctor. Leila and Austin on his heels. Her fangs were out... not surprising, given the amount of blood. David arrived just after Aria had gone to the doctor, who sent everyone away. No sign of Riley. That's when it hit me. She's the one. She's the one responsible.

"YOU!!!" Austin yells in the direction of his beta. "You're going to get your mate and lock her in a cell!"

"For what? But..."

"But nothing!!! You're going to do it and NOW!" He yells, using his alpha tone, and David runs to get out of the pack hospital.

Austin and Cassius are on the verge of shifting and letting the animal in them take over. The only thing holding them back is Aria. They have to stay here to find out more about her condition.

I pick up my phone mechanically. "Adam, you have to come. It's Aria and it's very serious." I tell him, trying to keep my composure.

"What? What happened? Why didn't I feel anything?" He strings the questions together completely panicked.

"Nobody felt anything. She's with the doctor." I tell him as he hangs up.

The nursing staff go back and forth between the operating room and the corridor, carrying blood-soaked cloths. My stomach churns, and when I see Leila's expression, I think it's time for her to go outside and get some fresh air.

**ADAM**

I set off as fast as I could, unencumbered by a vehicle. I started running as fast as I could just after I'd made sure our doctor would get to me as soon as possible.

I didn't feel anything... I didn't feel she was in danger. This isn't fucking normal. I run without stopping with only the image of Aria in my mind.

***

Cassius, Austin and I stare at Riley behind glass. David managed to intercept her before she could leave the pack. She's spent the last 48 hours strapped to a chair, without food or water and alone.
We wanted to know exactly what Aria's condition was before we came to interview her, and now... we know.

"If I go first, I'm not sure I can restrain myself from smashing her skull." Cassius said seriously, arms crossed.

"Same here." Austin adds dryly.

"I'll go first." I tell them calmly before entering.

She flinches at the sound of the door opening and remains tense when she sees me. I approach her slowly and without a word. Her heart rate quickens and she swallows.

"How's Aria?" She asks with a dry throat.

She has the nerve to ask me this question. I stare at her and she looks down. She's lucky I was the one who went in first because the other two must be boiling outside.

"You poisoned her and you dare ask about her? You want to make sure the job was done?" I ask her in disgust.

"I... It's just that..." She searches for words and I'm already tired of hearing her.

I pick up the chair in the corner of the room and drag it in front of her. I sit up straight in the chair in front of her.

"You gave her wolfsbane, so... I take it you wanted to kill her, but you gave it to her in small enough quantities that she didn't feel the effects immediately and it couldn't be detected by the smell." I tell him the facts as I know them. "You gave it to her in the juice you used to prepare for her."

She still has her head down and a tear falls to the floor.

"She trusted you, you know. When we started suspecting you of being behind Austin's ouster and her father's murder...." I tell her.

"I didn't want to kill him just... hurt him. I wanted to get her away from your palace, that's all." She cuts me off.

"To what end?" I immediately ask her calmly. She answers nothing for several minutes. "You already know the outcome of your fate, so you might as well tell me everything from the beginning."

"First of all I can assure you that I didn't want to kill Salvatore or Aria. It got out of hand." We hear a huge bang on the glass. Her eyes widen and she realizes that Austin and Cassisus are behind the glass. The latter was already an impressive human, but as a werewolf, I must say he's prodigious. He shook the walls.

"Go on." I tell her curtly, clenching my fists.

"I really loved Aria, she was my best friend from the moment we met. We moved in together because it made sense, we got along so well." She pauses. "I was always a little jealous of her because she had this thing with boys even if she wasn't aware of it. She got good grades in school and everyone liked her." She sighs. "Then I met David and I was super happy because I was good and I finally had something she didn't have. It sounds stupid..."

"It does, but go on."

She swallows. "Then we found out Austin was her mate the night she bumped into you." She snorts. "I was a werewolf, I had a mate and she was just some random human and she ended up with two mates. Two fucking mates, two fucking alphas. So yeah I was jealous and then that little cunt couldn't even be bothered to choose between the two of you. She had the choice between an alpha and a monster... and she couldn't make up her mind."

"Is that why you organized the palace attack?"

"Yes." She answers point-blank and her eyes widen. She's going exactly where I want her to go.