chapter 24
The next few days dragged by like heavy stones tied to Ferial’s ankles.
Work was suffocating, home was tense, and the district felt wrong—too quiet in some areas, too watchful in others.
The patrols moved differently now, tighter formations, sharper eyes, as if something unseen was slithering beneath the surface of the world.
And she felt Abdie avoiding her like she carried plague.
He didn’t speak to her at work. Didn’t sit with her during breaks. Didn’t glance her way even once—something he had never done since they were children stealing fruit from market crates.
She had barely survived the weekend—nor the shouting from her grandparents, the tears, the fear, the painful silence afterward.
Her grandfather hadn’t spoken a single word to her since Sumday nights fall out. Not even when she greeted him. Not even when she brought him tea. She had cried herself into headaches for two days straight.
Monday passed. Tuesday passed. By Wednesday morning she walked into work with swollen eyes, her stomach tight with dread.
And that was the day everything finally erupted.
It happened during their ten-minute break. She was sitting alone on the cracked concrete behind one of the loading areas, sipping warm water from her dented bottle, when a shadow fell over her.
She didn’t need to look up to know who it was.
Abdie.
He stood stiffly, arms folded, chest rising with harsh breaths.
She whispered, “You’re not supposed to talk to me.”
He scoffed. “Since when do I listen to rules?”
"You're scared of my grandfather. And your mother doesn't play either."
She looked up at him finally—and what she saw startled her.
Abdie wasn’t angry.
He was broken. Hurt. Betrayed. Confused. All twisted into something sharp.
“You’re avoiding me,” she said quietly.
“Yes,” he snapped. “And I’m done avoiding you.”
Her heart thudded painfully. “Abdie—”
“No,” he cut her off, stepping closer. “You’re going to answer me this time.”
She flinched. She had never heard him speak like this.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” he demanded.
“Tell you what?”
“That the Alpha heir reacted like THAT over you! Fer—he almost broke the screen! He threatened to kill me! And you…” His voice cracked. “You’re acting like this is normal.”
“It’s not normal and if you weren’t such an asshole, you would have seen his reaction. Dude you were in the interrogation room. Infact you were the reason he reacted like that.” she spoke, hands trembling.
“That does not matter. I want to know your thoughts on his reactions?”
She opened her mouth—but no sound came. Her throat was tight, clogged with fear, confusion, grief she didn’t understand.
Abdie ran a hand through his hair, pacing. “Do you know what my mother said? When your grandfather told her everything? She said I should stay away from you. For my own safety and especially yours. She said your grandparents knew this day would come.”
Ferial’s blood turned to ice.
“My… grandparents?” she whispered.
Abdie stopped pacing. “Fer, they know something. And I’m telling you now—they’ve been hiding it from you. And hiding it from the district.”
Her chest hurt.
Her grandparents had been acting strange. Too strict. Too emotional. Too silent. Her grandfather refusing to look at her. Her grandmother trembling when she mentioned the Alpha heir. And then the slip about wolves and mates. About souls without wolves.
Ferial pressed her hands to her face. “I don’t know anything. I swear I don’t.”
Abdie crouched in front of her, grabbing her wrists gently. “Fer… look at me. Something is happening. Something big. And you’re in the middle of it whether you want to be or not.”
She shook her head fiercely. “I didn’t ask for any of this. You are the reason for all of this. You keep pushing and pushing.”
“I know.”
He squeezed her hands. “But I’m not leaving you. I don’t care what my mother says. And I'm sorry for putting you in positions that you didnt ask for.”
Her throat tightened. “You should be. You’re going to get yourself killed.”
He laughed bitterly. “Fer, I’ve been almost killed fifty-seven times. I counted. What’s one more?”
Despite everything, a tearful smile tugged at her lips.
But it didn’t last.
Because at that exact moment, the factory siren blared—not for break ending, but for something else. Something serious.
Workers froze.
Supervisors ran.
And patrols entered through every entrance, armed and tense.
Abdie’s grip on her hands tightened. “What… what’s happening?”
Ferial’s stomach dropped to her ankles.
It felt like the world was shifting under them.
The patrol captain from before—Captain Rian—stormed inside, barking orders.
“Everyone remains where they are! No movement! No leaving the building!”
Gasps rippled through the workers.
Abdie tugged Ferial behind a stack of crates. “Why are they searching the factory?”
Because of her.
She knew it in her bones.
Captain Rian’s voice boomed again. “The Alpha heir and the Alpha Supreme are arriving. Everyone will stand in lines outside for inspection.”
The room erupted into frightened whispers.
Abdie’s eyes widened. “He’s back?”
Ferial swallowed hard. “Why?”
She didn’t want the answer.
But she felt it.
Deep inside her chest—like a pull, like a string tightening—she felt him. Not physically. Not magically. But something inside her sensed movement. Presence.
He was near.
And getting closer.
Abdie grabbed her shoulders. “Fer. Fer—look at me. Why would he come back? Unless—”
“Don’t say it,” she breathed.
“—unless you ARE his—”
“STOP!” she hissed, shaking.
Before he could finish, the factory doors were pushed open from the outside.
And every wolf in the patrol straightened instantly.
A heavy silence swallowed the room.
Bootsteps echoed sharply across the concrete.
Ferial’s heart hammered painfully as she peeked from behind a crate.
The Alpha heir walked in first.
Taller than she remembered. Shoulders squared. Jaw clenched. Eyes burning with something dark and furious.
Behind him—the Alpha Supreme, identical to him, only colder.
Every human dropped their gaze.
Except her.
Because the moment he entered…
His eyes locked on hers.
As if he had known exactly where she stood. As if he had followed the thread of something binding them.
Abdie whispered shakily beside her, “Holy shit… he really is here for you.”
Her breath hitched.
The Alpha heir began walking toward her.
Slow. Controlled. Predatory.
Workers moved out of his way like water parting around a blade.
Ferial couldn’t breathe.
Abdie whispered, “Fer… something is happening with the patrols. They’re stricter. Nervous. And now he’s here. I think the wolves know something we don’t.”
She stepped back, body trembling. “I didn’t do anything.”
“I know,” Abdie said. “But you’re still in the middle of it.”
Captain Rian suddenly yelled, “Ferial Samsodien. Step forward.”
The Alpha heir’s eyes blazed.
Her knees felt weak.
Abdie held her arm tight. “I’m going with you.”
“No,” a low voice growled from across the room.
The Alpha heir.
Everyone froze.
His voice held danger. Possessiveness. Authority. Something ancient.
Abdie straightened. “I’m not leaving her alone—”
“You will,” the Alpha heir said, stepping closer, the air tensing around him like a storm ready to split open. “You’ve touched what isn’t yours once. I won’t allow it again.”
Abdie bristled. “She’s not a THING to own—”
“Enough,” the Alpha Supreme commanded, voice slicing through the tension.
He looked at Ferial, his expression unreadable.
“Your grandparents have been summoned,” he said. “They will answer to us as well.”
Ferial’s breath caught. “What? Why?”
Neither Alpha answered.
Her stomach twisted with dread.
Her grandparents knew something.
And now the wolves were coming for the truth.
Abdie whispered urgently, “Fer—whatever happens, don’t let them take you alone. I’m serious. They look like they’re about to—”
He didn’t finish.
Because the Alpha heir reached them—standing a breath away from her—and the room felt suddenly too small, too hot, too electrified.
He looked down at her, his voice low and rough.
“We’re going to talk. Now.”
Her voice cracked. “About what?”
His eyes darkened.
“About why I can feel every damn time you’re frightened.”
The room spun.
Abdie swore under his breath.
And far down the corridor, she heard the heavy boots of more patrols—coming to escort her grandparents.
Everything was unraveling.
Everything was about to be revealed.
And Ferial wasn't sure she was ready for any of it.