Chapter Eighty THANE


    I woke up on the cold ground, my surroundings dim and unfamiliar-was this... a cave?


    I hadn''t been chained; there was no need for that; I couldn''t move. Everything flooded back, Isabe''s betrayal-I shouldn''t have trusted her.


    "You are awake," the voice called. Speak about the little devil.


    "It isn''t wise to be this close to me, don''t you


    you think?"


    "You can''t harm me; at this state, you can''t even hurt a fly."


    "Did Logan keep you here to babysit me?"


    "Ah, you figured that out too; of course he is in on this too."


    "I guess this is revenge for sending you away from the pack?"


    "No. I would never do that, but that action did change everything."


    "I guess this is where the big revtiones in?"


    "Yes, it is and there is a lot to be revealed. I didn''t lose my memories. I knew who awoke me, and it was de, your father."


    "de?" I asked, surprised. "I think I''m done with your lies; you can keep your little exnations to yourself."


    "Do you really think that ghosts are real? de was no ghost; he was alive. His body might have been destroyed, but he isn''t dead. Think about it: you dreamt of me, of making love to me, and a few dayster, I''m at your pack." "de is a werewolf; he would die like one."


    "Not if a very powerful warlock managed to make him partially immortal. The warlock goes by the name Flynn, and your father saved his life twice, so he granted your father a little favor. de always knew his bad acts would catch up to him one day, and so he always wanted to make sure he was safe."


    "What do you get out of this?" I asked her.


    "All my life, I had always wondered what living without this disease feels like, and finally I had been given a chance, but if I do make this choice, then I would lose the one person I care about the most, you. At one point, I didn''t think I could do it; I was willing to risk my life because I believed there could be a future for all three of us. I guess Riley never did tell you about my offer; I was willing to be a second mate. It could have worked for us all, but she was selfish, and she wanted you all to herself, but you-l never believed I would live to see a time when Thane ckwood would stop loving me, but I did. You threw me out of your pack, and since I couldn''t have you, I had to settle for this."


    "Simply summarizing your statement; this was your revenge."


    "I didn''t want this; I never wanted any of this to happen, but I was going to die, and you would move on


    Chapter Eighty.


    with your life... with Riley. I couldn''t bear it. Still I wonder if I made the right choice; I wonder if life without y would be worth living."


    "Is this some kind of apology?"


    "Yes. It is. I love you, Thane, and I hope you find it in your heart to forgive me. I only did this because I wanted to live; I don''t want to die, Thane," she pleaded. Just then de strode in.


    I had been surprised when Isabe turned to him; she could see him.


    He had a smile on his face, the same smile he always had when he believed he had won.


    "You may leave now," he said to her, and she obeyed.


    "I guess her exnation has some atom of truth to it; you are still... alive."


    "Partially," he corrected. I watched him walk through the solid stone formation, his ghostly form passing through it.


    "Now I do understand why you seem to be always on ''her'' side over Riley''s."


    "It was quite fun while itsted making you believe it was all in your head. You know you had been about to screw up the whole n when you sent Be away; I thought we were in for a huge flop, but I guess I was wrong. You made a single wrong decision and that''s all it took."


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