Coles POV:
Mate?
Did he just say mate?
No… no f*****g way.
The devastation on Caleb’s face wasn’t rage. It was something else — something worse. He looked broken. Not just furious, not just unhinged. Shattered.
What the hell was going on?
Mira still lay on the bed, body thrashing, restrained and half-conscious. But this wasn’t just a shift gone wrong. She was screaming. Begging.
“Get him away!”
“Not again!”
“Please, kill me — I’d rather die!”
The fear in her voice ripped through the room like a thunderstorm. She was terrified — of him.
And him?
He just knelt there beside her, like the wind had been knocked out of him. Like he’d seen a ghost.
Ruth moved first — always the professional. Calm. Efficient.
“It’s okay, my dear,” she said gently, inching toward the bed. “He’s not go
