Dravina POV
The Alpha leaned in, his gaze unflinching and unsettling as if he could see through every wall I’d built and straight into the truths I fought to hide.
“Where is your mate, Dravina?” he asked, his voice quiet but unrelenting. “Who does that mark on your neck belong to?”
My hand moved without thought, fingertips brushing over the scarred imprint at my throat. Cassian’s mark. My stomach clenched. I’d known this would be a problem, that it would betray me before I even spoke. It wasn’t just a symbol it was a brand, a binding I hadn’t chosen.
Still, I couldn’t break from the story I’d clung to since I fled.
“My mate is dead,” I murmured, my voice cracking, the lie tasting bitter on my tongue. “Please… don’t make me say more.”
Tears gathered in my eyes, and I let them, hoping
