Free Web NovelChapter 225: Chapter 225
Caden’s POV freeweɓnovel.cѳm
The words she said didn’t just land and pass.
They stayed. They kept repeating in my head like something that refused to stop.
If I break the spell, his life goes with it.
I didn’t move. I didn’t speak. For a second, I just stood there, trying to process what she meant, trying to figure out if there was another meaning behind it, something less serious, something we could work around.
But there wasn’t.
Cane went completely still beside me.
The dagger slipped from his hand and hit the floor with a sharp sound that echoed through the room. He didn’t even look at it. His eyes stayed locked on her like he was trying to decide whether to believe her or tear her apart anyway.
Carian slowly pushed herself up from the floor. She didn’t look shaken anymore. The fear she had shown earlier when she saw the dagger was gone. She straightened her posture, lifted her chin slightly, and then clicked her tongue like she had just confirmed something for herself.
"Yes," she said calmly. "Now you understand."
Neither of us spoke.
She brushed her hand lightly over her arm as if she was settling herself, then looked directly at Cane.
"The spell will last seven days," she continued. "During that time, I will spend some time with him before I leave."
Her tone was too calm.
"I’m not asking for too much, am I?" she added.
I didn’t even have time to react before Cane moved again.
It happened so fast I almost missed it. One second he was standing still, the next he was in front of her, his hand wrapping tightly around her throat as he slammed her back against the wall.
Her body hit the surface hard, and his grip tightened immediately.
"Cane!" I shouted, stepping forward. "Stop it!"
He didn’t listen.
His fingers dug into her throat, squeezing harder, his arm locked in place as he lifted her slightly off the ground. Her feet barely touched the floor, her body struggling against his hold.
Her face changed fast.
The bold look she had just a second ago disappeared as the pressure increased. Her breathing cut off, her mouth opening as she tried to pull in air that wasn’t coming.
"Cane, stop!" I said again, grabbing his arm, trying to pull him back. "You’re going to kill her before she fixes this!"
He didn’t react. Not even a little.
His eyes were dark, his entire focus locked on her like nothing else in the room existed.
She struggled in his grip, her hands coming up to his wrist, trying to pry his fingers loose, but it didn’t work. His hold didn’t loosen.
Then...she smiled.
Even while she was being choked, even while she was losing air, her lips curved slightly.
That made something in me snap.
"What the hell is wrong with you?" I snapped, both at her and at him.
She forced the words out, her voice strained but still clear enough.
"Kill me..." she managed, her eyes still on Cane. "And your brother... follows me."
Cane’s grip loosened just a fraction.
Not enough to let her go. But enough to show that he heard her.
But he didn’t release her yet.
He was still choking her, still holding her up, still close to ending her right there.
I could see it in his face. He wanted to do it. He wanted to end this mess so badly.
Then she spoke again.
"Oh..." she said weakly, her voice barely steady now. "I forgot to mention something." she managed to choke out.
Cane didn’t respond.
His grip tightened again slightly.
"If you kill me," she continued, forcing the words out through the pressure, "you’ll never see Riley again."
That got his full attention.
His eyes flickered for the first time.
"She’s inside me," Carian added. "She is me... and I am her."
That was it.
Cane’s hand dropped instantly at once.
And she fell to the floor hard, coughing, gasping for air as she tried to breathe again.
I stepped back slightly, my mind trying to catch up with what she had just said.
Riley?
Inside her?
What did that even mean?
Cane didn’t give her time to recover.
He grabbed her shoulders roughly and pulled her up, forcing her to face him.
"What are you talking about?" he demanded, his voice sharp and filled with anger. "What did you do to Riley?"
She coughed again, still trying to get her breath back, but then she laughed. Actually laughed.
That same unsettling sound that made my hands clench into fists.
I was getting tired of it.
"What did I do?" she repeated, her voice steadier now.
Cane shook her harder. "Answer me!"
"You could say," she continued, ignoring his tone completely, "I solved two problems at once."
I took a step forward, my patience running out. "Stop talking in circles and explain properly."
She looked at me briefly, then back at Cane.
"You don’t think I could come here on my own, do you?" she said. "Not just like this come on"
Cane didn’t say anything.
"You already know what I am," she continued. "I’m not alive like you said and I don’t belong here anymore. I can’t just walk into this place whenever I want."
She lifted her hand slightly, placing it against her chest.
"But Riley..." she said, her tone shifting slightly. "Riley made it possible."
Cane’s grip on her shoulders tightened.
"What did you do to her?" he repeated, his voice lower now but far more dangerous.
Carian smiled again. "I used her life force," she said plainly. "She gave it to me."
My chest tightened.
"What?" I said immediately.
"She agreed," Carian continued. "In exchange for saving Gunnar, she gave me what I needed to come here. That’s how I’m standing in front of you right now."
Cane went silent. Completely silent.
I looked at him, and for the first time since all of this started, I saw something different in his expression.
Not just anger. Something deeper.
His eyes turned red slowly, the color shifting as his wolf pushed closer to the surface. His breathing grew heavier, his chest rising and falling faster as he struggled to keep control.
His claws extended without him even trying to shift, the sharp edges visible as his hands tightened.
He wanted to rip her apart.
I could see it clearly.
But he didn’t move. Because of what she had just said.
If Carian died-
Riley was gone too.
I exhaled slowly, trying to steady myself, but my mind was running through everything she had just revealed.
The spell.
Gunnar’s life tied to it.
Carian needing to stay for seven days.
Riley giving her life force.
Everything was connected. Everything was messed up.
I looked at her again, really looked this time, trying to understand how deep this had gone.
She didn’t look worried anymore. Not even a little.
She knew exactly what she had done. And she knew we couldn’t touch her.
Cane finally spoke, his voice low and controlled, but I could hear the strain in it.
"You used her," he said.
Carian didn’t deny it. "She chose to do it," she replied.
"You manipulated her," he shot back.
"She made the decision herself," she said calmly. "Just like you’re going to have to make one now."
Silence filled the room again.
I ran a hand down my face, trying to think clearly, but everything kept coming back to the same conclusion.
We were stuck. Completely stuck.
I looked at Cane again. His entire body was tense, his claws still out, his eyes still red, but he hadn’t attacked her again.
He couldn’t. None of us could. Because she had made sure of that.
I clenched my jaw, staring at her.
"This is insane," I muttered under my breath.
She tilted her head slightly, almost amused.
"It’s necessary," she said.
I didn’t respond. I didn’t trust myself to.
Because right now, all I could think about was one thing-
This woman had just trapped all of us in the worst possible situation and there was no clear way out.
