Chapter 136

Maeve’s POV

I held my breath, lying perfectly still beneath the warm water in the tub. I just wanted quiet, and the hush that settled over me felt like balm, slowing the wild drumming in my chest. Since the moment someone shot me last night, my heart has thundered relentlessly, and I still don’t know how to make it stop. I’m certain this—this suffocating stillness—is another one of Valerius’s tests. It isn’t the first time. He’s still uncertain, still probing to see if I remember anything I shouldn’t.

When the tremor in my limbs finally subsides, I close my eyes and slip out of the water. Even now, I can’t believe how swiftly time has passed in this godforsaken place. It’s been eight weeks since they brought me here, but it feels like only yesterday that my pack was attacked—and Draven died in my arms. My mate. My loss is a raw wound I have yet t