Chapter 10 - The Thaw
Sylvia tried to run, too, but Elias blocked the aisle, crossing his arms and smiling coldly as a female officer placed her under arrest for conspiracy.
She shrieked, cursing my name, her elegant facade crumbling into pathetic hysteria as she was dragged out of the ballroom.
I walked over to Julian, who was sobbing underneath Titan’s massive paws.
The polished, perfect husband was gone, replaced by a terrified, broke, and broken man.
"Off," I told Titan quietly.
He instantly backed away, though his eyes never left Julian's neck.
The police hauled Julian to his feet, slapping the cold steel cuffs onto his wrists.
As they marched him past me, I leaned in close, smelling the fear sweating out of his pores.
"You thought I was a burden," I whispered.
"But you forgot one thing about me, Julian.
I know how to survive a war."
Six months later, the mountains of Alaska were green and vibrant, completely thawed from the brutal winter.
I sat on the porch of the cabin I had purchased—a real home this time, far from the toxic rot of my past life.
My heart was perfectly healthy.
My lungs breathed deep, drawing in the scent of pine and freedom.
Julian and Sylvia were awaiting trial, denied bail.
The syndicate Julian owed money to had already frozen his remaining assets, leaving him with absolutely nothing.
I took a sip of my black coffee, feeling the warm morning sun on my face.
A sudden rustle in the brush made me look up.
Titan burst from the tree line, a massive stick in his mouth, his tail wagging furiously.
"Good boy," I called out.
He dropped the stick at my feet and rested his scarred, beautiful head on my knee.
We had both been discarded, left for dead by people who thought we were broken.
But looking out over the endless, untamed wilderness, I knew the truth.
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We weren't broken.
We were just forged in a different kind of fire.
