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Chapter 3: The Past Resurfaces

Olivia’s POV

I couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off. I paced back and forth in the cramped living room of my apartment, Leo’s soft coos from the crib keeping me grounded. I’d already checked every corner of the room, every window, convinced that whoever had left that note was watching me. The note... Stay away from him, or you’ll regret it—those words echoed in my head like a haunting refrain, refusing to leave me alone.

I swallowed hard, glancing over at Leo. He was too young to understand any of this. Hell, I couldn’t even begin to comprehend it myself. But I couldn’t just let him grow up in a world where shadows crept closer every day.

“Momma’s got this,” I whispered to Leo, my voice a little shakier than I intended. I needed to stay calm, for him. But my thoughts kept drifting back to the past, to him—Ethan Cross.

I had tried to forget him. Tried to bury that summer fling, the intense, electric connection we had shared. He was a man I could never truly have—too powerful, too dangerous, too much a part of a world I could never be a part of. And yet, I still remembered the way he looked at me. The way his hands had felt on my skin, the way he’d whispered my name as though he’d never let me go. That night, I’d believed him.

I hadn’t known about the baby then, of course. About Leo.

It seemed like a lifetime ago. And yet here I was, the mother of his son, hiding in Silverhaven with a threatening note in my hands and an entire pack of wolves at my back.

I snatched the note from the kitchen counter and examined it again. It was just a slip of paper—nothing fancy. But the handwriting, so deliberate, so cold, made it feel like it had been delivered with malicious intent.

I shoved it back into the drawer, forcing myself to focus on Leo again. I was a mother, first and foremost, and I needed to protect him. I’d made that decision the moment I found out I was pregnant. And I wouldn’t let anyone—not even Ethan Cross—get in the way of that.

But as the hours passed, my thoughts only grew more tangled. What was Ethan’s connection to all this? Was he involved somehow?

I didn’t want to think about him. Not now. Not with everything that was happening.

I turned, half expecting to find a stranger standing in the doorway, but instead, I found myself staring at the man who’d walked into my life like a storm: Hudson Reed.

I froze.

Hudson was tall, broad-shouldered, with dark, piercing eyes that seemed to see straight through me. His presence was unsettling in the way only someone who had lived a life of danger could be. I hadn’t seen him in weeks, but here he was, standing in the doorway of my apartment, as if he had every right to be there.

“Hudson,” I said, my voice tight with frustration. “What the hell are you doing here?”

His lips curled into a knowing smile, though his eyes remained guarded, cautious. “I told you I’d be back, Olivia. Didn’t I?”

I wasn’t in the mood for his cryptic bullshit. Hudson Reed was one of those people who said just enough to make you feel like you knew him, but never enough to really understand what he wanted. A rogue wolf, a former member of a pack I had nothing to do with. The kind of person you knew could be both an ally and a threat.

“You’ve got a lot of nerve showing up after all this time,” I snapped. “I didn’t ask for your help.”

He took a step closer, his gaze flicking to Leo in the crib before meeting mine again. “You might not have asked for it, but you need it. More than you realize.”

I scoffed. “I can handle my own problems, Hudson. And Leo’s safe, okay? I’m not some damsel in distress.”

Hudson’s expression hardened, and he took another step toward me, his voice low and serious. “You think you’re safe here? You’re wrong. You and your son are in more danger than you know.”

My chest tightened at his words, and I instinctively stepped in front of Leo’s crib, as though my body could somehow shield him from whatever threat Hudson was talking about.

“What do you mean?” I asked, trying to sound calm, but failing miserably. I could feel my heart racing. There was something in Hudson’s tone, something cold and dangerous, that made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.

Hudson looked around the room, as if weighing his next words carefully. “There are eyes on you, Olivia. Eyes that shouldn’t be watching.”

I stared at him, confused. “What are you talking about? Who’s watching me?”

He paused, glancing over his shoulder as if checking for someone else in the room—someone who wasn’t there. “Not here. Not right now. But there are others. People who want Leo. People who know who he is. And they won’t stop until they have him.”

I felt the color drain from my face. “Leo?” I whispered. “What do you mean? Who’s after him?”

Hudson’s eyes softened, but only for a moment. He stepped closer, lowering his voice. “His bloodline is important. More than you realize. There are those who would do anything to claim it for themselves.”

A chill ran down my spine. “What bloodline? Hudson, you’re not making sense. Leo’s just a baby. A child.”

Hudson didn’t flinch. “It’s not just about the child, Olivia. It’s about what he represents. Who he is. And who his father is.”

I stiffened. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Hudson looked me straight in the eye. “I think you do. And I think you know exactly why I’m here.”

I opened my mouth to respond, but the words stuck in my throat. My mind was racing, trying to make sense of it all. The threatening note, the strange feeling that had been growing in my chest for days, the connection between me, Leo, and Ethan Cross—it was all spiraling out of control.

Hudson took a step back, his gaze never leaving mine. “You can’t protect him on your own, Olivia. Not from them. Not from the ones who want him.”

I swallowed, my throat dry. “Who? Who are you talking about?”

But Hudson didn’t answer. Instead, he reached into his jacket and pulled out something that made my heart drop.

A small envelope, the same shade of gray as the one I had found earlier.

“You’ll find this interesting,” he said, holding it out to me.

My hand shook as I reached for it, the paper cool and smooth under my fingertips. I tore it open, my eyes scanning the contents. It was another note, but this one was different. This one felt... personal.

“You’re running out of time, Olivia. The boy’s future is already written. There is no escape. Keep him close. Keep him safe. Before they take him from you.”

The words burned into my mind, even as my breath caught in my throat. I looked up at Hudson, my eyes wide with fear. “What does this mean? Who’s doing this? Why?”

Hudson’s expression was unreadable, his jaw set. “The question is, Olivia... do you want to know?”

I opened my mouth to speak, but then the unmistakable sound of footsteps echoed down the hall.

Someone else was here.

And before I could even react, Hudson was already gone.

Just like that, he vanished—into the shadows, leaving me with more questions than answers.

I turned back to Leo, my chest tightening, the weight of the warning settling over me like a dark cloud.

Who was after him? And why?

The door creaked open, and I looked up.

But this

time, it wasn’t Hudson.

It was someone I hadn’t expected to see.

Ethan Cross.

And my heart sank.

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