MAEVE'S POV
Have you ever made a decision so disastrous, its consequences kept you up at night?
The rumor was supposed to be a little fire—just a spark of poison in the waters to move Devon's plans forward.
However, I underestimated the vicious wolves of Ash Creek and their hunger for trouble.
It ate through Ash Creek like a virus. A starving beast. Fast, ugly, all teeth.
I told myself it would be a nudge, not a wildfire. Just a whisper to keep the royals busy and buy me time while I did what I needed to do in my search for the Black Book.
Instead, it spread through every mouth. Some exaggerated into versions I'd never concocted—some insensitive enough to swear the Alpha killed his own father so he could sit on the throne and unleash his beast.
Some claimed Ivan had hit them once when he was enraged, and others swore that was why I left years ago—because he had struck me when he turned into a monster until I almost lost the baby and my life.
