Chapter 313\u00a0<\/p>\n
Riley\u2019s POV\u00a0<\/p>\n
Finished\u00a0<\/p>\n
Time dissolved in that cell-hours bled into days, days into the endless gray of existence. I lost track of seasons, of the moon\u2019s cycle, even of my own reflection in the polished metal sink.\u00a0<\/p>\n
My knuckles scraped concrete as Harper\u2019s boot slammed into my ribs.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cChoose, mutt-shank across the face or ten slaps?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Her breath reeked of rotting meat, but I kept my eyes fixed on the rusted drain in the corner.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Five years in this pit, and I\u2019d learned the first rule of survival: when wolves bare their teeth, show your throat before they tear it out.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cSlaps,\u201d I croaked, voice rough but steady.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The first blow snapped my head sideways, blood flooding my mouth with copper heat. I counted each strike like a prayer.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Seven.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Eight.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Nine.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cPathetic,\u201d Harper muttered, spitting at my feet before storming off with her pack of hyenas.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I stayed hunched, the sting on my cheek already fading beneath the deeper ache of memory.\u00a0<\/p>\n
This is how I\u2019ve lived for 1,825 days-choosing the lesser evil, swallowing my pride like broken glass.\u00a0<\/p>\n
My mind wandered, as it always did, to day one at Ebonclaw Pack.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Kael had cornered me in the library, his cologne sharp like pine needles.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cBlood or not, Scarlett\u2019s my only sister,\u201d he said, voice low and threatening as his fingers clamped around my wrist, leaving bruises.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cTouch her again, and I\u2019ll make the Rogues look like babysitters.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I\u2019d nodded like a fool, still naive enough to think family meant protection.\u00a0<\/p>\n
How laughable.\u00a0<\/p>\n
1\/5\u00a0<\/p>\n
12:58 Thu, Dec 25 M\u2026\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 313\u00a0<\/p>\n
He\u2019d rather see me in chains than believe I hadn\u2019t lured Tessa into the Black Forest.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Maddox\u2026\u00a0<\/p>\n
Firashed\u00a0<\/p>\n
I squeezed my eyes shut, but his face floated up anyway-his smile, the one that made ache.\u00a0<\/p>\n
my\u00a0<\/p>\n
ribs\u00a0<\/p>\n
The first time we met, his pupils dilated, his wolf howling in recognition.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMate,\u201d he whispered, pressing a daisy behind my ear.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Those early days were all fireflies and stolen kisses.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Until Scarlett started spraining her ankle on our dates. Until every birthday dinner came with an \u201curgent\u201d call from her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And he always left-murmuring apologies that tasted like ashes.\u00a0<\/p>\n
My parents?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Father never looked me in the eye.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Mother flinched every time I tried to hug her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Once, I baked them a pie with wild berries I\u2019d foraged.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I found it in the trash, untouched.\u00a0<\/p>\n
On the counter, Scarlett\u2019s macarons sat pristine, waiting for praise.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And Tessa\u2026\u00a0<\/p>\n
She and Scarlett were inseparable.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I saw them sharing a picnic by the lake the day she was attacked.\u00a0<\/p>\n
So why would Tessa follow me into the Black Forest?\u00a0<\/p>\n
A guard\u2019s baton slammed against the bars.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cVisitation,\u201d he grunted.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I didn\u2019t move.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Didn\u2019t even lift my head.\u00a0<\/p>\n
2\/5\u00a0<\/p>\n
12:58 Thu, Dec 25 M.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 313\u00a0<\/p>\n
I\u2019d stopped looking forward to those words years ago.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Here, the rules allowed family visits once a month.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sixty months. Sixty chances.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Not once had anyone come. Not my parents. Not Kael. Not even Maddox.\u00a0<\/p>\n
81\u00a0<\/p>\n
Finished\u00a0<\/p>\n
I used to sit by the glass, brushing my hair with my fingers, pretending the bruises weren\u2019t so bad.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I\u2019d stare at the hallway, waiting for a silhouette that never appeared.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Not a letter. Not a whisper. Not even a lie.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Eventually, I stopped hoping.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Stopped pretending I mattered to anyone.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Stopped being Riley-the daughter, the sister, the mate.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And became something else entirely.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I pressed my forehead to the cold wall, breath ragged, fists clenched.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Let them live their perfect little lives.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Because one day, that door would open.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And when it did, I wouldn\u2019t be walking out as the girl they threw away.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I\u2019d be walking out as the storm they never saw coming.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The clang of a deadbolt jolted me from a fitful sleep, the sound ricocheting off the walls like a gunshot.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cPrisoner 4729,\u201d a voice boomed, followed by the scrape of heavy steel. \u201cStand and face the door.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I pushed myself up from the cot, bones creaking like rusted hinges. The guard\u2019s uniform was stiff and starched, his expression unreadable. But there was something different about his stance. Then I saw the warden behind him, holding a sheaf of papers. His usual scowl was replaced by a cold, neutral mask.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cRiley Ebonclaw,\u201d he began, clearing his throat. \u201cBy order of the Werewolf Corrections Board, your sentence has been served in full. Effective immediately, you are granted release from-\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
3\/5\u00a0<\/p>\n
12:58 Thu, Dec 25 04\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 313\u00a0<\/p>\n
The rest of his words bled into static. My eyes fixed on the open doorway, a rectangle of blinding light beyond. For five years, that threshold had been a taunt. A mirage.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Now it gaped before me-real, raw, and waiting.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201c-proceed to intake for processing.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He extended a clipboard, but my hands trembled too hard to take it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I stepped forward. Each footfall was leaden.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Finished\u00a0<\/p>\n
The air beyond the cell felt different-thicker, richer, laced with forgotten scents: antiseptic, metal\u2026 and freedom.\u00a0<\/p>\n
As I crossed the threshold, the guard snapped a bracelet around my wrist.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I braced for the shock collar.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But it was only a plain tracking band, humming faintly with suppressed magic.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cGood luck,\u201d the warden muttered under his breath.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I didn\u2019t answer. Couldn\u2019t.\u00a0<\/p>\n
My gaze locked on the glowing red EXIT sign ahead-a beacon blazing through the long corridor.\u00a0<\/p>\n
For 1,825 days, I\u2019d survived by crawling. By choosing pain over pride.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Now, stepping into the courtyard, sunlight hitting my face for the first time in years, something deep inside me stirred-\u00a0<\/p>\n
Something ancient. Something wild.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Something that hadn\u2019t whispered in a long, long time.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The door creaked open, and I squinted against the light.\u00a0<\/p>\n
They thought they\u2019d broken me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
They thought I\u2019d crawl forever.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But as the fresh air filled my lungs, I smiled.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Let them tremble.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The storm has just stepped outside.\u00a0<\/p>\n
4\/5\u00a0<\/p>\n
12:59 Thu, Dec 25 M\u2026\u00a0<\/p>\n
Midnight Letters by Daniel Crowe 313 Chapter 313\u00a0 Riley\u2019s POV\u00a0 Finished\u00a0 Time dissolved in that cell-hours bled into days, days […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-20586","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-pack-princess"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20586","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20586"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20586\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20586"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20586"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20586"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}