Chapter 25

• Olivia's POV
• I had been deliberately keeping my distance from where Bianca trained for some days now. Even though Bustan kept on defending her in our conversation, I wasn't still cool with her.
• Ever since that day—since I overheard her telling Bustan that I should go back to Nate—I couldn’t bear to be near her. Something about her smug expression when she said it had twisted my stomach into knots. The hurt and doubt had gnawed at me, making me question everything, especially Bustan’s loyalty. And even if I was slowly mending things with Bustan, the wound Bianca had opened was still fresh.
• I avoided her. Stopped showing up for training sessions where I knew she’d be. It didn’t take long for her to notice.
• “Olivia!”
• I froze at the sound of her voice cutting across the training field. I hadn’t seen her approaching, but now she was in front of me, arms crossed, her eyes narrowed in suspicion. The wolves training nearby fell silent, watching with interest.
• “You’ve been avoiding me,” Bianca said, her voice hard. “You’ve barely spoken to me in days. You even stopped training with me. If you’ve got something to say, just spit it out. What is it?”
• I felt a flare of anger in my chest but clenched my fists to keep from saying something I’d regret. I didn’t owe her any explanation. But the way she looked at me, like she expected me to fold, pushed me past my breaking point.
• “Do you really want to know why I’ve been avoiding you?” I said, my voice low, almost a growl. “It’s because I know what you said to Bustan. You told him I should go back to Nate.”
• Bianca blinked in surprise, her arms dropping to her sides. “What? That’s what this is about?”
• “Don’t act innocent,” I snapped, stepping closer. “You think I didn’t hear you? You think I don’t know how much you want me out of the picture? You’ve made it pretty clear that you think I’m a problem.”
• Bianca’s face twisted in frustration, and she took a step toward me, her eyes flashing. “You overheard part of a conversation and assumed the worst, Olivia. You have no idea what you’re talking about.”
• “Then enlighten me,” I shot back, crossing my arms. “Explain how suggesting I should go back to the one person who’s hurt me more than anyone else is supposed to be helpful.”
• Bianca let out a harsh laugh, shaking her head. “You think I was trying to get rid of you? God, you really don’t understand, do you?”
• I clenched my jaw, refusing to back down. “Then explain.”
• “Fine,” she said, her voice dripping with annoyance. “I suggested you go back to Nate because I thought it might give you the chance to control your powers. He knows more about them than anyone else—more than you, more than Bustan. And maybe if you learned how to control them, you wouldn’t be such a danger to yourself and everyone else.”
• Her words stung, but there was something else in her tone—a bitterness that went beyond just the situation.
• “And why would you care so much about what happens to me?” I asked, narrowing my eyes. “Why would you even bother?”
• “Because Bustan cares about you,” she shot back, and the venom in her voice startled me. “As much as I hate to admit it, he’s in love with you. And I’ve watched him make mistake after mistake because of that love. So yeah, I tried to help. Even if it meant suggesting something you didn’t like.”
• I blinked, momentarily caught off guard by her admission. “You hate to admit it?” I echoed. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
• Bianca let out a slow breath, her anger fading slightly, replaced by something more resigned. “It means that Bustan wasn’t always like this. Before you came into the picture, He was more logical. We had a plan.”
• A cold chill crept down my spine. I had always known there was history between them, but hearing it laid out like this made the reality of their past harder to ignore.
• “What do you mean by that?” I asked, my voice quieter now, almost afraid of what she might say.
• Bianca looked at me for a long moment, and then she shrugged, as if deciding she had nothing left to lose. “Bustan and I were supposed to be mates. He was very selfless, we weren't emotionally attracted to each other so he broke our bond so I could go meet the person I was in love with. He said I could come back anytime I want to back out and be with my natural mate. My partner died”
• She paused, watching my reaction. I swallowed hard, forcing myself to stay still, even as the weight of her words pressed down on me.
• “But it all changed,” she continued, her voice softening with old hurt. “When you showed up, everything fell apart. Bustan started pulling away. I saw how he looked at you and I knew he wasn't interested in me coming back anymore. So I just stayed back in the palace to help fight for the pack.”
• I shook my head, trying to wrap my mind around what she was saying. “So you still want him after leaving him for someone else?”
• “But you left your mate as well” she said with a sigh.
• “Nate rejected me.”
• “Now he accepts you but you're refusing Togo back to him because you're in love with another. I think it is pretty much the same scenario so you have no right to judge me.”
• Her words left me speechless.
• “I'm not a bad person okay. I care for Bustan and if you're what makes him happy, I'm not going to fight it. So will you come back to training?”
• “I don’t know,” I whispered, the anger inside me slowly unraveling into something else—sympathy.
• We were still talking when someone called Bianca's attention and she had to leave. My mind was still racing with a thousand thoughts.