TEMPORARY MATES PERMANENT CRAVINGS novel Chapter 185

One hundred and eighty five

Lisa POV

The drive into Silver Creek felt long. I spent most of it half asleep with my forehead against the window while headlights cut through empty roads and pine trees.

Every time I woke up, my back hurt worse. The baby sat low enough to make any position miserable, and I was too tired to keep pretending I was fine.

Nobody talked much. Mom sat beside me in silence. Alpha Kieran drove. I was trying hard to decide whether I trusted him or the fact that my mother trusted him. 1

He lowered his window a few inches hours ago to stay awake. Every now and then, Mom asked if I needed water Every now and then, Kieran checked the mirrors too long. That bothered me more than anything else. People only checked mirrors like that when they expected trouble behind them.

By the time we crossed into Silver Creek territory, the sky had started turning gray. The entrance checkpoint looked more military than residential. Two guards came to the car right away, recognized Kieran, then stepped back without asking questions.

I stared out the window as we drove deeper inside. The Silver Creek pack was quiet in a way that felt watchful. The roads were clean. The houses sat back behind heavy tree lines and stone walls. Kieran’s place sat on top of a hill overlooking the rest of the territory. Mansion sounded dramatic when people said it out loud, but there was no better word for it.

The house was old-money expensive. Wide stone stairs, tall windows. A middle-aged woman opened the front door as we pulled into the circular driveway.

“Sorry for the hour, Katherine,” Kieran said.

She smiled, hugged my mom, and looked at me next.

“You must be Lisa. Come inside before you freeze.”

The house was warm enough to make my skin sting after the cold outside. Katherine took my bag before I could stop her.

“I can carry it,” I said.

“You shouldn’t.”

That ended the argument. Apparently, everyone here had already decided I was fragile.

I followed her upstairs while Mom and Kieran stayed downstairs, talking near the foyer. The second-floor hallway ran almost the full length of the house. Dark wood floors, tall windows, and framed photographs along the walls.

Katherine opened a bedroom door near the end of the hall.

“This room gets the most morning light,” she said. “The bathroom is through there. If you need anything during the night, call downstairs.”

I stood near the doorway while she set my bag beside the bed.

“Your mother’s room is across the hall,” she added.

I looked back toward the stairs. Mom was still downstairs with Kieran.

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Cine haired and wighty f

+15 Benus

Mom covered a laugh with her hand.

“Perhaps you should start bullying her into eating properly,” she replied.

I picked up my fork. The food helped right away. I had not realized how hungry I was. Nobody pushed conversation while we ate. Kieran’s phone buzzed near his elbow eventually.

He checked the screen.

“Dr. Harry made it through the checkpoint.”

“Oh, that’s great,” Mom said.

Harry showed up fifteen minutes later carrying a leather bag. He looked worn down. Katherine immediately pushed coffee into his hands before he even sat down.

“Thank you,” he said.

“You look worked up,” Kieran told him.

Harry didn’t deny it.

“Hospital administration called me in before I left.”

Something in the room shifted right away.

“What happened?”

Harry pulled several folders from his bag and placed them on the table.

“I went back through Cameron’s toxicology scans.”

My stomach tightened at Cameron’s name, but I kept my face steady and looked at Harry.

“The original reports classified everything as inconclusive,” he continued. “At the time, I accepted that because the markers did not fully match anything I had seen before. Now I think somebody buried it on purpose.”

My heart skipped. Harry rubbed his forehead before continuing.

“There were suppression compounds hidden under immune irregularities. Small enough to disappear if nobody specifically looked for patterns.”

Mom frowned.

“You are saying he was poisoned?”

Harry looked at me.

“I’m trying to be careful with conclusions because once I say something officially, I need evidence strong enough to survive scrutiny. The kind where hospital administration suddenly schedules a behavioral evaluation after you start asking inconvenient questions.” 1

I stared at him.

“What?”

“They suspended part of my system access pending review.”

Mom and I gasped.

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