Chapter 275

AURELIA’S POV I spent the entire day pacing. Waiting. Every creak of the house, every faint hum of the refrigerator felt like it could be the phone about to ring. My wolf stirred beneath my skin, restless and agitated. It had been two days since I woke here, and despite the cage disguised as a home, one thing had remained certain: the voice always came. Calm. Collected. In control. I hated it, but I also craved it—the way it filled the silence, the way it sounded like someone had finally seen me. Even if it was a lie. So I waited. When the phone finally rang, my breath caught. I snatched the receiver up so fast my hands shook. But the voice was wrong. It wasn’t smooth. It wasn’t the calm, deliberate tone that wrapped around my name like a leash. This one was deeper, rougher, like gravel dragged across stone. “Aurelia,” the stranger said. I froze. “…Who are you?” “I don’t matter. What matters is this: you’ve been patient long enough. If you want to leave this place, go to the crossroads