Selene's POV
"Lady Selene."
I turned to find Abel standing behind me. His face was drawn and exhausted. Dark circles shadowed his eyes, and his usually perfect uniform was rumpled.
"Abel, is something wrong? Is Victor..."
"Victor's condition is stable," he said quickly. "But that is not why I'm here."
I waited, my heart still pounding from the spike of fear.
He took a deep breath and continued, "I owe you an apology."
I blinked in surprise. "Another apology?"
"I owe you several apologies, actually," he admitted. "First, about Mirella. She blocked you from seeing Victor, kept the guards from letting you through. I should have known and stopped it."
"It's not your fault.”
"It is," he insisted. "I am the Beta. It's my job to know what's happening in this pack. And I failed. But tha
