My Sister Stole My Mate And I Let Her (Seraphina) novel Chapter 512

Chapter 512: Chapter 512 UNRULY PATIENT

EVELYN’S POV

I spent most of my life believing emotions could be dissected.

Every reaction had a catalyst. Every attachment had a chemical explanation. Every irrational impulse could, with enough observation, be reduced to something measurable.

It was how Catherine raised me.

Standing on that shattered ridge, surrounded by blood and fractured earth beneath a sky that looked almost offensively beautiful after everything it had witnessed, I realized there were still things in this world no amount of study could prepare me for.

Because nothing inside me made sense anymore.

Lucian remained where he had collapsed, shoulders bowed, every breath seeming to scrape painfully out of his chest.

He looked...broken.

Broken in the way old cathedrals were after surviving centuries of storms, still standing only because they had forgotten how to fall.

I hated that image the moment it entered my mind.

No, not the image—the emotions it elicited. The way my heart ached for him.

Why should I care?

I’d known him for only a handful of conversations.

The first time we’d met, I’d barely spoken to him before Catherine led him deeper into her laboratory.

The second time, I’d stopped him from sacrificing himself to kill Jack.

The third involved watching him nearly murder the very people he had risked everything trying to save.

He was a flawed, broken, terribly disturbed werewolf.

That should have been enough to keep my heart detached.

Instead, watching his lowered head, something inside my chest tightened until breathing became uncomfortable.

I looked away.

Unfortunately, looking elsewhere didn’t make things any better.

Zara remained kneeling beside him, one hand pressed gingerly against the bruise forming along her ribs where she’d been struck during the battle.

Despite everything she’d just learned—despite having her entire identity torn apart by coming to terms with the fact that she wasn’t even the real Zara—she didn’t leave his side. I could see how much she was willing to sacrifice to be who he needed her to be.

Then my eyes shifted toward Seraphina.

She stood beside Corin, her injured arm forgotten entirely as they discussed Catherine’s imprint with quiet urgency.

Every few seconds, her gaze returned to Lucian, carrying the same unwavering determination she’d shown ever since refusing his request to die.

And then someone stepped forward from the back.

She had vivid blue eyes and dark hair thick with dust. Her battle clothes were shredded in several places, but she held herself like there wasn’t a speck of dust on her.

"What if..." she began carefully, glancing between Corin and Lucian. "I mean, if it’s really a mate bond he needs..."

Everyone looked toward her.

"What are you saying, Maris?" Corin asked.

She shrugged. "Couldn’t we just...find one?"

Silence.

She shifted awkwardly beneath everyone’s attention, glancing at the man who had come up beside her.

"I mean..." She gestured vaguely. "There are thousands of wolves on this island. If someone understood the situation...if someone volunteered..."

She hesitated. "...wouldn’t that solve the problem?"

The world became strangely quiet.

Not externally. Inside me.

The thought should have sounded logical. Practical. Efficient.

Instead, something unpleasant curled beneath my ribs.

My fingers curled unconsciously against my palms.

The image appeared without permission: some nameless she-wolf kneeling where Lucian now sat. Touching him. Holding him. Anchoring him.

No.

The certainty arrived before the reasoning did.

Absolutely not.

The vehemence of it shocked me so completely and hit me with such irrational force that heat rushed into my face.

What—

No.

No, that was absurd.

Ridiculous.

I barely knew the man.

Then why did the idea make me want to rip something apart?

I stared at Lucian.

He hadn’t reacted to Maris’ suggestion.

If anything, his shoulders slumped even lower, like someone too exhausted to object. Like he’d accepted his shitty fate.

Something inside me moved before thought could catch it, and the next thing I knew, my feet carried me across the broken ridge.

I only realized everyone’s attention was on me when I stopped directly in front of Lucian.

He lifted his head slowly.

There was recognition in his eyes.

And shame.

So much shame.

"I..." My voice came out quieter than intended.

I cleared my throat. "I’m a witch."

‘Brilliant, Evelyn. As if no one here knew that.’

Lucian’s exhausted expression somehow softened. "I noticed."

I exhaled and forced the rest of the words out before I lost my nerve.

"I’ve spent years studying Catherine’s spellwork. I know how she layers enchantments. How she anchors commands inside the mind."

The small audience watched me carefully but didn’t interrupt.

I forced myself to hold Lucian’s gaze, to ignore the something inside me that felt like I was being pulled toward him.

"I can...I can try to remove what’s inside of you."

I watched his eyes widen. Watched him consider what I was offering.

For one infinitesimal moment, hope lingered in me. I could do this. If he let me, I could—

Lucian slowly shook his head.

"No."

I frowned.

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify