The Messenger( Iva) novel Chapter 57

<Tingles

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Tingles

Iva froze so completely it felt as if even her blood had stopped moving.

“Adama…?” she repeated, but the name shattered inside her chest before it ever reached her lips properly.

Adama.

As in the Adama Royal Family.

As in rulers of every pack, every border, every law that governed her kind’s existence.

Oh Moon Goddess.

Her lungs seized. Air refused to cooperate. For one terrifying moment she truly believed she might start hyperventilating right there in front of him-faint again like a helpless fool.

Inside her mind, Avalon had gone silent.

Not stunned.

Reverent.

Then her wolf whispered, voice trembling with something that sounded dangerously close to awe.

“The Moon Goddess has blessed us with a truly powerful mate.”

Iva’s response came sharp, shaky, almost bitter.

“Do you truly believe an Adama would accept us… when Nick rejected us?”

The memory hit like a blade dragged across old scars.

Rejection. Public. Final.

Her chest tightened painfully.

“What are the odds, Avalon? What are the odds…”

Before Avalon could answer, reality returned with a voice that carried command without effort.

“Who sent you?”

Caleb’s tone was firm, controlled, but the question struck like a crack of thunder.

Iva blinked, disoriented. “I… don’t follow.”

His gaze sharpened, dark eyes narrowing slightly as he stepped closer. The movement was slow, deliberate-like a predator closing distance without haste because escape was already impossible.

“Who sent you to spy on us,” he repeated.

Her stomach dropped.

“Serena may be impulsive,” he continued calmly, “but she caught you clearly in the act.”

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The accusation hit harder than any Insult could have.

Spy.

As if she had some grand scheme. As if she had power.

For a moment, panic urged her to deny everything.

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But something in his gaze demanded truth or at least something close enough to survive his scrutiny.

“No one sent me and it was never my intention to spy,” she said carefully. “But… I had never seen lycans before. I was curious.”

The admission tasted fragile in her mouth.

He hummed softly.

Not convinced.

Not dismissive.

Just… evaluating.

Caleb’s eyes locked onto hers with suffocating intensity. It felt like standing beneath a crushing weight- like gravity itself had shifted to center on her.

“Choose your words carefully, Iva,” he said quietly. “One thing I do not tolerate… is liars.”

Her heart slammed violently against her ribs.

“I swear I’m not lying,” she replied, and for once her voice carried no pretense-only raw, exposed truth.

He watched her a moment longer.

Then he asked, “What pack do you belong to?”

The question struck deeper than he could know.

Her fingers curled slightly in her lap. The wind from the lake brushed against her face, cold and unforgiving.

۴

She said softly. “I am a lone wolf.”

His eyebrow lifted-not dramatically, just enough to betray genuine surprise.

“Lone wolf?” he repeated. “How so?”

Her throat tightened, but she had to stand her ground.

She could feel Avalon retreating deeper within, protective, wary.

“My past,” Iva said quietly, “is my past. I prefer to keep it that way.”

Silence followed.

Heavy. Pressing.

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< Tingles

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His gaze searched her face-not for weakness, but for truth hidden beneath silence. She held still beneath it, even as every instinct screamed at her to look away.

Finally, he exhaled softly.

He did not push further.

But he did not let her go either.

Instead, his next words fell with quiet precision

“Are you a hybrid?”

Confusion crashed through her tension. “A… hybrid?”

“Yes.”

She stared at him, completely lost. “Why would you ask that?”

His eyes flickered briefly before adding.

“Considering the earlier… tingles,” he said, voice measured, “I assumed it was a magical effect.”

Her breath stalled.

“A witch-werewolf hybrid,” he continued calmly. “Using a trick.”

For a moment she simply stared at him.

Shock hollowed her chest.

He thought the bond was magic.

A manipulation.

A deception.

The realization hurt more than it should have.

“I’m not a hybrid,” she said quietly. “And I don’t know magic.”

His gaze sharpened again, searching.

“You expect me to believe that what I felt was coincidence?”

Her lips parted-but no answer came.

Because how could she explain destiny to someone who believed in control above all else?

How could she say you are my mate without shattering the fragile balance holding this moment together, especially when she was rejected before?

Avalon whispered faintly, uncertain now. He truly does not know.

Iva swallowed hard.

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don’t know what you felt,” she said honestly. “But I did not create it intentionaly.”

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The wind picked up slightly, brushing strands of her dark hair across her face. Caleb watched her without blinking, his expression unreadable, calculating.

Then he stepped closer.

Too close.

The air between them ignited instantly-heat, tension, awareness. Her pulse stumbled violently as Avalon surged beneath her skin, restless and alert.

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