She met Kade's eyes. "I found out later the Alpha's name was Richard Blackwood. I didn't know that was your father until I saw photos in your penthouse. By then we already signed the contract."
"Why didn't you tell me?"
"Because I was terrified you'd kill me. I spent the last fifteen years hiding from my father's legacy. Believing he was a murderer even though he said he was not. Believing I had killer instincts in my blood."
She stood up and walked to the window. "I thought if I could just make it through the year without you finding out, I could disappear after. You'd never have to know what I was."
"That was never going to work."
"I know that now."
Kade stood and came to stand beside her. Not touching but close. "Someone framed your father and made it look like he killed mine."
"Maybe, or maybe he really did it and lied to me."
Sage looked at him. "I don't know the truth. I was a kid. All I know is what he told me before he died."
"The evidence from Marcus's safe," Kade said. "There were old pack records in there. Records that were supposed to be in the archives. I'm going to read them and see what they say about your father and mine."
"And if they prove he killed your father?"
"Then we deal with it." He turned to face her fully. "But right now Marcus is the immediate problem. He has been embezzling pack money. Hiring hunters to kill our wolves. Turning the pack against me. That ends first."
"What do you need me to do?"
"I need you to stay alive." Kade's jaw was tight. "Marcus has been poisoning me. Small doses of wolfsbane over months. Weakening me for when he challenges."
Sage grabbed his arm. "You need treatment now. How long has this been going on?"
"Two months maybe. I've had headaches, nausea, I thought it was stress."
"It's poison and it's cumulative. If you don't flush it out before he challenges you will lose." She pulled him toward the kitchen. "Sit down. I need to examine you."
For once he did not argue, he just sat at the kitchen counter while she checked his pulse, pupils and reflexes.
Everything was slower than it should be. His skin had a gray tinge and his eyes were slightly bloodshot.
"How bad?" he asked.
"Bad enough that you need immediate treatment. I can do it but it is going to be painful and it will take days to fully clear your system."
She started calculating dosages in her head. "When is Marcus calling the challenge?"
"I don't know. Soon, based on what your friend Riley said."
"Then we hope we have enough time."
Sage went to her medical bag and started pulling out supplies. "This is going to hurt. The treatment forces the wolfsbane out through your pores. It'll feel like your skin is on fire."
"Do it."
She prepared the injection. "After this you are going to be weak, maybe vulnerable. You will need someone to watch you."
"You will watch me."
"Kade…"
"You are my mate. Whether I like how we got here or not, that is what you are. And right now you are the only person I can trust." He held out his arm. "So do what you need to do."
Sage injected the first dose. Kade's jaw clenched but he did not make a sound.
"You will need to stay in bed for the next three days," she said. "Drink a lot of water. The fever will spike around hour six. I will need to monitor you constantly."
"Then you move back into the bedroom."
"Are you sure…"
"I'm sure." He stood up though she could already see the medication affecting him. "We have three days to prepare for whatever Marcus does next. Three days to figure out who we can trust in the pack and who is working against us, three days to turn this around."
"And after?"
"After we deal with Marcus and the challenge." He walked toward the bedroom. "Then we figure out the rest, your father, my father. Whatever really happened twenty-four years ago."
Sage followed him. "You believe me? About my father saying he was innocent?"
"I believe you believe it. That is enough for now." He sat on the bed. "The mate bond does not lie. I've been fighting it because of what you represent. But my wolf knows you are mine. And wolves don't bond with people who are fundamentally evil."
"So what does that make us?"
"Complicated." He lay back on the bed. "Very complicated."
Sage sat beside him and checked his pulse again. Already racing as the medication started forcing the poison out.
"I will free Riley and the others Marcus imprisoned," Kade said. "They will be loyal to us. That gives us maybe twenty more supporters."
"What about the pack members who believe Marcus?"
"We show them the evidence, make them see who Marcus really is." His eyes closed. "We don't have a choice. If we don't turn this around, I lose the challenge and if I lose, Marcus kills both of us."
"Then we don't lose."
Kade's hand found hers. "Then we don't lose."
The fever started an hour later and Sage did not leave his side.