He Knows the Door to My Soul and Who Forgot to Novel 45

Andrei, Natalia, Damon, and Lilith are gathered in a cramped security tent, reviewing footage from the night of an incident involving Damon. Damon had been poisoned with wolfsbane, causing him to become disoriented and stumble around. The security footage reveals that Lilith, while passing by a drinks table, dropped something into Damon’s cup, suggesting she may have drugged him.

As they watch more footage, Damon is seen responding to a woman’s voice calling for help near the women’s restroom. Damon thought it was Natalia calling, which explains his confused actions. Lilith becomes defensive and denies any wrongdoing, accusing Natalia of trying to manipulate Damon against her. However, the evidence on the footage and the presence of wolfsbane link Lilith to the poisoning.

Despite Lilith’s protests and tears, she struggles to explain her actions, hinting at the trauma and torture she endured during the years she was missing. She pleads for understanding, insisting she never intended to hurt anyone or cause the same pain she suffered. The tension in the room is palpable as Andrei and the others confront the painful truth behind the night’s events.

Andrei & Natalia

Andrei

The security tent felt far too small with all of us crammed inside. Damon sat across from me, his eyes clear now after the healers had flushed the wolfsbane from his system. Natalia stood beside him, one hand on his shoulder, chin lifted in cool defiance.

As for Lilith, she was pressed close to my side, clutching my shirt and trembling like Damon would lunge across the table and attack her right then and there.

“Let’s see what really happened,” I said, nodding to my Beta.

My Beta pulled up the security footage on the laptop screen. The cameras had caught everything–one of the safeguards we had taken prior to the event, just in case of an incident like this one.

The footage started twenty minutes before the incident. I watched Damon at the feast, talking with other Alphas, completely sober. He picked up a cup of water from the drinks table and took a sip.

Then, within minutes of drinking the water, Damon’s movements became unsteady. He blinked rapidly, shook his head like he was trying to clear it. Classic signs of wolfsbane ingestion.

“Back it up,” I ordered. “Show me who was near that drinks table.”

My Beta rewound the footage. We watched servers moving back and forth, guests picking up various beverages. Nothing looked out of the ordinary until I saw Lilith walking past the table. She brushed past Damon, her arm bumping the same arm that was holding his cup.

“Zoom in.”

The image quality wasn’t perfect, but we could all see it. Something small fell from her sleeve, landing in the cup with a tiny splash that went unnoticed.

Beside me, Lilith went rigid. Damon hissed through his teeth, eyes flashing angrily. He seemed like he wanted to say something, but Natalia shook her head and squeezed his shoulder, and he restrained himself.

“Now show me the bathroom footage,” I said, my jaw clenching.

The scene shifted to show the hallway outside the restrooms. Damon stumbled into view, clearly disoriented. But before he reached the men’s room, we could hear a woman’s voice.

“Damon? I need help.”

On

screen, Damon’s head snapped up. He turned toward the women’s room, and despite the grainy footage, I could see his brow furrow in confusion.

“That’s…” Natalia started, then stopped.

“Play it again,” Damon said quietly.

+25 Bonus

We watched it three more times. Each time, the same soft call. Each time, Damon responding like a man on a mission, stumbling toward the women’s room.

“You thought it was Natalia,” I said, turning to my brother.

Damon nodded slowly. “In the haze, I… I saw brunette hair through the door. Heard a woman calling for help. I thought my mate needed me.”

I turned to look at Lilith. She’d gone pale, her eyes wide as saucers.

“What do you have to say for yourself?” I asked.

“This is ridiculous!” Lilith pulled away from me and wrapped her arms around herself. “Are you implying that I drugged him? Lured him in there? For what purpose?”

“You tell me. You’re the one who suggested the Northern River Basin for the hunt. The only place in our territory where wolfsbane grows wild.”

“I didn’t know that!”

“The footage doesn’t lie,” Natalia said, gesturing to the screen. “We can all see what happened.”

Lilith whirled on her. “I would never do that! You’ve been trying to turn him against me since you came back! This is just another one of your manipulations!”

“The camera seemed to catch you dropping something in his drink,” I said in a calm and even voice. “The same substance we found in the feral wolf. The same wolf who just happened to attack Natalia during the hunt.”

Tears began streaming down Lilith’s face. Big, fat drops rolled down her cheeks and plopped onto her torn dress.

“You don’t understand,” she hiccuped, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. “You’ll never understand what it was like.”

My chest tightened as I saw her posture curl in on itself. Those years she’d been missing, the torture she had endured…

“Lilith-”

“I would never intentionally hurt anyone!” she cried out. “Please, you have to believe me! I would never want to put someone else through the same torment I went through!”

P

The chapter closes on a tense and heart-wrenching moment, where accusations and pain intertwine, revealing the complex layers of trust and betrayal among the characters. Andrei’s steadfast resolve to uncover the truth contrasts sharply with Lilith’s vulnerable defense, exposing the raw emotional scars that linger beneath the surface. The footage serves as an unyielding witness, but it cannot fully capture the depth of Lilith’s suffering or the turmoil that binds them all.

In this fragile space between doubt and belief, the characters are forced to confront not only the immediate crisis but also the haunting shadows of their pasts. The chapter delicately balances suspicion with empathy, leaving the reader suspended in the emotional storm, yearning for understanding and reconciliation. It is a poignant reminder that sometimes the hardest battles are fought not with enemies, but within the fragile confines of the soul.

The tension in the next chapter is sure to escalate as the fragile trust between the characters begins to fracture under the weight of suspicion and hidden pain. Lilith’s tearful denial and the damning evidence against her will force everyone to confront uncomfortable truths, and the question of her true intentions will hang heavily in the air. As Andrei and Natalia grapple with their own doubts, the emotional stakes rise, threatening to unravel the bonds that have held them together.

Meanwhile, Damon’s confusion and vulnerability add another layer of complexity to the unfolding drama. His struggle to reconcile what he experienced with the reality of the situation may lead to difficult choices and strained loyalties. The next chapter promises to delve deeper into the characters’ inner conflicts, revealing more about their pasts and motivations while setting the stage for inevitable confrontations that could change everything.

Sara Lili

Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.