Page 44 of Lone Wolf

“Sit,” Hadria commands, gesturing to the two chairs positioned directly next to Scarlett and Lyssa.

We comply, separating to walk up the long table on either side, the heavy wooden chairs scraping against the floor as we take our seats. I try not to fidget, try to project a calm I don’t feel. Opposite me, Ariadne sits perfectly still, her back straight, hands folded on the table in front of her. I wonder if she’s as nervous as I am.

Doesn’t seem like it.

“Do you know why you’re here?” Hadria asks, her voice neutral.

“I assume it’s about what happened in the warehouse,” Ariadne answers before I can open my mouth.

Hadria nods. “Explain what happened.”

Ariadne doesn’t hesitate. “I lost control,” she says simply. “When we found the women in that truck, something in me…snapped. I didn’t even realize what I was doing until Santiago pulled me off a very dead body.”

I stare at her profile, caught between admiration for her convincing delivery and frustration that she’s still protecting me. I open my mouth to interject, but Hadria raises a hand, silencing me.

“Continue,” she says to Ariadne.

“There’s not much more to tell. I should have maintained better control. It won’t happen again.”

Hadria exchanges a glance with Scarlett, who leans forward, her eyes hard as she focuses on Ariadne. “Dr. Khatri tells me you’ve been skipping your therapy sessions,” Scarlett says.

“I’ve been busy.”

“And you’ve been training Santiago privately, without authorization,” Lyssa adds, her gaze flicking briefly to me. “Breaking protocol.”

I can’t stay silent any longer. “That was my fault,” I interject. “Iaskedher to train me. She was just?—”

“Quiet, Santiago,” Hadria cuts me off. “We’ll get to you in a moment.”

I clamp my mouth shut, my leg bouncing nervously under the table. This is all wrong. They’re building a case against Ariadne when I’m the one who fucked up. I have to say something, have to make them understand.

“How many more incidents like this should we expect, Ariadne?” Hadria asks, her tone almost conversational. “How many more times will your programming override your judgment?”

“It won’t happen again,” Ariadne repeats.

“You seem very certain of that,” Scarlett says. “Yet you’ve been avoiding the very therapy designed to help you overcome that programming.”

“And cultivating a training relationship outside official channels,” Lyssa adds. “Creating attachments we can’t monitor or control. And you know why we need to control your training, Sarah.”

The way she said “relationship” and “attachments” makes me wonder if they know about what just happened in my room. But that’s impossible—we left right after, and no one saw us. Still, I feel heat creeping up my neck.

“I’ve followed every other protocol,” Ariadne responds, a hint of tension finally showing in her voice. “I’ve proven my loyalty to the Syndicate at every turn.”

“Yet you remain a danger to yourself and others,” Hadria states. It’s not a question, but a conclusion. “Your actions in the warehouse demonstrate that your conditioning runs deeper than we thought.”

I can’t take it anymore. “That’s not what happened!” The words burst out of me before I can stop them. “Ariadne didn’t lose control. I did.”

All eyes turn to me. Ariadne kicks my ankle under the table, a clear warning to shut up, but I ignore her.

“I’m the one who stabbed that Mancini guard,” I continue, my voice shaking slightly. “Over and over, long after he was dead. Ariadne pulled me off him, not the other way around. She’s covering for me.”

Hadria’s expression doesn’t change, but Lyssa raises an eyebrow. “And why, exactly, would she do that?”

“Because—” I hesitate, glancing at Ariadne, whose face has gone rigid. “Because I have a personal stake in this mission, and she knew I’d be in trouble if you found out.”

“A personal stake,” Hadria repeats. “Elaborate.”

I take a deep breath. This is it—my one chance to tell the truth, to clear Ariadne’s name, to explain why I lost control. Even if it means getting kicked out of the Syndicate, I can’t let her take the fall for my actions.

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