Snow, Silver, and Spite

I didn't survive five years as an experimental test subject at the Zhelezo Institute because I'm special. I survived because I'm a profoundly stubborn, sarcastic cockroach. When my chance finally came, I stole their most vital research data and bolted. My first night of freedom was spent sprinting through the frozen Veygosh Woods with their hounds snapping at my bleeding heels. I was dead until a towering shadow stepped out of the blizzard. Taras is a monster to the world, but a gentle giant to me. Half his face is a melted ruin of silver fire, courtesy of the same scientists who tortured me. He took me to his warded cabin sanctuary deep in the snow. Sharing a bed was just for warmth, yet for the first time, our agonizing nightmares vanished entirely. With a clear head, I’m finally plotting my cold, meticulous revenge. But my supposed ally, Matron Oksana, wants to weaponize our fated bond. Worse, the Director hunting us only wants my marrow to cure the plague killing his little girl. When the villain is trying to save the innocent, can our unspoken, fragile love survive the terrible price of our vengeance?