Seraphina POV
The echo of Kaelen’s fluid footsteps faded, leaving me frozen at the base of the stairs where the phone had fallen. His secret wasn't a shield—it was a blade pressed to my throat. Trembling, I grabbed the cordless phone and fled to my gilded cage.
I collapsed on the bed, gasping. Before despair could drown me, the intercom by the door crackled:
"Luna. Library computer access granted for one hour. Do not test His Majesty’s patience." - Caleb
In the dusty library, the monitor glowed with Curtis’s urgent email:
Sera! Is this your shawl?!
The link revealed Cassandra at the gala, draped in my embroidered masterpiece. Headline: Stonehaven’s Design Prodigy Shines!
Years of stolen work, Kaelen’s threats, the murdered fellowship—crystallized into absolute zero fury.
I tore through the walk-in closet. Beneath false panels in my old trunk—hidden since Naomi smuggled it in my bridal linens—lay her final gift: a silver dagger wrapped in wolfsbane. I strapped it to my thigh, boots swallowing the leather sheath.
At the gates, crossed spears barred my path.
“The King forbids your exit.”
“Does his order void the Luna’s authority?” Ice coated my words. “Shall I tell him his guards rip the mating contract to shreds?”
The spears lifted.
An hour later, I kicked open the guest suite.
Champagne fumes and Cassandra’s shriek filled the air: “Wolfless trash!”
“Remove. The. Shawl.”
“Make me!” She lunged—drunk, stumbling over a toppled chair. I sidestepped. Silver hissed free, her Inner Wolf howling in primal terror.
I pinned her to the vanity, blade flat against her throat. “This cut through Stonehaven’s lies. Your lies are thinner.” My hand ripped the shawl to ribbons.
“Next time,” I whispered, steel kissing her cheekbone, “I carve the truth into your skin.”
She paled, then spat venom: “Enjoy your cripple! Loved my ‘love letters’ in your luggage?”
Ice flooded my veins—her planted “affair” evidence.
“Aidan suits you,” I said softly. “A thief who stole his brother’s Alpha power deserves a lying whore.”
Her gasp was the sweetest sound.
