"I'm done pretending to be a loser. I want them to know who I really am."
My voice came out steady, but my hands trembled as I clutched the phone to my ear. My eyes were locked on the television screen, the air in my apartment thick with betrayal.
There he was—Alpha Conrad, my boyfriend of five years, kneeling before Celeste Montgomery with a diamond ring glinting under the lights. The cameras flashed. The crowd cheered. And Celeste? She gasped dramatically, hands flying to her mouth before she nodded, letting him slip the ring onto her delicate, undeserving finger.
I felt sick.
"You knew this was coming," my brother Jameson's voice crackled through the phone, his tone sharp. "Don't break character now, Tattiana. We’re so close."
"Close to what?" I shot back, my voice hoarse. "Five years, Jameson. Five years of my life wasted. I was supposed to be gathering intel, not falling in love with the damn enemy!"
My breath hitched as the tears I swore I wouldn’t shed slipped down my cheeks. My body shook as I wiped them away, furious at myself for feeling this much. I should’ve known better. I should’ve known Conrad would never choose me. Not when he had a pristine, well-bred Luna like Celeste waiting for him.
I wasn’t his destined mate. I was just his secret.
"You don’t have the luxury of feelings," Jameson reminded me coldly. "You’re the daughter of Alpha Archibald, the rightful heir to our father’s legacy. And in case you forgot, Conrad’s father put a silver blade through his heart and stole our everything from us."
My stomach twisted at the truth. I could still hear my father’s last breath, the gurgling sound as blood pooled around him. I was only twelve then, hiding in a cellar while my world burned. Now, I was twenty-four and playing a long game of deception, living as Mavy Dawson the ordinary omega girl no one cared about. No one except Conrad, or so I had stupidly believed.
"Justice, Tattiana," Jameson pressed. "That’s what matters."
I clenched my fists, my nails biting into my palms. "Then why does it feel like I’m the one losing?"
Jameson sighed, but I didn’t wait for his answer. I ended the call and turned off the television, the image of Conrad and Celeste vanishing into darkness.
I wiped my tears. I had work to do.
The knock on my door the next morning was loud, urgent. I groaned, still curled beneath my thin blanket, my head pounding from the sleepless night. When the knocking didn’t stop, I forced myself up, dragging my feet to the door.
The moment I cracked it open, my breath caught.
Conrad stood there, his dark hair a mess, his golden eyes filled with something dangerously close to guilt.
"Mavy," he exhaled, stepping forward like he wanted to pull me into his arms. I took a step back instead.
"Go away," I said, my voice flat.
"I need to explain," he pleaded, his hands gripping the doorframe. "Last night—what you saw—it wasn’t my choice. My father—"
"Forced you?" I finished for him, my lips curling in bitter amusement. "Save it, Conrad. I know how your father operates. I also know you could’ve said no if you really wanted to."
His jaw tensed. "It’s not that simple."
"Right. Because being an Alpha’s son means duty comes first, right?" My voice wavered, but I forced myself to hold his gaze. His just like his father who had a duty when they murdered mine.
"Mavy, please—"
"You don’t have to explain anything," I cut him off. "We’re done."
I moved to close the door, but his hand shot out, stopping me. His grip was tight, desperate.
"Don’t do this," he begged. "We can still be together."
"Still what?" My voice rose, anger finally breaking free. "Be together in secret? While you play the perfect Alpha mate to Celeste in public?"
His silence was answer enough.
I laughed, but it was hollow, empty. "I see. So that’s your grand offer, then? I get to be your dirty little secret while she wears your ring?"
His golden eyes darkened. "It’s not like that."
"Then tell me what it is, Conrad!" I shouted, my chest heaving. "Tell me how this works! Because from where I’m standing, it looks like I was just a convenient distraction until your father finally decided to marry you off to someone worthy of you!"
He flinched like I had struck him. "That’s not true."
"Then prove it," I whispered, my voice trembling now. "Leave her. Pick me."
The silence stretched, thick and suffocating.
He didn’t answer.
I nodded, my heart shattering all over again. "That’s what I thought."
I wrenched my arm from his grip and stepped back. "Goodbye, Conrad."
This time, he didn’t stop me as I shut the door between us.
But the second it closed, I pressed my back against it, my breath coming in sharp gasps as the weight of everything hit me.
I had been stupid to love him. Stupid to think that, even for a moment, he might’ve loved me back.
But it didn’t matter anymore. No more pretending. Time will come the world knew exactly who I was.
For now, I must continue playing our game of disguise so my brother and I can find justice for our father.
