Chapter 5
ADELINE
1 had signed my death warrant.
The ink on the contract hadn’t even dried, and already, I could feel its weight pressing down on me, suffocating me. Tway years. That was the duration ciched into the binding document. Two years to endure him. Two years to figure out how to survive. Two years to break free–if such a thing was even possible.
But deep down, a cruel whisper curled through the corners of my mind: There is no escape.
And as if to seal my fate further, his words echoed in my head like the toll of a funeral bell: No one can ever know this is a contract.
The fear of what he could do if I betrayed him clung to me like a second skin..
And it was with that thought that days later, I found myself standing in my father’s study two days later with the ultimatum he had just given me ringing in the air,
“I’m giving you three days. Three days to end whatever arrangement you’ve made with that man, or you forfeit all rights to lead this pack”
His words cut through me like a blade, but I forced myself to take a breath, ignoring the
e memories of the wedding the betrayal–that surged forward like a tidal wave. They had all known. My father, my mother.
They had known and said nothing
If someone had warned me, perhaps I wouldn’t have been driven to the edge, to make a deal with a man worse than the devil out of sheer, blinding anger. Maybe I wouldn’t have traded my away.
And yet, there I was, staring at the man who had once been my greatest protector, the words tumbling from my lips before I could stop them
“No”
He blinked, visibly taken aback. “What did you just say?”
“I said no.” My voice trembled, anger burning through every word. “And do you want to know why? Because you, and mother, and every other person in this pack who knew Devon was cheating on me and said nothing, are the ones to blame. You all pushed me to this point–straight into Nicholas Knight’s hands–and I won’t end this for any reason.”
My father’s expression shifted to one of heartbreak and resignation. “Adeline, we didn’t tell you because we were trying to protect you. You know how your sister is. When we found out your mother and I thought it would be best if you never knew. We confronted Devon, and be admitted his . mistakes. He said he loved you, Addy. He said he didn’t know what he was thinking My father paused, his voice heavy with regret. “We didn’t know she would get pregnant. We didn’t know it would come to this.”
His words were like gasoline to the fire burning inside me. I snapped.
“Protect me?” My voice cracked as rage poured out of me. “You weren’t protecting me–you were protecting Rose, like you always do. You’ve turned a blind eye to her jealousy for years, even when I’ve done nothing but try to love her. And Devon..” My breath hitched my chest heaving. “I loved hum, Dad. And now the last thing I’ll ever remember about him is that he betrayed me for her.”
My father reached out across his desk, but I recoiled from his touch. I hated the sadness in his eyes. It was a look I’d seen too many times before when he couldn’t bring himself to acknowledge the truth about my sister
“Addy” he sighed, pushing his glasses higher on the bridge of his nose. “I know you’re hurt, but Nicholas Knight? Do you even understand what you’ve done! That man is worse than his reputation. He’s a Lycan and not just that. He is their king. They think of us as nothing but lesser brings to their superiors kind. They will never accept you. You’ve signed yourself over to a fate you’ll regret for the rest of your life”
At the word signed, body tensed.
n I realized—it was unrelated. He didn’t know. He couldn’t know. No one else knew about
For a fleeting moment par surged through me. Hui then I re the contrad.
“Are you even listening to me?” my father asked, his voice rising
“I am.” I said, my toor fat. “And I don’t want to keep arguing with you. What’s done is done. He’s marked nie, and we’re getting married. At least This time, I know what I’m walking into. At least this time, I won’t be betrayed by the man I love and the sister who hates me. I won’t have to reject my mate and then watch him die all in the same day.”
ly turn to another man! A immediately turn to
“And what do you think people will say. Adeline?” he countered,
dered, his voice cracking. “Your mate dies, Lycan! What will that do to your reputation! To this pack?”
and you
I scoffed. “Let them say whatever they want. People can go to hell for all I care. I rejected Devon, and as much as it tears me apart that he is dead.
Chapter 5
the fact all remains that be betrayed me. L
ying the Lycan King. And if your ultimatum stanets, so far 16” I swallowed hard, hating the ne words that felt any manuthi. “You can take away the park. I’ll learn to live with tha
s suffocating silence.
When my father had announced me as the next leader, it had been one of the proudest moments of my life. For a fleeting moment, I’d believed that mayler, jest maybe, he saw me for who I truly was. That I was worthy That I could lead
Bon cow! He could have it. He could keep the pack, the legacy, the responsibilities it was nothing compared to the betrayal I felt now
Finally, Homoke the sid
sidence. “There’s nothing more to say so I’ll be leaving Nicholas will send for my things to be moved to his estate”
The moment I stone, ready to leave this suffocating conversation fechand, the door swung open. Pose walked in her confident stride faltering when the saw me. For a fraction of a second, surprise Bickered in her eyes, but it quickly turned into her usual glare, one that had haunted me for year.
She crossed her arms, her lips curving
og into that condescending sneer I knew to well. “Can’t you see I’m standing here? Will you not show some
My will stirred beneath my skin, growling low and feral, its primal instincts clawing at my restraint. Images flashed in my mind–of silencing her vennimois tongue once and for all. Hut I shoved the impulse down. I wouldn’t give her the satisfaction. Instead, I chose the high road, as I alway hid, and turned to leave without a word.
But of course, she couldn’t leave it there.
“You see?” she said, her voice sharp and dripping with faux outrage as she turned to our father. “This is what I mean. She has no respect for me.
1 paused mid–step, my body rigid with barely contained anger. I knew where this was going. It was always the same cyde, the same arguments, the same pain. My father sighed, his exhaustion audible, but before he could intervene, the dam inside me burst.
“Respect?” I snapped, spanning around to face her. “You dare to talk to me about respect Where was your respect when you were sleeping with my mate? Where was at when you humiliated me on my wedding day? Couldn’t you have waitedt Couldn’t you have shown an ounce of decency until
Her scoff was like nails on a chalkboard. My father tried to step in, his voice weak in comparison to the storm brewing between us. “Enough. Both of you-
But Hose cut him off with a smirk so smug it made my blood boil. “Oh, please. It’s not my fault he thought you were too boring to satisfy him Maybe if you were nicer to me, I’d give you a few tips on how to keep a man.”
The next second, I was in front of her. I didn’t remember crossing the room. I didn’t remember my hand lifting. But I did remember the sharp crack as my palin me her face. Her eyes went wide, and for a moment, there was silence–stunned, deafening silence.
hand flew to her cheek, and then her claws extended, her lips curling back in a snarl “Why, you little-
“That’s enough!” My father’s voice thundered through the study, his Alplus aura slamming into us like a physical force. Both Rose and I froze, the wright of his dominance momentarily drowning out our rage. “You two are acting like children, and I will not tolerate it any longer. Adeline, apologize to your sister. Now”
you not hear what she
My lead whipped toward him so fast I nearly lost my balance. “Apologizer” I said, my voice trembling with disbelief. “Did you
She isn’t ever remorseful and this is exactly what I am talking about, there you go taking her side again!”
This isn’t about taking sides my father snapped, but the tension in his voice betrayed his inter conflict. “It’s about
A knock at the door cut him off. His jaw tightened as he pinched the bridge of his nose, visibly struggling to compose himself “Come in,” he lurked.
One of his top men entered the room, his expression tense as his eyes darted between me and Rose. The atmosphere in the study was thick, suffocating, but he pressed on. “Alpha he began, bowing his head slightly, “we’ve found a crate at the wedding site. We believe it was to transport the bombs”
the
used
My heart stuttered.
The man besitated, his gaze landing on me for a moment too long before he added. “The crate bears the sigil of the Lycan Kingdom. All evidence points to Nicholas Knight being responsible for the attack–and for the explosion that killed Alpha Devon.”
