Chapter: CHAPTER 40: Cracks Before the Storm[Eileen’s POV]“Is it you”. Lucian stepped out from behind the grain cart, and I felt him take my measure before he said another word, the way something takes stock of prey it isn’t fully certain of yet.I didn’t answer right away, because answering at all felt like giving something away I couldn’t take back.“You’re supposed to be a merchant,” I said instead. “Or did the North Pack finally run out of grain brokers willing to travel this far south.”“Clever deflection.” He didn’t smile. Just watched me, patient, and something about that patience felt more dangerous than shouting would have. “You’re not going to admit anything, are you.”“There’s nothing to admit.”“Maybe not.” He took a slow step closer, unhurried, like a man who already knew he had all the time he needed. “But you didn’t ask who ‘she’ was either. Most strangers would’ve asked.”“I assumed you meant whatever woman broke your heart badly enough that you’re now grabbing strangers at mills.”“Careful. That almost sounded
ปรับปรุงล่าสุด: 2026-08-23
Chapter: CHAPTER 39: Staged photographs[Selena’s POV]I hadn’t stopped moving since sunrise, and it showed in the state of my hands, ink on the left, a hairline paper cut on the right, three messages already sent and two more still waiting on my signature before the household woke fully into the day. Word had reached me twice this week that the Alpha had taken to sparring with his wife personally, every morning now, the two of them thick as thieves in that training yard while the rest of the North Pack watched Eileen Hayden become exactly the kind of untouchable I’d promised Lucian she wasn’t.I didn’t have much time left to be right about anything.Elena’s report about the garden was still sitting folded in my desk drawer, the wooden cord and the promise Kade had made Lumi in front of witnesses neither of them realized were watching. Useful, not useful enough to spend today, not when there was a bigger fire to light first.I found Lucian exactly where his message said he’d be, a room above the tailor’s on the merchant roa
ปรับปรุงล่าสุด: 2026-08-21
Chapter: CHAPTER 38: Training Wolf[Alaric’s POV]Kade hadn’t said two words to me since storming out of the east corridor that afternoon. Found him near the stables anyway, he just shook his head, told me to leave it, and I let him, because whatever happened between him, Lumi, and Selena wasn’t mine to untangle tonight. Not with a war council still chewing through supply numbers, not with a training yard I’d been avoiding for three days, for reasons I hadn’t let myself look at directly.I found Eileen already there. Wrapping her knuckles with the kind of care nobody teaches a Beta’s pampered daughter, not in West Pack, not anywhere I’d ever served.“You’re staring.”“I’m deciding whether to believe what I’ve been hearing.” I pulled off my jacket, threw it at the bench, missed. “You put Ethan on his back last week without breaking a sweat.”“Ethan fell.”“Ethan doesn’t fall”, I rolled my shoulders. “Show me why he did.”She straightened, and something in the way she squared her weight, low, centered, already braced for
ปรับปรุงล่าสุด: 2026-08-21
Chapter: CHAPTER 37: A Promise[Lumi’s POV]The South Pack envoy’s horse was barely past the gate when Kade came through it instead, still dressed for the council, ink smudged dark along the side of his hand from whatever he’d been signing an hour before.“You’re supposed to be listing everything Thornfield cost us.”“I already gave my part. Left before they got to the boring half.” He dropped onto the bench beside me, close enough that our knees touched, and caught my hand before I could go back to the shears. “Eileen handled the envoy herself. Alaric says he’ll owe her for that one.”“Good.” I meant it, let myself feel glad for exactly one breath before the rest of the week crowded back in. “Kade. We haven’t actually talked, not since the soldier came and your hands started shaking and I…”“Flinched.” He said it plainly, no flinch of his own this time. “I know.”“I didn’t mean to.”“I know that too.” His thumb found the fresh blister along his own palm, worried at it instead of at me, a habit I recognized from ev
ปรับปรุงล่าสุด: 2026-08-20
Chapter: CHAPTER 36: The South Pack’s Envoy[Eileen’s POV]Alaric found me in the corridor outside the council chamber, still fastening the cuff of his sleeve, moving too fast for a man trying to look unhurried.“The South Pack’s envoy is early,” he said. “Twenty minutes, maybe less.”“You told me midday.”“He told me midday. He’s already walked the gardens without waiting on an invitation.” Alaric’s teeth pressed together hard enough that I heard the faint grind. “Half the war council’s waiting on me to finish counting what Thornfield actually cost us. I need you in that receiving hall in my place.”“You want me handling a kingdom’s envoy alone.”“I want the Luna who out-argued my own council on refugee grain to remind a stranger exactly why that seat isn’t wasted on you.” His hand caught mine before I could answer, quick, warm, thumb pressing once into my knuckles like he could push the confidence straight into my skin. “You’ll be fine. You always are.”“That’s easy for you to say. You’re not the one about to sit across from
ปรับปรุงล่าสุด: 2026-08-20
Chapter: CHAPTER 35: Alice’s Discontent[Alice’s POV]“You’re really doing this.” I stood in the doorway of the study, arms crossed, watching him yank his shirt over his head like the room was on fire. “Writing to Selena. Tonight.”“I already sent it,”he said.“You sent it.”“An hour ago.” He grabbed his jacket off the chair, wouldn’t look at me. “Before I even told you.”I laughed, and it came out sharp enough that he finally turned around. “Three years I draft every word you send that woman. And the one letter that matters, you write in the dark without me.”“It wasn’t a strategy letter.”“I know what it was.”That stopped him. His hand went still on the sleeve, and the room went quiet enough I could hear the fire snapping behind him.“Say her name,” I said. “Go on. Say it to my face instead of a piece of paper.”“Alice, don’t.”“Say it.”He didn’t. He looked at the floor instead, jaw working, and something in me wanted to cross the room and shake it out of him with my bare hands.“I want to see her.” His voice came out l
ปรับปรุงล่าสุด: 2026-08-19
Chapter: Chapter 15: Morning After GuiltCeleste’s pov I read the text three times before my hands stopped shaking enough to put the phone down. Enjoy tonight. It’s the last peaceful one you’ll get before everyone in that house finds out exactly who you really are.I didn’t sleep. By the time morning light crept through my window, I’d convinced myself the board session would be the least of my problems.I found Gregory in the hallway outside the dining room, dressed sharp for the meeting, his face already carrying the exhaustion of a man who hadn’t slept either, he looked up when I approached, and something in his expression made my stomach drop before he even spoke.“Gregory.”“Celeste.” He said my name flat, distant, nothing like the way he’d whispered it against my lips hours earlier. “I need to talk to you.”“Okay.”“About last night.” He glanced down the hallway, checking for anyone listening, then lowered his voice further. “It shouldn’t have happened.”The warmth from the night before drained out of my chest all at o
ปรับปรุงล่าสุด: 2026-07-08
Chapter: Chapter 14 : The first kissCeleste’s pov “Helena Whitman,” I repeated, staring at the name on the page. “Any relation to Dr. Whitman?” “I don’t know yet.” Gregory’s hands were still shaking. “But it can’t be a coincidence. My mother’s maiden name matches the doctor who’s been running that clinic for thirty years.” “Family,” I said slowly. “Maybe a brother, cousin.” “Which would explain why he’s been so loyal to her for decades.” Gregory closed the folder, pressing his palm flat against it like he could keep the contents contained through sheer will. “I need to know how deep this goes before Thursday.” “I might be able to help with that.” He looked at me sharply. “How?” “I have a contact who’s been investigating the clinic independently, someone with access I don’t have.” I chose my words carefully, protecting Robert’s name until I knew how much I could trust Gregory with. “Let me talk to them first, bring you something concrete instead of more questions.” “Celeste.” He caught my wrist gently. “W
ปรับปรุงล่าสุด: 2026-07-08
Chapter: Chapter 13 : Helena locked DrawerCeleste’s pov Helena’s face went through several emotions at once, shock, fury, and something colder underneath both. “Where did you get access to my personal accounts?” “That’s not the point, Mother.” Gregory’s voice shook with barely contained anger, why were you paying Dr. Whitman three years before I married Amelia?” “You’ve been going through my private records?” “Answer the question.” Helena’s jaw tightened, her composure cracking at the edges for the first time since I’d known her. “It was a donation. To the clinic’s research fund, nothing more.” “A donation.” Gregory’s voice went flat with disbelief. “To a fertility clinic, Three years before your future daughter-in-law ever needed one.” “I don’t have to explain every financial decision I’ve made over the past decade.” “You do when it looks like you were setting something up before Amelia even entered this family.” He stepped closer, phone still raised. “What did you do, Mother?” “I protected this family,”
ปรับปรุงล่าสุด: 2026-07-08
Chapter: Chapter 12 : The uncle’s UltimatumCeleste’s pov The lighthouse stood dark against the evening sky, waves crashing against rocks below in a rhythm that made my chest tighten with memory. I parked and walked the path toward the old stone tower, the wind pulling at my hair, and found Gregory already waiting near the base, jacket collar turned up. “You came,” he said. “You said it was important.” “It is.” He studied me for a long moment, something unreadable behind his eyes. “I keep trying to figure out what it is about you that feels this familiar, and every answer I come up with sounds insane.” “Try me.” “Sometimes you move the way she used to move.” His voice dropped, rough. “My wife. Amelia. She used to press her hand flat against her stomach when she was nervous, exactly like you do.” My hand had been resting there without my noticing. I dropped it fast. “That’s probably just a coincidence.” “Probably.” He didn’t sound convinced. “I brought you here to tell you something. About the night she died.”
ปรับปรุงล่าสุด: 2026-07-08
Chapter: Chapter 11: The sealed birth recordWe ran.The grandfather moved faster than his cane should have allowed, and I kept pace beside him, my heart hammering from the garden conversation and now this, the staff member led us through the side entrance into the main hall, where a small crowd had already gathered outside Helena’s study.“What happened?” the grandfather demanded.“She collapsed, sir. One of the maids found her on the floor.”I pushed through the doorway before I could think better of it Helena lay on the chaise near her desk, pale, one hand pressed to her chest, Gregory already kneeling beside her, his face tight with something I hadn’t seen on him before, fear.“Mother, can you hear me?”“I’m fine,” Helena rasped, though her voice shook. “Stop hovering.”“You collapsed.”“I got dizzy.” She tried to sit up, and Gregory’s hand pressed gently against her shoulder, holding her still.“Someone call the doctor,” he snapped, not looking away from her.“Already on the way,” a staff member answered from the doorway.
ปรับปรุงล่าสุด: 2026-07-08
Chapter: Chapter Ten: The grandfather warningCeleste’s pov The garden behind the east wing sat quiet in the fading light, and I found him there exactly where the text said he’d be, an old man on a stone bench, a cane resting against his knee.“You came,” he said without looking up.“Your message was hard to ignore.”“Sit.” He patted the space beside him.I hesitated, then sat, the cool stone seeping through my dress. For a long moment, neither of us spoke, the garden settling into the kind of silence that only old houses seemed to hold onto.“You’ve caused quite a stir in this house,” he said finally, still watching the sky instead of me. “Two days, and already my grandson can’t stop finding reasons to be near you.”“I don’t know what you mean.”“You know exactly what I mean.” He turned, and his eyes, sharp despite his age, studied my face with an intensity that made my skin crawl. “I’ve lived in this family for seventy years, Celeste. I know what it looks like when a Vale man starts falling for the wrong woman. I watched it ha
ปรับปรุงล่าสุด: 2026-07-07
เข้าสู่ระบบ
