Chapter 3

Aria's POV

The silence in the courtyard was thick and suffocating, broken only by the frantic, terrified thudding of a hundred heartbeats.

I stayed pressed firmly against King Valerius’s chest, his massive arm locked around my waist like a vice of solid steel. The intoxicating scent of rain-soaked cedar clouded my senses, making my wolf purr in dark, vindictive satisfaction as we stared down at the boy who had broken me only hours ago.

"Father?" Jace repeated, his voice barely a squeak. He took a hesitant step forward, his Alpha aura completely nonexistent under the crushing weight of the Lycan King’s presence. "What... what are you doing here?"

Valerius didn't immediately answer. He let his molten silver eyes drag over Jace’s ceremonial suit, a look of profound disappointment flashing across his sharp, aristocratic features.

"I sent you to the Silvermoon pack fifteen years ago, Jace," Valerius finally spoke, his deep voice carrying effortlessly across the silent courtyard. "When your mother abandoned our court, I sent you here to learn discipline. To learn how a true Alpha leads from the ground up, away from the politics of the Lycan throne. It appears my efforts were entirely wasted."

Jace flinched as if he had been physically struck.

The entire pack knew the rumors. The Lycan Queen had vanished when Jace was just a toddler, unable to handle the intense, brutal pressures of the royal court, leaving King Valerius to rule alone. He had turned cold, ruthless, and closed off from the world. Sending his only heir to be fostered by our territory was supposed to be Jace’s proving ground.

Clearly, he was failing.

"I don't understand," Jace stammered, his eyes darting frantically to the hand Valerius had tangled in my hair. The jealousy in Jace’s expression was immediate and ugly. His jaw clenched, his face turning a blotchy red. "Why are you touching her? She’s... she’s a reject, Father. The elders audited her bloodline this morning. She isn't fit to be a Luna. I'm taking her sister as my mate instead."

"A reject," Valerius mused, the word sounding like a lethal threat on his tongue. He looked down at me, his thumb slowly, deliberately stroking the sensitive skin of my throat. The casual intimacy sent a jolt of pure electricity straight to my core. "Is that what they told you, little wolf?"

I looked up into his silver eyes, my heart racing, and gave a small, wicked nod. "They told me I was a delta. That I had no future here."

"Aria, stop this right now," Jace hissed, stepping closer, his chest puffing out as he tried to play the victim. "Is this your sick idea of revenge? Because I chose what was best for the pack, you run to my father? How long has this been going on? Were you scheming behind my back while I was planning our wedding?"

"You weren't planning a wedding, Jace," I fired back, my voice steady and completely empty of the love I used to hold for him. "You were planning my replacement."

"You selfish bitch," Chloe suddenly shrieked, unable to contain herself any longer. She pushed herself up from the dirt, her red dress stained and ruined. She pointed a trembling finger at me, her face twisted in pure hatred. "You're just a fat, useless pig! You couldn't even pass the fertility test! Your Majesty, she is lying to you! She is barren and weak! She just wants your money and your title!"

A terrifying, guttural snarl ripped from Valerius’s chest. The sound was so loud, so primal, that Chloe immediately dropped to her knees, clapping her hands over her ears as tears of pain streamed down her face. Half the pack followed her, hitting the pavement in absolute submission.

"You speak to my Queen again, and I will tear out your tongue," Valerius promised, his voice dropping to a terrifyingly quiet whisper that somehow echoed in the bones of everyone present.

Jace stumbled back, his eyes wide with horror. "Your... your Queen? Father, you can't be serious. She's my sloppy seconds! She’s nothing!"

"She is carrying my heir," Valerius stated.

The words hit the courtyard like a live grenade.

My parents, who were standing frozen on the porch, both gasped aloud. My father gripped the railing to keep from collapsing.

Jace looked like all the air had been sucked out of his lungs. He stared at my stomach, then back up to my face, absolute betrayal and pure, venomous jealousy warring in his eyes. "Pregnant? You're pregnant with my father's child? When did this happen?! We were together!"

I didn't correct him. I didn't tell him it was a clinical error. I let him believe that I had willingly given myself to the most powerful man in the world while he was busy sneaking around with my cousin.

"You made your bed, Jace," I whispered softly, making sure he heard every single word. "I just upgraded mine."

"You whore!" Jace roared, completely losing his mind. He lunged forward, his claws extending from his fingertips, entirely forgetting who was standing beside me.

He didn't even make it two steps.

Valerius simply flicked his wrist, and a wave of pure, concentrated Lycan power slammed into Jace’s chest, throwing him backward. Jace hit the fountain with a sick crack, sliding to the ground in a groaning, pathetic heap.

"Your Alpha title is officially stripped," Valerius said coldly, looking down at his son like he was nothing more than an insect. "You will live out the rest of your days in the outer guard. And if you ever look at my mate again, I will blind you."

Valerius turned, his arm firmly wrapped around me, and began guiding me toward the massive, blacked-out royal SUV idling at the edge of the courtyard. The pack parted for us like the Red Sea, no one daring to even breathe in our direction.

I kept my head held high, ignoring my mother’s sobbing and Chloe’s pathetic whimpers. The revenge tasted incredibly sweet, completely soothing the bruised edges of my wolf’s soul.

The royal driver opened the  door, and Valerius handed me inside the spacious, luxurious cabin before sliding in right behind me. The door slammed shut, cutting off the shocked murmurs of the Silvermoon pack, plunging us into total privacy.

The tinted privacy divider between us and the driver was already rolled up.

I let out a long, shaky breath, the massive adrenaline rush finally beginning to crash. "Thank you," I whispered, staring down at my hands in my lap. "For playing along. You didn't have to humiliate him like that."

"I told you outside, Aria," Valerius murmured, his voice suddenly sounding very different. Darker. Heavier. "I don't play."

Before I could even process his words, Valerius moved.

With terrifying speed and liquid grace, he shifted across the leather bench. His large hands gripped my waist, lifting me effortlessly over the center console until my back hit the opposite door, pinning me entirely beneath his massive frame.

I gasped, my eyes snapping wide open as his solid chest pressed flush against mine. The playful, vindictive energy from the courtyard vanished instantly, replaced by a suffocating, intense heat that made my skin flush.

"You used me to make a point to that pathetic boy," Valerius whispered, his face hovering mere inches from mine. His molten silver eyes were blown wide, completely consumed by an insatiable, ravenous darkness. "You kissed me. In front of an entire pack. You staked a claim."

"I... I just needed him to believe—" I started, my voice failing as his hand slowly slid up my thigh, his long, warm fingers gripping my bare skin just beneath the hem of my oversized shirt.

"I don't care what he believes," Valerius interrupted, his breath hot against my lips, sending a wicked shiver down my spine. His thumb pressed firmly against my racing pulse point at the base of my throat. "You played a very dangerous game out there, little wolf. Now, it's my turn."