Chapter 3

Lucas slowly averted his gaze, not offering any praise. "Where are you going?"

"To see a lawyer," Elaine shrugged.

Lucas’s expression darkened immediately. “You’re not serious.”

Elaine turned, she let out a soft laugh. “I’ve never been more serious.”

Lucas stepped toward her. “This is about the summit, isn’t it? You found out I was planning to bring Ayla instead, and now you’re acting out.”

Elaine blinked. “No. This is about me, Lucas. For once, just me.”

Lucas wasn’t listening. His voice sharpened.

“So what, you’re using this whole terminal illness thing as leverage? Is this some dramatic stunt to get attention after all?”

The words landed like acid. Elaine inhaled slowly.

“You think I’m lying.” Elaine repeated, "I lied about being close to death."

“I think you’re jealous,” he said bluntly. “Ayla’s a patient, Elaine. She’s suffered. You,” he gestured toward her, eyes raking over her unapologetically stunning appearance, “look perfectly fine. You’re healthy enough to get dressed up and go shopping, but too sick to fulfill your Luna duties? Please.”

In the past, those words would’ve shattered her. She would’ve flinched, lowered her eyes, mumbled some half-apology and quietly swallowed her hurt.

That she laughed.

Now, she only felt absurd. She had six months left to live, but her husband only cared about another woman. And he accused her of lying.

She once hoped he’d give her some attention, but now the thought seemed laughable.

“You only see her, don’t you?” Elaine said with a smile. “Fine. You can keep flirting with her. No problem. Just sign the papers.”

“I’m not asking for your permission,” she added. “Just your signature.”

With that, she turned and left, her silhouette vanishing through the front doors before he could find a response.

Lucas stood in the empty hall long after she’d gone. Her scent lingered faintly in the air, mingled with the perfume he hadn’t recognized earlier. It was something bold and new.

His jaw was tight, and his fists clenched at his sides.

Behind him, Ayla cleared her throat.

“She must’ve found out about the Luna banquet,” said Ayla. “She’s just trying to stir things up.”

Lucas didn’t answer.

“She’s never really fit the part, you know?” Ayla added. “Always too quiet. She probably thought faking some illness would get her out of it.”

Lucas still said nothing. He should’ve been angry. No, he was angry.

Still, her words had echoed louder than her footsteps as she walked away.

Meanwhile, Elaine stepped out of the sleek black car in the heart of the city.

People on the street whispered in surprise as they saw her.

“Who’s that? She’s so beautiful...”

“Doesn’t she kind of look like Luna?”

“No way, Luna would never wear something like that. She’s always so modest and dignified…”

Her lawyer and longtime friend, Harriet, was already waiting at the café. Her sunglasses were perched on her head as she sat at an outside table. She sipped a coffee with narrowed eyes.

“You came dressed like a supermodel,” Harriet said in disbelief as Elaine sat across from her.

“I like it.” Elaine smiled faintly. “It’s how I feel now.”

“Which is what? A goddess?”

“Alive,” Elaine said.

“Your text sounded urgent. What’s going on?”

“Harriet, I went to the doctor this morning, and he told me I only have six months left to live.”

“Elaine, I’m so sorry,” said Harriet, her blond eyebrows furrowing. “What is it?”

“The mate bond between me and Lucas is fractured, it’s taking a toll on my wolf. She is already too weakened to even speak to me anymore. Eventually, the bond will break and take us both out.”

“Has Lucas treated you this poorly?”

“Maybe not poorly, but he’s neglected our bond. I loved him too long and got too little in return.”

“He’s the worst! So is all of this.”

“It’s okay. Actually, I feel free. I feel more alive now than I ever have. It’s like my eyes have been opened.”

Her friend exhaled slowly. “So, you’re really doing it. Rejecting the Alpha.”

“I already told him,” Elaine said, voice quieter now. “And I meant it.”

“The council’s involved in mate bond dissolutions, especially between an Alpha and Luna. It’s a process. But with cause, like betrayal, emotional neglect, or medical endangerment, you can make a case.”

Elaine took a sip of water, her fingers trembling slightly for the first time that day. “Then let’s begin.”

As they reviewed the documents, something inside her began to unclench. Harriet asked questions, walked her through the legal precedents, and by the end of the meeting, Elaine had a clearer picture of what her life could look like without Lucas and the chains that bound her to him.

They went shopping afterward. For once, Elaine didn’t choose outfits to please anyone else. She didn’t need tailored conservative sets or quiet Luna styles. She chose color. She chose risk. She tried on a lipstick so red it felt like rebellion.

Harriet was supportive the whole time. She always had been.

While browsing, she mentioned her idea to donate her savings—millions quietly accumulated over years of meticulous budgeting—to the lower-class wolves of the pack.

Harriet’s smile faltered. “Elaine, your family are the beneficiaries of your estate, right?”

Elaine nodded slowly. “That’s right.”

“If word gets out that you’re sick, they’ll come crawling. Worse, they’ll try to take everything. You know how they are.”

Elaine swallowed hard. “I know.”

“So don’t tell anyone. Not yet. Don’t mention anything we’ve talked about today to anyone.”

“Is there a reason?”

“The more we can get done without any prying eyes, the better. When everything is done through the proper ways, then they won’t be able to fight or pull strings.”

As if summoned by some curse, Elaine’s phone rang. She stared at the screen, expression blank, before she finally picked up her father’s call.

“Where are you?” he asked abruptly.

Elaine knew why he was calling.

The Meeting tonight. He needed her to attend. For years, she's been a tool for the Luna position. Her family had relentlessly exploited her, squeezing out every bit of wealth and fame they could.

They were always demanding her, do this, do that. Not a single day of rest, or time for herself.

There was one time, she fought back. Or rather, she didn’t put in as much effort. Lucas’s mother had scolded her in front of half the pack, forced her to serve drinks and clean floors for ‘failing to represent the Luna name properly.’

Lucas's mother had never once praised her or shown her a kind face. She treated her like a servant, not family.

Elaine had had enough of this life.

Her two families.

“You’re attending the Alpha meeting tonight,” her father ordered. “Lucas can’t go without a Luna by his side.”

Elaine kept silence. He continued himself, “You will go. And you’ll look presentable. Smile, say the right things, and make sure Lucas is pleased. I won’t repeat myself.”

In the past, Elaine would have listened to him.

Because she loved Lucas, she wanted to be perfect for him, to make him happy. No matter how much she had to endure, she would bear it.

But today.

“I won't be going.”

"You will... what?" Her father paused, in disbelief, "What did you just say?!"

"I said I won't be going." Elaine repeated, brightly, with a provocative smile on her lips. "And I won't repeat myself."