Chapter 5: The Performance

Morning came too soon and with it, my new hell.

I reported to Seraphina’s suite at dawn, as instructed. She was already awake, lounging on her balcony in a silk negligee, sipping tea like some kind of goddess surveying her domain.

“You’re late,” she said without looking at me.

I’d arrived exactly on time, but I knew better than to argue. “My apologies, Miss Blackthorn. It won’t happen again.”

“See that it doesn’t.” She finally turned, her violet eyes assessing. “I have a full schedule today. I need to look perfect. Alpha Kaden is giving me a personal tour of the territory.”

Of course he was. Playing the dutiful host while his father orchestrated our destruction.

“I’ll prepare your clothes, Miss Blackthorn.”

The next two hours were an exercise in torture. I helped her bathe, styled her hair, and selected her outfit. A designer dress that probably cost more than I’d earn in five years. She talked the entire time, mostly about Kaden.

“He’s more handsome than his photos,” she mused as I fastened a diamond necklace around her throat. “Good breeding shows. Our children will be spectacular.”

My hands trembled slightly. She noticed.

“Nervous? Don’t be. I don’t bite.” She smiled at her reflection. “Unless provoked.”

There was something predatory in that smile. Something that made me wonder if she knew exactly who I was. What I meant to Kaden.

“Tell me, Aria.” She stood, smoothing down her dress. “Do you have a mate?”

The question felt like a trap. “No, Miss Blackthorn.”

“No? A pretty thing like you?” Her eyes gleamed. “Or perhaps you’re holding out hope for someone above your station?”

My throat closed.

“That would be foolish, wouldn’t it?” Seraphina continued, circling me slowly. “Omegas who forget their place tend to end badly. I’ve seen it happen in other packs. Tragic, really.”

She knew. Maybe not everything, but enough.

“I know my place, Miss Blackthorn,” I said quietly.

“Good.” She patted my cheek like I was a child. “Keep knowing it. Now, how do I look?”

“Beautiful,” I admitted, because it was true. She was devastating.

“Perfect.” She checked her reflection one last time. “Alpha Kaden won’t know what hit him.”

I followed her downstairs, maintaining the proper distance. The main foyer was busy with morning activity, but everything stopped when Seraphina descended the grand staircase. She knew how to make an entrance.

Kaden was waiting at the bottom, dressed casually but somehow still commanding. His eyes found mine immediately over Seraphina’s shoulder, full of apology and something that looked like desperation.

I looked away.

“Good morning, Alpha Kaden.” Seraphina’s voice was honey-sweet. “I hope I didn’t keep you waiting.”

“Not at all.” His smile was polite but strained. “I thought we’d start with the training grounds, then the north border lookout. The view is spectacular.”

“Wonderful.” She took his offered arm with practised grace. “I’m eager to see everything.”

They started to leave, but Alpha Marcus appeared from his office, Beta James at his side.

“Kaden. A word before you go.”

Kaden tensed. “Father, we were just…”

“It will only take a moment.” Alpha Marcus’s tone left no room for argument. He glanced at Seraphina. “Miss Blackthorn, perhaps Aria can show you the gardens while you wait. They’re quite lovely this time of year.”

A dismissal and a command all at once. Seraphina’s smile tightened slightly, but she nodded graciously.

“Of course. I’d love to see them.”

I had no choice but to lead her outside while Kaden disappeared into his father’s office. The gardens were extensive, carefully maintained by the Omega groundskeepers. In the early morning light, they were actually beautiful.

“So,” Seraphina said once we were alone among the roses. “How long have you been sleeping with him?”

I nearly tripped over my own feet. “I don’t know what you…”

“Please.” She examined a blood-red rose, trailing her fingers over the petals. “I’m not stupid. The way he looked at you in the foyer. The way you avoided his eyes. The tension so thick I could taste it.” She plucked the rose, thorns and all. “How long?”

There was no point in lying. She already knew.

“Six months,” I whispered.

“Six months.” She repeated it thoughtfully. “And he promised you what? That he’d make you his Luna? That love conquers all?” She laughed, the sound like breaking glass. “Oh, you poor, deluded girl.”

“It’s not like that.”

“It’s exactly like that.” She turned to face me fully, the rose dangling from her fingers. “Let me tell you how this story ends, Aria. Kaden will mate with me. We’ll have a beautiful ceremony, produce beautiful heirs, and rule this pack together. And you? You’ll watch from the shadows where you belong, your heart breaking a little more each day, until eventually you can’t take it anymore and you leave. Or worse, you stay, becoming that pathetic omega who pines for something she can never have.”

Each word was a knife, precisely placed.

“He loves me,” I said, but my voice shook.

“Maybe he does.” Seraphina shrugged. “Maybe he even believes he’ll choose you. But when the moment comes, when he has to stand in front of his pack, his father, all the allied Alphas, and declare his choice? He’ll choose duty. They always do.”

“You don’t know him.”

“I know men like him.” She stepped closer, her voice dropping to a whisper. “I know Alphas. Power is their true mate, Aria. Everything else is just pretty words and pleasant distractions.” She pressed the rose into my hand, thorns biting into my palm. “Here’s some advice. Save yourself the pain. Leave now, before you’re destroyed.”

Blood welled where the thorns pierced the skin. I stared at the red drops, watching them fall onto the rose petals.

“I can’t,” I admitted.

“Then you’re a fool.” But something almost like pity flickered in her eyes. “At least you’re a committed one.”

The sound of footsteps made us both turn. Kaden emerged from the pack house, his jaw tight, shoulders tense. Whatever his father had said to him, it hadn’t been pleasant.

“Ready?” His voice was clipped.

“Absolutely.” Seraphina was all smiles again, the cruel predator vanishing behind the perfect lady. She linked her arm through his, pressing close. “Lead the way, Alpha.”

I watched them walk away, Seraphina chattering brightly while Kaden responded with monosyllables. At the edge of the garden, he looked back. Our eyes met across the distance.

Help me, his expression seemed to say.

But I couldn’t help him. I couldn’t even help myself.

“Aria.” Maya appeared beside me, taking in my bleeding palm and devastated expression. “What happened?”

“She knows,” I whispered. “About Kaden and me. She knows.”

“Shit.” Maya grabbed my hand, examining the wounds. “We need to get these cleaned. Come on.”

In the servant’s bathroom, Maya carefully removed the thorns and bandaged my palm. Her movements were gentle, efficient, but her face was troubled.

“This is bad,” she finally said. “If she knows, she could tell Alpha Marcus. Use it as leverage.”

“I don’t think she will.” I stared at the white bandage, already showing spots of red. “She doesn’t see me as a threat. Just a… distraction that will solve itself.”

“Maybe you should listen to her.”

I looked up sharply. “What?”

“Leave, Aria.” Maya gripped my shoulders. “Before this destroys you. Before Alpha Marcus makes good on his threat. We could go tonight. I have some money saved. We could reach neutral territory by dawn.”

“And abandon Kaden?”

“Kaden is going to be fine. He’ll be Alpha, married to a beautiful woman from a powerful family. He’ll survive.” Her voice softened. “I’m not sure you will.”

The truth of it hit like a physical blow. She was right. In three weeks, Kaden would have everything. Power, position, a perfect mate. What would I have? Nothing. Less than nothing.

“I need to know,” I said quietly. “I need to see this through to the end. To know if he’ll really choose her.”

“And if he does?”

“Then at least I’ll know I wasn’t the coward.” I stood, straightening my uniform. “I have to get back. Seraphina will want lunch prepared when she returns.”

The rest of the day passed in a blur of tasks. Preparing meals, tidying rooms, being invisible while my world crumbled. I caught glimpses of Kaden and Seraphina throughout the day. Laughing at the training grounds. Deep in conversation at the border lookout. Walking close together through the territory.

Playing the part his father demanded.

That evening, after Seraphina finally dismissed me, I found a note slipped under my door. Kaden’s handwriting.

“Midnight. Our cabin. Please. I can explain everything. I love you.”

I held the paper, reading it over and over until the words blurred.

Maya watched from her bed. “Are you going?”

I thought about Seraphina’s words. About Alpha Marcus’s threats. About the choice that was coming whether I was ready for it or not.

“Yes,” I said finally. “I’m going.”

“Then be careful.” Maya’s expression was grim. “Because I have a feeling tonight changes everything.”

She had no idea how right she was.