Chapter 4

Estelle's POV

The moment those words left his mouth, the atmosphere in the living room turned ice-cold.

But I only nodded.

"I know."

Then I rose from the couch and headed for the guest room.

I had barely reached the stairs when he stopped me.

Cassius caught my wrist and pulled me back toward the master bedroom.

The door clicked shut behind us.

Almost instantly, his scent wrapped around me.

"You're avoiding me," he said.

I kept my eyes fixed elsewhere. "No."

He took a step closer.

"Your wolf is rejecting me."

The words made me go still.

A second later, he lifted his hand, his fingertips hovering over the old mark at the side of my neck.

The bond mark had been unstable for a while now. Lately, it had begun to feel strangely hollow.

"I can mark you again," he murmured.

I looked up at him.

"No, you can't."

Silence stretched between us.

For two long seconds, neither of us moved.

Then his scent intensified without warning.

The Alpha's instinctive dominance rolled through the room, pressing against me. My breath caught. My muscles tensed on reflex.

But my wolf responded with something far more telling.

Nothing.

No pull toward him.

No warmth.

No familiar sense of belonging.

Only emptiness.

I froze.

That brief, hollow silence said more than any argument ever could.

Cassius felt it too.

His hand stopped in midair.

For a moment, he simply stood there. Then he slowly lowered it.

He didn't try to mark me again.

Instead, he pulled me into his arms.

The embrace wasn't gentle.

It felt less like comfort and more like a desperate claim.

"Sleep," he said.

I didn't resist.

Not because I was obeying him, but because I had suddenly realized something.

My wolf no longer depended on his scent the way she once had.

What had once brought comfort now felt like nothing more than an old habit.

That night, he held me in his arms.

And yet it felt as though an invisible wall stood between us.

The next morning, I made breakfast for one. Just bread and milk.

Simple and silent, like the routine of a lone she-wolf.

When Cassius came downstairs, I was already seated at the table. Sunlight poured through the tall windows, illuminating the polished surface and the empty chair across from me.

I didn't look up.

His footsteps paused, then approached.

His scent brushed past me as he deliberately softened his voice—almost conciliatory.

"I'm going out to sea this weekend. Just the two of us."

I took a bite of bread and chewed slowly. "Mm."

That was all, no excitement, no anticipation, like confirming a meeting.

I caught the faint hitch in his scent—uncertainty.

Alphas hate losing control.

The day before the weekend, he canceled.

Wind roared faintly through the phone speaker, carrying the distant trace of another pack's territory.

"There's a project up North that needs attention," he said. "Last-minute."

His tone was rushed, with no explanation, no reassurancem, not even a sorry.

The call ended.

I set my phone down. My heart felt like a lake sealed under winter ice.

How long had it been since we'd truly shared a meal?

Since we'd breathed in sync?

Since our wolves had reached for each other in the dark?

He kept telling me I couldn't think about breaking the bond.

But the truth was—

I had already been pushed out of his territory.

That weekend, I started packing.

One book at a time, I removed my things from the shelves and placed them into boxes, dismantling a life that had quietly died.

My phone rang.

Lyra. Cassius' mother.

I answered. "Hello."

"Come back," she said, her voice cool and precise. "About what we discussed—I believe it's time we formalized an agreement."

My grip tightened slightly. "Is that necessary?"

"Yes."

There was no explanation.

The former Luna didn't negotiate. She just commanded.

I glanced at the half-packed suitcase on the floor. "I'll come this afternoon."

"Noon," she corrected.

I paused. "...All right."

The line went dead.

I arrived at Obsidian Manor just before noon.

Dark clouds pressed low over the mountains. The wind carried a damp chill. Silver wolf-claw insignias were carved into the black stone walls—the mark of the Thunderclaw Pack.

The gatekeeper stiffened the moment I stepped out of the car.

My scent was nearly nonexistent.

That meant I didn't want attention.

But tension still coiled in his posture.

Technically, I was still the Alpha's mate.

The hallway stretched long and shadowed. Portraits of former Alphas lined the walls, their painted wolf eyes glinting in firelight.

Before I reached the main entrance—

A soft, crisp laugh drifted out.

"I won again, Cassius. Are you letting me win on purpose?"

My steps stopped.

His pheromones filled the air—dominant, unmistakable. But they were tangled with another scent.

Young. Bold. Deliberately sweet.

It was a declaration.

For a moment, my mind emptied.

Then it all made sense.

The gatekeeper's tension.

The hurried call.

The cancellation.

I t was all because that the Alpha was home, with another she-wolf.

A quiet laugh left my throat. Cold as frost.

I pushed the door open.

I had dressed simply. White shirt. Jeans. Hair pulled back. No jewelry.

But my scent was clean and controlled—like roses touched by first snow.

The scent that should have belonged to Luna.

Cassius looked up.

His pupils tightened instantly. "How did you—"

"Your mother asked me to come," I said evenly. "I thought you were in the North discussing alliance matters."

Silence pressed down.

His scent faltered.

He felt guilt, and I can smelled it.

The young woman rose from the sofa. She released the slightest hint of scent—not heavy, just enough.

She stepped toward me and extended her hand. "Hi. I'm Melody."

I walked past her without looking.

Her smile froze.

Lyra emerged from the inner hall, her scent sharp and cold, weighted with years of authority.

She took Melody's hand first.

"Did you enjoy yourself today, Melody? Make yourself at home."

The message was clear.

Only then did she glance at me.

"This is Estelle Miller, one of our company's executive managers. We have business to discuss."

My identity erased in her words.

Melody lifted her chin slightly. "Oh. So you're company staff."

The sweetness in the air thickened—victory.

I ignored her.

My gaze found Cassius.

I kept silent and waiting.

And he didn't correct it, didn't deny it.

In that silence, I understood.

It wasn't that he didn't know what happened.

He simply didn't care.

I withdrew my gaze and looked at Lyra. "You said we needed to discuss business. Let's do it here."

"Another time," she replied coolly. "Since you're already here, stay for dinner."

"No, thank you." I turned toward the door. "I have other matters to handle."

"Stop."

Her authority cracked through the room like thunder.

The former Luna's presence bore down on me, heavy and absolute.

"I asked you to stay for dinner. What exactly is that attitude?"

I stopped, turned,and met her eyes.

Inside me, my wolf rose—not in aggression, not in submission, just steady, calm.

"Fine," I said quietly. "I'll stay."

My gaze swept over all of them. A faint smile touched my lips.

"But don't regret it."