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9. QUESTIONS...AND MORE QUESTIONS

Author: L.MISS P
last update publish date: 2026-07-10 05:42:07

The Ashford estate sat at the edge of the city, tucked behind iron gates and a wall of pine trees that swallowed the noise of Los Angeles whole. Wolf statues stood at various points within the estate walls.

A car rolled up the long gravel driveway, tires crunching softly beneath the weight of the vehicle.

The mansion loomed ahead, all glass and stone and old money, its lights already glowing gold from within.

Bianca didn’t wait for her chauffeur to open her door.

Smoothing her dress gently, she
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  • Demoted to the Throne    24. THE DRIVE (Alaric's POV)

    He was reviewing the documents that had stayed days on his table when Flynn burst through the door.Alaric did not look up, he didn’t have to. Only one person was bold enough to enter his office without knocking.“She left,” Flynn said.“Who?” Alaric asked, unbothered."Selene. She grabbed her bag and ran out of the building." Flynn's voice was tight, stripped of its usual humor. "Looked like she was panicking. Wouldn't answer her phone."Alaric's pen stopped mid-stroke.His head snapped up. "What do you mean she left?"“The receptionist said she looked terrified." Flynn was already dialing her number again. "I tried calling. Straight to voicemail."Something cold settled in Alaric’s chest. His wolf stirred—agitated, restless—clawing beneath his skin. Where is she? Is she hurt?He forced his wolf to stay still. His voice to remain calm. “Find out where she went.”“I don’t—”“Find out, Flynn.”There was something in his voice that made Flynn’s protest die in his throat. He nodded once.

  • Demoted to the Throne    23. THE NET TIGHTENS

    Regina was staring at her phone.The message had come through ten minutes ago, and she'd read it at least seven times. She still couldn’t think of anybody that could have sent it."Meet me at The Grind. 12:30. Come alone."Maybe she was the cat in the proverb about curiosity because she wasn't even sure why she was considering going. But something about the message felt deliberate—like someone had been watching her, waiting for the right moment to reach out.She glanced toward the marketing department's entrance, where Selene used to sit. The desk was empty now. Selene was up on the executive floor, playing assistant to the CEO, getting all the attention, all the praise, everything Regina had worked for.The familiar bitterness rose in her throat like acid.It should have been me.She had been at Blackwood Corps longer than Selene. She had worked harder, stayed later, sacrificed more. And yet Selene—sweet, humble, perfect Selene—had been the one Mr. Harris recommended for promotion. S

  • Demoted to the Throne    22. CRACKS IN THE SURFACE; UNSAID WORDS

    Selene had been staring at her computer screen for minutes now.The quarterly report displaying on the monitor in-front of her. She'd read the same sentence five times. She still had no idea what it said.She pinched the bridge between her eyes, trying to focus. It wasn't working. Her mind kept drifting back to the same places—Hattie's cough echoing through the house, the dream she couldn't shake, the way Alaric's voice had been replaying in her head for days now, longer than it should’ve.This is pathetic, Nyx muttered. You're supposed to be working."I know," Selene sighed aloud. "I just can't focus."You're thinking about him again."I'm thinking about everything. Grandma's not getting better. Every time I go to sleep, I see weird things. And him—I don't know what's happening to me when he's near."You're not the only one, Nyx said quietly.Selene blinked. What do you mean?I don’t know. I feel… strange lately. Like there’s something awake in me.Selene’s hand drifted to her neckla

  • Demoted to the Throne    21. SHADOWS AND SILENCES

    Bianca sat at her dresser, alone in her bedroom, still in her silk robe, staring at her reflection in the vanity mirror.It’s been two days since the gala. Two days since she'd watched Alaric walk past her—past her—and offer his hand to a stranger. Two days since the whispers had started."Poor Bianca." "I certainly didn’t expect that." "She must feel so humiliated."She'd heard every single one as she'd fled the ballroom. She'd seen the pity in their eyes. The barely concealed glee.Bianca Ashford—the woman who had everything—had been publicly rejected.Her grip on her hairbrush tightened. The handle creaked.She wasn’t humiliated. She was angry.Anger was easier to hold onto than the humiliation, the latter felt like she was cracking her chest open like a wound she couldn’t stop picking at.She set the brush down and pressed her palms against her temple.He chose his assistant . Over her.The moment replayed over and over. The way he'd walked past her, not sparing a single glance. T

  • Demoted to the Throne    20. THE SPACES IN-BETWEEN

    Selene lay in bed, staring at the ceiling.The gala had been two nights ago. And for those two nights she hadn’t stopped thinking about him. Her boss.Stop it, she told herself. It was just a dance. She pressed her palms against her eyes, groaning.Just a dance, she says, Nyx’s voice echoed in her head, dripping with amusement. You’ve been saying that for two days. Have you started believing it yet?“No,” Selene muttered. “Obviously not.”So… what's the plan for today? Walk in like nothing happened? Ask him about it? Avoid this conversation forever?"I don't know," Selene whispered, frustration creeping into her voice. "I don't know what I'm supposed to do."You could start by getting out of bed. You have a job, remember?Selene sat up slowly, running a hand through her hair. Nyx was right—she had a job. A job she couldn’t afford to lose because she was too busy overthinking a single dance.But it wasn’t just a dance, a small voice whispered in the back of her mind. I mean, to you it

  • Demoted to the Throne    19. THE MORNING AFTER

    The penthouse was too quiet. It was a work-free day for everybody.Alaric Blackwood stood by the windows, still in his tuxedo from the night before, watching Los Angeles stir to life beneath him. The city wide awake—cars beginning to fill the streets, lights flickering on in distant office buildings, pedestrians in coats hurrying to make the bus.He hadn’t slept.More like he couldn’t.Every time he closed his eyes, he saw her.Selene in that dress. Selene’s hands around his neck. Selene’s laugh—genuine, unguarded, the kind of laugh that made him forget, for one stolen moment, that he was the CEO of a billion-dollar corporation and the future Alpha of a pack that expected him to marry someone else.He'd spent all his life learning to control every impulse, every instinct. His father had made sure to enforce that. An Alpha does not react. An Alpha controls. An Alpha must not show weakness.One dance with Selene Hart had undone all that learning.His wolf stirred beneath his skin, restl

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