C2

"Aziel!"

Mireya Duskrell’s ecstatic voice sliced through the air like a silver whip. His designer boots clicked sharply against the stone path as he bypassed me completely, launching himself into Aziel’s muscular chest.

Aziel caught him on pure reflex, steadying the high-ranking submissive wolf against his scarred frame as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

"Do you have any idea how many moons I’ve counted the sky waiting for this day?" Mireya purred, fierce possessiveness dripping from every word. "If those gates hadn’t opened, my sire would have dragged me north to bond with some foreign Alpha!"

Aziel’s dark amber eyes locked onto Mireya’s flawless face. A slow, dangerous smirk curved his lips as the smaller wolf pressed their mouths together in a heated kiss. "That frantic for my scent, little bird? Tell your driver to wait beyond the boundary. I’ll deliver your sire a personal tribute myself."

Mireya laughed melodically, winding his arms tighter around Aziel’s neck. "You’re still so ruthless. My sire demands your presence at the estate. He wants to evaluate your strength and throw a massive tribal feast for your liberation."

I stood frozen on the gravel, the world tilting violently. Humiliation and hollow isolation crashed over me like an avalanche.

This was the same Aziel who once swore to protect me? The one who scented my neck and made my safety the center of his universe? The vows echoed cruelly in my mind:

"I refuse to let the elders register me under Vexley lineage. I will not be your brother by law."

"When your wolf matures… will you accept my mating bite?"

A serrated claw seemed to rip open every old wound at once. The silver-rot in my ribs throbbed viciously, spreading fire through my chest.

"Get back!"

A guttural roar snapped me back. A malfunctioning Wraithfang Recon drone roared down the path on a deadly trajectory.

Aziel yanked Mireya behind his massive body, shielding him completely with his scarred frame. I was left to scramble alone, stumbling into jagged briars. My ankle twisted with a sickening pop against a sharp rock.

"You?" Aziel’s gaze finally flicked to me. His amber eyes darkened, a flicker of something—uncertainty?—crossing his face as he took in my battered form.

"I’m… unhurt," I choked out, turning away before the tears could fall. I forced myself into a broken run toward my transport, swallowing the scream rising in my throat.

Behind me, Mireya’s curious voice floated on the wind. "What manner of creature was that?"

"Merely an old stray from a lifetime ago," Aziel replied, voice low and dismissive. He traced Mireya’s jaw before claiming another kiss.

Old stray.

The words carved deeper than any claw.

I collapsed over the steering wheel in the transport, hand pressed to my burning ribs. Cold sweat soaked my tunic. The physical pain blurred with the poison of his indifference.

My communication slate chimed sharply. Ronzek Hale demanding a live link.

Inside the obsidian spires of Calder Dominion, Ronzek snarled at the digital scroll. Another pathetic attempt by that low-ranking wolf to get the Alpha’s attention?

He stormed down to Mooncrest Relations. Lardon hadn’t reported in. Scowling, he forced the connection.

"Lord Vexley, I don’t care what desperate game you’re playing. Return to your desk immediately."

I stared at the glowing text, then drove back to the fortress on autopilot. When I limped through the grand archway, grey-skinned and frayed, Ronzek sneered.

"Where is he?" My voice cracked.

Ronzek’s tone was pure contempt. "You think the Alpha-Prime will descend to these quarters for you? There’s a crisis. Draven commands you to neutralize malicious rumors about Mireya Duskrell immediately. Scrub his name clean across the territory. He expects your division to silence every whisper."

I bit my lip until it bled. "Those are his direct orders?"

"Yes. And you are not to leave this fortress until the job is done. The dominion has no use for dead weight."

The injustice burned worse than silver. On the eve of our separation, Draven wanted me—his discarded secret mate—to protect his true love’s reputation.

I unclipped my silver command badge with trembling fingers and dropped it onto the metal table with a dull clank.

"The dominion doesn’t tolerate dead weight," I said quietly. "I officially sever my service."

Ronzek froze. Lardon was actually walking away?

Later, in the peak of the obsidian tower, Ronzek stood before Draven Calder.

"The relations team is handling the whispers around Mireya," Draven growled without looking up from his slate.

Ronzek shifted. "Lord Vexley… he refused. He surrendered his badge and stated he is no longer available for anything concerning Mireya."

Draven’s claw froze mid-signature. His amber eyes turned to lethal ice. "He renounced his position in person?"

"He logged permanent resignation last night. He’s on medical leave but still came when summoned."

Draven stood slowly, massive frame casting a long shadow. Arctic fury rolled off him. "Approve his departure only after he buries every rumor about Mireya. If the dominion suffers even one fracture, he will answer with his own skin."

Ronzek blinked in confusion. Why was the Alpha-Prime blocking the exit of a mate he clearly didn’t want?

"Furthermore, Lardon delivered a physical—"

A priority frequency flared on Draven’s slate. He waved Ronzek off sharply. "Deposit it in the vault. You know the protocol."

Ronzek tossed the unopened dissolution scroll into the locked iron cabinet in the corner—alongside years of Lardon’s forgotten gifts: custom furs, hand-forged blades, the intricate wooden drone model. All dust-covered. All ignored.

Draven never spared them a glance. They only existed for emergencies.

All of Lardon’s silent devotion—wasted on an Alpha who had never truly seen him.

I limped out of the fortress into the cold wind, dissolution papers unsigned by Draven, body failing, heart shattered by both the mate who never wanted me and the protector who no longer recognized me.

But I was done being anyone’s shadow.

The wild called. And this time, I would answer it alone.