LOGINPenelope POV
"So the queen of Rogue Pack is doing the strong independent woman act now?"
Lucas steps into my path. He smells like cheap cologne and stale sweat.
"Refusing friendly advances from other Alphas?"
He tilts his head. A smirk twists his lips.
Penelope POV"Get John down here right now!"Kimberly stomped her heel against the marble floor of the lobby. The sharp crack of plastic against stone echoed straight up to the high ceiling. Two security guards by the turnstiles shifted their weight, their eyes locking onto her."Miss, I have already explained the procedure to you," the receptionist said. She did not look up from her computer screen. Her fingers kept tapping away on the keyboard, a steady, rhythmic clicking that filled the tense air. "Mr Sterling does not take unscheduled meetings. Especially not with walk-ins.""Do you even know who I am?" Kimberly lunged forward, slamming both palms onto the sleek polished wood of the reception desk. Her face flushed a dark, angry purple. "I am not a walk-in! Tell him to come
Kimberly POV"Miss Kimberly, is all this just because of Julian?"Penelope speaks the name like she is clearing dirt from her throat. Her lips curl. Her spine stays perfectly straight against the polished marble pillars of the Aurora Entertainment lobby.My boots click hard against the granite floor as I take a step forward. My fingernails dig so deep into my palms that the skin splits. The pain is a sharp, white flash, but it does not stop the heat rushing up my neck."You think you can say his name like that?" I say. My voice drops an octave. I plant my feet. I do not let my eyes blink.Penelope does not flinch. She adjusts the silver cuff on her left wrist with two fingers. She takes her time. Her movements are slow, heavy, and deliberate."I asked you a question," I snap. My breath comes too fast. The air in the lobby feels tight, thick with her expensive French perfume. "Answer me.""I do not owe
Julian’s POV"Look at the screen, Alpha," Ethan said.He slid the tablet across the heavy oak desk. The glass clicked against my coffee cup.I did not pick it up. I did not need to. The glowing blue light already reflected off the dark wood, flashing with three words printed in a massive, bright red font.The Broken Crown.Underneath the title, a video played on a loop. It was Penelope. She was stepping out of a black sleek car, her hair falling over her shoulders in perfect waves. A second later, the video cut to Lorde. He was standing on a red carpet, his broad shoulders filling out a tailored suit. He smiled directly into the lens. A tiny heart emoji flashed between their faces."T
Julian POVI step back into the banquet hall, the heavy scent of silver and cheap perfume hitting the back of my throat. My suit jacket is fresh, but my skin still burns from the silver wash.Then I hear it.That pathetic Beta boy is standing on the main stage, microphone gripped in his trembling fist. His voice echoes through the rafters."I admire girls like Penelope."The words ring out, clear and sickening. I stop dead near the velvet curtains. My fingers twitch against my trousers.I look at Penelope. She does not look angry. She does not look disgusted by his weakness. Instead, her lips curl up at the corners. She smiles at him. It is a soft, indulgent look, the kind of look she used to give me before everythi
Julian’s POV"You are the only one worthy of it," Penelope said.Her words sliced straight through the crowded ballroom, hitting me like a physical blow.I stopped dead. My boots dug into the plush carpet.She was talking to him. That pathetic Beta actor.Inside my skull, Asher roared. My wolf clawed at the walls of my mind, his fury a heavy, suffocating weight that flooded my veins with pure adrenaline.The heat of it burned through my chest, swallowing up every shred of logic I possessed.I turned my back on them and walked away.The air in the room felt thick, choked with the scents of expensive perfume, champag
Julian POV“You really think you can just walk away from me like this?”The words did not come from Penelope. They came from the heavy, blood-soaked silence inside my own skull. Asher, my Lycan wolf, was clawing at the walls of my chest, his teeth bared and dripping with a raw, humiliated fury.I ignored the Beta guards who scrambled out of my path as I stormed down the marble corridor of the auction venue. My boots struck the polished floor with the force of small explosions. Every step felt like a physical failure.I came here tonight for one thing. The Serlin dagger.It was a Master-crafted, Alpha-infused blade. The metal was forged with the compressed essence of three dead pack leaders. I already owned the other eleven wea
Chloe POV“Get out of my way, you pathetic old witch.”Eliora glares at me from the bottom of the stairs. Her tiny fists are balled up tight at her sides.“Watch your mouth in my house, you little stray,” I snap back. My fingers tighten around my phone. “You and that useless piece of rubbish are luc
Penelope POV"Penelope!"Eliora stands near the edge of the hospital car park. Her voice cuts through the thick, stagnant air of the Blue-Claw territory. She waves both arms. Her smile is wide, splitting her face, but her eyes scan the perimeter with the sharp, twitching tension of a rival Alpha."E
Julian POV"Elder Ella is coming down from the Holy Mountain to slice you open herself," Penelope says.Her voice hits the hospital room like a bucket of ice water."No!" Hazel screams.She bolts upright in the middle of the narrow hospital bed. Her sheets fly back. The thin white cotton gown twists
Penelope POV"Get in here and finish this."Julian's voice through the phone is a blunt instrument. It rattles the cheap speaker of my mobile. He is not asking. He never asks. He commands, his Alpha tone scraping against my ears like boots on gravel."I am outside," I say.I cut the call before he c







