Chapter 2

I took a deep breath. I was done arguing with idiots.

"Alright then," I said, playing along. "Aren't you supposed to be escorting me to the hotel? Let's go."

The entire hall erupted into deafening, mocking laughter.

Maya laughed so hard there were tears in her eyes. She looked at me like I was insane.

"The hotel? Chloe, are you actually delusional?"

She pointed at the gold sign in Liam's hand, her voice dripping with venom. "Read the sign! We are waiting for the Wife of the Supreme Dragon Chancellor! You think this VIP treatment is for some broke human like you?"

The Shifter Guards snorted in agreement.

"Yeah right! Chancellor Vance is worth hundreds of billions. He's the apex of this continent. One hair on his head is worth more than your entire life!"

At the mention of Kaelan, Maya’s eyes filled with raw jealousy and longing.

"I heard Mr. Vance is a cold-blooded tyrant, but he spoils his mate rotten. Rumor has it, he dropped twenty million dollars at a top-tier auction without blinking, just to buy her the only 'Dragon Scale Crystal Key' in the world!"

Listening to them gossip about my husband, I lowered my eyes.

A soft, satisfied smile tugged at the corners of my mouth.

That key was indeed my first-anniversary gift from Kaelan. It was full of that cold man's clumsy but direct love.

Just then, Maya’s eyes locked onto my hand like a viper.

"Oh my god!" she let out a piercing screech. "What is that in your hand?!"

The hall fell dead silent.

Every single eye locked onto my fingertips.

I was casually playing with a deep blue crystal key that gave off a cold glow.

Liam lunged forward, grabbing my wrist in a death grip. He let out a nasty, wicked sneer.

"You've got some nerve, Chloe! Buying a cheap knockoff just to pretend you're rich?"

I yanked my hand back with force, keeping my smile as I lightly traced the crystal.

Seeing that I wasn't panicked or embarrassed about being "exposed," Liam’s pupils shrank.

My absolute calm pissed him off.

Without warning, he violently snatched the crystal key right out of my hand.

"What the hell are you doing?!" I scowled.

"Let me see!" Maya snatched it from him, absolute jealousy flashing in her eyes.

"The cutting technique is pretty good. It almost fooled me," she mocked, her tone dripping with sarcasm. "Too bad. Using a fake to act like high society? You're a joke!"

"Or... Chloe, are you trying to tell us that you are the legendary woman beside the Chancellor?"

The crowd erupted into harsh laughter again. To them, it was the most absurd joke in the world.

Kaelan was a legendary Dragon who controlled life and death. And I was just the lowly human ex-girlfriend Liam dumped three years ago.

She held the key high in the air, treating it like a circus prop.

"A bottom-feeder human like you could never be the Chancellor's woman! Tell you what, I'll pay double to buy this piece of trash off you for a laugh. At least you can skip a month of manual labor."

I stepped forward, worried she'd break it. "Give it back. Kaelan gave that to me—"

Before I could finish, Liam shoved me hard.

Caught off guard, my back slammed heavily into a luggage cart. The back of my hand scraped against the metal, immediately drawing blood.

"Who the hell do you think you are, calling Mr. Vance by his first name?" Liam warned viciously, looking down at my pathetic state.

"The Commander is right! Are you trying to cause a scene and ruin our pack's chance with the Dragons, you bitch?" his lackeys chimed in.

A sharp spike of pain shot through my injured hand, but I bit the inside of my cheek, swallowing my gasp of agony.

Instead of showing weakness, I slowly rose to my feet, my posture stiff as I forced myself to endure the stinging.

Then, I looked up and locked eyes with Liam.

No anger. No hysteria. Just the freezing, dead calm of an apex predator looking at a corpse.

That suffocating gaze sent a wave of inexplicable panic through Liam. He subconsciously took half a step back.

To cover up his ridiculous guilt, Maya immediately jumped in.

"You ungrateful bitch! Liam was nice enough to offer you a place, and you dare look at him like that?"

"She's always been a bitter, jealous woman. Same as three years ago. Trash stays trash."

Liam agreed. Desperate to regain control, he pulled out his checkbook.

He scribbled a number, tore out a check for $200,000, and shoved it in my face.

"Here’s two hundred grand." He looked at me like he was feeding a stray dog. "Take it, go buy some decent clothes, and stop embarrassing yourself here."

Every shifter in the room watched with amusement, waiting for me to cry tears of gratitude and snatch the check.

But instead, under their shocked stares—

I slowly raised my hand, batted the pathetic check away, and snatched my crystal key right back from Maya’s frozen grip.

"Keep your money," I said coldly. "I have no need for your charity."