Chapter 5

The agent's words made my mind go completely blank. I even thought it was a prank call.

I had personally gone to the Pack Council to register the territory of the Starfall Lake Resort. How could the owner suddenly become Serena!

Sensing my silence, the agent sighed helplessly and forwarded the digital deed transfer to my email.

I clicked open the document. The dense legal clauses made my eyes sting, but I still managed to instantly catch my own familiar signature.

My whole body stiffened. I searched through all my memories but couldn't recall when I had ever signed this transfer agreement.

It wasn't until my eyes landed on the date that the memory flooded my brain like an explosion.

It was the night before Serena's coming-of-age ceremony. Felix had suddenly handed me a thick stack of documents.

"Nova, these are the applications for tax exemptions and border defense upgrades for the resort. They need your consent as the co-owner. Just sign here for me."

I was busy processing a batch of film negatives I had just shot. I didn't even look up, assuming it was the boundary defense planning he had mentioned adding to Starfall Lake.

Because it was Felix, I signed my name without hesitation.

I never expected my trust in him would be met with such cold calculation.

It turned out he had tricked me into signing a contract, giving up my joint ownership and transferring the territory to Serena for free.

The next day at Serena's coming-of-age ceremony, I even wondered why Felix hadn't prepared a massive gift. He usually spoiled her rotten, so it was completely out of character.

But when I asked, Felix just rubbed his chin against my neck and chuckled. "You already gave her one. What's yours is mine. We don't need to be so formal."

Back then, I naively thought he was finally planning to keep his distance from his sister. I happily let my gift count as a gesture from both of us.

But I forgot that Felix could never change. In his heart, Serena would always come first.

So when he said he already gave her one, he really meant it. He didn't put his name on my gift. He took my life's work and my savings and handed them over to her on a silver platter.

I stared at the cold clauses on the screen, every ounce of strength draining from my body.

I used to be so infatuated with his sharp negotiation skills as an Alpha, but I never imagined he would use those very same skills against me.

To prove she wasn't lying, the agent on the phone was still detailing the specifics of when Felix processed the transfer that day.

Every single word felt like a silver needle piercing my eardrums. I swallowed hard against my tight throat.

"Fine. I understand. I'll talk to the current owner."

After hanging up, I slammed on the gas pedal and sped straight toward the Pack headquarters.

Ignoring the shocked looks of the staff at the entrance, I kicked open the door to the Alpha's office.

But I never expected that the moment the door bounced open, I would see two people tightly embracing each other. Their scents were intimately intertwined.

Felix almost instinctively pulled her behind him, taking a protective stance. The movement was so practiced that it looked like it had been rehearsed a thousand times.

Seeing the fleeting guarded look in his eyes, my heart seized violently.

Just how crazy did Felix think I was? For him to assume I would hurt Serena the second he saw me.

I scoffed coldly and looked away, not even bothering to question him. I just slammed my phone onto his desk, displaying the digital contract.

"Felix, give me an explanation."

He clearly didn't expect me to come for this. He frowned, picking up the phone in confusion.

After seeing what it was, he actually let out a sigh of relief and spoke dismissively.

"Is that what this is about, Nova? We're Serena's only family. What does it matter whose name the resort is under?"

"Besides, didn't I let you look over it back then? You signed it yourself. Serena's coming of age is a big deal. A defenseless girl needs a property to rely on. What exactly are you mad about this time?"

Felix furrowed his brows and looked at me in confusion. He looked exactly the same as he had every time Serena was involved over the past seven years.

He would never understand why these little things broke my heart, and he didn't understand where my emotions came from.

He could never see his own bottomless favoritism, much less care about my pain of being ignored.

My hands clenched into tight fists by my sides, yet I didn't feel a trace of pain.

He felt that his sister needed a property to rely on. But did he forget that I was also a mate who needed a sense of security?

That land at Starfall Lake wasn't just any random territory.

That resort wasn't just some barren wasteland we bought on a whim. It was the sacred place I had joyfully prepared for our honeymoon and vacations after our bonding ceremony.

I took a deep breath and stared unblinkingly at Felix. The longer I looked, the more unfamiliar the face in front of me became.

We really weren't like this in the beginning.

Serena always clung to him back then too, but Felix wasn't like this.

While he was used to taking care of Serena and always giving her the best, he never forgot about me.

During the winter photoshoot, he held onto my wrist desperately at the edge of the cliff and refused to let go.

When our camp was attacked, he pressed me into his arms and used his back to shield me from falling rocks.

On nights when I was terrified of lightning, he would sit with me under the stars all night.

But I didn't know exactly when his eyes only had room for Serena.

And as the future Luna, I was supposed to be generous enough to step back at every turn. Even if it meant giving up my fated mate, my savings, and my territory.

I gave a bitter smile, feeling that fighting over who owned this land was nothing but a joke.

I just wanted to leave this office as fast as possible. I wanted to get away from these two people who constantly suffocated me.

"Felix, I'm not throwing a fit."

"Since you think she needs the resort to rely on, I don't want the land anymore. Buy out my half of the investment and wire me the money. Two million dollars, as soon as possible."