Chapter 4

Lucian’s shock lasted only a moment. When he recovered, anger darkened his face.

“No.”

“We will not divorce.”

“What is the matter with you? What have you been thinking about lately? Stop these childish efforts for attention.”

I’ve never heard him speak so quickly, but how could he be frantic for me, his wife, who’s always be neglected?

“This isn’t about attention,” I tried to say.

Lucian stared at me, “You’ve always been so obedient, but lately you have been acting out, and I’m tired of it. You need to stop making trouble for me and for Sheila.”

His words wound me, but it’s the mention of Sheila that sliced straight down into my soul.

He wasn’t listening to reason. He wasn’t listening at all. What could I ever say to convince him? Was Cathy right – should I even bother to try anymore?

I had only one question left, and it seemed the most vitally important.

I asked, heart in my throat, “Lucian, have you ever loved me?”

He stared at me for a long moment. I thought, just for an instant, that I saw something soften in his eyes, but when he blinked, it was gone. Perhaps I imagined it because I so badly wanted it to be there.

“Be serious, Aria,” he said, his voice flat, polite but otherwise void of all emotion. “Do your housework and leave Sheila alone.”

He did not answer my question, which itself felt like an answer.

After everything I’d done for this marriage and what I thought was our love for the past three years was entirely meaningless. Lucian might have been an elegant gentleman to the rest of the world, but he had showed that gentle side to me in some time.

He’d patronized me by talking down to me and insulted me by choosing Sheila over me.

Softly, with resentment bubbling up inside of myself, I asked, “How can you care about Sheila so much, when she is being dishonest?”

“What are you talking about?” Lucian asked.

“Sheila’s foot injury is fake,” I told him, explaining slowly so that not a single word could be missed or misinterpreted. “She is totally unharmed.”

Lucian’s brow drew together in confusion. “It seems genuine. How can you be so sure?”

Rather than answering his question, I forced a smile. “Don’t worry about that. In fact, don’t worry about anything. I’ll see myself out. I imagine that’s what Shelia would want. She’s likely nearby eavesdropping on this conversation right now, delighted with what she’s hearing.”

I walked to the door, ready to storm out. Pushing on the door, I met some resistance. I pushed harder, and Sheila stumbled backwards away from the door, though remained standing.

“Oh, Lady Shelia! Be careful. Here, let me help you! Wait…” said a nearby maid, scrambling to help.

Yet even as she spoke, her eyes traveled down to Sheila’s supposedly-injured ankle – the one she was standing on right at that moment, perfectly fine.

“Ms.Sheila?! Your, your ankle...?!”

Lucian moved from behind me, stepping around me and out into the hallway, and looked shocked too. His eyes were trained on Sheila, though she seemed set on actively ignoring his gaze.

With a small sigh, I turned and walked away. Behind me, I could hear Lucian speaking to Sheila in a soft voice. Though I couldn’t hear the words, the tone implied that he was comforting her.

He was continuing to take her side, even though I had provided him with proof that she had been lying.

I wished I could say that I was surprised, but I wasn’t. At this point, it was just one more nail in the coffin of our marriage.

The evidence was so obvious that even Luna stayed quiet in my head.

The divorce wasn’t just a request anymore. It was a necessity — And I’d settle for nothing less!

In my closet, I grabbed my suitcase, dragged it to the bed and started filling it up with my clothes and personal items.

With the way he was choosing someone over me, I doubted Lucian’s desire to take care of my child, so I decided not to tell him at all.

He would definitely prefer a child born to Sheila anyway.

My child? I could raise it on my own!

***

THE NEXT MORNING.

***

Lucian’s POV

I woke up with my alarm. I rolled out of bed, showered, and changed into a suit, as per usual. Standing in my closet, I perused my tie collection.

Which would Aria pick?

“Aria?” I called out, knowing my voice could be heard in the hallways. Every time I had called for her in the past, she would come running, eager to please me.

Today there was no response.

Perhaps she had not recovered from her pettiness of the previous day.

Still, something didn’t sit right with me about her refusal to answer. It was too unlike her.

“Something’s wrong,” whispered my wolf, Max, into my thoughts.

After selecting a tie on my own, I carried my confusion with me downstairs and into the kitchen.

Sheila sat alone at the kitchen table. Aria wasn’t down here either.

Sheila ate her toast and oatmeal as I approached.

Looking up at me, Sheila gave me an awkward kind of smile. The same she had worn yesterday after being caught listening at the door – something we weren’t talking about. I had to walk on eggshells around Sheila right now.

“Good morning, Lucian,” she said.

“Good morning,” I replied.

“Any updates on the search for Dr. A?” she asked.

I hadn’t yet checked my messages for the day, but I suspected they remained much as they had been: disappointing. “Dr. A has been missing for three years. There aren’t many leads left to follow. But we will find her, Sheila. I won’t rest until we do.”

Even when speaking with Sheila, my mind wandered back to thoughts and memories with Aria.

Aria had known right away that Shelia had been faking her ankle injury. How?

...And, did she really leave?

“Have you seen Aria?” I asked.

“Is she angry with me?” Sheila asked. “She is, isn’t she? That’s why she doesn’t want to come down and have breakfast with us.”

I couldn’t say so I kept quiet, though I was quickly suspecting that Aria wasn’t even in the house.

“She won’t really go out and try to divorce you, will she?” Sheila asked.

I didn't answer the question, just scoffed at the thought.

It wasn's politely, but it's true — that's Impossible.

A divorce case between an Alpha and a Luna would require a hefty amount of lawyer fees. Aria, as a housewife from an orphan background, would not have enough money to retain a lawyer. At least, not one with any merit.

She’d need not just a good lawyer – but the best – to divorce the Alpha King.

How could she do this?

Yes, she’d come back soon... I was sure of it.

This was all some kind of temper tantrum. Once she worked it out of her system, she would be back and refilling her role as my homemaker.

Just then, the doorbell rang.

Trusting the maids to answer the door, I walked to the kettle, eager to make myself a cup of tea before I faced any more news of the day.

A moment later, a maid walked into the kitchen, carrying a letter.

“King Lucian, there was a lawyer at the door. He said to give this to you…”

Maybe it's just some random ads or a boring lawsuit, I sighed, and then the maid’s letter was torn open.

But when I saw the title of that pile of documents with a singular purpose, I suddenly stood up from the dining table.

"Lucian?!" Sheila was startled by me and said in surprise, "What’s going on —..."

Her voice also faltered in shock when she saw the documents.

[Luna Aria Reed had filed for divorce.]

[This application will be submitted to the Supreme Werewolf Court. Please respond within three days. ]

"...Huh?!" Sheila gasped in shock.

I took a deep breath, struggling to believe it.

— Aria, filed for divorce...?!