Chapter 3

Chloe Blake's POV

There were only 24 hours left.

When I returned from visiting a friend, Eleanor Rand—Alex's grandmother and the pack's former Luna—came to our home.

Two burly warriors supported her as she walked in. Her gaze swept over Alex's haggard face before settling on me.

As her gaze landed on me, her eyes narrowed slightly. The moment she recognized the ancient aura hidden within my body, her wolf stirred. But she suppressed the reaction almost immediately.

"It's been years. I can't believe she's put her glory days behind her and chosen to live as an ordinary Luna in this pack," Eleanor thought with a quiet sigh.

Then, she glanced at the resource handover list I'd left on the table.

"Alex, an Alpha draws his strength from his Luna. You're draining her," she said calmly.

Alex kept his head lowered and didn't dare to meet his grandmother's eyes.

"She's only doing this because she's angry, Grandmother," he said repeatedly. "Once she's had a chance to cool off, I'll be sure to make it up to her."

Just then, timid footsteps sounded outside the door.

Lily appeared in the doorway, leaning halfway into the room. She was also holding a small basket of freshly picked herbs.

"Alex… I heard your grandmother was here, so I thought I'd visit her with some herbs…"

In the past, I would've accepted the basket with a smile to spare Alex any embarrassment. But that day, I strode over to Lily and opened the door fully.

"Come in, Lily," I instructed, staring at her coldly. "It's about time we cleared things up."

Lily shrank back and instinctively glanced at Alex. But due to Eleanor's imposing presence, the latter didn't even dare to lift his head.

I turned around and carefully set the thick ledger in front of Eleanor.

Without even glancing at Lily, I began calmly, "These are the territory's accounts from the past few years, Eleanor. After Lily's mate died from saving Alex's life, the pack has already paid her a generous compensation. Yet over the last three years, she's used my authority to take an extra three hundred pounds of moonflowers and 50 healing crystals. She's also been using two of our warriors as personal guards on a long-term basis."

The color drained from Lily's face immediately.

"I understand that Alex wants to repay the debt he owes her late mate," I continued. "So, I won't pursue the excess withdrawals of premium resources any further. But as of today, I've relinquished my duties as Luna. From now on, Alex will have to deal with her endless requests himself.

"No, I didn't do any of that… I was just too scared. My pup is so frail. Without those resources, we wouldn't be able to survive…" Lily protested weakly.

Then, she dropped to her knees with a thud and burst into tears, hoping to gain the sympathy of the werewolves in the room.

Alex instinctively took a step toward her, but when he saw Eleanor's icy gaze, he stopped dead in his tracks.

"Do you really have to drive Lily into a corner like this?" he couldn't help but growl. "Her mate died saving my life!"

"I'm not driving her into a corner. I'm just tired of the endless demands the two of you keep making," I replied coolly.

When I turned to look at the werewolf I used to love so deeply, all I felt was sorrow. Not wanting to waste my energy any longer, I picked up my coat and headed for the door.

"Where are you going?" Alex caught me by the wrist.

I gently pulled my hand free.

Alex watched me walk away with his jaw clenched. He was still convinced that I was only putting on an act to force him to back down.

…

Three of our pack Elders were already waiting for me in the council hall's conference room. My bond dissolution document lay in the center of the desk.

"Are you certain you won't reconsider, Chloe?" Thomas asked, his gaze laced with reverence and concern. "Alex may be biased, but he's still a very powerful fighter. He has a very good chance of being promoted to Alpha King this year."

"He doesn't deserve the position." I met Thomas' gaze. "He lets his own personal feelings cloud his judgement and uses his mate's hard work to repay his own debts. How can a werewolf like him possibly be trusted to lead more packs?"

The Elders fell silent. Moments later, Thomas nodded and stamped his seal on another sheet of parchment.

"Given Alpha Alex's mishandling of his relationship with his mate and his serious dereliction of duty in managing the pack's resources, the council has decided to suspend his eligibility for the Alpha King evaluation. This decision will be formally announced to the entire pack after your departure."

Just as he'd finished speaking, the doors to the conference room flew open.