Chapter 3

The Scent of Secrets

She finally arrived at the party. The dinner was a masquerade of power—fine crystal glasses, glistening chandeliers, and polished smiles hiding sharpened teeth. Aria sat to the right of Alpha Caden, hands folded neatly, posture straight, every inch showed an obedient Luna.

Every nerve in her body was tight. Beneath the lace of her gown and the weight of the silver Luna necklace, her skin burned with the memory of Marcus' words.

“He is up to something, Aria. You have to warn the Alpha.”

Caden’s presence beside her was a wall of power and silent command. He hadn’t spoken a word to her since she signed the contract. But the way his jaw tensed… it showed he was still skeptical about her.

And Kael kept watching her.

The Southern Alphas made conversation about territorial alliances and rising rogue threats, but Aria barely heard any of it. Her mind kept drifting back now to the boy with amber eyes and a sleepy smile. Her son, Rollan.

“Luna Aria,” one of the Southern Alphas addressed her suddenly. “Tell me, what’s it like being mated to such a powerful Alpha?”

The table fell silent, as everyone waited for her to speak.

Aria’s heart stopped.

This wasn’t part of the script. She wasn’t supposed to speak unless prompted—Caden’s rule.

She glanced at him, but he didn’t stop her. His piercing gaze remained locked on his wine glass. Trying to test her.

She drew a breath. “It’s… an honor,” she said softly. “He is a strong leader. I respect him and owe him my life.”

Kael raised an eyebrow in surprise.

Caden said nothing neither did he show any form of emotion.

The Southern Alpha chuckled as he said looked at Alpha Caden “Ah, and beautiful too. You chose well, Alpha Caden.”

Caden finally looked up, and for a terrifying second, his eyes burned gold.

“She wasn’t chosen,” he said coolly. “She was earned by me.”

Aria kept her expression neutral. Her stomach twisted on hearing that.

What did he mean by earned?

The rest of the dinner passed like fog, but the real storm waited in the silence of their private corridor.

Caden walked ahead of her, steps heavy, his energy crackling.

“You handled yourself well,” he said without turning. “But you are lying to me.”

She froze in shock. “What are you talking about?”

He stopped, turned slowly. His gaze sliced through her.

“I can smell it on you now. It's faint, but somehow it's there. My scent. On your skin. And I know it's not from the necklace. Not even from the contract.”

Her chest squeezed but she had to say something.

Aria’s fingers trembled against her dress. “You’re imagining things, Alpha. I think you drank too much from the party.”

Caden’s eyes narrowed. “Don’t insult my senses. I can't forget my scent, Aria. But you could be right, maybe I drank too much but I know you’re hiding something. I will find out what it is.”

He turned abruptly and strode toward his chamber doors, slamming them shut behind him.

Aria stood frozen in the corridor, heart thudding like a war drum. Her legs felt like glass, ready to shatter with one wrong step.

She needed to breathe. 

To escape as soon as possible.

To even think.

She slipped off down the back hall, past the grand staircases and into the private gardens. The moonlight spilled in pale silver ribbons across the stone path as she ducked through the shadowed arch of hedges. The air was cooler here—freeing, quieter. But even here, she didn’t feel safe.

She sat on the edge of the stone fountain, the sound of water masking her shaky breaths. Her hands gripped the folds of her gown tightly.

She couldn’t fall apart.

Not now.

“Running away won’t help,” came a voice behind her.

She spun around.

Kael.

He stepped out from behind the vines, his expression unreadable in the moonlight. There was no hint of mockery this time. Just… cold curiosity.

“Are you following me?” she asked, voice sharper than she intended.

“Yes,” he said simply. “Because I recognize you.”

Aria’s breath caught again.

Kael folded his arms. “It took me all evening to place you. The way you look at him… the way you avoid his touch. I remember that face. Not here, but years ago.”

Her blood ran cold.

“I was with him that night,” Kael continued. “At the bar on Wolfcrest Avenue. Just outside neutral territory. He was drunk and angry. I remember how he said he needed to forget the council, his father’s pressure, the whole cursed Alpha legacy. We were about to leave, but then—he saw you.”

Aria’s throat dried.

“You wore a red dress. Sat alone at the bar. You gave a fake name. Hale, wasn’t it?” His eyes narrowed. “Tell me, was it short for something? Or just a lie like everything else?”

She couldn’t speak. Her mouth moved, but no words came.

Kael stepped closer. “He disappeared with you. Didn’t come back until the morning. He wouldn’t say what happened. Just kept saying your name like a ghost. Hale.” 

He looked at her over again. “And now, years later, you show up with a new name, no wolf, and sign a contract claiming he chose you. No memory from him. But his scent on your skin. Tell me Aria, are you the woman from that night?”

Aria’s legs shook as she stood. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Kael’s jaw clenched. “Don’t lie to me. If I can figure it out, he will too. He already suspects something.”

She turned to leave, but Kael blocked her path.

“You think he won’t remember?” he said, voice low. “You think you can keep hiding and wear his mark without consequences?”

She stood there without uttering a word.

“I haven’t told him. Yet,” Kael added, softer this time. “But I will. Because secrets like this? They get people killed, Luna.”

“You are mistaken, Kael. I don't know what you are talking about and that's final.”

She walked away, leaving him standing under the moonlight, her heart was splintering in her chest.

Aria walked slow

ly, each step heavier than the last as if she tried to protect the memory of her life by carrying every heavy piece of it.