We divorced her

The first thing I heard when I woke up was Father’s laugh.

For one beautiful second, I smiled before reality came crashing down. The laugh wasn’t real. It probably came from a dream. After all, today was the funeral day.

“Get over yourself, girl,” I said out loud. Father was gone. I turned onto my side and stared at the room around me.

“Miss Annika?” A soft knock sounded against my door. It must be one of the maids. “Breakfast is ready,” she continued.

I threw the blanket aside and climbed out of bed. My stomach growled alongside. Traitor.

“Thank you.”

A few minutes later, I stood in front of my wardrobe. The funeral wasn’t until noon. So there was still time.

My fingers skimmed through familiar clothes before stopping on a pale blue dress. It was simple, comfortable and one of my favourites. Jakob had helped me the night before to unpack. If he thought the clothes were too much for someone staying just for the funeral, he didn’t comment on it.

I slipped the dress on without much thought. Then, I brushed my hair, washed my face and headed downstairs. The smell of coffee greeted me before I even reached the dining room.

For a brief moment, it almost felt like nothing had changed. Like Father would be sitting at the head of the table, Julian would say something inappropriate, Jonas would encourage it, and Jakob would pretend not to be involved.

The illusion shattered the moment I stepped inside. All three men were already there, except Father, of course.

Jonas sat at the head of the table instead. Julian was drinking coffee, and Jakob was reading something that looked suspiciously like funeral paperwork.

Nobody noticed me at first. Then Jonas looked up and froze. I slowed. His expression went completely blank like someone had unplugged his brain.

What the hell?

Before I could process that, Julian turned toward the doorway. The coffee mug slipped from his fingers and crashed against the floor.

Coffee exploded everywhere. The sound echoed through the room, but Julian didn’t even blink. He just stared at me.

Okay. Now this is getting weird.

Slowly, I turned toward Jakob. Of the three brothers, Jakob was usually the calmest, the most level-headed and most difficult to surprise.

Which was why seeing him stare at me like he’d forgotten how breathing worked was deeply concerning.

Heat crept into my cheeks. I glanced down at my dress.

Was there a stain? Had I somehow walked downstairs with toothpaste on my face? What was happening?

“Did I miss something?” My voice seemed to snap them out of whatever trance they’d fallen into.

Jonas blinked. Then blinked again. “No.” His voice sounded rough. “We were just...”

He stopped. Julian immediately looked away. Jakob lowered his eyes to the document in front of him, upside down. The idiot was reading the paper upside down.

I stared. “You were just what?”

Nobody answered, so I decided to ignore it. Instead of asking what was wrong with them, I walked to an empty seat, and breakfast resumed shortly afterwards. At least, it tried to.

Unfortunately, the three Hoffman Alphas appeared to have collectively forgotten how to function. Something was wrong. I just couldn’t figure out what.

Eventually, Jonas cleared his throat. “You slept okay?”

“Yes,” I answered.

“You sure?” Jakob chirped, food in his mouth.

I raised an eyebrow. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

Julian suddenly pointed his fork at me. “You look different.”

Oh, for the love of the goddess.“What does that mean?”

Julian opened his mouth. Then he seemed to think better of it. “No idea.”

Helpful. Very helpful.

By the time breakfast ended, I was completely convinced the three of them had lost their minds.

“Excuse me.”

I pushed my chair back, and nobody stopped me. Though I could feel their eyes following me as I left the room.

What was wrong with them?

And more importantly—

Why did it feel connected to me?

***

The funeral began three hours later. By then, I’d changed into a simple black dress.

The pack grounds had transformed as hundreds of wolves filled the area. The sight stole my breath. I’d always known he was respected. I hadn’t realised how loved he was.

Everywhere I looked, people were crying. At one point, Mrs Larson tearfully recounted how he’d repaired her roof himself after a storm despite being Alpha.

The image made me smile because it sounded exactly like him. Father had never cared much about titles. He cared about people, and that was why they loved him.

The ceremony ended far too quickly. Unfortunately, that only meant the reception began and with it came conversations. A lot of conversations.

People wanted to speak with me, share memories, offer condolences, tell stories and gossip. After the twentieth conversation, I was ready to hide in a bush. Instead, I escaped to a quiet corner of the reception grounds.

It was peaceful there, or so I thought.

“Annika.”

I turned. Jonas stood a few feet away, holding a drink, concern all over his eyes. “You disappeared.”

I raised an eyebrow. “I walked twenty feet.”

“You still disappeared.”

A laugh escaped me. To my surprise, relief immediately appeared on his face. Before I could question it, another voice interrupted.

“You’re hogging her.” It was Julian.

Great. Even peace was far from me. Then they started a conversation, and I tuned out halfway through. Mostly because Jakob appeared carrying a plate of food. Again.

At this point, I was beginning to suspect he’d dedicated his life to preventing me from starving.

“Eat.”

I stared. He stared back. Then, I sighed and accepted the plate. A small smile touched his lips.

The afternoon continued much the same way until I heard a familiar name. It came from two older wolves who stood nearby.

“I still can’t believe what Elise did.”

The second wolf grimaced. “Neither can I.”

Then they noticed me listening, and the conversation died instantly. Apparently everybody in Silver Ridge belonged to a secret club dedicated to frustrating me. The mention lingered in my thoughts, though. Eventually, curiosity won.

I found the triplets standing together near the edge of the reception. Taking a deep breath, I approached.

“Can I ask something?”

Three pairs of blue eyes landed on me. The intensity was ridiculous. Honestly, a girl could develop a complex.

I folded my arms. “Where’s Elise? What happened?”

Their countenance was the same as it was when I asked it initially, but they weren’t getting off easy this time.

“She’s gone,” Jonas answered.

I waited for more. Eventually Julian laughed. The sound contained no humour whatsoever, just bitterness. That’s one way to put it,” he said.

Suddenly I wasn’t sure I wanted the truth. Unfortunately, it was too late.

Jakob spoke first. “She left.”

Left?

“What do you mean she left?” I pressed on.

Jonas looked directly at me. “We divorced her.”

My heart skipped. “What?”

Julian’s gaze remained fixed on mine. “All three of us.”

The world tilted slightly. I stared, hoping I had misheard. Their mate, the woman they’d married, the woman I’d spent years trying not to compare myself to, was gone?

Questions exploded inside my head. Thousands of them. Yet before I could ask a single one—A black SUV pulled into the reception grounds.

My blood turned to ice. I could identify that car from anywhere. Fuck

The vehicle came to a stop, the driver’s door opened, and Alpha Felix Webber stepped out. Every muscle in my body locked, and memories I didn’t want came rushing back. What was he doing here?

I looked away immediately. Unfortunately, not before three pairs of blue eyes noticed.

Felix approached, perfectly dressed, charming and all fake. It was the same mask he wore for everyone.

“Annika.” His voice made my stomach twist. “I came to pay my respects.”

I forced a smile. It felt painful. “Thank you.” I managed to say.

He greeted my brothers afterwards, but the conversation didn’t last long. They never liked him from the start. He knew too, and soon, Felix drifted away to speak with several pack elders, shaking hands and playing the role of the perfect in-law.

Slowly, I looked up. Jonas wasn’t looking at me. Julian wasn’t, either, and neither was Jakob. They were all watching Felix. The expressions on their faces sent a chill down my spine.

Then Julian spoke, in a voice far too calm. “What did he do to you?”

My blood ran cold.