Chapter 5

The next morning, my phone buzzed with a text message.

It was from Victoria.

The first message was a photo of an enormous venue decorated with white roses and crystal chandeliers. The caption read: "Marking ceremony preparations! Ethan spared no expense ??"

Then another photo appeared. This one showed a massive ice sculpture in the shape of wolves, surrounded by what looked like hundreds of candles.

"He mobilized the entire pack's resources for me," she wrote. "The Alpha Council even approved special funding. I'm so lucky to have a mate who loves me this much!"

More photos followed. A custom-made altar made of rare moonstone. Professional photographers setting up equipment. Catering trucks from the most expensive restaurant in the territory.

"The marking ceremony is going to be the event of the century," her final message read. "Too bad some people will never experience this kind of devotion ??"

I stared at the messages for a long moment, waiting for the familiar stab of pain.

But it didn't come.

Instead, I felt only a distant sort of numbness. Like watching a movie about strangers.

I didn't reply to any of her messages. There was nothing left to say.

That afternoon, my phone rang. A local number I didn't recognize.

It was Marcus, Ethan’s Beta.

"Sylvia? Hey, it's Marcus. Uh, Alex's not answering his phone."

His voice was hesitant and awkward.

"Is he okay? Ethan's worried. They had a... uh... disagreement yesterday."

Disagreement. That's what he was calling that brutal fight.

"Alex's fine," I said, my voice flat.

"Look, we're all worried about him and Ethan. They're like brothers, you know? This whole thing... it's affecting the pack. We have the Alpha Council meeting next week."

He paused. "If Alex doesn't show up with Ethan as the northern territories' representatives, the Council might think there's instability in our region. The Alpha King could send in royal forces to intervene."

He wanted me to mediate. To fix Alex and Ethan's relationship.

The audacity was breathtaking.

After they'd all stood by and watched me get humiliated.

After what Ethan had done to me...

But I thought about Alex. His loyalty to me was costing him everything.

"Alright, Marcus," I said slowly. "I'll talk to Alex. Maybe we can arrange a meeting to clear the air. For Alex's sake."

My brother deserved to have his pack and his position intact.

I could do this one last thing. Then I would leave.

I convinced Alex to come.

A few days later, in the pack house, we attempted an unwilling reconciliation.

The air was thick with unspoken tension.

Ethan was there, with Victoria clinging to his side, her face a mixture of triumph and false concern.

Alex stood rigid, refusing to look at Ethan.

The argument started almost immediately.

"Ethan needs to apologize to Sylvia," Alex said firmly. "For pushing her. For everything."

Ethan scoffed. "Apologize? She should apologize to Victoria for cursing our child! She said the Moon Goddess would never let a bastard be born!"

"That's bullshit and you know it," Alex snarled. "After all these years, don't you know what kind of person Sylvia is? She would never curse anyone's child."

Victoria stepped forward, her voice dripping with fake sympathy.

"Alex, honey, please don't blame Ethan. I'm pregnant, and he was just so worried about me. The stress made him react badly."

She skillfully deflected blame, painting Ethan as a protective hero and me as some unstable threat.

Alex wasn't buying it. "She's my sister. I know her better than anyone. She's not capable of the things you're accusing her of."

"Your sister has been obsessed with me for years!" Ethan shot back. "Following me around like a lost pup! She attacked Victoria out of jealousy!"

The old accusations flew, and the argument escalated quickly.

Marcus and the other pack members intervened, always the peacekeepers when pack unity was threatened.

"Hey, guys, come on," Marcus said. "Let's not fight. How about a truce? For the pack. For the northern territories."

Marcus suggested something ridiculous to break the tension. "Let's do a hunting competition. See who can bag the most game. Get some of that Alpha aggression out in a healthy way."

So we found ourselves in the pack's hunting grounds, with bows and arrows.

The hunt began, and Marcus took aim at a deer in the distance.

His arrow flew wide, completely missing the target.

Instead, it sailed directly toward where Victoria was standing.

She let out a piercing scream.

In a blur of Alpha speed, Ethan appeared in front of her, catching the arrow with his bare hand just inches from her face.

Victoria looked up at him with pure adoration. "Oh my god, Ethan! You saved me!"

Ethan tossed the arrow aside and glared at Marcus. "Watch where you're shooting, you idiot."

Marcus just laughed. "Come on, man. I gave you a perfect hero moment. You should be thanking me."

They all burst into laughter, and I watched it all with detached calm.

Later, Victoria played up her helplessness dramatically.

"I can barely even hold this bow," she said with exaggerated weakness. "Ethan, can you teach me? I need your strong hands to guide me."

The display was nauseating. Ethan positioned himself behind her, his arms wrapped around hers as he "taught" her to aim.

"Like this, baby," he murmured into her ear. "Feel the power flow through you."

She giggled and pressed back against him. "You're so strong. I feel so safe with you."

Their public affection was over the top, theatrical. But everyone seemed to eat it up.

I couldn't stand it anymore.

I slipped away from the hunting party and found a quiet spot near the edge of the woods to rest.

The silence was a relief after all that forced cheerfulness.

Then I heard voices carrying on the wind. Ethan's voice, loud and slightly slurred from the drinks they'd shared after the hunt.

He was talking to Marcus, and they must have been just around the bend in the trail.

"I've been in love with her for years, man. Victoria. From the moment I first saw her."

My blood turned to ice.

"She's everything I want in a mate. Smart, ambitious, sexy as hell. She gets me, you know? She's not some... some little pup following me around with puppy dog eyes."

The casual cruelty in his voice hit me like a physical blow.

He continued, his voice filled with an emotion I'd never heard from him before.

"Everything I do is for her. This marking ceremony, the pack resources... I'd give her the world if she asked. She's a real woman, Marcus. Not some kid who doesn't know anything about life."

The raw, unfiltered sincerity in his voice was undeniable.

He genuinely, deeply loved Victoria.

And he always had.

All my years of waiting, all my carefully planned dreams around his careless promise...

It had all been meaningless.

Worse than meaningless.

It had been a complete waste.

The last tiny ember of hope in my heart finally died.

Ethan was still talking, his drunken confession pouring out.

"I used to send her flowers anonymously when she worked at her old pack, before she even knew who I was."