Chapter 3

Lyra

The morning air of the capital was freezing, but the fever burning beneath my skin made me feel like I was standing in the middle of a blazing inferno. I kept the woolen collar of my coat pulled high up around my neck, shielding my lower face as I stepped out of the taxi and walked up the broad, towering steps of the Lycan High Court.

For six long years, I had managed the Croft pack’s massive financial portfolios, skimming small, untraceable sums into a private account precisely for this day. I knew the exact legalities of our pack constitution. According to Lycan statutes, a Luna who endured a legitimate separation or divorce was entitled to a fixed percentage of her husband’s liquid assets as a statutory dowry; a cushion to ensure she wasn't cast out onto the streets as a beggar.

The sum I was legally owed was astronomical. It was more than enough to pay off the surgeon who had agreed to perform my kidney transplant next week.

I pushed open the doors of the courthouse, stepping into the echoing hall of justice. The architecture was designed to make ordinary wolves feel small, with soaring ceilings and towering stone statues of past Supreme Alphas looking down with stern, unblinking expressions.

I bypassed the crowded general public windows and headed straight for the civil registry archives.

The registry clerk, an older wolf with a bored expression and thick-rimmed spectacles, barely looked up when I approached the counter.

"Name and petition type," the clerk droned, his claws tapping frantically against a keyboard.

"Lyra Sterling, formerly Lyra Croft. Filing for a formal dissolution of marriage and immediate allocation of statutory Luna dowry from Alpha Julian Croft of the Croft Pack."

The clerk’s typing abruptly stopped.

He slowly raised his head, his graying eyebrows pulling together as he peered at me over the top of his glasses. He looked me up and down, taking in my pale skin, the dark circles under my eyes, and the simple, unadorned wool coat. Then, a strange, knowing smirk touched the corners of his mouth.

"Lyra Croft," he repeated, rolling the name around on his tongue as if it tasted foul. He turned to his terminal, clicked a few keys, and brought up our digital registry file. "Ah. The gala last night was quite the spectacle, wasn't it? Half the high-society columns are already printing headlines about your... dramatic exit."

My jaw tightened. "I am here to file divorce papers, not discuss gossip. Please process the paperwork."

"Oh, I'm processing it," the clerk chuckled softly, turning a massive book toward himself and running a finger down a dense column of archaic text. "You see, Miss Sterling, or should I say, Luna Croft, filing a divorce isn't quite as simple as walking up to a window and dropping off a form. Especially when dealing with high-ranking Alpha bloodlines."

A cold knot began to form in my stomach. "What are you talking about? The law explicitly states that a Luna subjected to infidelity or public abandonment has the immediate right to file."

"The law also has clauses," the clerk replied smoothly, leaning back in his chair and lacing his fingers over his protruding stomach. "Let's see here. Croft Pack charter, section four, paragraph twelve...Ah. Here it is."

He tapped a yellowed page.

"A marital bond between an Alpha and a Luna of a recognized pack cannot be legally severed, nor can a statutory dowry be claimed, until a mandatory waiting period of exactly two thousand, two hundred and twenty days of verified cohabitation and marriage has been fully completed."

My breath hitched.

"Two thousand, two hundred days?!That's practically like six years and..."

"Thirty days, Luna Croft. You're short by exactly one full month. If you attempt to force a dissolution today, not only will your petition be summarily rejected, but because you initiated a premature breach without legal grounds, the entirety of your dowry will be legally forfeited to the Alpha's primary estate. You will walk away with absolutely nothing."

Nothing.

If I walked away with nothing, I couldn't pay for the surgery. If I couldn't pay for the surgery, my remaining kidney would fail completely within weeks and I'd die. Julian might not know it but he'd practically signed my death sentence.

"No," I whispered, shaking my head as the edges of my vision began to blur with dark, dizzying spots. "No, there has to be an exception. A medical clause..."

"There are no exceptions," the clerk interrupted, slamming the heavy registry book shut with a loud, final thud. "You are legally bound to Alpha Julian Croft for exactly one more month. Until then, any romantic or marital involvement with another individual will be treated as severe adultery under High Court jurisdiction, carrying maximum penalties. Have a nice day, Mrs. Croft."

He turned away from the window, deliberately picking up a stack of papers and completely ignoring me.

I stood frozen at the counter, my chest heaving, the air in the room suddenly turning heavy. The betrayal was so suffocating, that it felt like a physical weight crushing my ribs. Julian had frozen my personal accounts, and now the court had legally locked away my dowry. I was entirely trapped, out of money, out of time, and running on borrowed breath.

Stumbling backward from the counter, I turned and rushed toward the grand exit, desperate for fresh air before I collapsed right there on the floor.

The bright midday sunlight outside offered no warmth. The bitter New York wind lashed across the courthouse steps, biting straight through my thin coat. I wrapped my arms tightly around my midsection, pressing hard against the stabbing pain in my side as I staggered down the steps toward the bustling sidewalk.

My head was spinning, the street signs starting to swim, blurring together into streaks of gray and yellow.

I need a cab, I thought frantically. I need to get to a pharmacy, or find a phone, or...

*SREEECH.*

The piercing sound of tires violently locking up against the asphalt shattered my thoughts.

Before I could even turn my head, three massive, matte-black Maybach SUVs swarmed around the base of the steps, cutting off the sidewalk and boxing me in completely from all directions. The tinted doors flew open and before I could scream, muscled hands grabbed me by the arms.

A thick hood was shoved down over my head, plunging me into sudden darkness.

"Hey! Let go of me! What is the meaning of this?!" I cried out, kicking and thrashing wildly.

"Quiet, Miss Sterling. The boss wants a word."

I was violently hoisted off my feet, carried across the pavement, and shoved into the moving vehicle. The doors slammed shut and the SUV instantly sped away.