Chapter 3: Cancel

Layla's POV

The whispers wouldn't stop.

Guests leaned into each other, trading shocked looks, and my family's faces darkened with every murmur. Father stood rigid. Cole's fists clenched at his sides. My mother's eyes were wet, and for the first time, something close to guilt crossed her face.

She moved toward me. Her hand half-reached for my arm — the gesture of a mother who'd just heard what her daughter survived and didn't know how to look away.

But Aurora spoke first.

"It's alright." Her voice quavered beautifully. "Please don't force Layla. I understand. I would never want her to do anything she doesn't—"

She swayed. One hand drifted to her forehead. Then her knees buckled, and she crumpled to the marble in a perfect, graceful collapse.

The family moved as one. Father caught her. Mother dropped to her knees. Cole shoved past me to take Aurora's hand. The guests surged forward with gasps and worried murmurs, everyone crowding around the delicate twin who'd just been so generous.

I stood three feet away with my arms at my sides, watching them perform their family portrait. Like an outsider peering through glass.

Father turned on me. "Look at your sister." He jabbed a finger at Aurora's limp form. "She collapsed because of you, and you're just standing there. Do you have any heart at all?"

"She fainted, Father. She didn't die."

Cole's face twisted. "You did this on purpose. You wanted their pity. You're jealous of Aurora and you'd rather see her dead than lift a finger."

I held his gaze. "When you asked me to give up my wolf, did anyone in this family stop to think about what would happen to me?"

Silence. Then my mother spoke, her voice cracking with frustration before she could stop herself.

"You won't die without a wolf, Layla. You'll be fine."

The words hung in the air.

I stared at her. She heard what she'd said a second too late — her mouth opened, but there was nothing to take back. The math was laid bare for the whole room: Layla without a wolf would survive. Aurora without a wolf was unthinkable.

One daughter was expendable. The other was not.

My vision went dark at the edges. I'd already given up on these people. I knew who they were. But hearing my own mother say it — that calm, practical arithmetic of which daughter could afford to lose — still hit something raw.

Not just fury. Something sadder than fury.

The whole scene was too absurd. I stepped back toward the edge of the crowd.

"What's going on here?"

The voice came from behind me — smooth, warm, full of concern. Every nerve in my body fired at once.

Not warmth. Not the golden pull they described in old stories about meeting your fated mate.

Ice. A cold so deep it reached bone.

My wolf snarled inside my chest.

I turned and saw Kaelen Vance.

He stood at the edge of our alcove, tall and golden-haired, brow furrowed with the right amount of worry. The neighboring pack's Alpha son. Handsome. Courteous. The only person in this pack who'd never looked at me with contempt.

In my first life, learning he was my mate had been the happiest moment I could remember. He'd held my hand when the wolf-sharing weakened me. He'd told me I was strong. He'd promised to always take my side.

Only when I was dying did I understand. We shared a wolf, which meant Aurora was his mate too. Every gentle word, every reassuring touch, had been for her benefit. And when the time came, he held the knife himself.

I could still feel the blade going in.

"Layla." He crossed to me, all warmth and steady concern. "I heard about the wolf sharing. Don't worry — once you go through with it, I'll make sure you're taken care of."

I looked at his hands. Steady. Elegant. The same hands that had driven a silver knife into my stomach.

Behind him, Aurora's eyes cracked open. She saw Kaelen standing beside me, and her face went tight — gone in a flash. Kaelen's gaze flicked to her. A small, reassuring nod. Quick enough that anyone who wasn't looking for it would have missed it.

But I had spent a lifetime learning to look.

"You should go comfort my sister." I kept my voice light. "You two can barely keep your eyes off each other."

They both went rigid.

"Layla—" Kaelen started.

"Oh, I almost forgot." I tilted my head. "Aurora already has a betrothal to the Lycan King, doesn't she? I wonder just how far you're willing to go for her, Kaelen."

The crowd rippled. Whispers that had been dying down roared back to life.

Kaelen's composure cracked for the first time. Aurora's face went white.

Father's face went purple. "Layla — enough! Someone get her out of here before she ruins her sister's birthday!"

Two servants stepped forward. One grabbed my shoulder.

I wrenched free so hard he stumbled backward. The strength surprised everyone, including me — but my wolf was fully awake now, and she had no interest in being handled.

I straightened my dress, looked at my family one last time, and walked out on my own.

Third Person

An awkward silence hung over the hall after Layla left. Alpha Thorne straightened his collar, drew himself to his full height, and addressed the remaining guests with the composure of a man who'd spent decades commanding a Pack. "The evening continues," he said. This was a family matter.

The guests took the hint. Conversations resumed, politely steered away from what they'd just witnessed.

Behind the closed doors of a side parlor, Aurora buried her face in her mother's shoulder. "It's all my fault," she whispered, her voice catching. "Layla's resentment — she has every right to feel that way. I should never have let you ask her."

Sienna stroked her daughter's hair. Cole paced the room, jaw tight. The family closed ranks around Aurora. Told her she was brave, told her she was kind, told her Layla was a wild girl from the border who didn't know what she had.

"She'll come around," Cole said. "She has nowhere else to go."

When the crowd thinned, Kaelen walked Aurora down a quiet corridor. She gripped his arm, her tears already dry.

Aurora's voice dropped. "She knows about us."

Kaelen brushed a strand of hair from her face. "She's guessing. No one will believe her over you." He cupped her chin. "You know you're the only one."

Aurora's jaw tightened. "And the engagement? I won't marry the Lycan King. He's violent, unpredictable—"

"After tonight," Kaelen said quietly, "that won't be a problem." His eyes went cold.

Aurora searched his face. "Can we really go against the royal family?"

"Your father's Pack has been receiving anonymous funding for the past six months. I've traced the source." His voice dropped. "It's Phantom."

Aurora's eyes went wide. "The Night Veil? The biggest neutral power in the kingdom — they're behind us?"

Kaelen pulled her close, his smile turning cold. "With Phantom's resources, why would we fear one king?"

Aurora nestled against him. For the first time all evening, her smile was real.

Outside the banquet hall, the corridor was dark and empty.

Layla leaned against the wall. Her phone buzzed — a message from The Night Veil glowing on the screen.

Boss — confirming this month's disbursement to Thorne Pack. Awaiting your approval.

She typed two words and hit send.

Funding canceled.