Chapter 4

NATALIA

I didn’t expect gratitude. But I had hoped for decency.

Andrei stood near the fireplace, his arms folded across his chest, tension rippling through every inch of him. He hadn’t even offered me a seat. The office we’d once shared for council matters felt colder now—smaller, somehow.

“You shouldn’t have made a scene,” he said without looking at me.

I kept my expression neutral as I pulled the folded contract from my bag. The thick paper was still as crisp as the day it had been printed, the creases where it had been folded sharp. I laid it gently on the table between us.

“I didn’t make a scene. I defended myself. And this—” I tapped the page “—says our marriage contract ended this week. It could have been renewed. It wasn’t. I’ll leave, as stated in the language here,” I finished, holding it up so he could see it.

He chose not to look. “So it’s divorce, then.”

“In a way,” I said, maintaining my composure.

Finally, he looked at me. His gaze dropped to the document, then flicked back up, sharp with accusation.

“Convenient,” he muttered. “You seem to have prepared everything. Almost like you were waiting for this.”

I didn’t rise to the bait. “I was hoping you’d remember it on your own. But no matter. We made a deal. It’s time to honor it.”

The silence between us tightened. Then, as if on cue, his phone buzzed. One glance at the screen and his mouth pressed into a thin line.

Lilith.

He picked up without hesitation. “What is it?”

I couldn’t hear her words, but his face shifted instantly—concern, even urgency, flooding his features.

“I’ll be right there,” he said, then ended the call.

My chest ached before he even spoke.

“You can come by tomorrow,” he said briskly. “We’ll sign the papers then.”

He didn’t even try to hide his impatience.

“She—” I began, but he was already moving toward the door.

“Lilith’s still recovering. I don’t want her upset.”

And just like that, he left.

I stood alone, staring at the contract that should have meant something. In his world, Lilith’s every whim was a storm. My divorce? A passing drizzle.

***

The next morning, I arrived precisely on time. Aiden, one of the junior omegas, looked startled to see me at the door of the Alpha’s office, but said nothing as he let me in.

Andrei sat behind his desk, lips pursed in thought. But he wasn’t alone.

Lilith lounged on the office chaise like it was her personal throne, clad in pale silk with a bandage taped across her cheek—though I was fairly sure the wound was little more than a scratch.

Her eyes lit up when she saw me. “Natalia,” she purred, tilting her head. “You’re early. You must be eager to fix things.”

I ignored her entirely. “Andrei.”

He turned to me. “Natalia,” he said smoothly. “Please sit.”

I eyed Lilith. I wasn’t about to give her the satisfaction. “I’ll stand, thank you,” I said formally.

Lilith leaned forward, placing a delicate hand on Andrei’s forearm. “She’s being dramatic.” She focused all her attention on him, her hand lingered on Andrei’s arm. “You’re overreacting, you know. I don’t need all this attention. I could’ve healed just fine on my own.”

The urge to roll my eyes was immediate and extreme. I managed to resist the impulse.

“I need to speak to him. Alone,” I said, voice colder than steel.

Lilith’s mouth twitched. “I’m sure whatever you have to say, I can—”

“Lilith,” Andrei cut in, sighing. “Wait outside.”

She blinked in surprise, her grip tightening momentarily. But then she smiled—tight, forced—and rose with exaggerated slowness.

“I’ll be just outside, darling,” she said, brushing past me. “Natalia, you look pale. Are you feeling alright?”

I said nothing.

Once the door closed, Andrei steepled his fingers. “So you didn’t come to back out of the divorce?”

I stared at him. “No.”

“You’re not here to beg?”

“Why would I?”

He’d been gone for long stretches of our marriage—wartime could keep Alpha’s away like that—and I wondered if he’d ever really knew me at all.

He leaned back, tone sharpening. “Because you finally realize what you’re giving up. I could’ve ignored your little outburst, your jealousy. But you chose to embarrass the pack. You still owe Lilith an apology.”

I laughed. A sharp, humorless sound. “I don’t owe her a damn thing.”

He looked genuinely taken aback. “You’re serious.”

“As death.”

He stared for a moment, then nodded once. “So be it.”

Silence stretched between us.

“You can stay in the pack, if you want,” he offered, surprisingly mild. “There’s no need to disrupt everything.”

But I shook my head. “I’ll be gone by the end of the week. You can have your Luna back. Make her official.”

Something flickered in his eyes, but he said nothing as I turned to leave.

When I opened the door, Lilith was still waiting. She straightened quickly, schooling her features into something saccharine.

“Oh good,” she said. “Natalia.” Like she was surprised to see me emerge from a door that she’d been so obviously eavesdropping at.

I didn’t pause, but she stepped in front of me.

“We’re having an engagement ceremony next month. Very private. But I’d love for you to come.”

I blinked at her. “You’re joking.”

“No,” she said, smiling too brightly. “You were part of his life for so long. It feels only right to honor the transition properly. Closure, you know?”

I pushed past her. “No, thank you.”

But she followed, her voice lowering slightly. “You’re not angry, are you? I mean, it was always going to be me. We both knew that.”

I didn’t answer.

Her hand caught my arm as I reached the stairs. “Come on, Natalia. It’ll mean a lot to Andrei—”

“Let go of me.”

But in the scuffle, my bag slipped off my shoulder. Its contents scattered across the floor. Keys. Pens. A folded notepad. And—

The bottle.

Small. Amber-colored. With my name and ‘PRENATAL VITAMINS’ printed clearly on the label.

Lilith’s gaze locked on it instantly. Her smile disappeared.

I snatched it up before she could read the rest. Without another word, I turned and walked away.

LILITH

Natalia was hiding something.

I watched her retreat down the stairs, that bottle clutched tightly in her hand. I’d only caught part of the label, but I knew enough.

The bitch was going to have a pup.

I waited until the hallway cleared. Then I slipped back into Andrei’s office, crossing to the desk and pulling out my phone.

He was still behind the desk, flipping through some paper like he hadn’t just let his ex-wife walk out with half her dignity shredded.

“She’s hiding something,” I said.

He glanced up. “What?”

“Your little Luna. She’s not as calm as she seems.”

He rolled his eyes. “Let it go, Lilith.”

But I was already dialing, slipping out of his office so he couldn’t hear what I was about to do.

“I need someone followed,” I said when the line picked up. “No mistakes. I want everything: where she goes, who she sees, what she buys. And if she’s pregnant—”

I paused, watching the fire flicker in the hearth.

“—I want her gone.”