Chapter 2

Mary returned not long ago, and under the pretense of "needing time to adjust to the environment," she requested to stay in our home for a while.

Felix agreed without hesitation, before I could even voice my opinion.

"Her father was the last Beta, and he sacrificed his life to protect the pack. Caring for her is my duty," he said, his tone brooking no argument, as if taking her in were a matter of sacred obligation.

I swallowed my protests whole.

From that moment on, Mary moved through our home as if she were the rightful mistress.

She drifted about in flimsy lace robes that concealed nothing, her figure on full display; she entered Felix's study whenever she pleased and was never reprimanded; she always managed to appear whenever I had a rare moment alone with him, armed with convenient excuses to intrude.

Tonight, I found them again in his study, heads bent over a map of the territory.

Mary leaned lightly against his side, her voice low and intimate as she pointed out details on the parchment. Felix didn't move away. Instead, he angled his head toward her, listening with patient attention. Their closeness was so natural that it left no room for me.

At last, she lifted her gaze and flashed me a smile.

"Jean! I didn't notice you were here. Forgive me."

She tapped the map with a manicured finger.

"We're planning new warrior patrol routes. Care to join us?"

"No. I'm working on an antidote for a rare type of wolfsbane and need to take notes," I replied, voice cool as my eyes skimmed past them.

The agreement to sever our bond had already been signed. Whatever Felix did, whoever he chose to stand at his side… it no longer concerned me.

Mary laughed.

"You're always so serious, Jean. It reminds me of when the Alpha taught me to fight as a child, so strict and focused. But the more stern he was, the faster I learned. Isn't that right, my Alpha?"

At her words, a rare softness flickered across Felix's usually severe features, a shadow of fond memory.

They shared an unspoken understanding, an intimacy of history and memory. I, in contrast, felt like the intruder.

The scene pierced me like a needle to the heart. My chest ached, my eyes burned. I couldn't bear another second. I wanted to end this charade and escape the suffocating air of this house.

Near midnight, as I sorted through my notes, Felix entered our room. He sat on the edge of the bed, the scent of strong liquor clinging to his shirt, mingling with Mary's cloying perfume.

"Still working?" His fingers brushed the back of my neck.

I froze.

Once, this had been his silent signal of desire. But since the incident, it had all but vanished between us. I had almost forgotten.

Yet when his warm hand traced down my spine, I betrayed myself—yielding, greedy for his touch, starving for a passion long denied.

My mind screamed at me to push him away, to despise this humiliating surrender. But the bond between Alpha and Omega betrayed me. My body bent to him instinctively, helpless under the pull of his scent, his warmth, and the searing press of his fingertips.

I arched like a cat in heat, trembling as his lips found the curve of my throat. When he slipped open the buttons of my nightdress, desire and shame twisted together. I closed my eyes, surrendering—

—until a violent churn in my stomach forced me to choke back bile.

"Jean? What's wrong?" He stilled instantly as I covered my mouth, retching.

The nausea passed as quickly as it came.

"Nothing… I spent too much time around herbs today. Maybe one of them had side effects," I said weakly.

A fleeting thought whispered through me—pregnancy. But I dismissed it at once. I was an Omega, he was an Alpha of rare power; the gulf between our bloodlines made conceiving nearly impossible.

Before I could dwell further, a sharp scream shattered the night.

"Felix!"

Mary's voice, trembling at just the right pitch, rang up the stairs. A heartbeat later, alarms blared through the compound.

"I saw a shadow outside! Someone's trying to break in. I'm so scared!"

Felix's body went taut.

Before I could utter a word, he had already grabbed his coat and disappeared through the door.

"Stay here," he commanded.

In the end, it was a false alarm. Mary had mistaken a swaying tree shadow for a rogue wolf and tripped the defenses.

Hours later, Felix returned. He slipped into bed and gathered me silently into his arms. He kept his eyes trained on me.

I feigned sleep and offered him nothing.

The next morning, I nearly choked on my milk when I saw what he held in his hand—my application form for the healer's symposium. I had hidden it deep within a book on the back shelf, buried where no one should have found it.

A servant entered at that moment. "Luna, I found this wedged in a book while cleaning. I wasn't sure if it was important, so I gave it to the Alpha."

My stomach lurched.

Felix scanned the form, brow furrowed.

"Rare Wolfsbane Treatment Symposium? You want to travel all the way to the Neutral Territory?"

I forced a careless shrug. "It's just a flyer from a struggling healer's association trying to look impressive. I was only curious."

But behind my back, my fists clenched tight, trembling. That symposium was exactly where I intended to go.

Felix flipped the page, his suspicion easing.

"It's by the coast? That makes sense. You've always disliked the sea."

He remembered my distaste, but not the reason.

Two summers ago, I had dragged him eagerly to the western shore, hoping he would teach me to swim. Instead, he spent the entire day on calls with the Elders, leaving me bobbing alone in the waves with nothing but a float ring. Since then, the ocean had only been a bitter memory.

I pressed my lips together and said nothing.

He set the paper aside, his dark eyes locking on me, probing, unsettling.

"You don't need to exhaust yourself as a healer. You're the Luna. With one word, you could command endless wealth."

And that was the crux of it.

Everything I had—every recognition, every privilege—was shackled to the title Alpha Felix's Luna. No one saw me anymore. Not my skills, not my effort. Even I had almost forgotten who I was beneath it all.

I drew breath to argue, but Mary's laugh rang through the doorway.

"Good morning!" She breezed in, silk robe flowing, and perched casually on the arm of Felix's chair.

"Felix, a small pack is requesting to renegotiate trade terms. They want a face-to-face meeting. Maybe you could spare me a little time from our Luna?"

Her fingers rested familiarly on his shoulder.

He rose without another glance at me or the application in his hand. "We'll discuss it in the study."

When their footsteps faded, I snatched the form back.

On its final page, bound to the symposium documents, was the bond-severing scroll.

This time, I locked it inside a safe that only I knew the code to.

At last, the final chance for him to stop me had vanished.