Chapter 3

The email attachment contained an internal meeting record from the Nightmoon Pack.

It was dated two years ago. Back then, I proposed establishing an independent inter-pack mediation center within the Nightmoon territory.

I wanted a career of my own, something that did not depend on Silas. I wanted to rediscover my sense of purpose and prove my worth again.

However, Silas had personally rejected my proposal. He told me the project would face too much resistance, that the elders would never approve it, and that I should not overwork myself.

Yet the meeting minutes Thea had sent me contained Silas’ closing remarks in black and white.

[Lyra’s proposal is certainly forward-thinking, but the timing isn’t right. As my mate, she should focus on being Luna. She has no business wielding too much authority.]

I stared at the screen, my hands and feet turning ice-cold. So he was the one who had crushed my career before it even had a chance to begin.

I scrolled down. The next file was an official appointment notice.

A few months later, the Nightmoon Pack established a department with almost exactly the same responsibilities as my proposed mediation center at Silas’ suggestion.

The name listed as its director was none other than Thea.

I clenched my jaw and opened the next few screenshots. They were chat records between Silas and his assistant.

Assistant: [Mr. Locke, Ms. Mornington has been detained at the border checkpoint. The guards claim there’s an issue with her travel documents and need your authorization to release her.]

Silas: [She can handle it herself.]

Assistant: [But…]

Silas: [Don’t bother me with trivial matters. Thea’s hearing is about to begin, and I’m busy.]

It happened last winter. I traveled to the border territory for an inspection and was rushing home afterward to prepare for our anniversary.

Yet the local guards had detained me at a freezing checkpoint for half a day, claiming my paperwork was incomplete.

I called Silas repeatedly, but he had not answered. Later, he explained that he had been attending a closed-door emergency meeting that day, where all phone signals had been blocked.

So that was what his so-called emergency meeting had been. He had been helping Thea prepare for a hearing.

I scrolled further down to the messages exchanged after the hearing.

[I’ve had a lot on my plate today and couldn’t get everything done. Let’s postpone our dinner plans. I’ll make it up to you another day.]

That night, I finally made it through the checkpoint and returned home. I sat alone in our empty apartment, waiting for him to come back so we could have our anniversary dinner.

He did not return until midnight, by which time the food had gone cold.

Still, he ate every last bite, gently reassuring me that he had simply gotten so caught up in work that he forgot our anniversary. He promised he would never miss it again.

Back then, I thought he was genuinely busy. Now, I could not help wondering if he had been keeping Thea company after her hearing, soothing her nerves once it was over.

Ever since she entered his life, it seemed he never had any time left for me.

A sharp pang pierced my chest. It took me a long while to steady myself.

Just then, another file arrived. The moment I saw what it contained, my stomach churned with disgust.

It was a draft appointment letter for the director of the Young Wolves Relief Foundation.

This was supposed to be a gift from my father after the engagement ceremony. Yet the document clearly stated that Silas had already proposed to the council of elders that Thea take over the position after the ceremony.

His reasoning was written right there.

[As the daughter of the Alpha King, Lyra already has more than enough opportunities to prove herself. She doesn’t need this one. Thea needs this opportunity more.]

I opened Thea’s chat window, my fingers trembling as I typed: [Why are you sending all this to me? What exactly are you trying to prove?]

Her reply came almost instantly: [Nothing in particular. I just want you to see things clearly. All I have to do is ask Silas, and anything that was supposed to be yours can become mine.]

My hands curled into tight fists.

[Honestly, I don’t even care about your ceremony. I couldn’t care less about the Young Wolves Relief Foundation. But if it’s something you want, I’ll make sure I take it from you.

[Lyra, why should you get to have such an illustrious family background and a mate who loves you, while I have nothing? Everything I’ve ever wanted, I’ve had to fight for myself!]

A sharp pain tore through my chest.

The ceremony schedule, the guest list, and the venue arrangements scattered across the table suddenly became unbearable to look at.

I sprang to my feet, snatched up the papers, and tore them to shreds. Pieces of paper fluttered through the room, raining down around me.

I sank into a chair, tears spilling silently down my cheeks.

Six years of grievances and sacrifices had all become a cruel joke at that moment. I gave up the life I once knew, doing everything I could to find my place in this family.

I thought my failures were my own fault, that I simply was not good enough. Yet all along, the man who held me every night and told me not to push myself too hard had been the very one secretly cutting off every path I tried to take.

I pulled out a few tissues and wiped the tears from my face. Then I gathered every document and screenshot, backed them all up, and saved them to my private cloud storage.

Once that was done, I stood up and opened the bottom drawer of my vanity. Inside were all the gifts Silas had given me over the past six years.

With each year we spent together, Silas gifted me another ring. He always said each one was a symbol of his eternal love for me.

Now, seeing them lined up so neatly, I could not help finding the whole thing bitterly ironic.

I took out a dark-colored gift box. One by one, I placed the rings inside, arranging them in chronological order.

Next went the spare key to the apartment, the access card to our shared Nightmoon Pack family account, and my mate’s access badge.

Finally, I folded the documents establishing my status as the future Luna, which I had originally planned to use tomorrow, and tucked them neatly beneath everything else.

The front door clicked. Silas was home.

He walked into the bedroom, then paused at the sight of my slightly reddened eyes and the torn scraps of paper scattered across the floor.

“What are you doing?"

I placed a hand firmly over the lid of the dark gift box, blocking his view. “Preparing an engagement gift.”

I met his eyes, my voice unnervingly calm.

His eyes lit up, and his expression immediately softened. “Why are you being so mysterious?”

He reached out to lift the lid. I covered his hand with mine, stopping him. “I’m not finished yet. You’ll see it at the ceremony tomorrow.”

He stepped closer, wrapped his arms around me, and rested his chin on my shoulder.

“I knew you wouldn’t stay mad at me. Tomorrow is going to be a day neither of us will ever forget.”

Oh, yes. It was certainly going to be a day neither of us would ever forget.