Chapter Three

As Leo and Tracy stepped out of the study, Tracy paused at the door. She leaned in, her voice a low, jagged whisper meant only for Alexia. "I told you he’d choose me. I told you I’d take everything."

Tracy didn’t leave with the boy. She turned to the hallway, signaling the pack driver. "Take Leo to the car. Get him whatever ice cream he wants. I need a moment with his father."

She strolled back to the center of the room, a triumphant smile lighting her face as she looked at the divorce papers Alexia had just set aside.

Rex exhaled a sharp, jagged breath. He opened his desk drawer and produced a second, identical stack of documents, slamming them onto the glass table.

"I always keep a spare," Rex said, his voice dropping into a dangerous, quiet register. "Sign the new copy, Alexia. Don’t test my patience today."

"I said no," Alexia whispered, her frame trembling from the fever and the weight of the betrayal.

"You can’t just erase five years of marriage because you’ve grown bored."

"He isn't bored," Tracy laughed, stepping behind Rex and resting her hands on his broad shoulders. "He’s just finally awake. Look at you in that cheap dress, shivering like a wet dog. You bring no value to this family. You’re an embarrassment to the title of Luna."

"You’re just a temporary substitute," Alexia snapped back, her eyes burning with unshed tears. "You can wear all the expensive clothes you want, Tracy. You will never be his true mate."

Tracy’s smile vanished instantly. Her eyes hardened into dark, cruel slits. She stepped around Rex, closing the distance between herself and Alexia.

"You think the mate bond matters?" Tracy asked softly. "You think a stupid cosmic joke makes you special? Let me tell you a secret, Alexia. I’m going to take your title. I’m going to take your house. I’m going to raise Leo to forget your very name."

"You stay away from my son," Alexia warned, her voice thin and shaking.

"He’s already mine," Tracy sneered. "But he’s just the beginning." Tracy placed a perfectly manicured hand flat against her own stomach. Her smile returned, wicked and full of poison. "Rex is finally going to have a real heir. A strong, perfect pup. I’m pregnant, Alexia."

The air left Alexia’s lungs. She stumbled back, her hands flying to her mouth as she looked at Rex, praying to see even a flicker of denial on his face.

Rex just stood there. He crossed his arms over his chest, his jaw set, his icy blue eyes devoid of even a drop of remorse.

"A baby," Alexia choked out, the heartbreak tearing her soul into jagged pieces. "You slept with her in our home. You gave her a child."

"I did what I had to do for the future of my pack," Rex replied coldly. "You are weak. Your bloodline is weak. Tracy is giving me the legacy you never could."

"You’re a monster," Alexia cried, the tears finally spilling over.

"And what do you think you are?" Tracy whispered.

Then, Tracy did something that made Alexia’s blood run cold. She reached over to the marble bust sitting on the edge of the bookshelf. With a swift, deliberate motion, Tracy shoved the heavy statue directly onto her own foot.

A sickening crunch echoed through the room.

Tracy let out a piercing scream and threw herself onto the floor. She grabbed her stomach, sobbing. "My baby! Rex, help me! She pushed the statue on me! She’s trying to kill our baby!"

Alexia froze in pure horror. "What? No! Rex, I didn’t even touch her!"

Rex moved faster than lightning. He shoved Alexia out of the way so violently that her shoulder slammed into the doorframe. She gasped in pain, sliding down the wall as Rex dropped to his knees beside Tracy.

"Tracy," Rex murmured, his voice suddenly full of a gentle panic he had never once shown his wife. He scooped the crying woman into his arms. "I’ve got you. You’re safe."

"She said she wanted my baby dead," Tracy sobbed, burying her face in Rex’s chest. "She said if she can’t have you, nobody can."

Rex slowly turned his head. The look in his eyes was pure, unadulterated hatred. He looked at Alexia like she was a diseased insect invading his home.

"You jealous, pathetic wolf," Rex growled, his voice vibrating with venom. "You’re a barren, useless disappointment. I should have rejected you the second I saw you."

"Rex, she did it to herself!" Alexia pleaded, struggling to stand. "Please, you have to believe me!"

"I believe what I see," Rex spat. He pointed a heavily tattooed finger at the divorce papers on the table. "Sign the damn papers right now. If you don’t, I’ll lock you in the pack dungeons and let the guards use you for target practice. You’ll never see the sun again."

The cruelty in his words shattered whatever fragile hope Alexia had left. He truly hated her. He would let her rot in a cell just to please his mistress.

With trembling, defeated hands, Alexia dragged herself to the table. She picked up the pen. The room spun wildly around her, the fever mixing with her unbearable grief. She scribbled her name on the dotted line, her tears smudging the dark ink.

"Done," she whispered, dropping the pen.

"Guards!" Rex roared.

Two massive men in black uniforms burst into the study.

"Take this rogue off my property," Rex commanded, not even looking at Alexia anymore. He was busy wiping the fake tears from Tracy’s cheeks. "Throw her past the border. If she tries to return, kill her on sight."

The guards grabbed Alexia by her arms, lifting her off her feet. They dragged her out of the study, through the foyer, and out the front doors. They didn’t let her pack a bag. They didn’t let her take a coat.

They dragged her down the long, gravel driveway as the rain began to pour from the dark sky. When they reached the gates of the pack border, they threw her onto the wet asphalt.

"Don’t come back, weakling," one of the guards sneered before locking the gate.

Alexia lay on the cold, wet road. The rain soaked through her thin dress, chilling her to the bone. Her head throbbed with a blinding pain. She forced herself to stand, her bare feet bleeding against the rough stones.

She needed to find help. She needed to survive for Leo.

But the fever was too strong. The heartbreak was too heavy.

As she reached the pack border, her legs finally gave out. The world tilted violently. She felt herself falling forward into the total darkness.

Strong, muscular arms wrapped around her waist, catching her effortlessly. The scent that hit her senses was intoxicating. It smelled like dark rain, expensive cologne, and raw, undisputed power. It was not Rex's scent. It was something much more dangerous.

Alexia forced her heavy eyelids open.

She was staring up at the most breathtaking man she had ever seen. He had sharp, aristocratic features, piercing silver eyes, and dark hair that fell perfectly across his forehead. He wore a tailored black suit that screamed old money.

He looked down at her, his silver eyes flashing with a possessive, predatory light. His thumb gently brushed a tear from her feverish cheek.

"I know who you are. It’s okay, you don't have to say anything," the man murmured.

Alexia tried to speak, but no words came out.

The man pulled her flush against his solid chest, his gaze dropping to her lips.

"Do not waste your tears on a fool, little wolf," he whispered, leaning in so close she could feel the heat of his breath. "Marry me, and I will give you the power to destroy them all."