Chapter 7 - It Was All A Lie 

“You look pale, tell me, do you know who the number belongs to?” Damon asked. 

His voice was calm but I knew what tactic he was applying, the one we used on civilians when we needed them to confess things they weren’t ready to say. I knew the training and I could bypass it but something else about him just kept me mesmerized. 

I turned to him. “Ye–No… I’m not sure.”

That was a lie. I was one hundred percent sure that was Aiden’s number and he was a handsome man. 

I felt really sick. With every realization, I drew closer to having a fever. 

I just wanted to go home. To take them to my home. Maybe he hadn’t used the pendant yet and they could still find it. 

“Follow me.” 

I started walking, but it was like moving through water. Heavy. Blurred. I didn’t feel the distance, only the growing weight on my chest. It wasn’t until I stood in my driveway, shaking fingers trying to find the key, that I realized—I had walked the whole way from work. On autopilot.

The Alpha and Beta had followed me in silence. 

My hands shook as I pulled my keys from my pocket, the bag of lingerie still in my left hand. It was useless at this point. 

The Old Beta raised a brow. “This is?” 

I turned stiffly. “This is my home.” 

There was a flicker of something on Damon’s face, probably pity. What else would he feel for me?”

They didn’t say anything as I opened the door. It wasn’t even locked. 

I took a deep breath. The smell of sweat, perfume that wasn’t mine and the smell of sex filled the house. 

I nearly barfed over the floor, instead, I gathered myself and moved inside. Damon held my hand. 

“We don’t know the full extent of this forbidden magic so whatever you see or hear inside. Don’t act, just come back out and confirm with us. We’ll handle it together.” 

I nodded but I barely listened. 

My wolf Kira, silent for days, now stirred. 

“Don’t go in. Mara, don’t do this to yourself.” 

“Maybe he didn’t do it.” I whispered within myself. “He wouldn’t. I’d feel it, the bond would tell…” 

“You didn’t. Because of the pendant. That thing masked everything.” 

Denial clawed at me, pathetic and gasping for air.

Then I heard it.  

Laughter.  

A woman’s laughter.  

Upstairs.

I didn’t walk. I floated. Or fell. Step after step like falling into hell with my eyes wide open.

I saw Aiden’s shoes near the couch, flung off with reckless abandon, I saw a red skirt, lacy underwear. 

They hadn’t expected me home yet. 

I moved forward, I found a heel, black and chic. 

Kira stirred inside me, her pain as much as mine. 

I stood outside the door right by the staircase, our Master bedroom where I no longer slept since he moved into the guest bedroom. I slept in the other room at the end of the hallway. 

I could hear the sounds, obscene, loud. I could hear skin slapping skin. Their deep breathing and her moans, his groans. 

I forced myself to look. Through the crack in the door.

Through the crack in the door, I saw him, my husband Aiden, on our bed, gripping Talia’s hips and thrusting deeply into her like he was a sex crazed beast. Her head was thrown back in ecstasy and her nails dug into the bed. Their movements were unashamed. 

Around his neck, there was a black pendant that glowed faintly. 

I wanted to scream. I wanted to rip my skin off. I wanted to set fire to the bed, the house, the memory of him.

Instead I turned and walked back downstairs. 

Damon and the old beta were waiting outside. 

 I just nodded. “He has it.” 

His expression didn’t change but something inside him became alert. 

“Let’s get her to a safe house first.” He said tightly. 

***

The old Beta wasted no time before he began asking questions. 

“Did Aiden suddenly change his habits? Or maybe his day to day routine? Was he more secretive?” 

“No, he hasn’t changed his habits but he’s at home more often now, he used to be so caught up with late night meetings and events with his friends but after… he stopped going out so much.” 

“Do you know if he had the pendant before he met her or is the timeline close? Maybe she could be part of the ring?” 

“I don’t even know when they met exactly, I just know he saved her at some point but he didn’t exactly give me the details of what happened.” I said sadly. 

“Has he come into money recently, like he’s been a big spender lately? Did he ever mention any names or do you know the spots or places he frequents? Who are his close friends?”

These were the questions I had no answer to, I was too busy working day and night. 

I told them all I knew about my husband, anything I had seen in passing which wasn’t much. My throat was dry. 

The worst part wasn’t that I didn’t know anything about him anymore, it was that I had believed the useless excuse of being platonic. 

How foolish was I? 

Was this all I had truly amounted to? 

Going against my better nature, against my own wolf. 

Kira’s silence scared me even more now. 

“I think that’s enough for now,” Damon said, stepping forward as the Beta brought out papers for me to look through. 

“But..” 

“I’ll handle it from here.” Damon cut the protest. 

The Beta looked at me reluctantly before leaving. 

We were alone. He took of his jacket and rolled up his sleeves, the tattoos were to cover the scars, scars from battles he had fought. I had heard of how he fought in battle, his skills and strength. 

It wasn't all the tabloids could tell about him, he was dangerously attractive and had all females swooning. He was emotionally unavailable turning down every advance from all females who had shot their shots at him but here he was, looking right at me. 

He crouched beside me. “Mara Raken” 

I looked at him, blankly. “How do you know my name?” 

No one knew my father’s surname here. I had no identity since I married Aiden. 

He didn't flinch, the side of his lips tilted in a small smirk instead. “I know you better than you know yourself. You’re a Beta, a natural warrior with medals to your name. You fought in the Northern Line with Commander Rell’s squad. You held your post longer than any other female soldier during the spring siege. You still have your records unbeaten.” 

My throat tightened. “That was a long time ago.”

But a part of me felt proud of who I had been and I was even more proud that he recognized my achievements. 

“It still matters if no one could beat it. You still matter and somewhere inside of you, that warrior still lives.” 

I didn’t know what to say. I had nothing. 

He rose, and pulled out a sheet of paper from the file on the table. 

“We have reason to believe your husband is part of a larger network,” Damon said. “There’s a smuggling ring dealing in dark magic that tampers with mate bonds.”

I stared at the sheet. 

“This isn’t just about unnatural infidelity,” He went on. “There’s a broader operation, one that’s dangerous and widespread. If they can create these then we have no idea what else they can do or what else they’re selling.”

My eyes fell to the paper. 

My father’s name. 

I nearly stopped breathing. 

“What? My father died in the northern border war, my mom, his mate died years before that.” I said. 

“Yes, we know.” Damon said. “Your father died fighting this, there was a task force investigating early forms of mate bond tampering. The files were confidential, until now.” 

I couldn’t feel my hands. 

My body ached. 

“We need hard evidence,” he said. “A full chain of transactions, your husband is our first known contact but he’s protected and he has connections. He won’t confess even if we arrest him.” 

He looked at me, his eyes locked in. 

“That’s why we need you. He might confide in you, you’re the only one who can get close enough. Maybe he trusts you or…” 

Or doesn’t see me as a threat. 

I wanted to laugh. To scream. Or even run away. 

“What do you want me to do?” I said, those were the words that came out of my mouth. 

Damon’s voice didn't falter. “We want you to help us bring him… bring them down.”