Chapter 13

Seraphina’s POV

The door clicked shut as Amanda finally left for the guest quarters. I stood completely still, my back pressed against the cold wood, staring into the empty, quiet bedroom.

My mind was a chaotic storm. Amanda’s final words echoed loudly in my head, filling in the blanks of that fateful night three years ago. 

She had explained it all so clearly before she left. The night the real Evelyn disappeared, she and Soren had gotten into a massive, terrible fight. 

The argument was so violent and painful that Evelyn could not handle it anymore. 

She had packed nothing, running out of the palace and into the dark, dangerous forest just to escape his suffocating cruelty.

And she never returned.

Everyone in the Obsidian Claw Pack—and the entire werewolf kingdom—believed that the Rogue King, Orion, had captured and killed Evelyn in those woods. But I knew the absolute truth. 

I was Orion’s top assassin. I knew his secrets. The Rogue King did *not* kill Evelyn. He had simply found her broken, lifeless body hidden deep in the forest months later, using her dead form to create me.

So, if the Rogues didn't do it... who actually killed the real Queen?

The pieces of the puzzle were finally fitting together perfectly. It made total sense why the palace maids and guards still held so much deep hatred and disrespect for Evelyn; they were just continuing the abuse Soren had started years ago. 

It made sense why Soren was constantly drowning in a sea of overwhelming guilt every time he looked at me.

 And it especially made sense why he had rushed into my room earlier, looking so panicked and anxious. He was terrified that Amanda would reveal the ugly truth before he could brainwash me with his fake love.

Soren genuinely regretted his past actions. I could see the real pain and desperation in his gray eyes every time he held my hand. 

He wanted to change. He wanted to be a good husband now.

But as I stood alone in the dark room, a sudden, sharp pain twisted deep inside my chest.

It wasn't just Evelyn's residual emotions hurting me. It was *my* pain. I remembered the way Soren’s lips had felt against mine two nights ago, the raw heat that had rushed down my thighs, and the intense way my body had melted for him. 

I had actually started to feel something real for this Alpha. But knowing that he was openly sleeping with other women while the fragile, gentle Evelyn sat alone in this very room crying... it made my blood run cold. He had humiliated his mate. He had broken her spirit.

That night, I did not go to his chambers. I stayed in my own bed, staring at the ceiling, my heart turning into a block of ice.

Two more nights passed, and I completely avoided him. I refused to look at the expensive dresses he bought me. 

I refused to eat the luxury meals he sent to my room. I kept my door locked, focusing entirely on my assassin instincts, burying the soft feelings that had briefly sparked inside me.

On the third night, the door handle jiggled. Soren did not knock. He used his royal key and stepped into my room, looking tired and deeply worried.

"Evelyn," he said softly, taking a slow step toward me. His eyes scanned my blank face, searching for any sign of warmth. 

"You have not come to see me. You have been hiding in this room for days. How have you been, my love?"

I sat on the edge of the bed, my hands folded neatly in my lap. I looked up at him, my expression completely deadpan.

"I have been busy, Soren," I replied, my voice smooth and dangerously calm. 

"I have been trying to figure out why the pack members and the little children do not like me at all. I have been trying to understand why everyone looks at their Luna with so much disgust."

Soren flinched as if I had physically slapped him. He quickly avoided my intense gaze, looking down at the marble floor. 

"Do not think anything of it, Evelyn," he said quickly, his voice sounding rushed and nervous. 

"The pack members are just... they are just confused because you were gone for so long. They will adjust. Please, do not stress your mind with such things."

He stepped closer to me, the warm, familiar scent of pine and rain filling the space between us. He reached out, gently gripping my waist to pull me up from the bed. 

He leaned down, his eyes darkening with desire, his lush lips moving closer to mine. He wanted to kiss away my doubts. He wanted to use his body to make me forget.

I did not let him.

With a sudden, forceful movement, I placed both of my hands against his solid chest and shoved him away from me.

Soren stumbled back a step, his eyes widening in pure, unhidden shock. He stared at me, his mouth slightly open, completely stunned that his gentle wife had just rejected his touch so sharply.

I stood tall, glaring at him with blazing, ice-cold silver eyes.

"How long do you want to hide it from me, Soren?" I demanded, my voice cutting through the quiet room like a whip.

Soren swallowed hard, his face turning pale under the dim candlelight. He tried to force a confused smile onto his lips, but his hands were shaking.

"Hide what?" he asked, his voice cracking. "Evelyn, what are you talking about? I am not hiding anything from you."

"Stop lying!" I snapped, taking a fierce step toward him. "Hide the fact that you were with another woman during our marriage! Hide the fact that you brought females into this palace and slept with them while I sat alone in the dark!"

Soren froze completely. The breath left his lungs in a sharp gasp.

"We got into a terrible, violent argument because of your infidelity that night," I continued, the words pouring out of me with real, bitter fury. 

"That is the real reason I ran out into that dark forest, Soren. I was escaping *you*. I was escaping your cruelty. You knew my mind was damaged when I came back. You knew I did not remember most of the past events, but you kept perfectly quiet. You let me believe you were a grieving, loving husband."

I stepped right in front of him, poking him hard in his solid chest with my finger, forcing him to look at my angry, tear-filled eyes.

"You never loved me, did you?" I whispered, my voice breaking with a mixture of Evelyn’s old sorrow and my own dark rage.

 "Tell me the truth right now, Alpha. You hated me."