Chapter 2

I stood rooted to the spot, staring at the fresh mark on Callum's neck. Five years ago, that same spot had still carried my mark.

All those years, I helped him build the pack from nothing. I treated his warriors' injuries, planned his territorial expansion, and strategized for him in meetings.

I thought if I was good enough, useful enough, he would eventually go public with my identity.

He never did.

But now Vivienne had gotten all of it so effortlessly.

"Sera," Morgan appeared beside me at some point and whispered, "You okay? You don't look so good…"

"I'm fine." I set down my knife and fork.

Behind me came the sound of Vivienne's laughter and the flattery of other she-wolves.

Vivienne sat down beside Callum.

The two of them accepted congratulations from the pack representatives, shoulder to shoulder.

She was poised and graceful, raising her glass from table to table, every word perfectly measured, every smile exactly right—within minutes, the entire room was singing her praises.

They said she was worthy of Blackridge's Alpha. They said Callum had great taste. They said they were a match made in heaven.

The mood was at its peak when Vivienne suddenly set down her glass and swept a smiling gaze across the room.

"You know what," her tone was as casual as if she were talking about the weather, "I heard there used to be this funny little story at Blackridge—something about a nanny who had a massive crush on Callum? Followed him around everywhere, a bit emotionally unstable, and eventually got let go?"

She stopped there, took a sip from her glass, and waited.

Whispers started rippling through the crowd.

"Isn't that her…"

"A nanny, trying to get with an Alpha? Who does she think she is…"

"I heard it was a real mess back then…"

The voices were low, but every word landed with surgical precision. Vivienne never once looked at me, yet everyone in the room knew exactly who she was talking about.

I could feel all those eyes on me—curious ones, gleeful ones, ones feigning sympathy while savoring the show.

I slowly raised my head and looked around the room.

Then I spoke.

"'Nanny' isn't quite accurate."

My voice wasn't loud, but the hall went quiet.

"I was Callum's former mate. The official kind. Marked, bonded, and kept for twelve years."

Dead silence.

I turned my head toward Callum.

"Right?"

Callum sat there without moving. His brow twitched once, his Adam's apple bobbed. Half a second later, he nodded.

The room erupted.

The smile on Vivienne's face finally cracked. She clearly hadn't expected me to lay it all out in front of everyone, and she certainly hadn't expected Callum to confirm it.

But she was nobility, after all. She recovered fast.

"Oh, so Sera's the ex-mate. Well then, I owe you one—thanks so much for being 'generous' enough to step aside."

She turned and flashed a smile at the room. "I hear Sera used to be Blackridge's fiercest warrior. As it happens, there's been rogue activity on the border tonight. Why don't you go show everyone what you've got? Give us a taste of the glory days?"

The wolves around us went silent. It was a blatant humiliation—asking a former top warrior to put on a performance fighting rogues was like sending a Luna out on the lowest patrol duty.

I looked at Vivienne.

"I did teach you a lot back in the day."

I stood up and looked down at her.

"But I forgot to teach you the most important lesson—don't push a woman who has nothing left to lose."

Callum's expression shifted. He grabbed Vivienne's arm and pulled her back into her seat.

"Knock it off. Sit down and eat."

"Even if you're not hungry, the pup in your belly is."

In that instant, all the noise in the hall faded away from me.

A child.

The same Callum who used to say he despised pups, who believed that offspring would weaken an Alpha's power—he was having a child with another woman.

And I—because of his negligence, I had lost my precious pup.

My stomach lurched violently. I shot to my feet. "Excuse me. I need some air."