Chapter 4

The final day arrived quicker than I anticipated. Alexis, the Delta warrior who had always lurked in the shadows of my bond with Alpha Kaison, unexpectedly contacted me to set up a meeting. Her presence loomed like a storm cloud—dark and unavoidable.

'It was me who kept the Alpha away from you,' she declared, her voice laced with contempt, her eyes piercing like daggers. 'Three years have passed, and yet, you persist.'

I responded with a composed smile, standing tall despite the heaviness of her words. 'Is that why you summoned me here, Delta Marshall?'

She appeared momentarily startled by my formal address but quickly masked it with a sly grin. 'I wanted to inform you that this time, the Alpha is organizing a jewelry exhibition in my honor; that’s why we returned early.'

She paused, her gaze scrutinizing as if seeking a weakness in my facade. 'Arranging the exhibition has been exhausting, so…'

My heart faltered as Alexis leaned in closer, her voice dropping to a venomous whisper. 'I thought I’d drop by to brighten your day,' she mocked.

Instinctively, my fingers grazed the scar on my wrist. 'Last year, during an exhibition, you had an unfortunate accident, didn’t you?'

Alexis’s smile broadened, but her eyes remained cold, like ice over a frozen pond. 'I recall it was while you were setting up the displays. A prop fell and injured your wrist.'

Memories I had tried to suppress flooded back, each one slicing into my already wounded heart. On my birthday last year, Alpha Kaison had abandoned me for Alexis. Overwhelmed with pain, I scrolled through social media posts that felt toxic. The next day, disoriented and unfocused, I showed up at the exhibition. While arranging the displays, my distraction led to a dangerous oversight—a large decorative prop teetering precariously above.

With a resounding crash, the prop fell, and I couldn’t evade it in time. My wrist took the brunt of the impact, and I collapsed, blood staining my sleeve. Bystanders quickly summoned an ambulance.

I recalled Alpha Kaison’s solemn promise, delivered with the authority of his alpha tone: 'No matter the challenge, reach out to me immediately.' Desperate, I fumbled for my phone with trembling hands to call him, but he never answered. Throughout my surgery, he continued to ignore my calls and never appeared.

It was in that agonizing moment, lying on the sterile hospital bed, that I finally acknowledged Alpha Kaison’s heart was never truly mine.

Alexis’s saccharine voice abruptly cut through my reflections as she shoved her phone in my face. 'You know, at that time, the Alpha and I were… right there.'

The photo depicted Alexis in an alluring gown, perched on a hotel bed. Alpha Kaison knelt beside her, massaging her feet with a gentleness and affection I had never witnessed. Other images captured their intimate moments on the bed, his alpha demeanor softened in ways unfamiliar to me.

I stared intently at the image of him. He had always exuded authority, demanding I cater to his every need, bending to his will. I had never seen this submissive side of him.

A tempest of sorrow and rage swelled within me, my wolf whimpering faintly in my subconscious. I swallowed my bitterness and rose, my voice steady despite the inner chaos. 'If he truly loved you, he’d make you his Luna, not leave you lingering in the shadows.'

With that, I turned to depart, my head held high despite the gravity of the situation.

Behind me, Alexis’s voice escalated sharply, slicing through the air like a blade. 'The one not truly loved is the one cast aside! Just wait and see which pack house the Alpha returns to tonight!'

Her words reverberated in my ears as I walked away, each step a silent pledge to leave the past behind.