Chapter 5
By the time we reached home, I had already made my decision. Damien was no longer going to have access to me whenever he wanted, not after lying to me, betraying me, and, worst of all, abandoning Lila when she needed him most.
I waited until my mother had taken Lila upstairs before I picked up my phone. Damien's name was still at the top of my screen, and I stared at it for several seconds before finally blocking him.
My finger hovered over the screen afterward, and although the action itself should have felt insignificant, it felt like I had finally closed a door Damien had always expected to remain open for him.
My wolf released a slow breath, and I opened my contacts to find the name I needed.
Olivia Sterling.
She was my closest friend outside the clan and the only lawyer I trusted enough to handle what came next.
"Elena?"
"I need your help." I said instantly.
Her tone changed. "What happened?"
"I'm getting divorced."
Silence. Then a quiet breath.
"Are you sure?"
I looked toward the staircase where Lila was upstairs, safe for now.
"Yes."
Olivia didn't question me again. "Then tell me everything."
I sat at the kitchen table and told Olivia everything about the hospital, Selene, the pregnancy, Damien's confession, and the night Lila had been sick, including what my wolf had sensed that night, and when I finished, Olivia remained silent for a moment.
Then she said, "Elena, this is bigger than infidelity."
"I know."
"If Damien is trying to replace Lila in the clan hierarchy, we need to understand exactly what he's planning."
My fingers tightened around the phone.
“That’s exactly why I called you.”
“Then you need evidence.”
“I’ll get it.”
“Just don’t do anything recklessly, Elena.”
“I won’t.”
“Elena, listen to me.” Olivia’s voice turned firm.
"Damien is an Alpha. He has influence, resources, loyal wolves, and probably people willing to protect him. Don't confront him alone."
My jaw tightened.
"I can handle myself."
"I know you can. That's not the point." She paused.
"You want to win? Then don't give him anything he can use against you."
I leaned back in my chair. "What do I need?"
"Everything." Her voice became more businesslike.
"Messages. Financial records. Witnesses. Communications. Anything that proves the affair, threats, manipulation, or attempts to interfere with Lila's position as the firstborn of the Silvercrest bloodline."
My eyes narrowed as anger tightened my chest.
“How much can we take from him?” I asked, my voice low.
Olivia sighed. “Don’t think about revenge yet.”
“I am thinking about revenge,” I snapped.
“I know.”
“And I want him to leave with nothing.”
“Then we’ll see what the law and clan rules allow.” My hand curled into a tight fist. “I want him to pay.”
“Then make sure you have enough evidence to make him pay.”
Her words settled over me, and the rage that had consumed me since leaving the hospital slowly gave way to something colder and steadier.
I could fight Damien, but I didn't have to fight him the way he expected.
"I'll collect everything.” I said. “And Olivia?"
"Yes?"
"Don't let him take Lila." Her voice softened.
"He won't."
The call ended. I sat alone in the kitchen for several seconds until my phone vibrated again. I looked at the screen and saw Damien's name, realizing he was calling from another number after I had blocked the first one, and although I almost ignored him, I answered.
“What do you want?” I asked, my voice cold.
“Elena.” His voice carried the same cold authority as always. “Why did you blocked me.” He demanded as though I still had to obey him, and I almost sneered at the phone.
“You already know why.” There was a brief silence before he asked, “Where is Lila?”
“She’s with me. Where else could she be?”
“Put her on the phone. I want to speak to my daughter.”
“No. You don't get to demand that after what you did.”
His voice hardened. “She’s my daughter, Elena.”
“And you remembered that now?”
“Don’t start this.”
A bitter laugh escaped me. “You started this the moment you chose Selene over us.”
His tone changed. “What did Selene tell you?”
There it was. My chest tightened. “You mean the truth?”
“She misunderstood what happened.”
“She told me where you were the night Lila was sick.”
Damien fell silent, and I waited for him to answer until he finally spoke.
"I was handling an important pack business. You knew that."
I closed my eyes. The lie came so easily.
"You weren't."
"Elena-"
"You knew Lila had a fever."
"I knew."
"And you stayed with Selene."
"I had responsibilities."
"Responsibilities?" My voice shook.
"Our daughter was sick, she was calling for you."
"She wasn't dying. Will you stop making such a big deal out of it?" My blood ran cold.
I gripped the edge of the table. "She could have died that night, Damien!"
"But she didn't. Lila doesn’t need me then, you were there for her."
For a moment, I couldn't speak because that was all he had to say, as though the fact that Lila hadn't died erased everything and meant she hadn't needed her father, while my wolf growled in quiet fury.
“You abandoned her.”
“I didn’t abandon anyone,” Damien replied coldly.
“You chose Selene.”
“I was with her for a reason.”
“Because she’s carrying your child?” I asked, my voice tightening when he fell silent. “Or because she might give you the heir you actually want?”
His voice grew colder. “Don’t bring the pack into this.”
“The pack is exactly why I’m bringing it up.”
“You don’t understand what you’re talking about.”
“I understand enough.”
He exhaled sharply. “You’re emotional, Elena.”
I almost smiled because there it was again, the same word Damien always used whenever I stopped obeying him.
“I’m not emotional, Damien,” I said as I rose from my chair. “I’m just done.”
“Elena, wait.”
“I’ve heard enough of your lies.”
“You can’t just walk away from me.”
I tightened my grip on the phone, refusing to let his voice shake the resolve I had finally found.
“I already did.”
I ended the call and immediately blocked the new number as well, my hands still shaking even though I refused to cry, before walking to the window and staring out at the darkening sky.
Somewhere beyond the human city, beyond the walls that hid our clans from the world, the Silvercrest territory waited.
And with it came the council, the elders, and the looming question of Lila’s future. Damien had spent years convincing me to wait, trust him, and believe that he would eventually recognize our daughter as his heir, but I knew better now because Lila was his firstborn, carrying the Alpha bloodline and the rare Silvercrest wolf.
Her place in the clan could not simply be erased because Damien wanted a son.
If I wanted Lila to have the future she deserved, I couldn't sit back and wait for Damien to give it to her.
I would have to fight for Lila’s future, but this time, I wouldn’t walk into that battle unprepared.
I would gather every piece of evidence, every lie, betrayal, and secret, until Damien had nowhere left to hide.