Chapter 1

As Brianna finished making herself a cup of coffee, she heard her phone ping, cutting through the silence in the kitchen.

She turned around and reached for it on the counter, expecting another boring notification from her workplace but the name on the screen made her stomach twist.

Riley Monroe.

That shameless…

She held herself back and opened the message only to freeze.

Right there was a picture of her mate and husband, Tristian Howard.

He was sprawled across a hotel bed, fast asleep, the sheets bunched around his waist and leaving his bare torso exposed. The room was dim, but there was enough light to make out the sweat beaded across his skin.

The sight hit harder than a slap. It made their mate bond twist, but Brianna refused to let the pain in. For a moment, she just stared at the screen speechlessly.

Then her eyes darted back to the name of sender, the real

punch to the gut.

It hadn’t changed. It was still Riley.

Standing there, Brianna could almost picture that smug smile of hers. And somehow, even through the phone, she could swear she could smell that cheap cologne she was always drowning herself in.

If anything, it made her grip tighten around her phone, her inside churning.

No. Riley hadn’t sent her the picture by accident.

Brianna was so sure of it that she let out a quiet laugh at her own expense.

She should have been devastated. Maybe she should have broken down, screamed until her throat hurt, or thrown the phone across the room.

Instead, she felt anger.

It wasn’t the hot, reckless kind.

This was colder and heavier. The kind that made her hands steady instead of shaking.

So this was what it had come to.

For months now, Riley had always been lounging around Tristian, all the while smiling sweetly and calling Brianna big sister.

She had perfected that harmless little-sister act from the moment Tristian brought her to one of their family dinners on Thanksgiving.

Even her mother had fallen for it, greeting her with that sweet welcoming smile that was only reserved for people she approved of.

But Brianna could still vividly remember something they didn’t know she’d noticed.

And it was Tristian’s hand brushing Riley’s hair.

Not a friendly pat on the head one seldom gives his secretary for a job well-done. His fingers had stayed there for several seconds before he finally pulled it away.

Then, Brianna had thought it was just a stupid daze from the wine. She had told herself she was imagining things.

Apparently, she wasn’t.

Her eyes dropped to the photograph again.

Her mate was cheating on her. There was no room left for excuses.

Neither would she fall apart.

If they wanted to humiliate her, she might as well return the favor.

Leaning her hip against the counter, Brianna opened her mail app, heading straight to the Helion Corporation group chat. The last she checked, hundreds of employees were members.

Her thumb hovered over the attachment. Then she sent the photograph in. A second later, she added sarcastically beneath it; “The trophy for ‘Employee of the Month’ goes to Riley Monroe. For going above and beyond for her boss… in more ways than one.”

After sending, she could only stare at the message for a moment before her phone started going crazy.

One notification became five. Five became twenty. The group chat basically blown up so quickly that she could barely keep up with the messages.

And honestly, she didn’t want to.

They could gossip all they wanted. She had no intention of sticking around to watch the fallout anyway.

Brianna went upstairs and pulled her suitcase from beneath the bed. Fifteen minutes later, it was filled with clothes, important documents, her laptop, and whatever else she couldn’t afford to leave behind.

Then she closed the zipper and looked around the bedroom for the last time.

This place had been her home.

But not anymore.

As she grabbed her suitcase and hand bag, she realized she couldn't properly breathe under the roof anymore.

Even her room reminded her of Tristian. The furniture they’d both picked together. The photographs on the walls. Even the hallway where he’d kissed her goodbye that morning, completely unaware that she’d soon be walking out of his life.

Brianna dragged her luggage down the steps.

For the first time in years, she didn’t need to hide what she was; A wolfless Omega.

Tristian had once slammed that fact in her face sometime back when they had an argument.

Not in those exact words, of course. He’d been more hideous, saying words like, “You should be grateful I chose you, Brianna.”

She’d been grateful.

She’d actually believed a man like Tristian, successful, powerful and admired by everyone around him, had genuinely loved her despite the fact that she hadn’t awakened her wolf yet.

Now she knew how delusional she was.

He’d grown tired of waiting for a wolf that would never awaken in her. Eventually, his patience had run out, and he’d taken his needs to another woman’s bed.

Once Brianna reached the porch, she signaled to the uber driving toward her.

“Take me to the airport.” She said as she climbed into the backseat.

As the car pulled away, she turned toward the window. The Pack passed in a blur but her mind kept dragging her backward.

That family dinner. The way Riley kept clinging to Tristian’s side after he had introduced her.

The way she’d laughed at everything he said, constantly exposing more of her cleavage like some whore who was trying to make sure everyone noticed her.

Even her mother had picked up on it. Brianna had seen the frown on her face, the way she’d watched them for a moment longer in suspicion.

But she’d dismissed it and told her it was nothing.

She’d told herself the same thing.

Now she realized she just hadn’t wanted to admit it.

Hadn’t wanted to accept Tristian never married her because he loved her.

Instead, he’d accepted her as his mate because she was useful. Because a wolf-free Omega like her was easier to control.

God, she felt stupid now.

But it wasn’t too late to amend things. Something inside her had been fractured seeing Riley’s texts, but it hadn’t made her weak but cold.

Whatever happened between Tristian and Riley after tonight wasn’t her problem anymore.

Her marriage was finished.

And this time, she wasn’t waiting for Tristian to make the decision for her.

She was ending it herself.

Her fingers slipped into her handbag. The small flash drive holding the company’s financial records, falsified contracts, files proving Tristan and the company’s illegal doings was still in there.

She hadn’t left without nothing.

At the Pack’s airport, Brianna didn’t bother searching for the cheapest flight or thinking about where she’d stay. She went straight to the first available flight to The Night Blood pack, another territory, and bought the ticket.

The confirmation appeared on her phone; ‘Booking successful.’

For the first time that night, a victorious smile curved her mouth.

It wasn’t out of happiness. Rather, it was her relishing in what felt like her freedom.

She boarded the plane and settled into her seat, keeping her suitcase tucked beneath the seat in front of her. Around her, passengers chatted and moved about, completely unaware that her entire life had just fallen apart.

After a few minutes, the engines rumbled to life and the plane began to move.

Brianna leaned her head against the window as The Dark Howl city disappeared beneath them.

Somewhere back there, Tristian was probably still sleeping peacefully with Riley in his arms.

He had no idea what was waiting for him when he woke up.

Good.

Let him wake up to the mess he’d created.