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Chapter 5
Atticus–who had been howling for a separation–blinked at the decision, then stared at me as if the floor had dropped out.
“This was your idea?”
I turned my face away and let the question die.
Sensing his hesitation, Anya feigned surprise, but triumph rang in her voice.
“Did the Elders find out the Luna cheated? I thought I was quick. Turns out they’re quicker.”
She tossed a stack of photos onto the table.
In them, I sat at a coffee shop across from a man whose face was hidden by the angle.
I looked relaxed. I was laughing.
Atticus’s jaw clenched. “You’re ice in front of me. Who said you could smile like that at him?”
Seeing the kindling catch, Anya poured gas on it. “Alpha, you said it yourself–eight years of marriage and you were done. Maybe she felt the same. Why not part clean?”
The words landed. His doubt broke.
He signed the dissolution as if thunde
e pen burned to the touch.
“I’ll enjoy seeing what kind of man she finds next.”
Rotor thunder rolled over the pack grounds.
Liam Carter, Alpha of Thornclaw Pack, dropped in with warriors at his back.
A banner snapped open as they shouted in unison: “Congratulations to Ms. Lark–out of the cage, free again!”
The chant rattled the windows. Atticus’s face went black, and his words came out as a growl.
“So, Seraphina… when did you start sneaking around with him?”
I didn’t bother with a glance. I picked up my suitcase and walked.
This was business. I’d saved Liam’s grandmother; he fixed Nightfall’s Elders.
That was all. No romance. No strings.
As I moved past, Atticus clamped a hand on my wrist. “Seraphina, the waters run deeper at Thornclaw than at Nightfall. Are you sure you want to go?”
I pried his fingers off one by one, calm and steady.
He drew breath to say more, but Liam cut in.
Sliding an arm around me, Liam set himself between us, grin bright and razor–edged.
“Thanks for being blind, Atticus. You just handed me a woman you never deserved,”
His gaze flicked from me to Anya, a curl of mockery tightening his smile.
Color drained from Anya’s fare.
Atticus’s fists balled until his knuckles blanched. His chest heaved. He did nothing.
At the door, I placed a small silver reliquary box in his palm.
“Your father left this. I’m giving it back–call it even.”
Chapter 5
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Intricate etching gleamed on the lid.
Inside, sealed tight, lay incense I had made. With it, he might have eked out a long while yet.
He took it, then hurled it to the floor and sneered.
“You think I’ll take your poison incense? I’ll quit for good.”
Blood threaded his eyes; his cheeks were fallen and thin.
He was living on borrowed time and didn’t know it.
I gave a small shrug. “Suit yourself.”
Behind me, his wrecking rage broke loose.
The crash of smashed things chased me down the hall.
Elder Soren leaned on his cane, took in the ruin, and sighed from somewhere hollow.
“Alpha, you’ve just destroyed your life.”
Chapter 5
