Mira didn't know how to react.

The King knew her by name. He had been expecting her.

She badly wanted to know how and why. The question settled on her tongue, heavy and eager to be released-but she knew better.

No one questioned the king. Not unless you had a death wish.

King Evren remained standing when she was ushered fully into the office. He didn't offer her a seat. Didn't gesture. Didn't even acknowledge the guards as they withdrew and the doors closed behind her with a quiet, ominous finality.

He simply watched her.

His gaze was sharp, studying her, assessing, as though he were stripping her down to bone and intent. The weight of his presence pressed against her senses, thick and unyielding. Mira felt her wolf stir uneasily, pacing beneath her skin, unsettled by the raw dominance rolling off him unchecked.

"So," he said at last, his voice low and cold, "you finally decided to show yourself."

Mira stiffened internally. Finally?

She inclined her head, carefully respectful. "Your Majesty. I came to propose a strategic collaboration..." she started, biting back the slight tremor in her voice. "...between Vale Industries and the crown-one that strengthens both our interests."

It took a lot of courage to finally speak. But if she wanted the favor of the king, she had to be audacious.

The king didn't speak at first, didn't move. He simply assessed her, with that sharp gaze that unnerved her.

A faint curve finally touched his lips-it wasn't a smile-no-it was more like mockery.

"I thought you'd have learned by now," he said, getting closer, circling her slowly, his boots silent against polished stone. "Running halfway across the realm only after your husband humiliated you so publicly."

Her fingers curled at her sides. How did he know about that?

"I'm here on business," Mira said evenly. "To discuss cooperation between-"

He laughed-a short, dismissive sound.

"Cooperation?" Evren stopped directly in front of her, towering close enough that she had to tilt her head to meet his eyes. "You came all this way to beg me to polish Adrian Vale's reputation? To help him climb the ranks so you can crawl back into his favor?"

The words struck harder than she expected. It almost felt like a physical blow.

"You disappoint me," he continued coolly. "I assumed you'd finally come to your senses. Instead, you're still the same lovesick fool who married for feelings and mistook devotion for strength."

Mira's chest tightened. She felt a mix of emotions. Shock, confusion, pain, and something else, something that stirred, growing slowly with each word that left his mouth.

"Get out," he finished, turning away. "I don't collaborate with women who don't know their own worth."

That did it. Something inside of her snapped.

"Then perhaps it's you who should be disappointed," Mira shot back without thinking.

The room went deathly still.

Evren turned slowly.

"I expected a ruler," she continued, her heart pounding but her voice steady. "Someone enlightened. Formidable. Not a man so blinded by arrogance that he mistakes cruelty for wisdom."

Silence followed-thick, heavy, stunned.

No one had ever spoken to him like that. Yet this woman, this lovesick woman dared to disrespect him in his own territory.

Evren moved faster than she could react.

One moment he was several steps away. The next, his hand was around her throat, lifting her cleanly off the ground and slamming her back against the wall. Stone bit into her spine as his grip tightened, fingers iron-hard.

The air vanished from her lungs.

His aura crashed into her fully now-overwhelming, suffocating, lethal. A weaker wolf would have blacked out from fear. Might have died.

Mira didn't.

Her wolf snarled-not in submission, but defiance-despite the way her instincts reacted to him.

It wasn't just panic she felt, it was something else. Something buried deep, ancient, primal.

He felt it too. She could see it in his eyes, the way his grey orbs darkened like a stormy sky.

Her breathing was heavy, desperate.

That was when she realized it.

He wasn't crushing her windpipe. Not yet.

'He's not killing me.'

That meant he was listening.

"You dare," Evren growled, eyes burning inches from hers, "to lecture me in my own palace?"

Mira forced her hands to still. Forced her panic down. Her pulse thundered, but she met his gaze without flinching. Brave.

"I made mistakes," she said hoarsely. "I admit that. But perfection has never been the measure of worth. Resolve is."

His grip tightened slightly, a warning.

"I've already submitted my divorce agreement," she continued, breath shallow but controlled. "I didn't come here for Adrian. I came for myself. For my parents' legacy. For my name."

Something flickered in his eyes.

"I'm not asking for an ordinary contract," Mira said. "I'm offering a long-term strategic partnership. One that benefits us both."

The room went silent again, broken only by the sound of Mira's heavy breathing.

Then-unexpectedly-Evren laughed.

The sound was deep, rich, and dangerous.

"Now that," he said, releasing her abruptly, "is the spirit of a Sterling daughter."

Mira staggered but caught herself, swallowing air as her feet hit the ground. His hand lingered briefly at her throat, thumb brushing her pulse as if reminding her how easily he could still end her.

A shiver crawled down her spine.

He stepped back, his expression unreadable.

"I won't agree yet," he said. "Words are cheap."

Her jaw tightened. "Then name your terms."

His gaze swept over her, slow and deliberate, his eyes glistening with something she didn't recognize, something that made it even harder for her to breathe.

"Finalize your divorce within a month," Evren said, the word divorce sounding like poison. "Prove you're more than the woman who once lost herself to love. Do that-and I'll consider granting you an exclusive contract."

He paused.

"Fail," he added calmly, "and this conversation never happened."

Mira lifted her chin in defiance. She was ready, determined.

"I won't fail."

A slow smile curved his lips-dark, approving, dangerous.

"We'll see."

Mira left the Alpha King's office with her chin raised, her shoulders squared, and determination burning through her veins.

The sound of their retreating footsteps echoed through the corridor, but the sound barely reached Mira's ears.

The only thing she could hear was the sound of her own heart racing.

What had happened in there?

Her thoughts reeled, replaying the moment King Evren's hand had closed around her throat.

She'd felt fear at first, felt panic surge, felt pain.

But above everything, she hadn't felt one particular emotion.

Rejection.

She hadn't heard her wolf snarl, didn't feel her wolf recoil. Instead, the wolf had gone eerily still, alert in a way that unsettled her far more than fear ever could.

That shouldn't have happened.

Her wolf should've rejected the touch of another male.

Perhaps it was his authority, she reasoned. The sheer dominance of the Last Lycan overwhelming instinct itself. Power like his bent the world; it made wolves submit before they understood why.

"Yes," she whispered to herself, lost in her own thoughts. "That had to be it."

Her secretary, who walked beside Mira glanced at her, wondering if the Luna had lost her mind. He wouldn't be surprised. She had, after all, crossed the world to face the most dangerous man and not only that, she had survived. He wasn't sure if she was brave or simply foolish. But whatever it was, it stirred a reluctant admiration.

"Luna Mira."

The sound of her name pulled Mira from her thoughts. She turned to see a steward approaching her in hurried steps.

The steward bowed when he got to her, presenting something with both hands-a slim velvet box.

"This is from His Majesty," he explained. "The King hopes it will serve as... a reminder. That agreements made in his presence are not easily forgotten."

For her?

Surprise flickered in her gaze but she quickly masked it, hesitating-for just a second-before accepting it warily.

Inside the box lay a bracelet-dark metal etched with ancient runes, a single obsidian stone set at its center. It was understated, nothing like the ostentatious pieces Adrian favored. But she found herself breathless, mesmerized by the powerful piece given to her. The moment her fingers brushed it, warmth pulsed faintly against her skin.

She didn't overthink it. She fastened it around her wrist.

If the king meant it as a reminder, she would accept it as a declaration.

"Thank you," she spoke, before bidding him farewell.

"Where to next?" Her secretary asked, already knowing the answer.

"The hotel," she muttered.

***

Mira didn't waste a breath. The first thing she did was to take a picture of her new bracelet and post it.

She didn't add a caption, or explanation.

It was a simple photo of her wrist resting against white linen, the bracelet stark and unmistakable.

The reaction was immediate.

Adrian saw it less than a minute after it went live.

The moment his eyes landed on the unmistakable design-on the aura clinging to it even through a screen-unease crawled up his spine. He'd heard of her journey to see the king, but he hadn't expected her to be successful in doing so-or worse, to leave with a token.

Now he stared at her wrist through a screen, unease locking his shoulders in place. King Evren's reputation was legendary: brutal, untouchable, indiscriminately indulgent. A ruler who took what caught his interest and discarded the rest.

And right now, Mira seemed to have caught his interest.

Mira, his wife, his mate.

The mate bond stirred-sharp, insistent, warning.

He left the hotel room he shared with Ivy, not bothering to offer her an explanation.

His movement was hurried, frantic. He drove through the city like his life was at stake. His wolf growled, snarled, demanding to reclaim dominance. To reclaim his wife.

"Where is she?!" He demanded, as he barged into the hotel lobby.

Mira's secretary who had come out for some air shakily blurted out her room number.

Adrian wasted no breath.

He knocked once, twice until Mira unlocked the door.

Compared to Adrian's agitated state, Mira was calm-visibly so. Her posture was relaxed, her hair tied up in a ponytail, her body clad in a silk nightgown.

"You shouldn't be anywhere near him," Adrian snapped the moment the door shut behind him. "Do you have any idea who Evren is?"

There was no warmth, no greeting. They hadn't seen each other for days, yet all he seemed to care about was possessing her.

Mira's chest tightened but she didn't show it. She faced him calmly, too calmly.

"Hello to you too, Adrian," she greeted coolly.

"I don't have time for games Mira," he warned, taking a step closer.

Mira still didn't look fazed. She shrugged, crossing the room to sit on the bed. Her movement was slow and deliberate, as if he were the one intruding.

It made him even more agitated. His nostrils flared, a growl threatening to slip out.

He'd convinced himself she'd done it for attention, posted the picture for his attention yet here she was, acting as though she hadn't wanted this.

"I'm not playing games." She responded. "And yes, I know exactly who he is."

"He's dangerous," Adrian pressed, starting to pace. "D-did he give you the bracelet?"

He knew the answer already, but he wanted to hear it from her, to hear her say it.

Mira paused, holding his gaze. The room was silent for a minute, then she spoke.

"Yes."

Adrian growled, getting closer, his gaze locked on the piece of jewelry on her wrist.

"Take it off," he seethed when he got close enough. He wanted nothing more than to rip it off her hand. His wolf threatened to come out, to remove the property of another male from his mate.

"It was a gift, Adrian, I can't." Mira explained, standing to her feet. She'd been calm before, but now, with the threat of the bracelet being taken, her heart raced with uncertainty.

"Men like him don't give gifts without expecting something in return." He reasoned.

"Funny," she raised her chin, her eyes darkening. "You didn't seem to think that way when you bought Ivy her bracelet."

The words hit their mark.

Adrian's jaw clenched tightly. The room was plunged into another silence.

"I was wrong," Adrian said finally, his voice lower. "I should never have done that. I didn't consider how it would affect you."

The apology caught her off guard. She frowned, her breath catching.

He stepped closer. "I'm sorry, Mira. Truly. Let me make it up to you. I'll cook tonight-your favorite."

Mira's heart pounded.

"It'll be just us. The way it used to be," he pressed, his voice soft. "Just take the bracelet off. So we can go back to the way we were."

Mira hesitated. His voice, his eyes, they called to her, pulled her. The bond between them pulsed.

She glanced down at the bracelet.

"Come on baby."

Her defense faltered. This was the man she had loved. The man she had bound her life to. His words tugged at old habits, old hopes.

She reached for the bracelet.

Then his phone rang.

They both glanced at the table, where Adrian's phone lay.

Ivy's name flashed across the screen.

Adrian's expression shifted-hesitation, guilt, inevitability-and Mira felt something inside her settle into clarity. Her hand dropped back to her side.

He answered the call.

"Yes," he muttered into the phone, his eyes darting around, looking at anything but her. "I'll be there soon. Be safe."

"Mi-"

"It's okay," she cut in, unwilling to hear his excuses. "You don't have to explain anything. I understand."

He hesitated, for just a fraction of a second before turning around and leaving.

And just like that, the moment was gone.

Mira looked down at the dark bracelet on her wrist, its cool weight grounding her.

"This'll be the last time," she whispered to herself, alone in her hotel room. "This'll be the last time I'll let myself be swayed by the matebond."

It was a promise. One made from disappointment.

One she intended to keep by all means.

Mira opened the door of her manor, her bones aching with exhaustion. Silence and emptiness greeted her.

Although she hadn't secured a formal collaboration with the king, the business trip to the royal capital had been far from a waste.

The bracelet King Evren had given her-the same one she'd almost taken off-opened doors that had once required negotiation and persuasion. Contracts that had stalled for months were finalized within days. Conversations shifted when she entered the room. For the first time, her team had looked at her not as the Alpha's wife, but as a leader in her own right.

The success had satisfied her, stirred something deeper. It pushed her to want more, to secure every remaining contract, to finalize her divorce as soon as possible. It had felt good, like she was back to being the Mira she was before she let herself get lost in love.

Now she stood alone, in her home, the emptiness a reminder of what her life had become.

She hadn't heard from Adrian-since he'd broken his promise to go meet Ivy-nor felt the familiar pulse of the mate bond.

It had been radio silence between them.

Slowly, she was getting used to his absence, getting used to living without him. Even the house no longer smelled like him. His scent had long since faded.

The old Mira would have been hurt. She would have felt the ache in her chest, would have reached instinctively for her mate.

But the new Mira-the one determined to finally stand on her own-did not care.

She sighed, glancing down at her bracelet once more. In the short time she'd had it, it had become an anchor.

She shut the door behind her, heading for the one place she craved the most.

Her bedroom.

The long days of meetings, negotiations, and travel finally caught up with her.

Just to rest. Just for a moment.

She lay down fully clothed, the bracelet cool against her skin as she drifted into sleep.

***

The air was thick, still-in a way that made the hairs on her neck stand up.

"Mira, run!" A woman screamed.

Mira tried, she really tried to run, to get away from there, but the scene was too gruesome, the pain too heavy.

"No," Mira sobbed, getting closer, grabbing the woman's hand-her mother's hand.

Her movement was slow, too slow, her limbs were heavy with pain and grief.

A sob escaped her lips-raw and broken.

There was blood. Too much blood.

It coated her hands, the ground, the woman's clothes.

As she held her dying mother's hand, the moment it had all gone wrong replayed in her head. She heard her mother's scream again and again, heard her being torn into.

"Mother," it was a broken, helpless whisper. She sobbed, shaking the woman's shoulders.

The woman tried to speak, struggled to move but in the end, all she could do was lie there and let the darkness slowly take her.

Mira watched the life drain from her green eyes-identical to Mira's.

She screamed, grabbing her limp mother, pain clawing at her chest. It had to be a dream, it had to be.

She heard movement, saw it from her side eye but she didn't get a chance to react.

She was thrown across the room, her back hitting the wall. The pain was instant, sharp and blinding.

She couldn't move, could only lie there-gasping for air, struggling to breathe-as heavy footsteps approached.

The footsteps were slow, torturous.

Until obsidian orbs came into view.

They were dark, filled with venom. His face twisted into a sneer and in that moment, she knew what was going to happen.

Her instinct screamed at her to get up, to leave but her body was too weak.

He touched her.

She felt his hands, caressing, groping, squeezing as helpless, broken sobs left her throat.

She was there again, feeling everything, hearing it all again, smelling it all again. He was going to defile her.

Her lungs pressed in on themselves, making it harder to breathe. Her vision blurred.

No!

She felt her body growing weaker, worn from everything that had happened. Her vision swam.

She was going to pass out.

Panic surged, hot and consuming.

"No!" She screamed.

"Shh..." Mira suddenly heard. She froze, her eyes snapping open. "It's okay. I've got you. I'll protect you."

It was suddenly very dark, but what stuck out to her was the fact that she didn't feel the callous hands anymore, didn't feel the hard ground biting into her skin. She felt warmth, familiar yet faraway.

She leaned into it, craving comfort, craving relief from the pain. From everything.

She caught a scent.

It was familiar, sweet in a way that called her. Her wolf stirred, awakening from her trauma-induced slumber.

"You're safe."

She believed the voice.

She squinted, trying to see who it was, to reach that familiar spot she felt. Her fingers trembled as she reached to touch him.

She was close, so close.

Then her eyes snapped open.

She gasped, sitting up, panting.

That same nightmare, that same memory-the day her life had ended. The day her mother had been killed.

Her chest tightened.

She felt that familiar pain that lingered, the pain that never really went away. But this time, it was tinged with something else, comfort.

She felt warmth on her skin. And when she looked down, the bracelet the King had gifted her was glowing.

She gasped, bringing it closer to study. It didn't feel dangerous, didn't feel alarming.

It felt comforting.

She leaned into it subconsciously.

As the glow subsided, only one thought remained in her mind.

Who had he been?

The man in her dream who had comforted her?

She knew it wasn't Adrian.

So who was he-and why had her body responded to him like that?

Her phone blared, dragging her out of the haze.

An alarm.

Mira flinched, her heart still racing as she reached for the device. For a second, the room felt unfamiliar-too quiet, too still-until reality settled back into place. The manor bedroom. The pale afternoon light filtering through half-drawn curtains. The steady weight of the bracelet around her wrist, cool now, lifeless once more.

She exhaled shakily and glanced at the screen.

Therapy Session - 4:00 PM.

Of course.

She rubbed a hand over her face and swung her legs over the side of the bed. Her body felt heavy, as though the dream had taken something from her and not given it back. The echo of that voice still lingered in her mind-calm, patient, protective.

"You're safe."

She pushed the thought away.

There would be time to unpack it later. Right now, she needed to be present.

***

"Grief doesn't just disappear, Mira," Dr. Eleanor reassured. "It takes time, years even. But it never really goes away."

Mira nodded absently, her mind far from the therapy session. Her eyes were fixed on the window, focusing on movements outside.

As much as she loved her therapist, she sometimes wished she didn't have to see the woman.

Dr. Eleanor was an elderly woman with strawberry blonde hair and kind hazel eyes.

Hazel eyes that were currently trying to unravel Mira.

"And the man you saw, it has to be Alpha Adrian."

Mira stiffened, her eyes immediately darting back to the woman.

"No, it wasn't." She countered, her thoughts slipping back to her dream. "I'm certain of it. It was someone else."

"You mentioned how your body reacted," Eleanor responded gently. "Only a mate can trigger such reaction."

Mira opened her mouth to respond, but no words could leave her mouth. Nothing she'd say would make sense to anyone but herself.

"It had to have been Alpha Adrian. I think you should focus on that. In times like this, when you feel down, lean into the matebond for anchoring."

Her body reacted before her mind caught up. Her eyes immediately hardened, her jaw clenching.

The elderly woman who had spent enough time around the girl instantly knew something was wrong.

"Is everything okay with you two?" Eleanor asked, her brows creasing in concern.

Mira hesitated. She considered telling her-telling someone exactly how she'd been feeling, how her husband's actions had hurt her, how her heart had become numb to the pain-but she knew better.

Eleanor would either defend Adrian, or convince her to stay.

And she didn't have the mental energy to hear that. So she forced a smile, raising her chin.

"Yes, Eleanor." her smile widened-practiced. "Adrian and I are fine."

Eleanor leaned forward slightly, her eyes squinted, studying her client closely.

"You didn't say his name once today"

Mira forced a laugh, waving her hand in feigned casualness.

"Fine," she rolled her eyes. "We may have had a little argument this afternoon. He wanted me to spend more time with him instead of coming for today's session."

"Hm," Eleanor hummed, still studying her client.

"You know how possessive Alphas can be." Mira added.

Finally, Dr. Eleanor settled back in her seat, momentarily satisfied.

"Alright. Remember to take your time, don't force yourself to get better."

Mira nodded, already standing to her feet. The therapy session always felt too long, too suffocating.

As much as she hated each session, she always left the room feeling lighter, as if speaking her pain aloud had loosened its grip, even if only slightly.

"Alright, goodbye Eleanor" she waved. "Thank you."

The woman didn't get to respond before Mira shut the door softly. She stepped out into the corridor, adjusting the strap of her bag, ready to leave.

That was when she heard it.

A familiar voice drifted from the VIP therapy room down the hall-low, tense, unmistakable.

She froze. She recognized that voice.

Adrian.

Her pulse spiked as the sound of his voice drifted through the partially closed door, stirring something sharp and unwelcome in her chest. She hadn't meant to listen. Hadn't meant to stop.

But her feet refused to move.

And before she could talk herself out of it, she realized-whatever was happening in that room, whatever Adrian was finally saying aloud...

She was about to hear it.

She got closer, heart pounding, instincts alert.

The next words she heard made her heart stop completely.

"Ivy." Adrian paused. "She's pregnant."