Slowly, I turned to face her. She stood a few feet away, arms crossed, a smug smile playing on her lips. She was dressed in her usual training gear, but somehow, she still managed to look immaculate. The glint in her eyes told me she wasn’t here to talk about training.

“What do you want?” I asked, keeping my voice calm.

She tilted her head, her smile widening. “I just wanted to check on you. You’ve been through so much, after all.”

I narrowed my eyes. “Cut the act, Serena. If you have something to say, just say it.”

Her smile faltered for a moment, but she quickly recovered. “Fine. If you insist.” She took a step closer, her voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper.

“You really thought you could be Luna? That you could stand by Lucian’s side and lead this pack? Face it, Amelia—you were never good enough.”

The words hit their mark, but I refused to let her see it. Instead, I straightened my spine, meeting her gaze head-on. “You’re awfully bold for someone who has to settle for being second choice.”

Her eyes flashed with anger, and for a moment, I thought she might actually hit me. But then she laughed, the sound cold and sharp.

“Second choice? Please,” she said. “Lucian never wanted you. He only stayed with you out of obligation. You were a placeholder, nothing more.”

My chest tightened, but I forced myself to stay calm. “If that’s true, then why hasn’t he made things official with you yet? Seems to me like he’s still keeping his options open.”

Her smile vanished, and I knew I’d struck a nerve. Before she could respond, the sound of approaching footsteps interrupted us. We both turned to see Lucian walking toward us, his expression unreadable.

“Serena,” he said, his tone sharp. “What are you doing here?”

She straightened, her face softening as she turned to him. “I was just checking on Amelia. I wanted to make sure she was okay after… everything.”

Lucian’s gaze shifted to me, his eyes cold and distant. “Amelia doesn’t need your pity.”

I crossed my arms, glaring at him. “I don’t need anything from either of you.”

“Good,” he said, his voice as icy as his stare. “Then stay out of my way.”

His words stung, but I refused to let him see it. Instead, I turned back to the training dummy, driving my fist into it with renewed force. I could feel their eyes on me as they walked away, Serena’s laughter ringing in my ears like a taunt.

The rest of the day passed in a blur. Everywhere I went, I could feel the weight of the pack’s judgment. Some were openly hostile, glaring at me as if I’d committed some unforgivable sin. Others were more subtle, their pitying looks cutting just as deep.

By the time evening rolled around, I was emotionally drained. I retreated to my cabin, locking the door behind me and collapsing onto the bed. For the first time since last night, the tears came.

I cried for the mate I’d lost, for the bond that had been shattered. I cried for the humiliation I’d endured and the future I’d dreamed of that was now gone.

But as the tears slowed, a new emotion began to take their place. Anger.

I wasn’t angry at the pack, or even at Serena. No, my anger was directed squarely at Lucian. He had betrayed me, humiliated me, and left me to face the fallout alone. And for what?

The more I thought about it, the more my anger grew.

…..

The news of the Alpha King’s arrival hit the pack like a bomb. One second, everyone was lazily going about their morning, and the next, it was chaos. Warriors scrambled to polish their already gleaming armor, omegas rushed to clean the Alpha’s estate, and a panicked cook could be heard yelling about running out of thyme for the lamb roast.

I stood off to the side, watching the commotion with an amused smirk. It was like watching a bunch of headless chickens, clucking and flapping without a clue where to go.

“Is this what leadership looks like these days?” I muttered under my breath, leaning casually against a tree.

An omega sprinted past me, clutching a stack of fresh linens like her life depended on it. Another one tripped over a root, sending a tray of silver goblets clattering to the ground. I raised an eyebrow, arms crossed, as the scene unfolded.

“They do know he’s not here to inspect the cutlery, right?” I said to no one in particular.

But apparently, no one was listening. The moment Lucian had announced that Alpha King Darius would be arriving in less than an hour for an “unplanned visit,” the entire pack had gone into overdrive. It was almost comical—almost.

Lucian, of course, was barking orders like his life depended on it. His deep voice carried through the air as he instructed warriors to stand straighter, omegas to work faster, and literally everyone to “act like you have a spine.”

I scoffed. If he had spent half as much energy fixing the mess within his pack as he did pretending everything was perfect, maybe he wouldn’t need to scramble every time someone important showed up.

The memory of last night still burned in the back of my mind, but I wasn’t going to let it get to me. Not now. Not with all the entertainment happening around me.

“Amelia,” Lucian’s sharp voice cut through the noise, snapping me out of my thoughts.

I turned lazily, meeting his furious gaze. He looked stressed, his usually composed demeanor cracking under the pressure of Darius’s arrival.

“Yes?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Don’t just stand there,” he snapped. “Make yourself useful.”

I shrugged, barely suppressing a grin. “You seem to have everything under control.”

His jaw tightened, and for a moment, I thought he might actually explode. But before he could say anything, a horn sounded in the distance. The Alpha King had arrived.

The pack gathered quickly, forming neat rows in the clearing as Darius’s entourage approached. The energy shifted immediately, the chaotic panic replaced by a tense, almost reverent silence.

When the Alpha King’s black SUV pulled up, I felt the familiar thrill of anticipation. It had been a long time since I’d seen Darius. Longer than I cared to admit.

The door opened, and he stepped out, his presence commanding instant attention. Alpha King Darius was the kind of man who could silence a room with a single glance. His tall, broad-shouldered frame was clad in a tailored black suit, and his piercing blue eyes scanned the crowd with the intensity of a predator assessing its prey.

Everyone bowed deeply, including Lucian. I, however, stayed standing, my arms crossed casually.

“Amelia,” Darius’s deep voice broke the silence as his gaze landed on me. A slow, almost imperceptible smile tugged at the corner of his lips.