Ethan’s face contorted with rage as my rejection hit him like a physical blow. His body began to tremble with barely contained fury.
In one fluid motion, he shifted into his massive silver wolf form. His eyes blazed red with Alpha dominance as he positioned himself directly in front of me, blocking any possible escape route.
“You can’t go anywhere without my permission today,” he growled, his voice carrying the ful weight of Alpha command.
The pressure hit me like a crushing wave. My lungs compressed, making it impossible to draw a full breath.
I gasped, my chest tightening as the Alpha authority pressed down on me from all sides.
Even though I was destined to be Queen of the entire werewolf realm, Grayson had been careful not to mark me yet. He was worried that I hadn’t fully healed from my past trauma with Ethan.
Without Grayson’s mark, I was still just an ordinary Beta wolf. I had no defense against Ethan’s Alpha commands.
My body froze against my will. Every muscle locked in place as the Alpha order took hold of my nervous system.
I couldn’t move. I couldn’t even lift my hand to push him away.
“Take her luggage back to the master bedroom,” Ethan commanded his guards in that same authoritative voice.
The pack guards immediately obeyed, lifting my suitcases and carrying them back toward the house despite my silent protests.
My body remained paralyzed as I watched my escape being systematically dismantled.
But my mind was still free. And my tongue still worked.
“Are you cheap, Ethan?” I asked with a bitter laugh, my voice dripping with contempt. “When I loved you with everything I had, you always stayed with Scarlett. You asked me to give everything to her–my time, my energy, my dignity.”
My words cut through the air like sharp blades, each one designed to wound.
“Now that I don’t love you anymore, now that I’ve finally moved on, you have to keep me here by force?”
Ethan’s wolf eyes flashed dangerously red at my words. His massive form prowled closer, but I felt no fear.
“No matter what you say,” he snarled, his voice rough with emotion, “you are mine. You will always be mine.”
I stared back at him with complete indifference. His possessive declaration meant nothing to
me now.
My thoughts turned to Grayson and James. They should still be on the border battlefield, dealing with the rogue wolf attacks.
I would contact James tonight and ask him to send someone to pick me up. Royal Guards would
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easily override any of Ethan’s commands.
No matter what happened, I could not go back to Ethan. That part of my life was over forever.
After making up my mind, I decided to play along for now. I would eat dinner and take my bath as usual, then make my call when Ethan’s guard was down.
I walked calmly toward the house, ignoring Ethan as he shifted back to human form and followed me.
“That’s right,” he said with obvious relief, his voice warming with satisfaction. As long as you stay by my side, I’ll give you everything you want. No more games, no more running away.”
I said nothing, letting him believe whatever he wanted to believe.
In the dining room, I ate the venison he had prepared without comment. The meat was perfectly cooked, seasoned exactly how I liked it.
It tasted like ashes in my mouth.
Ethan watched me eat with growing contentment, clearly interpreting my compliance as surrender.
“We can start over,” he said softly, reaching across the table to touch my hand. “All of this fighting, all this pain–we can put it behind us.”
I pulled my hand away without looking at him and continued eating in silence.
After dinner, I headed straight for the bathroom. I needed to wash off the day’s stress and plan my next move.
“Take your time,” Ethan called after me, his voice full of misplaced affection. “I’ll be here when you get out.”
I closed the bathroom door and locked it, though I knew the lock wouldn’t stop an Alpha if he really wanted to get in.
The hot water felt wonderful against my skin as I stepped into the shower. For a few precious minutes, I could pretend I was somewhere else entirely.
was just starting to wash the soap from my hair when a sharp cracking sound echoed from the bedroom.
The noise was so sudden and violent that it made my heart skip a beat.
Terror flooded through me as I recognized the sound–something ceramic shattering against the hardwood floor.
frantically rinsed the soap from my body and hair, not bothering to turn off the water. My hands shook as I grabbed a towel and threw on the first clothes I could find.
rushed out of the bathroom, water still dripping from my hair, my heart pounding with dread.
The scene that greeted me in the bedroom broke my heart completely.
Ceramic fragments were scattered across the hardwood floor like broken stars. Mixed among the white and blue shards was a fine white powder that made my blood turn to ice.
My grandmother’s necklace. The memorial pendant that contained her ashes.
‘No,” I whispered, dropping to my knees beside the destruction.
My grandmother had been the only family member who truly loved me unconditionally. When my
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parents saw me only as a tool for advancement, Grandma saw me as precious.
She would hold me when I cried, tell me stories when I couldn’t sleep, and always made me feel worthy of love.
When she died five years ago, I had a small portion of her ashes placed in a ceramic pendant. It was all I had left of her warmth and love.
I always wore it close to my heart, only taking it off when I bathed.
Someone had deliberately destroyed the most precious thing I owned.
The white powder that had been my grandmother’s remains was now scattered across the floor, mixed with ceramic dust and impossible to recover.
My blood began to boil as rage unlike anything I had ever felt exploded through my chest.
Every nerve in my body vibrated with fury. My vision went red at the edges.
“WHO DID IT!” I roared, the sound tearing from my throat with primal fury.
I rushed out of the bedroom, ready to tear apart whoever had committed this unforgivable act.
