Chapter 2

Elara POV:

The address on the note led me to a high-end restaurant so exclusive it didn't even have a sign. The kind of place where billion-dollar deals were brokered over plates of food that cost more than my first car.

I walked in, and the maître d' simply nodded, leading me through the hushed dining room to a private booth in the back, shielded by heavy velvet curtains.

Sitting there, swirling a glass of amber liquid, was Kaelan.

The heir to the Crimson Moon Pack.

In pack gossip, he was a joke. A 24-year-old playboy, infamous for his hedonistic lifestyle and complete lack of interest in pack affairs. They called him the "useless" heir, a disgrace to his powerful bloodline.

But the man in front of me didn't look useless. He looked bored, dangerous, and far too intelligent.

As I slid into the booth opposite him, a scent hit me so hard I flinched. It was unlike anything I had ever smelled before. It was the crisp, clean air after a blizzard, the deep, earthy smell of snow-covered pines, and the cold, unyielding strength of ancient stone. It was a scent that spoke of power and wilderness, and it made the wolf inside me, the part I kept so tightly controlled, stir and lift its head.

My heart began to hammer against my ribs, a sudden, violent surge of blood roaring in my ears.

"You wanted to talk," I said, forcing my voice to remain level, ignoring the chaos erupting inside me.

He took a slow sip of his drink, his eyes-the color of twilight-roaming over my face. "Your mate is cheating on you."

"It was a one-time thing," I said, the lie feeling flimsy even to my own ears. "A moment of uncontrolled flirting."

A slow, mocking smile spread across his lips. It was a beautiful smile, and that made it all the more infuriating. "Loyalty. It's the Blackstone Pack's most admirable and exploitable quality. Tell me, is it loyalty, or are you just a fool?"

He didn't raise his voice, but a low rumble of power emanated from him. He glanced at a nearby waiter. "Leave us."

It wasn't a request. It was a command. The waiter's eyes glazed over for a second, he bowed his head, and then began to silently and efficiently clear the entire restaurant of its other patrons.

That was the Alpha's Command. The innate power in an Alpha's voice that lesser wolves cannot disobey. Kaelan wasn't even an Alpha yet, just an heir, but he already wielded its power with casual arrogance.

My respect for him, and my fear, notched up a level.

"A moment of flirting?" he mused, turning his attention back to me. He slid a small, sleek tablet across the table. "Does this look like flirting to you?"

He pressed play.

The screen lit up with a video. It was Damien. And the woman from the bar, Seraphina. They were in a hotel room, the Blackstone Pack's corporate logo visible on the towels in the background. The footage was crystal clear, the audio sharp.

"She's just a political necessity, Sera," Damien was saying, his voice smooth and coaxing as he stroked her hair. "Elara's business acumen is useful. But her bloodline is weak. Once I am Alpha and my position is secure, I'll perform the Rejection. Then you will be my Luna."

The world tilted. The air was sucked from my lungs. Every beat of my heart was a painful thud against my ribs. My pride, the armor I had worn for twenty-eight years, didn't just crack. It shattered into a million pieces.

I must have gone pale, because Kaelan's smile widened.

I took a sharp, ragged breath and forced myself to meet his gaze. I would not break. Not in front of him.

"What do you want, Kaelan?" I asked, my voice a hoarse whisper.

"An alliance," he said simply. "I'll help you leave him, and you'll do something for me in return."

"What?"

"The Blackstone Pack's energy tech division. You built it. When you leave, you take it with you. Merge it with Crimson Moon's wind-power sector. Together, we can crush the other packs in the green energy market."

It was a brilliant, ruthless business move.

"He would never let me take it," I said.

"He won't have a choice," Kaelan said, leaning forward. He lowered his voice, the scent of pine and winter storm intensifying, making my head spin. "Because you're going to have all the leverage you need."

He slid the tablet back and swiped to a new screen. It was a series of financial records. Offshore accounts. Property deeds.

"He's been siphoning pack assets for a year," Kaelan said, his voice soft and deadly. "And he's already bought Seraphina eight different estates in the neutral territories. With money you helped him earn."

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