Chapter 3

Chapter 3 DENISE I survived. Again. Apparently, I was too stubborn to die—or the Moon Goddess had a sick sense of humor and wasn’t ready yet to relinquish me as her chew toy. When I woke in the hospital the next morning, a nurse was listing my injuries: ” Fractured right arm, mild concussion, multiple soft tissue injuries…” She asked if anything else hurt. I shook my head and checked my phone, trying to see if there was any messages from Dante apologising and asking how he could make it up to me for denying me yesterday. Not a single call from Dante. But the Alpha who never posted on social media had made an exception that same yesterday. His latest photo showed crystal blue waters and Elena in a flowing dress, looking more beautiful than the actual scenery itself. I pulled the blanket over my head and cried until my throat was raw. Four years. What the hell was I to him? Absolutely nothing and I finally had that sink into me. After discharge, I dragged myself back to my apartment, took ibuprofen to help minimize the pains that I felt and slept for a day straight. My body was healing, but my mind felt clearer than it had in years. The accident was a gift in disguise because it had burned down all the delusions that I had of Dante picking me. I showed up at Blackwood Enterprises the next day. I needed to collect my paycheck from the company. I was broke and every penny counted. “Did you see Alpha Blackwood’s post? God, he’s so devoted to her!” “He waited four years for Elena. That’s true love.” “Alpha Blackwood is perfect. He stayed loyal the whole time she was married.” The gossip hit me as soon as I walked in. I laughed—actually laughed—at the irony. Yes, Dante loved Elena. That part was true. But loyal? Please. Men like him loved with their hearts and fucked with their bodies. I was certain that if I hadn’t caught his eye, he would have found someone else to keep his bed warm at night. There was no man that was as loyal and faithful as a dog, only dogs were faithful to their owners. “Ms. Blackwood, this is a work area—” someone protested near the elevator. I looked up and I froze at the scene. Lyra had arrived. Dante’s sister made her way towards me, with an intensity that showed that she came here for me. My wolf cowered, old instincts that I had, screaming at me to submit, to make myself small. “Denise.” She leaned close, her voice low enough to send shivers, and not the good kind, down my spine. “Dante’s coming back today. He and Elena are getting mated.” Her laugh was cruel. “Four years ago, I told you—the day Dante dumps you is the day you die.” My body went rigid as I remembered what she had threatened me that day. I had forgotten about it because I had Dante and I assumed Dante would save me from her. It’s been four years, and she still wouldn’t let it go. . SMACK. She slapped me in front of everyone. I didn’t fight back. Didn’t make a sound. I was a coward. I knew it. But I was also practical. I couldn’t afford to mess with Lyra. As long as I wanted to live, I couldn’t touch her. But if I ever stopped caring about living? I’d take her down with me. “Remember when Dante hit me because of you?” Lyra’s voice was dripping with venom and hatred as she circled around me like a predator stalking a prey. “That was the first time he ever laid a hand on me—and then he shipped me overseas. All because of you,I felt humiliated that day and I swore that I would make you pay. Your poor sympathetic story manages to capture my brother’s heart but I knew it was only temporary because you weren’t Elena.” She grabbed my coffee and poured it over my head. The hot liquid burned my scalp. “You really thought landing Dante meant you’d won? An omega orphan like you? He’d never make you his Luna.” She shoved my head down, fingers tangling painfully in my hair. “Get out of Blackwood Enterprises. Or I’ll leak all your dirty secrets to everyone here.” By dirty secrets, she meant the photos—the ones from when her pack of bitches had stripped me naked in the bathroom and took pictures. Or maybe she meant the fact that I’d been fucking her brother for four years. No one in the office said a word. Lyra was the heir’s sister. Who’d risk their job for an omega nobody? After she finally left, someone whispered, “How’d you get on the Blackwoods’ bad side?” I wiped coffee from my face. “We went to the academy together. Some old drama.” In the bathroom, I hid in a corner stall and fixed my clothes, tried to get the coffee stain out of them the best I could, although I knew that this shirt was ruined forever. I didn’t cry. I’d learned years ago that tears accomplished nothing and only ended up giving me a headache. My phone buzzed—a payment notification. Dante had transferred fifty thousand dollars. Fifty grand for a slap. Not bad, actually. Then his voice message came through as I tapped on it: “I already yelled at Lyra. Go buy yourself something.” Always the same line. “Thank you, Alpha.” I texted back before I accepted the money. I’d earned it, after all. I stared at our message thread, some pathetic part of me hoping he’d at least ask if I was okay after the accident. Nothing. I closed the chat and went straight to HR to file my resignation. Tomorrow was the 13th. Tomorrow night, I’d meet Kieran Nightshade at moonlight Manor. If I could make this deal work, I could finally escape. Get out of this city, go somewhere else, become something new. Something he could never control.