Chapter 3

"Daddy, it's Vivian."

My father's voice was thick with sleep when he answered my call to his New York penthouse at 3 AM. As Alpha of the East Coast Silver Moon Pack, he was used to emergency calls, but not from his daughter at this hour.

"Vivian? Sweetheart, it's the middle of the night there. What's wrong?"

"Dominic's been having an affair for two years, betraying our mate bond, and I need you to pull your investment from his company immediately."

The silence stretched across three thousand miles while my father—one of the most powerful Alphas in North America—processed what I'd just told him. I could practically hear his wolf rising to the surface, protective and enraged.

"How much proof do you have?"

This was exactly why I called him first—my father thought like the ruthless Alpha he was, not just an emotional parent.

"Twenty-seven thousand messages, photos, financial records of hotels and gifts, restaurant receipts. Everything. Including evidence that she's a wolf from a rival pack."

"I'll have my pack lawyers start the withdrawal process first thing in the morning. How much do you need for legal fees?"

I remembered the humiliation I'd endured to get that initial investment—sitting in his Manhattan office while my stepmother, a Beta from a minor pack, sneered about "throwing good money after bad ideas," my stepbrother calling Dominic a "pretty face with no Alpha instincts," enduring their condescension because I believed in my mate's dream.

"I don't need money yet. I need him destroyed. I want him stripped of his pack standing."

"Consider it done. Come home, Vivian. Bring Sophie. You don't have to fight this battle alone. The pack will protect you."

After dropping Sophie at the pack's private academy the next morning, painting on a smile while my heart was breaking and my wolf was snarling, I parked across from Dominic's office building and waited.

Twenty-three minutes later, I saw them together for the first time.

Dominic held the door of his BMW open for a petite blonde in a red dress that probably cost more than my monthly grocery budget, his hand lingering possessively on the small of her back as she slipped inside. Even from this distance, I could sense her wolf—strong, confident, calculated.

So this was Scarlett. A wolf from the notorious Crimson Fang Pack, known for their ambition and willingness to destroy mate bonds for power.

I followed at a careful distance, my enhanced senses tracking them easily, as they drove to an exclusive neighborhood I couldn't afford on my freelance writing income.

The house was stunning—modern architecture, floor-to-ceiling windows, clearly warded with expensive protection spells that only wealthy wolves could afford.

Through my telephoto lens, I watched them through those enormous windows like actors on a stage.

She was wearing lingerie now, red lace that matched her dress, moving through what should have been our dream home like she owned it. Her wolf's confidence radiated even through the glass.

He kissed her neck as she poured expensive wine into crystal glasses.

Click. Click. Click.

Every photo was another nail in his coffin—evidence for pack court.

When I returned home that evening, Dominic was waiting in the kitchen, probably expecting tears and begging. His wolf was on edge—I could smell the anxiety rolling off him.

"We need to discuss breaking the bond," I said before he could speak, my voice steady as steel.

"I'm glad you're being reasonable about this, Vivian."

"I agree to break the bond, but not until after Sophie's birthday party next week. She deserves one last memory of us as a pack family."

His relief was visible, and I could see him already planning his future with his precious Scarlett, probably imagining mating ceremonies under the full moon.

"Of course. We should keep things stable for Sophie during the transition."

"I'll need time to arrange some financial matters too. And to consult with pack leadership about the proper protocols."

He nodded eagerly, probably thinking I meant finding a new den or figuring out child support.

If only he knew I meant arranging the complete destruction of everything he'd built his pathetic new life on—and getting the pack's Alpha Council involved.

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