Chapter 4

Before the final confrontation, I met Zoe one last time for confirmation.

The afternoon café smelled faintly of coffee. I sat in the innermost booth as Zoe arrived punctually, pushing a thick folder toward me.

"It's all here." Her voice was very low, her fingertips pausing on the folder. "You need to be prepared."

She took a deep breath, opening to the first page, her finger pointing at the numbers: "All records of Adrian transferring funds to Isabella through offshore shell companies."

She paused as if giving me time to process, then turned to the next page: "These are the accounts for 'Frostwhisper' floral studio. Several large expenditures where stated and actual purposes don't match at all."

Then she pulled out another document, pushing it toward me, her voice carrying barely concealed anger: "And this—a pre-admission notice from Silvermoon Clan Academy."

I looked down. Parent column: Adrian Locke and Isabella Frost. Note: Pure-blood wolf lineage, Darkstone Pack heir preparatory education.

"Finally..." Zoe looked at me with heartbreak. "Identification reports from three independent medical experts on that herbal prescription."

Her voice dropped to almost inaudible: "Confirming... that the wolfsbane and silverleaf combination caused permanent damage to the Silver Wolf bloodline reproductive system. The irreversible kind."

Everything around me seemed muted. I looked at those documents, each page like a branding iron, searing betrayal's mark.

Those meticulously designed fund transfers, those roads paved for someone else's child, and evidence of my body being quietly destroyed.

"According to wolf pack traditional law," Zoe's voice pulled me back to reality, "the Elder Council usually protects the Alpha. But if you choose to expose everything publicly at the full moon ceremony—witnessed by all pack members and the Moon Goddess—even they couldn't protect him."

I looked up, coffee's bitterness spreading on my tongue. "Then the full moon ceremony it is."

Zoe pulled another document from her briefcase. The cover read "Voluntary Property Relinquishment Declaration."

"Sign it," she said, "and you're done with the Locke family. But this means you might get nothing."

I didn't hesitate for a moment, picking up the pen and signing my name. This didn't mean losing—it meant severing the last chain.

A strange lightness rose from deep within, as if shedding a burden carried for years. The mate bond in my chest trembled slightly the moment I signed, that once-warm connection now only cold restraint. Turned out leaving didn't require summoning courage—it only required seeing the truth clearly. Seeing how those you once cherished trampled your sincerity underfoot.

"I need a new identity," I pushed the signed document back to Zoe. "Everything needs to be fast, before the full moon ceremony."

"Already arranging it." She collected the documents, her gaze firm. "You'll be safe, Celeste. I promise."

On the way back, I detoured past our usual restaurant. Through the window, the window seat held a young couple, the girl laughing as she straightened the man's tie.

We used to be like that too. But those memories couldn't hurt me anymore.

When I returned to the estate, Adrian was in his study on the phone. The moment I pushed the door open, he quickly hung up and opened his arms to greet me.

"You've been going out a lot lately, babe." His embrace was still tender, but his tone carried probing. I could feel him using Alpha perception to detect my emotions, trying to read my true thoughts through the mate bond.

"I'm thinking about finding a job." I said calmly, deliberately transmitting compliance and calm through the bond, masking my inner fury.

His expression froze instantly—the unease of a controller discovering a chess piece going off script. "As Luna of the Darkstone Pack, why work? If you're tired, rest at home. I'd hate to see you exhausted."

He was still trying to mold me into a dependent figurehead Luna. He didn't know I was about to personally tear apart everything he had.

I didn't respond. Just then, his phone on the desk lit up. A new message popped up from my mother:

"It's all arranged. At the full moon ceremony I'll bring Liam to Celeste and convince her to adopt the child."

My nails dug deep into my palms, using pain to suppress the rage wanting to explode.

That night, Adrian again left with a work excuse. The private investigator's video showed him meeting with my parents at that very moment, discussing how to trap me at the full moon ceremony.

I lay in bed, reaching out to stroke the empty pillow beside me, still carrying Adrian's cedar scent. This smell once brought me comfort; now it only disgusted me.

Just then, Zoe texted: "Everything's ready. On the night of the full moon, the truth will come out."

I walked to the window. My Silver Wolf bloodline warmed slightly in the moonlight. This time, I wouldn't suppress my instincts. This time, I'd show everyone just how terrifying a betrayed Luna could be.