Liv.It was definitely her.
In that moment, everything made sense.
Why he had broken his promise. Why he had vanished for days without a word. This was why.
I had been at home worried sick, imagining every terrible possibility—car accidents, hunter attacks—people would kill for an Alpha's corpse. I had waited like a fool for days. And he had been here the whole time, caring for his resurrected love.
I tasted my own bitter tears. A fierce anger surged up, and I shoved the door open with both hands.
Bang.
The couple inside sprang apart.
"Serenity?" Elias stared at me in disbelief. "What are you doing here?"
"Why shouldn't I be here? Am I interrupting your reunion?" Something burned in my chest, heat stinging my eyes. I kept my face stony, refusing to let more tears fall.
Maybe my expression was too terrible, because Liv hid behind Elias. "I'm scared… Elias, who is she?"
"An acquaintance of mine." Elias paused before answering.
That single word pierced my heart. Novella roared inside me:An acquaintance? I'm your Luna! I'm your fated mate, Elias!
But before I could speak, Elias grabbed my arm and pulled me out of the room. "Let's talk outside."
He used an Alpha command. I had no choice but to obey.
We stood in the hallway. The air in the long-empty house was cold, but not as cold as the ice in my heart. Elias stood at the top of the stairs, his face turned away, not looking at me. Neither of us spoke. We stood there like two fools.
"You promised you'd come back," I said finally. "You said you'd be home soon, but you disappeared for an entire week."
"I'm sorry. Something unexpected came up." His tone was deliberately casual, as if he'd only been five minutes late.
"So you don't answer your phone for a week? You just let me sit in that mansion, terrified out of my mind?" I glared at him. "Answer me, Elias. Why is Liv here? She was supposed to be dead?—"
"She's not dead!" Elias cut me off. "That's the 'unexpected' I mentioned. I found her. My Liv. She's alive, just lost her memory, so I have to take care of her!"
"That's impossible. I watched her fall with my own eyes!" I had to make this point, not just as his mate, but as his Luna. "She was confirmed dead. If she survived, why show up now? Don't you think this is too convenient? What if she's a spy from another pack, or another trap set by hunters? You love Liv, and you visit her grave every month—anyone who looks into it would know. That's not exactly a secret!"
The hunter attack from six months ago still haunted us. Everyone believed I was the traitor, but I knew the real one was still out there.
That was already a massive liability. And now Liv had reappeared—handing the Alpha a resurrected, conveniently amnesiac lover. It was the perfect opening for an enemy.
Clearly, my suspicions infuriated Elias. He couldn't tolerate anyone questioning his beloved.
"How dare you bring that up to my face?" he sneered. "Are you afraid I'll forget who pushed Liv off that cliff? Or are you reminding me who betrayed me?"
My breath caught. "I didn't?—"
"Enough, Serenity!" Elias looked exhausted. After six months of arguing about the traitor, he no longer believed me. Now he didn't even want to hear me speak. "Liv is alive. Nothing makes me happier. I don't want to keep digging into what you did in the past, but I have one condition: stay away from her. Don't do anything stupid to make me angry. Otherwise… I can't promise what I'll do."
Tears finally spilled over. They spilled over, and the words came out bitter. "What will you do to me? Kill me?"
He looked at me for a long moment. "I won't kill you. Serenity, I want a divorce."
CHAPTER 4
SERENITY KELLER
