Isabella's POV
For a second everything went silent and even the wind froze too. My chest felt like someone had reached inside and squeezed my heart until it cracked and I stepped back.
"Edmund… don't do this."
He didn't even blink.
"It's done."
My eyes burned and I swallowed hard.
"Think about Magnus. He needs both of us. He needs..."
"I am not taking it back, Isabella."
The quiet finality in his voice shattered me far worse than any shouting ever could.
I felt small. Not Luna-small… woman-small. Mate-small and rejection-small.
Something in me broke at that moment but the mate bond wasn't fully severed... not until I said my part.
It felt like standing on the edge of a cliff, knowing I had no wings but being pushed anyway. My voice trembled.
"Then… then I, Isabella of Evergreen Pack accept your rejection."
The moment the words left my mouth, something snapped inside me… a cord, a tie and a warmth I didn't even know was wrapped around my chest. It recoiled and tore, leaving a cold and hollow ache behind.
Edmund turned and walked away without looking back. Just like that like I was nothing but a closed chapter he'd gotten bored of.
I sank onto the nearest stone bench in the garden and my legs felt like jelly and my heart felt like wet sand… heavy and slipping all at once. How would I explain this to my father?
"Hi, Dad. Remember that marriage alliance you secured since I was ten? Yeah, I accidentally destroyed it because my husband prefers my maid."
I groaned into my hands.
The moon wasn't helping either as it was shining too brightly like the moon goddess was mocking me. Moon Goddess, turn the lights down.. a woman is grieving!
After a long while when the numbness settled like frost under my skin, I stood and made my way back inside.
Climbing the stairs felt like walking on broken glass and my eyes were still wet when I reached the bedroom… and froze.
There were sounds emitting from there. Not small ones and not soft ones.
There were loud, wet and breathless sounds with skin slapping against skin and groanings. Clara's voice was unmistakable.
"Ah... Edmund... yes... don't stop... oh, yes..."
My stomach twisted and I forced myself to push the door slightly open and there they were.. in my bed.. our bed.
Clara straddled Edmund, completely naked, moving on him like she'd rehearsed it a hundred times. Her back arched with her hair flying and her hands gripping his chest. Edmund's hands gripped her waist, dragging her down harder against him with his voice hoarse with desire.
They were lost in each other.. in lust, in heat and in betrayal… like I didn't exist. Like I was already dead. Clara threw her head back again, moaning so loudly the entire wing must've heard her.
A sound escaped me.. a small and broken sound neither of them noticed. I shut the door quietly with no confrontation, no shouting and no tears. Just emptiness.
I turned and walked away slowly, pressing a hand against my chest and trying to hold my heart in place before it fell out of me completely.
I went to one of the guest rooms, curled up on the edge of the bed and wrapped my arms around myself.
The question that haunted me as I closed my eyes was simple.. What do I do tomorrow?
Leave? Take Magnus and disappear?
Wait until Edmund tires of Clara? Face my family and admit I lost everything?
My last thought before sleep took me was.. I will not let another woman raise my son!
***
Clara's POV
The night has grown very quiet.
Edmund lay beside me, knocked out cold and breathing heavily. He looked peaceful, soft and almost innocent… which would've been cute if he hadn't been begging for me like a starved wolf just an hour ago.
I smirked.
Poor Alpha. They all crack when you know how to move your hips just right.
Three times. He'd come undone three times and he whimpered like a boy everytime he shot out his load… not an alpha.. not a leader.. just a man desperate for the kind of pleasure he never got from his precious Luna.
I stretched lazily with my muscles still warm and my body still humming from all the action and then I sat up. I had work to do.
I slipped out of bed carefully so I wouldn't wake him. Edmund might be full of fire and authority in the daytime but at night… after I handled him.. he slept like a rock and tonight, I needed him asleep.
I pulled on a thin robe, tied it loosely and slipped out of the room. I didn't go near the east wing. Isabella was probably hiding there with her hurt feelings. Good. She should feel hurt.
She had everything… the title, the ring and the respect but she really didn't deserve the man too.
I padded quietly through the back hallway, past the old wooden shelves and the dusty portraits of past Lunas as my heart beat with excitement.
At the far end of the corridor was the garden door. Outside, the statue of the first Alpha of Evergreen stood tall and proud with his stone sword pointing at the sky and behind him was the secret.
I crouched behind the statue and ran my hand along the base of smooth stone, grass, dirt and then… a tiny metal button.
"Got you," I whispered.
Before I pressed it, a deep voice rumbled behind me.
"Who's there?"
A guard rounded the corner with his hand on his sword and his eyes narrowed.
"Clara? Why are you out here at this hour?"
I smiled sweetly.
"Oh, I was just… getting some air."
"At midnight?" His brows shot up questionably.
I blinked innocently.
"I… I couldn't sleep."
He stepped closer.
"I need to report this. Step away from the..."
I stepped toward him quickly and he hesitated.. men always did.
"Please don't report me," I whispered, letting my voice tremble just enough. "I'll get in trouble. I… I don't want trouble."
He softened a little.
"Clara, go inside. It's not safe..."
My smile sharpened and I drew the small blade from my robe sleeve and slammed it into his neck.
His eyes widened with shock and then he fell with blood gushing out his neck.
I exhaled, pulled the blade free and wiped it on the grass.
"Men," I muttered, pressing the secret button at last.
The statue slid aside with a groaning rumble, revealing the dark mouth of the underground passage.
Torches lit and bootsteps echoed as a small army marched out.. disciplined, silent and deadly and leading them was him.
Tall, lean and handsome in a sharp and cruel way with dark hair, a sharp jaw and dark eyes like the promise of trouble.
He looked at the dead guard and then at me and his lips curled into a smirk before he grabbed my face and kissed me so fiercely I melted into him.
When he pulled back, he whispered, "You did well."
My smile was pure wicked satisfaction.
"Welcome to Evergreen Pack, Leon." I whispered…