Cecilia’s pov
"I’m going to get so drinks," Harper announced, clearly frustrated with my stubborn attitude. She headed for the kitchen.
As I moved toward the couch, I thought I heard footsteps outside the apartnt.
I paused, listening intently. Nothing.
Just my imagination. The night had been stressful enough to cause auditory hallucinations.
Harper returned with two ice-cold beers. "Let Alpha Sebastian go to his arranged mating etings if that’s what he wants. Our Cecilia is perfectly fine on her own."
I accepted the beer, popping it open and taking a long swig.
My fingers traced the condensation on the bottle. "Being honest, he’s... he’s a good man. Truly exceptional in every way, actually. But soone with his status and responsibilities—his mating choice isn’t entirely his own. He has obligations to his Pack."
"When you were with Xavier, you never thought so—" Harper caught herself. "Never mind that bastard. Speaking of Alpha Sebastian , I thought you were convinced he preferred n? You were quite adamant about it before."
"I might have... slightly misinterpreted things," I mumbled, unable to et her eyes.
The truth was, I couldn’t believe my appeal was strong enough to change soone’s sexual orientation. Hedging my bets, I added, "Maybe he’s bisexual?"
Harper stared at blankly.
We locked eyes, her expression growing increasingly incredulous.
Finally, she reached over and punched my arm. "What the fuck? Maybe he’s bisexual? But don’t ss with my ntal image of him—he’s supposed to be the cold, stoic Alpha who secretly has a tragic backstory and zero ti for love!"
"Ouch! Why hit for stating a possibility?" I laughed, dodging her next playful swing.
We wrestled briefly before collapsing back onto the couch with our beers.
Suddenly, Harper bolted upright. "Oh! I almost forgot to play you this absolutely explosive recording. It’s seriously mind-blowing."
"Please don’t let it be sothing disgusting. I just ate and don’t feel like vomiting."
"Of course not! Though speaking of disgusting things, Xavier was acting so strange earlier. When Cici tried to get intimate with him—God, the way he recoiled! Anyone watching would think he’d been forced into their relationship. He didn’t used to be like this, did he?"
Used to be...
What was he like before? I felt a montary disorientation as I tried to recall.
"It’s to be expected," I replied dryly. "Spend a year fucking a psychopath and you’ll end up going crazy too."
"True enough," Harper nodded, pulling out her phone.
She played a recording—a conversation between Cici and Luna Dora after dinner at the Blood Moon Pack estate.
At first, there was silence, just the sound of footsteps. Then Cici spoke, her voice sickeningly sweet.
"Luna Dora, can you please talk to Xavier for ? He’s been so cold lately. It’s breaking my heart."
Luna Dora sounded flat, like she didn’t want to be there."I can’t control how he treats you. If you feel like he’s mistreating you, you’re free to end the mating."
Silence followed.
When Cici spoke again, her voice had changed—cold and threatening.
"Are you sure you want to talk to like that? When I get upset, I tend to say... things. Things Alpha Claude might want to hear. Like about the human boyfriend you’ve been hiding. "
"And that woman overseas, the one trying to replace you? Her son’s nineteen now, right? Perfect age to co back and challenge Xavier for his place. If your position gets shaky, all of Xavier’s inheritance could be split."
"You...!" Luna Dora gasped. "Cici White! You stole Xavier from Cecilia, and now you’re threatening him too?"
"I’m not hurting him," Cici said calmly. "I love him. You’re the one hurting him by not helping ."
Luna Dora didn’t know how to respond. Her silence said it all.Then she snapped, full of hate.
"Don’t forget, Cici—your pregnancy is fake. I’m the one who lied for you. If you dare say anything about , I’ll tell Xavier the truth."
"Go ahead," Cici said, laughing softly. "Let’s both confess and see who dies first."
"You’re insane," Luna Dora said, her voice shaking. You could hear the fear.
Cici’s tone turned sweet again, which made it even creepier.
"I don’t want to hurt you, Luna Dora . But if you don’t listen to , I’ll ruin you. I know a lot more about your secrets. I even have your nudes. Think about that."
"You... you’re a demon," Luna Dora whispered.
The recording ended with her crying.
Harper turned off the audio. "Well?" she asked. "That was intense, right?"
I sat there for a mont. "More than intense. That was nuclear."
Harper leaned in, eyes wide.
"So Luna Dora has a human lover, Alpha Claude has a mistress and a secret kid overseas, and Cici faked her pregnancy? Damn. They’ll destroy each other without us doing anything. Xavier’s smooth life is over."
I didn’t say anything right away. I was thinking.
Then I said, "I think Xavier already knows all of this."
Harper blinked. "No way. If he knew, why would he still agree to mate with Cici?"
"Because he knows what kind of person she is," I said. "That’s exactly why he’s being careful."
"But before, he said he’d rather leave the Shadow Pack than be with her."
I gave a short laugh. "You really think he’d give up the Pack’s power? He knew they wouldn’t cut him off. The Shadow Pack needs the Blood Moon connection more than the other way around. Alpha Gavin stepped in to fix things, rember?"
I looked at her seriously.
"But this ti it’s different. If he lets Cici go wild, it could cause a disaster. That secret werewolf could co back, and Xavier might lose everything. So he’s thinking hard."
I paused.
"Of course, this is just my guess. Maybe I’m wrong. Maybe Xavier really believes Cici is pregnant and wants the baby. Maybe that’s why he ca after —to protect her."
Harper took another sip, clearly shaken."If you’re right, then the whole Blood Moon Pack is lying and scheming. They’re all terrible."
I shrugged. "Even good people can turn bad when they feel trapped."
Then an idea ca to . I smiled and looked at Harper.
"I just thought of sothing. A way to get proof that Cici’s a killer."
Harper looked worried. "What kind of idea?"
I asked, "Who has the biggest grudge against Cici right now?"
"Luna Dora , for sure."
"Then maybe... we should give Luna Dora a little help."
"Whoa, this just took a turn.."
Author’s pov
The next morning, Luna Dora received an anonymous package.
Opening it, she found a dossier inside.
At first, she was confused. The file contained a photo of a young man, along with his basic information—which school he attended, the date he went missing... When she reached the end, she was horrified to discover the connection to Cici.
That psychopath actually killed soone!
Luna Dora covered her mouth in shock, trembling as she recalled Cici’s threat from the previous night: If you don’t listen to , I will kill you.
She reached for water, but her hands shook so violently that the glass fell and shattered, cutting her leg.
The housekeeper rushed in. "Luna Dora, are you alright?"
Ignoring the blood on her leg, Luna Dora forced herself to calm down and examined the docunts again.
Who had sent this? And why?
Perhaps... a friend of this boy? Soone who learned about the Blood Moon-Shadow Pack alliance and wanted to expose Cici’s cris?
After a mont, she began to smile with a disturbed excitent.
The Goddess had blessed the Blood Moon Pack.
Cici White was a demon who needed to be eliminated before she destroyed them all!
She asked the housekeeper to find the address and phone number from the delivery slip and sent a text ssage.
...
Buzz.
Cecilia stood outside her apartnt, waiting for the elevator, when her phone buzzed in her pocket.
She pulled it out, eyes on the screen as her fingers began tapping out a reply.
The elevator doors slid open with a soft ding. Without looking up, she stepped inside, still focused on her phone.
She reached out to press her floor—
But the button was already lit.
Only then did she glance up...
And froze.
Soone was already in the elevator, standing silently behind her.
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