Chapter 545
Dallas had already tried to push me away so many times. He despised his failing body, despised that he couldn’t be a true King for me. If he believed this child put a target on my back—Gigi was right. He would destroy our baby to save me, and the guilt would stop his failing heart for good.
I was trapped—caught between a murderous Alpha Female and my Mate’s self-destructive love.
A broken sob tore from my throat as I looked down at my stomach, the only piece of Dallas I would ever truly have.
“Okay,” I whispered, the last of the fight draining out of me. “I’ll stay. I’ll disappear.”
The next day, the reality of my decision settled over me like a heavy, suffocating shroud.
I stood in the bedroom of the Rockies safe house, mechanically folding a silk shirt and placing it into a small, open duffel bag. The massive floor-to-ceiling windows offered a bleak view of the snow-covered pine forest. Inside, the fireplace had burned down to weak, glowing embers. The air smelled of sharp cedar, the bitter tang of ash, and the faint, souring scent of my own crushed spirit.
The heavy oak door clicked open. Gigi stepped into the room, her posture rigid. In her hands, she carried a thick parchment envelope sealed with the golden wax crest of the Marshall family. The faint, crackling energy of ancient Pack magic radiated from it, making the hairs on my arms stand up.
She placed the envelope on the edge of the mattress.
“What is this?” I asked, my voice raspy. “I thought we already signed the divorce papers. The contract…”
“That was a legal fiction for the human world, Adella,” Gigi said, her tone laced with heavy, undeniable sorrow. “It holds no weight in Pack law. In the eyes of the Goddess and the Pack, your mate-bond still exists.”
I stared at the golden wax, cold dread pooling in my stomach. “Then what is this?”
“A Decree of Severance,” she answered softly.
I took a step back, shaking my head. “Why? If I’m already disappearing—”
“Because disappearing is not enough,” Gigi interrupted, her presence pressing down on me. “As long as your bond remains legally intact, Dosha can use your wolfless status to challenge your pup’s legitimacy. She will claim the heir is tainted and incite a Pack civil war.”
Gigi drew a slow breath, her eyes darkening. “But more importantly, we must protect Dallas from himself. His Lycan blood is primal and destructive. A dying Alpha King will not simply let his Mate vanish. He will tear the world apart to find you—drain every resource the Pack has, turn the earth inside out—and in doing so, he will expose you and the child to every enemy we have.”
Tears pricked my eyes. “He would look for me?”
“He would destroy himself looking for you,” Gigi corrected gently. “Which is why I have already told him a lie. I told him you signed this decree weeks ago. I told him you walked away.”
A choked gasp escaped my lips. Dallas thought I had abandoned him when he needed me most. He believed I had thrown our bond away like trash.