Chapter 4
1388 Words
Chloe's POV
Zack looked different. Dangerous. His usually perfect hair was messed up, his suit wrinkled, and his eyes glowed with barely controlled wolf rage. He stood in the doorway of the diner, his chest heaving as his gaze locked onto mine.
"Chloe." My name came out as a growl.
Marcus stepped forward, blocking Zack's path to me. "I believe the lady doesn't want to see you."
Zack's eyes snapped to Marcus, and I saw recognition dawn. "Marcus Blake. The Moonstone Alpha."
"Zack Thornton. The fool who threw away his mate."
The air crackled with Alpha energy as they faced off. My wolf whined, torn between our broken mate bond and the strange pull toward Marcus.
"She's my wife," Zack snarled.
"Ex-wife," I said quietly, stepping out from behind Marcus. "You signed the papers, remember? Right after you publicly humiliated me and chose to believe Ryan without even asking my side."
Zack flinched like I'd slapped him. "I know what really happened. James found the backup footage. I saw Ryan attack you. I saw you fight him off."
"Good for you." My voice was ice. "Only took you two weeks to figure out what you should have known instantly. That your mate would never betray you."
"Chloe, please—"
"Please what? Please forgive you? Please come back so you can ignore me for another three years?" The words poured out, years of hurt and anger finally free. "Do you know what our marriage was like, Zack? I ate breakfast alone every morning. Dinner alone every night. I went to pack events alone even when you were standing right beside me."
"I was building our future—"
"No, you were building YOUR empire. I was just a pretty accessory you acquired and forgot about."
Marcus watched silently, but I felt his support. His presence gave me strength to say what I'd held back for so long.
"Do you remember our second anniversary?" I asked. "I planned a surprise trip. Told you about it a month in advance. The morning we were supposed to leave, you scheduled an emergency board meeting. It wasn't even really an emergency. You just forgot."
Zack's face paled. "I—"
"Or how about when I had a miscarriage?"
Both Alphas went still. I'd never told anyone about that.
"What?" Zack whispered.
"Six months ago. I was eight weeks pregnant. I called you seventeen times while I was bleeding in our bathroom. You were in a meeting. Veronica said it wasn't important enough to interrupt." Tears burned my eyes but I wouldn't let them fall. "I lost our baby alone on our bathroom floor while you were discussing quarterly projections."
Zack staggered like I'd shot him. "You were pregnant? Why didn't you tell me after?"
"When? During the five minutes you'd spare me between meetings? Or maybe during one of your business dinners where you'd introduce me as an afterthought?"
"I didn't know—"
"Because you never asked! You never asked how I was, what I wanted, if I was happy. You just assumed I'd always be there, waiting in your cold bed for scraps of attention."
Marcus growled low. "You neglected your mate?"
"Stay out of this," Zack snapped, then turned back to me. "I'm sorry. I know I failed you. But Ryan—"
"Ryan was just the last straw. Even if he hadn't lied, our marriage was already dead. You killed it through three years of neglect."
"I can change. I will change. Please, just come home."
"Home?" I laughed bitterly. "That penthouse was never home. It was a pretty prison where I slowly disappeared."
"You're my mate—"
"Was. I was your mate. But you broke that bond when you chose to believe I would betray you. When you didn't even give me a chance to explain."
Betty appeared from the back room where she'd been hiding. "Honey, you okay?"
"She's fine," both Alphas said simultaneously, then glared at each other.
"I wasn't asking you two." Betty walked over and put her arm around me. "You need me to call the sheriff?"
"No, Betty. They were just leaving."
Zack stepped forward. "I'm not leaving without you."
Marcus blocked him again. "Yes, you are."
"You think you can just sweep in and steal my mate?"
"I think she's not your anything anymore. You made that choice." Marcus's voice was deadly calm. "And if you try to force her, you'll deal with me."
"You want to challenge me?" Zack's wolf rose to the surface.
"Stop!" I shouted. "Both of you, stop. I'm not a prize to be won. I'm not property to be fought over. I'm a person who just wants to be left alone to heal."
Both Alphas turned to me, and for a moment, I saw past their Alpha pride. Zack looked devastated, like his world was crumbling. Marcus looked concerned, protective but respectful.
"Chloe," Zack said softly. "I know I destroyed us. I know I failed you in every way that matters. But I love you."
Those three words I'd waited three years to hear. Now they just made me angry.
"No, you don't. You love the idea of me. The perfect Luna who never complained, never demanded anything, never challenged you. But you don't know me at all. What's my favorite book?"
He stayed silent.
"What's my biggest fear? What did I want to be before I became Luna? What's my middle name?"
Still nothing.
"You see? Three years of marriage and you know nothing about me. Because you never cared enough to ask."
"I'll learn. I'll do better."
"With Veronica warming your bed?" The words came out harsh. "Oh yes, I know she's been staying at the penthouse. Emma told me."
"That's not... she's just..."
"Just what? Just keeping you company? Just filling the Luna position I left empty?" I shook my head. "Keep her. You two deserve each other."
My phone buzzed. Emma again: "Ryan's on his way back with ten wolves. Get out now."
Marcus must have received a similar message because he tensed. "We need to go. Now."
"What's happening?" Zack demanded.
"Your boy Ryan is coming back with reinforcements," Marcus said. "Unless you want Chloe hurt, we need to move."
Zack's eyes flashed. "Ryan wouldn't dare—"
The windows exploded inward. Wolves poured into the diner, and I recognized several from Zack's pack. In the middle, Ryan walked in human form, smirking.
"Well, well. The gang's all here." His eyes found mine. "You've caused enough trouble, sister. Time to end this."
Zack stepped forward. "Ryan, what are you doing?"
"Taking care of a problem you're too weak to handle." Ryan signaled his wolves. "She knows too much. Veronica agrees. Chloe needs to disappear permanently."
"You're working with Veronica?" Zack's voice was deadly.
"We're working for the good of the pack. You've been distracted, weak. A strong Alpha would have eliminated the threat immediately."
"She's not a threat. She's my mate!"
"Ex-mate," Ryan corrected. "Which means she's no longer protected by pack law."
The wolves circled closer. Betty pressed against my back, trembling. Marcus shifted partially, his hands becoming claws.
"Touch her and die," he growled.
Ryan laughed. "You're outnumbered, Blake. Walk away and we might let you live."
"I don't abandon people in need."
Everything happened at once. The wolves attacked. Marcus shifted fully, his massive brown wolf tearing into them. Zack roared and shifted too, his black wolf larger than any other.
But instead of fighting Marcus, he went straight for Ryan.
"Protect Chloe!" he commanded through the pack link before Ryan's wolves swarmed him.
Marcus fought his way to me, his wolf magnificent and terrifying. "Run!" he managed to say through the partial shift.
But I couldn't leave. Despite everything, watching Zack fight his own pack members to protect me stirred something. My wolf howled, wanting to help our mate.
Ex-mate, I reminded her.
Ryan pulled out a gun. A gun loaded with silver bullets, the only thing that could kill an Alpha quickly.
He aimed at Zack's exposed back.
"No!" I didn't think. I just moved.
The bullet meant for Zack tore through my shoulder instead. Pain exploded through me, silver burning like acid in my blood. I collapsed, my vision going dark.
The last thing I heard was two Alphas roaring my name.
Then nothing.
- Writer
