Chapter 3

ELARA POV:

The next morning, I knew what I had to do. I needed more. More proof. More information. I needed to see the cage they had built for me with my own eyes.

I needed to get inside the Rhes Gallery.

Going as myself was impossible. So I became someone else. I used a burner phone to call the gallery's staffing agency, creating a fake identity-Hope, a human desperate for work. A small cash bribe, wired from a non-traceable account Brenna helped me set up, ensured I was hired as a temporary cleaner for the day.

Before I left, I crushed a handful of mint and rosemary from the garden, rubbing the fragrant oils over my skin and clothes. The strong herbal scent would mask my own unique wolf essence, the tell-tale sign of a White Wolf that any werewolf could identify. I would smell like a human.

I pulled a beanie low over my hair and put on a disposable face mask. Looking in the mirror, I saw a stranger. Not Elara, the lost heir. Not the future Luna. Just Hope, a girl with haunted eyes. Fear had made me a ghost. Fury was making me a strategist.

Walking into the gallery as a cleaner was a surreal experience. The place was a monument to their betrayal, funded by my pack's money. I was assigned to clean the second floor, which included the private offices. Seraphina's office.

Her door was unlocked. The room was opulent, decorated in shades of cream and gold. And on her desk, in a silver frame, was a photo of her and Kaelen. They were posed formally, like a true Alpha and Luna. A 'couple photo' meant to declare their bond to the world. This wasn't just an affair. This was a shadow government, a secret family sanctioned by the pack's elders-my own parents.

I worked quickly, my hands moving on autopilot as my mind raced. In the employee breakroom, I found my chance. A young wolf, barely older than me, was wiping down the counter. Her scent was faint, her posture submissive. An Omega. Her name tag read 'Anna'.

"Busy day," I said, my voice carefully neutral, human.

She jumped, startled. "Oh! Yes. The elders are here a lot lately."

"Elders?" I asked, feigning ignorance as I emptied a trash can.

"Yeah, Former Alpha Richard is here almost every day," she whispered, leaning in conspiratorially. "He oversees the gallery's business himself. Spends more time here than at the pack council, I swear."

My blood ran cold. My father.

"And Former Luna Eleanor," Anna continued, her eyes wide, "she brings guests from other packs here all the time. Important Alphas and Lunas. She always introduces Ms. Seraphina as 'the daughter she always wanted'."

Each word was a physical blow. The daughter she always wanted. What did that make me? The daughter she was stuck with?

Just then, the front bell chimed. My head snapped up. Kaelen walked in, holding Leo's hand. Seraphina was on his other side, beaming.

I quickly turned my back, grabbing a spray bottle and a rag, pretending to be absorbed in cleaning a display case. My heart was a frantic drum against my ribs.

"-when can we finally get rid of her?" Seraphina's voice was a sharp whine. "I'm tired of sharing you, Kaelen. I'm tired of living in the shadows."

Kaelen's reply was impatient, harsh. "You know why, Seraphina. Everything we have, this gallery, Leo's future, it all depends on her. On her status as the White Wolf heir. Once she's fully bonded to me, once she's produced an heir of her own, then we can deal with her. Until then, you will be patient."

He was using me. For my bloodline. For an heir. The realization was suffocating.

I had to get out. I started moving towards the exit, keeping my head down. I was almost at the door.

"You."

The voice was low, laced with power. An Alpha's voice. Kaelen's voice.

I froze, my back still to him.

"I don't recognize your scent," he growled. "You're new."

My entire body tensed. He was an Alpha. His senses were a thousand times sharper than a normal wolf's. The herbs... were they enough?

I kept my face hidden, giving a small nod.

"Turn around," he commanded.

I stayed put, my feet feeling like they were glued to the floor.

His voice dropped, now filled with the unmistakable, irresistible force of the Alpha's Command. It vibrated through the air, seizing control of my muscles, my nerves, my will.

"I said, turn around. And take off that mask. Now!"