Chapter 2

Selene POV:

The next morning, the scent inside the penthouse felt entirely wrong.

Usually at this time, the kitchen was completely empty and cold. But today, the air was filled with the rich aroma of premium enchanted game meat. This kind of meat was incredibly rare, hunted only in the deep magical forests, and was exclusively meant to nourish high-ranking wolves.

I walked into the dining room. My mother, Martha, was standing by the stove, holding a spatula.

"Selene, you're awake! Go wash up. Mom made your favorite nourishing broth," Martha turned around, her face piled high with a kind, maternal smile.

I stared at the apron tied around her waist, my footsteps halting.

Growing up, Martha only ever cooked personally when Vivian was going through her Heat or feeling unwell. Otherwise, she couldn't even be bothered to step foot in the kitchen.

"What is the special occasion today?" I pulled out a dining chair and sat down, looking at her with a calm, flat gaze. "You rarely cook, Mother."

Martha's hand, holding the soup ladle, stiffened. A clear flash of guilt darted through her eyes.

"What are you talking about? Isn't it only right for a mother to visit her daughter and cook a meal?" she deflected, carefully placing a delicate porcelain bowl in front of me. "You just got back from a grueling border inspection. You look so thin; it breaks my heart."

"Where is Caleb?" I asked.

"Oh, he went downstairs to buy those artisanal pastries you like for breakfast," Martha said, pulling up a chair next to me and eagerly pouring me a glass of warm milk.

"Selene," Martha sighed, shifting her tone to one of earnest, elder-like concern. "Don't work so desperately hard. Even if you are an Alpha, a female ultimately needs a good mate to rely on."

I stirred the meat broth in my bowl, saying nothing.

Seeing my silence, Martha continued, her tone dripping with false maternal guidance: "Look at you, always keeping that cold, rigid face. It's not cute at all. You're not like Vivian; whenever she runs into trouble, she talks to the family and acts sweet."

"You are the older sister. You should be more accommodating toward your fragile Omega sister. Stop being so cold to her."

I slowly lifted my head, my golden Alpha eyes locking dead onto hers.

"How exactly am I not accommodating her?"

"The luxury riverfront apartment she lives in, the designer haute couture she wears from head to toe, and even her monthly Heat suppressants—which one of them isn't charged directly to my card? How much more accommodating should I be?"

Martha's face instantly turned deathly pale. Just as she opened her mouth to argue, a soft click came from the front door.

Caleb walked in, carrying a bag of expensive coffee and pastries.

His Beta instincts quickly picked up on the tense atmosphere at the dining table, and he immediately walked over with a flawless smile.

"Good morning, Mom. Good morning, my beautiful Luna. Eat while it's hot," Caleb said incredibly naturally, pushing my favorite pastry to my hand.

"By the way, Fiona just contacted me through the Mind-Link," Caleb added smoothly. "She said she wants to have lunch with you at the city center today. She misses her Alpha."

At the mention of Fiona, my hand stirring the soup spoon stopped.

My Gamma. My supposed best friend. I had pulled her out of the slums, funded her combat training, and given her a high-ranking position in the Pack.

Yet, last night, she was the one who personally handed that sacred bouquet of Moonflowers to Vivian.

"Sure. I need to talk to her anyway," I said, my tone perfectly steady.

I picked up my phone and opened Fiona's chat box. Her message from last night was still glaringly sitting on the screen.

Selene, did you land? Did Caleb pick you up? I am so jealous of your perfect mate bond!

Staring at that line of text, along with the row of heart emojis following it, my stomach violently churned with pure, sickening disgust.

After breakfast, Martha made up an excuse about having a morning tea gathering with the other Elders and hurriedly fled the scene.

Caleb also went back to the bedroom to change into his suit, preparing to head to the corporate headquarters.

I sat on the living room sofa and casually picked up Caleb's personal tablet, which he had left on the coffee table.

He was careless and vain, never having the habit of being on guard around me. His password had always been my birthday.

I typed in the password. The screen unlocked instantly.

I opened his cloud photo album. The newest batch of photos made my breath catch in my throat.

The background was a private beach villa in our southern territory. Vivian was wearing a revealing swimsuit, leaning intimately against his chest. The two of them were smiling with sickening sweetness.

The timestamp showed it was from half a month ago—the exact few days he claimed he was leading a warrior squad to hunt rogue wolves near the southern border.

I scrolled down and found a hidden folder. I typed in his birthday, but it prompted an incorrect password.

I then typed in Vivian's birthday. The lock clicked open.

The folder was packed with Vivian's explicit private photos, along with screenshots of their chat logs.

Vivian: Caleb, my sister scolded me again today. I'm so scared of her.

Caleb: Be a good girl and ignore her. That's just her rigid Alpha temper. Once we completely take over her corporate empire and military authority, we will be truly free.

Vivian: But the moonstone ring is so expensive. What if my sister checks the defense budget and finds out?

Caleb: Don't worry. I used the supplementary black card she never checks, and I've already smoothed out the billing records. As long as it makes you happy, any amount of money is worth it.

Staring at these filthy, shameless conversations, my stomach spasmed violently.

I took screenshots of everything, packaged them into an encrypted file, and sent it directly to my private vault. Then, I wiped all traces of my access.

Caleb walked out of the bedroom, adjusting his tie as he approached me.

"Selene, what are you looking at?" he asked, his gaze casually sweeping over the tablet in my hands.

I seamlessly switched the screen to the financial news page and placed the tablet back on the coffee table.

"Nothing. Just checking today's stock market."

He walked up to me, leaned down, and pressed a gentle kiss to my forehead.

"Don't work too hard today. Wait for me to come home tonight, and we will go celebrate our fourth anniversary."

"Okay." I looked into his hypocritical eyes, a cold, calculating smile tugging at the corner of my lips. "Where are we celebrating?"

"It's a secret. I promise, I will give you a massive surprise."