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I blinked in surprise. “You understand?”

“Yes, love. Besides, I saw the way you resisted and told him you love me. I have nothing to worry about. I trust you.”

I tried to say something, but the knot in my chest traveled to my throat, forming a thick lump and obstructing my vocal cords. He wasso good and understanding. It made me feel like shit. Guilt was eating me up like a carnivorous beast, and I couldn’t fight back. I deserved it.

“It’s getting cold. Let’s head back,” he said, holding out his hand for me.

I shook my head, urging him to go on without me. It was almost midnight, and Ella should be here in no time. Besides, I needed some time to recover from today’s event, recollect my thoughts, and restrategize.

The plan had formed in my head. All I needed was evidence of the murder, and something told me that whatever Ella had discovered was going to go a long way in helping. I sent her a quick text, letting her know I was currently in the garden and she could join me. With the ceremony in full swing, our absence would not be noticed.

If there was one thing tonight had proven to me, it was that my marriage to Victor might not last past the first few months, and it was only a matter of time until Griffin broke through all my walls and found me defenseless against him. The earlier I got done with this, the sooner I could cook up a reason to leave before things got ugly.

It took roughly fifteen minutes for Ella to join me in the garden. Her maid’s uniform was replaced by a black cocktail dress. She looked so beautiful, and I wished I could take a picture for Mary.

“We have to be quick before anyone sees us,” I said, leading her to a dark corner in the garden.

“Shortly before she was murdered, Mary always spoke of an impending war, a division, and she constantly asked me to be careful.” Ella started, her eyes filled with fear and her voice shaky. “I asked her what was wrong a lot of times, but she maintained it wasn’t her secret to tell. On the day they found her body, I found this stuck between in her fist.”

She pulled out a royal blue button from her bra and handed it to me. “I don’t have access to the royal chambers, so I’ve not been able to figure out the owner, but I know this will go a long way in revealing the truth. I had wanted to give it to you the moment you got here, but I was a bit skeptical. I needed to be sure I could trust you.”

“Do you trust me now?” I replied, rolling the button between my fingers.

She let out a soft smile.

“Yes.”

I held the button to the silver moonlight filtering through the trees, my heart pounding in my chest. As I examined the intricate pattern, a chilling realization dawned on me.

Goddess, let this be a mistake.

CHAPTER NINETEEN

Griffin

“I love Victor, and I will marry him.”

Those words have tormented me in dreams and waking. I have never felt so defeated in my life. We have had multiple conversations with me asking her not to marry Victor, but not once did she ever say she loved him. She spoke about how I don’t control her and how she does whatever she would like and will marry whoever she wants. But the question of love never came up.

It broke me apart in ways I never thought possible, and I was certain if the ballroom had gone quiet as she walked away with him, the whole pack would have witnessed the weight of my heart falling at her feet and how she trampled on every piece.

It was laughable how I could almost swear I was getting through to her with the kisses and stolen moments. But now, I know those feelingswere only made possible by the bond we shared and not born of her will.

It was evident in the way she looked at Victor. A mating bond couldn’t birth the deep feeling of adoration I saw in her eyes. Those could only be born of true love and complete devotion, and I knew without doubt that she didn’t feel any of that for me.

I was no stranger to pain, but this felt like the type that would burrow into your skin and make a home for itself, the type you can’t get rid of by breaking things and throwing yourself into work. It would stay, silent and simmering, waiting for the distractions to die down. Then, it would remind you of its presence.

Was this how she felt when I told her I was in love with Lilith and had no interest in our mating bond? I could still remember that day in my room and the look on her face when I told her I had responsibilities that trumped the will of the goddess.

How she was able to put up a strong front and be so understanding about things while Lilith and I fawned over each other without breaking down was a mystery to me.

She was hurting. She just hid it better, my wolf whispered before retreating into himself. I’ve never seen him so solemn my whole life.

The errors of my ways and the selfishness of my actions played out before me. In my quest to define my own fate to ensure my happiness, I somehow ended up drafting the cruelest destiny for myself.

“I hope you’ve had enough time to come to your senses,” Lilith’s voice almost startled me as she perched on my table, casually twirling my bedroom key on her finger.

“I asked you to drop my key and everything that belonged to me with Michael,” I hissed, the sight of her bringing to mind all I had lost.