The rest of the night was a blur of fake smiles and forced small talk. Every word out of Tristan’s mouth was a lie. Every touch was calculated. I was nothing more than a pawn in whatever game he was playing.
When it was finally over, I retreated to the guest room Tristan had arranged for me. It was huge, lavish… and empty. Just like me.
I locked the door and collapsed onto the bed, letting out a shaky breath. My phone buzzed. A text from Cherry.
Cherry: Two days. Stay strong.
Two days. That’s all I had to survive. Then I’d be free. Free from Tristan. Free from this life.
Everyone turned to look at me as I returned to the pack’s retreat, their judgment hitting like a slap. Tristan, my oh-so-perfect mate, left me in one corner. Nice. Selene, of course, was glued to his side, looking me up and down like I was something she scraped off her designer boots. I caught Tristan leaning in, his voice low but not low enough.
“I don’t feel bad for her,” Tristan hushed to Selene. What an annoyance? And why not say it loud since I could hear it all clearly? “I just want her to know she’s nothing without me. Like, worse than a stray,” he explained.
Ouch. Worse than a stray… That’s really something from my dear Alpha mate, right?
Not like I didn’t already know that was Tristan’s vibe. Still, what he said stung, though. The pack’s eyes burned into me, waiting for me to break as most of them heard Tristan’s words as well. But, joke’s on them—I was way past breaking. Numb. That’s what I’d turned to. Just… numb.
I waved down a pack servant and asked for a drink. Then I flopped down on a worn-out couch in the corner and just… watched. Watched people laugh, watched Tristan glow in the attention. Watched Selene cling to him like a limpet. Pathetic, I watched the whole lot of it.
Then… my phone buzzed. Cherry. The one person who hadn’t given up on me. Excitedly, I answered.
“I found some packs willing to take you,” Cherry happily informed me. “You can meet their Alphas soon.”
“And be interviewed by those Alphas first?” I humorly asked. I need to pacify myself for all misfortune I am seeing at the moment. How I hate everything in my life being with Tristan. “What would be my application process? Interview by all of them and then who would choose me first will be my next Alpha?”