Chapter40
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With Gideon backing me so fiercely, anyone sitting on the fence might as well pack their bags.
The uninvolved pulled out phones, cameras clicking.
Martin, facing a wall of lenses, started to crack.
Is there really a recorder?
Was she bluffing?
Hands and feet tied-how’d she hide it under the table?
But she’d survived that ocean plunge.
Martin’s mind spun, weighing odds.
He gambled, but I let out a sharp gasp, feigning realization.
“Oh! My recorder’s cloud-linked. Auto-saves every ten minutes. Got a laptop?”
Gideon had one fetched instantly.
Martin’s face went cadaver-pale.
His resolve crumbled.
The laptop arrived.
I logged into my cloud, smirking at him. ”
There it is.” My finger hovered over play.
“Don’t!” Martin lunged, snatching the laptop, hugging it.
“Vivian, let’s talk.”
I sneered. “You tried to force me, planned to lock me up. If I hadn’t jumped, would I even be here?”
“You’re misunderstanding!” he begged.
“Cut the crap. Guts enough to hit play?”
“Vivian, I’ve got elders, pups-please. I’ll kneel, apologize.”
“Let you off? I’m my parents’ only daughter. If they knew a filthy old wolf like you nearly defiled me…”
My voice rose, gesturing for someone to take the laptop.
No backing down.
Martin hugged it tighter.
“I was saving you! Crude jokes, sure, but just that! Forgive my idiocy.”
“Go to hell, mutt! Forgive you? Only if you geld yourself right here.”
nar your mouth? You groped my leg!”
“Checking if you were hurt!”
Our clash was relentless, claws bared.
Onlookers, once impressed by my fire, realized-Martin had admitted it.
He was there. He did it.
Disdain sharpened their stares.
Camilla gaped.
She hadn’t thought my claims true.
On the phone, Charles let out a cold huff.
“Truth’s clear. Gideon, handle it. Authorities if needed. No leniency.”
The alpha of alphas spoke-case closed.
Martin collapsed, defeated.
Charles added, “Vivian, brave work.”
He smiled, knowing full well no recorder existed-I’d bluffed.
But I’d played Martin perfectly, sharp and bold.
“Thank you,” I said, calm.
“Vivian, welcome to Hartley Pack.”
He hung up.
Holy stars-Charles himself?
Excitement rushed, head spinning.
The room blurred, sounds fading.
“You okay?” Alpha Gideon leaned in, tapping my cheek.
Thud-
My head dropped, but his hand cushioned the fall.
He froze, lifting my face-unconscious.
I’d run on fumes, clinging to will.
Tension gone, my body gave out.
Unconscious, I fell into arms, warm and steady. making me want to crumbla ha a
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But a familiar voice jolted me. “Vivian, my mate!”
Adrian?
No, no-hallucination. A nightmare.
1:00 AM, Shaloria’s Premier Private Hospital
The room was plush as a five-star hotel.
I lay in bed, IV in arm, sleeping.
Five meters away, Gideon and Adrian sat on opposite ends of a beige sofa. Camilla curled in a chair behind
Gideon, staring blankly.
Elliot had fled.
What a night.
Word was, when I fainted, Gideon carried me out.
Camilla chased.
In the hall, they ran into Adrian, just back.
Seeing me in Gideon’s arms, Adrian nearly tackled him to take me.
“Vivian only applied to spite me,” Adrian said, icy.
“I quit her job for her.”
“I don’t care about her drama,” Gideon replied, cool.
“If she quits, she’ll tell me.”
Subtext: You don’t decide for her.
Gideon crossed arms, closed eyes, feigning sleep.
Adrian seethed, aura hostile.
He wouldn’t lose me to some stray-but this was Gideon.
6:00 AM
I woke to dawn spilling through windows, warm light chasing shadows.
I turned-and froze.
“Vivian, you’re awake!” Adrian shot up, rushing over.
He leaned down, touching my forehead.
Groggy, I tried to dodge, too slow.
“What are you doing here?” I pushed his hand, cold.
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“I sent the bond papers.”
Alpha Adrian flinched at my icy tone, stung but not angry.
He bent one long leg, dropping to a knee beside my hospital bed, his scent-once comforting, now cloying-
washing over me.
“My mate, I know I messed up. I really know I messed up. Give me one chance to make it right. I swear, for the rest of my life, I’ll never screw up again.”
His words dripped with sincerity, his eyes glistening like he was on the verge of tears.
But I felt nothing-no ache, no softening.
Just a cold, hollow space where our bond used to be.
“You don’t need to make it right. You were just being true to your desires.”
My voice was flat, matter-of-fact.
“You’ve been having a blast with your new fling these past six months-keep enjoying it. As for me, I’m happy
to set you free.”
The words cut deep, slicing into him.
He grabbed my hand, kissing it fiercely, his touch burning like a brand.
“I’m sorry. I deserve the worst. It’s not what you think with Vanessa. I don’t want to be with her. You’re the only
one I’ve ever loved.”
“Stop.
I yanked my hand back.
“Alpha Adrian, none of it matters anymore. We’re done. I will break our bond.”
“Breaking our bond isn’t just your call!”
His eyes flashed red, a flicker of alpha rage breaking through his desperation.
“I tore up the papers!”
I stared at him, silent for a few seconds.
“Fine. If we can’t talk this out, I’ll see you in court.”
“You’d really throw away all our years together? Forgive me, just once. I’m begging you!”
Panic crept into his voice as he leaned in to hug me.
“I can’t live without you.”
“Get off! Hands off me!”
I grabbed the nearest pillow and swung it at him, hitting his shoulder with a thud.
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The bond might be fraying, but my wolf still snarled at his touch-unwelcome, tainted.
On the sofa, a low stir broke the tension.
A blanket slipped off broad shoulders, and a familiar voice rumbled, rough with sleep: “Elliot, water.”
Elliot, who’d been pretending to sleep caught in the crossfire-snapped upright like a startled pup, scrambling to the mini-fridge to grab a bottle.
They’d been here since dawn, forced to sit through this sorry soap opera front-row.
Adrian and I froze mid-fight.
My eyes widened.
What the hell?
Please, moon goddess, tell me that wasn’t Alpha Gideon’s voice!
Adrian’s face flickered with annoyance-audience?
Standing, he softened his tone, that practiced charm sliding back into place.
“My mate, you must be hungry. I sent someone to get your favorite oatmeal porridge. I’ll grab it.”
The shift from groveling to casual was so smooth it was almost impressive.
I ignored him, my gaze locked on the sofa.
As Adrian stepped out, I finally got a clear look at the man sitting there, turned slightly to the side.
It was Alpha Gideon.
My cheeks flushed with embarrassment, hot enough to singe.
My boss. A high-ranking alpha.
And he’d just witnessed… this.
Every ugly, messy detail of my bond breaking, laid bare.
Alpha Gideon took the water from Elliot, sipped it slowly, his expression unreadable.
Then he stood and left without so much as a glance toward the hospital bed.
Elliot trailed after him, casting a quick, sympathetic look my way.
My gaze followed Gideon’s tall figure as he exited, my mind racing.
What was he thinking? That I was weak? Pathetic? A fool for ever trusting Adrian?
“Eat your porridge.”
Adrian’s cold voice snapped me back to reality.
He stood by the bed, blocking my view, holding a white porcelain bowl.
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His expression was frosty now, the act dropped with Gideon gone.
I blinked, dazed for a moment. “Just leave it there. I’ll eat it later.”
