Chapter 4 Chapter 4

Ava's POV

I waited until Marcus was asleep before sneaking out. We were staying at his apartment in the city, a massive penthouse that probably cost more than most people made in a lifetime. He had given me my own room, keeping up the business arrangement despite our public claim of being mates.

The old oak tree by the lake was a thirty minute drive from the city. I parked far away and walked the rest, my wolf senses on high alert. The moon was bright overhead, reflecting off the dark water.

A figure stepped out from behind the tree. My heart stopped.

It was my mother.

"Mom? You sent that text?"

She looked older than when I'd seen her just days ago. Worried. Scared even.

"Ava, you need to know the truth about Marcus before it's too late."

"What truth? What are you talking about?"

She glanced around nervously, then pulled me closer to the trees. "Five years ago, when Marcus challenged Alpha Blackwood, it wasn't about pack leadership. It was about a girl. Sarah Mitchell."

The name was vaguely familiar. "The Beta's daughter who died?"

"She didn't just die, Ava. She was murdered. And Marcus was the last person seen with her."

My blood ran cold. "You're saying Marcus killed her?"

"That's what Alpha Blackwood believes. Sarah was Marcus's girlfriend. They were planning to run away together, leave the pack. But then she was found dead by the lake. This lake." My mother pointed to the water. "Her throat was torn out. Like an animal had attacked her."

"Or a wolf," I whispered.

"The Alpha challenged Marcus to combat as punishment. Marcus lost and was banished instead of killed only because there was no real proof. But everyone knew. Everyone believed he did it."

I thought about the man I had just married. The cold way he had said his chance at a true mate had died five years ago. Was Sarah his mate?

"Why didn't you tell me this before?"

"Because I thought he was gone forever. Because I never imagined you would..." She grabbed my hands. "Ava, you need to leave. Tonight. Before the challenge. Before something happens to you too."

"I can't. I'm his wife now."

"A marriage that isn't consummated can be dissolved. Pack law allows it. Just run, baby. Please."

A branch cracked behind us. We both spun around.

Garry stepped out of the shadows, Sophia beside him. "Well, well. A secret meeting. How interesting."

"What are you doing here?" I demanded.

"We could ask you the same thing," Sophia said. "Married for less than a day and already sneaking around? What would your mate think?"

"He's not her mate," Garry said flatly. "I would know. I was with Ava for two years. I know her scent better than anyone. There's no mate bond between you and Marcus."

My mother gasped. "You lied about being mates?"

"Mom, I can explain..."

"No need," a familiar voice said from the darkness. Marcus emerged from the trees, his eyes glowing gold in the moonlight. "I can explain everything."

My heart raced. How long had he been there? How much had he heard?

"Marcus," Garry said, tensing. "This is a private conversation."

"Nothing about my wife is private from me," Marcus replied coolly. His eyes found mine. "Though I am curious why she felt the need to sneak out in the middle of the night."

"I told her about Sarah," my mother said, lifting her chin defiantly. "She deserved to know what kind of monster she married."

Marcus laughed, but there was no humor in it. "Monster? Is that what they're calling me now?"

"You killed her," Garry accused. "You killed Sarah because she tried to leave you."

"Is that the story?" Marcus moved closer, and everyone took a step back except me. I stood frozen, caught between fear and something else. "Let me tell you what really happened that night."

"More lies," Sophia spat.

"Sarah was pregnant," Marcus said quietly, and the clearing went silent. "With my child. We were going to run away together, start fresh. But someone didn't want that to happen. Someone who had been in love with Sarah for years. Someone who couldn't stand to see her with me."

His eyes locked on Garry.

"You," I breathed. "Garry, you..."

"He's lying!" Garry shouted. "I would never hurt Sarah. She was like a sister to me."

"A sister you confessed your love to the night before she died," Marcus continued. "A sister you threatened when she chose me over you."

"You can't prove anything."

"Actually, I can." Marcus pulled out his phone and hit play on a voice recording. Sarah's voice, young and scared, filled the clearing:

"Garry won't leave me alone. He says if he can't have me, no one can. Marcus, I'm scared. He's been following me. I think he might do something crazy."

"That could be fake," Sophia said, but she had stepped away from Garry.

"The blood under her fingernails wasn't fake," Marcus said. "She fought back. Scratched her attacker. The Alpha had the evidence destroyed to protect his Beta's son. But I kept a sample. Would you like to take a DNA test, Garry?"

Garry's face had gone white. "You're lying. You have nothing."

"Then take the test," I said, my voice stronger than I felt. "Prove Marcus is lying."

"I don't have to prove anything to you," Garry snarled. "You're nothing but his pawn. A tool for revenge."

"Maybe," I agreed. "But at least I know what I am to him. I spent two years thinking I knew you, and it was all a lie."

"Enough," Marcus said. "Everyone leave. Now. Except my wife."

"You can't order us around," Sophia protested. "You're not Alpha yet."

"No, but in three days I will be. And when I am, everyone who stood against me will answer for it." His voice was deadly quiet. "Including those who covered up a murder."

My mother looked between us, tears in her eyes. "Ava, please. Come home with me."

"I am home," I said, moving to stand beside Marcus. "With my husband."

It wasn't until they had all left that I realized Marcus was shaking. Not with fear, but with rage.

"She was really pregnant?" I asked softly.

"Six weeks. We were so happy. So stupid to think we could just leave." He turned away from me. "I found her body here, by this tree. Garry's scent was everywhere, but the Alpha said it proved nothing. Said Garry had been searching for her too."

"I'm sorry," I said, meaning it. "I'm so sorry for what happened to you. To her."

"Why did you come here tonight? Really?"

"The text. It scared me. I needed to know the truth."

"And now that you do? Do you want to run? Your mother is right, we haven't consummated the marriage. You could leave."

I thought about it. I was married to a man accused of murder, who might be innocent but was definitely dangerous. A man who was using me for revenge just as much as I was using him.

But I also thought about Garry, the real murderer walking free. About Sophia, pregnant with a killer's child. About justice that had been denied for five years.

"I'm not going anywhere," I said. "We have a deal. And now I have even more reason to see it through."

Marcus turned to look at me, and for the first time, I saw real emotion in his eyes. Gratitude. Respect. And something else.

"There's something else you should know," he said. "The challenge in three days? Alpha Blackwood is planning to cheat. He's hired rogues to attack during the fight."

"How do you know?"

"Because the rogues he hired used to work for me. They told me everything." He smiled, sharp and dangerous. "Would you like to help me plan a surprise for our dear Alpha?"

I thought about everything I had lost. Everything that had been taken from me. From us.

"Yes," I said. "Let's burn it all down."

Marcus held out his hand, and I took it. As our skin touched, I felt that strange spark again. Not a mate bond, but something. Something that was growing stronger.

"Together?" he asked.

"Together."