The smell of bitter coffee hung in the air as I delicately tapped my claws on the table. I was so angry that it seemed like fire was spreading through my chest. I was angry, more than angry. Anastasia was back. And she didn't simply walk in with her usual haughty air; she brought a puppy with her. Her dog. Just seeing them together made me feel like I was going to lose my mind.
I needed someone who loathed her as much as I did.
So I called Hayley.
She got there a little late, wearing a basic hoodie and sunglasses that were too big for her face. Hayley was always trying to be overlooked when she really wanted attention. She slid into the seat across from me as if she belonged in the shadows, not next to me.
I raised an eyebrow and replied, "You said you went on a trip." "Where did you go?"
Her eyes moved quickly, like a rabbit that knows a predator is nearby. "Just... spent a couple days in the city. Not much. "Needed to clear my head."
Tell a lie. I could smell it. She smelled like high-end perfume and luxury, and nothing about her screamed she was poor. She looked like she had been getting face treatments and soaking up moonlight, not staying in a run-down flat.
"And the store? Are you still going to shut it down?
She shrugged and acted calm. "Things have been slow at work. I thought I would take a break.
Okay. A "break." It's more like riding on someone else's money again.
I leaned in, my voice low and full of poison. "Anastasia got on my mom's nerves today." And mine as well. "She's back with a kid."
Hayley blinked. Her face lost all of its color.
She repeated, "A... a child?" and held on to my wrist as if it were a lifeline.
I nodded, my lips twisted in disgust. "A puppy that isn't yours." Do you believe it? "She has been hiding a child this whole time."
Hayley was frozen, and her claws were cutting into my skin. "Whose puppy is it?" she inquired too hastily, her voice tense.
I looked at her closely. What made her care so much?
I told them to relax. If you're worried about that, don't worry: the kid isn't Elliot's. My dad stated he's about three and a half years old and that she had him when she was living in another country. Maybe a random dog she slept with.
Hayley's shoulders fell. She seemed so relieved that it almost made me giggle.
That was it.
She still believed she could win Elliot over. What a joke.
I laughed and said, "She only had that one night with Elliot." "She doesn't have to worry about anything unless she's the fastest breeder in the pack."
She still looked shaken.
"Is she working now?" Hayley asked, changing the topic.
I laughed and said, "She's just a designer at Bourgeois." "Big deal." She thinks she's special because she can draw some clothes.
Hayley's nose crinkled in disgust with the rest of them. "She's always been good at drawing, but she won't last without a real degree." "Talent can only get you so far."
I crossed my arms and huffed. "That's right. She is just pretending to be smart, but she tricked my dad. Her dumb dog even understands how to kiss him.
Hayley's lips moved. "You need to get rid of her." Get her out of the house and even out of the country.
Her words made my eyes shine. "Don't worry. I will. She won't be able to stay here. "Not while I'm still alive."
But what Hayley didn't say, but what I felt, was that she wanted Anastasia to leave for her own reasons. She was doing more than simply helping me. No matter what it took, she was getting rid of anything in her way to Elliot.
Then I saw something shiny.
"Hayley, your necklace... where did you get it? It's beautiful.
She looked down and grinned as if it didn't matter. "Oh, this ancient thing? It's just a hoax. "Got it used."
I squinted but didn't push. She acted like it wasn't a big deal, but the necklace sparkled like real moon-forged silver, the sort QR Jewelry made. The kind that cost more than the whole store was worth.
But whatever. I let it go—for now.
Hayley kept looking at her watch, which made her lose interest. Most likely going to another appointment at the salon. I could almost smell the new lavender toner on her hair.
She was changing—more desperate and more sophisticated. She was trying to change herself into something Elliot would like. It was terribly sad. But also risky.
Hayley wasn't the type to sit quietly in the wings. She was done being ignored, just like me.
And together? We would make sure that Anastasia Tillman was nothing but a fading smell in the air.
Like a storm at sea, the nightmare came: dark, suffocating, and unrelenting.
I sat up in bed, bathed in perspiration, my breath ragged, and my hands clawed at the covers. My heart was still racing, and the last words from the dream stuck to my lips like a curse. "No! Please! No!
Elliot had looked right through me in that dream. Instead, he had peered right into Anastasia's eyes. And just like that, I was nothing. Put out. Not remembered. She took everything: his love, his safety, and the life I fought so hard to get.
Even though I knew I was safe in my room, the chill in my bones didn't go away. The moonlight bled pale silver on the bedding. But what about the fear? That stayed. That dream didn't just startle me; it also cautioned me.
I pushed my pillow to the floor like it was her. Anastasia. That name tasted bad in my mouth. "Why are you still alive?" "Why the hell are you still alive?"
all I had, even all Elliot had given me, was in danger as long as she was alive.
I couldn't let that happen. I wouldn't.
I walked around the room like a restless wolf, my bare feet making no noise on the floor. My mind were racing. The dream had put a thorn in my gut that wouldn't quit digging. That night, Anastasia saw Elliot. What if she recalled something? What if their connection was stronger than I thought?
If she found out the truth—if she realized it was me in his bed that night and not her—she would ruin everything. Not just me. But the life I had made with Elliot. The situation. The safety. The warmth of being with him, even if it wasn't actual love. Even if his wolf hadn't picked me.
I needed to know. And I needed them right away.
I got dressed without thinking about it. As soon as the sun started to rise, I was out the door and on my way to Bourgeois. Anastasia had always been easy to read. The only thing I knew about her was how strong her sense of responsibility was. She would arrive early. It always was.
I had to look at her face. I had to look into her eyes, listen to her speech, and figure out how much she recalled and how much trouble I was in.
Anastasia was also going through her own morning routines at the same time. She had dropped off her son, the only thing in her life that really seemed to keep her grounded, and now she was in a lot of meetings.
I waited. Watching from the shadows, I could feel the strain in her body as she left the boardroom.
Felicia has just added more work to her plate: ten proposal drafts by the end of the month. But it wasn't the task that made her nervous.
Alice.
That cocky wolf smirked as she bumped into Anastasia on purpose. I heard that President Presgrave boosted the incentive to a million. Anastasia, I'm not going to lose to you.
I could practically smell the anger in her presence. Underneath her serene exterior, Anastasia's feelings were a raging storm. I knew that storm well. I knew it well.
Elliot is getting in the way again. The Alpha wouldn't sit idle, of course, when the woman he really cared about was involved.
She probably thought, "He's cheating on the competition." From across the room, I could practically taste the bitterness in her pulse. Anastasia had too much pride. She would never want to win with help, especially not from Elliot.
Grace, her assistant, soon came up to her with a soft knock and a cup of coffee. "Miss Tillman, someone is here to see you."
"Who?"
"She's in the lounge waiting. Should I bring her in?
Anastasia thought about it for a moment but then nodded. She had no idea what was going to happen.
I could feel it as soon as I walked into her office.
The change in the air.
The tension between us was so strong that it felt like a bowstring.
Five years had gone by, yet as she looked at me, I could see the pure, burning hatred in her eyes.
I didn't want to play hard to get. I smiled politely with my lips. "I heard you were working around here." I was close by and figured I'd stop by.
"You have some nerve," she hissed, her voice cold as ice. Her aura got stronger, and the area between us felt like it was full with force. I could almost hear the faint growl deep in her chest.
I turned my head. "What's going on? Are you still crazy about the gigolo? That night, I made sure to pick the most attractive one.
Her eyes got bigger. The rage that flowed from her was almost blinding. She was trembling. Okay. I wanted to scare her.
"Don't tell me..." I leaned in with a crooked smile. "You still remember what he looked like?"
"Shut. Up. Her voice was poison. I could feel the impulse to shift scratching beneath her skin, and her whole body shook with wrath. Her wolf was prowling, angry, and ready to rip me apart.
I couldn't stop. I needed to know. "Would you know him if he were standing in front of you?"
She didn't say anything.
But her lack of words spoke it all.
And that was the risk. That's why I had to do something before the memories connecting them—no matter how blurry—became too strong to break.
If Anastasia did recall that night, everything I had stolen could be taken away in a second.
And this time, I wouldn't be able to get it back.