Alpha, Your Lock Betrayed Me Chapter 06
She hadn’t fled. She’d made a clean, decisive retreat.
Lysander sank onto the couch. His fingers brushed a black hair tie wedged between the cushions.
She must have dropped it while packing.
He held it for a long time, then slowly closed his fist around it.
After three years, a black hair tie was all Willa had left behind.
…
Willa’s POV
I stayed at the hotel for two days.
On the third morning, I interviewed with an architecture firm.
The interviewer, a woman in her thirties, was the firm’s design director.
She turned through several pages of my portfolio and nodded.
“Your portfolio is clean. Why did you decide to move away from Nightstalker Pack territory?”
I thought for a moment. “I wanted a change.”
She didn’t pry. She closed the portfolio and said, “All right. We’ll let you know next week.”
I stood, thanked her, and headed out.
Leaving the conference room, I crossed the open-plan office.
A woman carrying coffee passed me and asked casually, “New here?”
Before I could answer, a coworker called her away.
The office buzzed with work. No one was watching anyone else.
To my surprise, I liked it.
Bright sunlight greeted me outside.
My phone buzzed with a message from HR.
HR: [You’re hired. Your first day is next Monday.]
I stood on an unfamiliar sidewalk and read the message twice.
…
Lysander’s POV
Lysander remained in Willa’s half-empty apartment.
Sunlight had crept from the left edge of the windowsill to the center, casting a long diagonal beam across the floor.
He replayed the past few days, beginning with Willa’s blood signature disappearing from the lockstone.
He remembered how calm she had sounded on the phone.
What had he been thinking then?
Morrigan had been cooking. He hadn’t wanted to spoil her mood.
He hadn’t thought once about the web of scars on Willa’s palm.
Then his mind went to the hot spring resort three months earlier.
Morrigan had said, “Lysander, I ordered wine. Let’s have it in the room.”
He had.
He closed his eyes, and the rest came rushing back.
Morrigan wearing his shirt, the collar open, wet hair spilling over her shoulders.
The box of condoms he’d ordered, open on the nightstand.
Back then, he’d blamed the alcohol.
Now he knew better. It wasn’t the alcohol.
He had betrayed his Luna.
Lysander opened Instagram and found Morrigan’s account.
Her post from the ER was still there.
One comment read:
[Lysander playing knight in shining armor again?]
Morrigan had replied:
[He’s always been like that. Ever since we were kids.]
He stared at the reply for a long time before calling her.
“Was the asthma attack in the car real, or did you fake it?”
Silence stretched across the line.
Then Morrigan started crying.
“What is wrong with you, Lysander? I’ve had asthma for over twenty years, and now you’re asking if I faked an attack?”
Lysander said nothing.
…
Willa’s POV
I started my new job Monday morning.
My supervisor asked whether I wanted to join Ashborn Pack.
“Ashborn is Redpine City’s largest pack. They’re taking in new members, and they’d be happy to welcome you.”
Bad memories rose without warning. That familiar chill of being shut out of every inner circle closed around me, and my wolf growled uneasily.
I pulled my coat lighter. “Do I have to?”
“Not at all.” My supervisor smiled. “I’m not an Ashborn member either, but I know their Alpha well. Come to me if you ever need help.”
With that, she walked away.
I was still trying to find my footing when a short-haired woman beside me spoke up.
“Hey, you’re the new hire, right? I’m Mia.”
“I’m Willa,” I said.
“Nice to meet you, Willa. Come have lunch with me. I’ll show you around.”
Their friendliness felt unfamiliar… but warm.