Chapter 4: The Cost Of Lies

RYLAND’S POV

5 YEARS LATER

“LIARS!” I roar as I throw my chair across the room, watching as it crashes against the door and splinters to the ground.

The room is a wreck.

My office looks like a battlefield.

Thee are papers scatteredall.jcer the place as my rable lies overturned, and the broken remains of a glass decanter glint accusingly in the faint light.

It palws in comparison to how I feel .

“FUCKING LIARS!” I roast again as I begin panting, out of breath.

My wolf is pacing in my head, snarling at me, blaming me for the mistake I made.

A bloody mistake

I shouldn't have trusted them.

I should have investigated in my own.

All this time…

The lies.

The deception.

My wolf growls again, and this time, I let him.

His anger mirrors mine perfectly. My chest is heaving, my nails are extended, claws threatening to tear through my own skin.

I need to break something- someone.

Kill someone

I lean heavily against the desk, the memory of Zara’s face as I rejected her searing into my mind again and again.

I don’t know how long I stay there, gripping the edge of the window like it is the only thing keeping me from losing control.

Her voice haunts me- broken, trembling, yet laced with the strength that only made my betrayal worse.

Because it was betrayal.

I told her to trust me.

To believe in me despite her fears.

And I failed her.

And for what?

For a lie.

I rake my hands through my hair, breathing hard, my mind a storm of fury and shame.

I can't believe they played me like that.

I was their puppet. I, Ryland Cross, the most feared Alpha in the region, was used.

It is beyond galling.

I had trusted them, the elders—the supposed guardians of wisdom and tradition. When they summoned me that day, I thought it was the usual talk about hierarchy and the purity of the pack.

I thought their disdain for Zara stemmed from her being an Omega, and I was ready to defy them on that alone.

But they knew my weakness.

They knew the only way to manipulate me was to target the thing I value most: my duty to the pack.

The memory comes rushing back like a flood, sharp and vivid.

FLASHBACK

The council chamber was quiet when I entered, the heavy wooden doors shutting behind me with a resounding thud. The room was dimly lit, the air thick with the scent of burning sage. The elders sat in a semicircle, their expressions grim, their silence oppressive.

“What is so urgent that it couldn’t wait until after the ritual?” I demand, irritation clear in my voice.

“Alpha,” Elder Marus begins, his tone measured. “This is a matter of great importance. It concerns Zara.”

My wolf growls at her name, but I manage to keep my expression neutral. “If this is about her rank—”

“It is not,” another elder interrupts, his voice low and scared. “This is about your future, and the future of the pack.”

If course, it is.

I folded my arms, leaning back against the nearest wall. “I am listening.”

Marus leans forward, his fingers gripping each other as he locks his gaze with mine.

“You know the legacy of your bloodline, Alpha. The Cross bloodline is unparalleled in strength, tied directly to the Moon Goddess herself. That strength is what makes you the Alpha you are today.”

“Get to the point,” I said, my patience thinning.

The elder beside him, a woman with sharp eyes and a voice like glass, continues next. “Zara is no ordinary Omega. Her lineage, though hidden, traces back to the Solara bloodline.”

The words hit me like a physical blow.

I straightened, my wolf perking up at the mention of Solara.

“The Solara line is a myth,” I said cautiously, though doubt was already creeping in. “They don't exist.”

“It is not,” Marus said firmly. “The Solara line is real, and Zara carries its blood. It is rare, almost extinct, but it flows in her veins. She is descended from wolves who bore the light of the Moon Goddess herself.”

I swallowed, my throat dry. “What does this have to do with the pack?”

The elders exchanged glances, their collective weight pressing down on me.

“If the Cross and Solara bloodlines unite,” Marus said slowly, “the child born from such a union would be...unpredictable. Too powerful. Too dangerous.”

“Dangerous how?” I demand

The elder with the brittle voice answers. “The balance of our kind would be shattered. A child with that much power would not be bound by our laws, by our traditions. They would be a force of chaos, a threat to the pack and beyond.”

I stare at them, my mind reeling.

“You are asking me to reject my mate,” I said, my voice low. “Because of a myth.”

“We are asking you to protect the pack,” Marus said. “We ouldnr have cared otherwise.”

PRESENT

The memory fades, leaving a bitter taste in my mouth.

I believed them.

I let their fear and their so-called wisdom guide me, and I made the worst mistake of my life.

But now I know the truth

I discovered it in the hidden archives, the ancient texts they tried to bury. The prophecy wasn’t about destruction.

It wasn’t about chaos.

It was about salvation.

About power

A child born of the Cross and Solara lines wouldn’t bring ruin. They would bring unity. Balance. Divine power that could bridge the gap between wolves and the Moon Goddess herself.

But the elders didn’t want balance. They wanted control.

If a child like that is born there would be no need for the elders anymore

The child would be able to commune directly with the goddess, rendering them useless.

And they couldn't have that.

The realization is like a knife to the gut. They didn’t care about the pack. They cared about their power, their influence, their fragile hold on tradition.

Zara wasn’t a threat to the pack; she was a threat to them.

And I let them win.

The rage boils over, and I let it. My wolf howls within me, demanding vengeance. The elders are already locked away in the dungeons, their pleas for mercy echoing in my ears. But it isn’t enough.

It will never be enough.

Because Zara is gone.

I move to the window, staring out at the vast expanse of the pack’s territory. Somewhere out there, she’s alone, hurt, and probably hating me.

No, definitely hating me.

The thought twists in my chest, sharp and suffocating.

I turn away, grabbing my coat. The need to act is overwhelming. I can’t stay here, not while she’s out there.

“Alpha,” my Beta calls from the doorway, his voice hesitant.

“Prepare the trackers,” I snap, my voice like ice. “We leave now.”

“For what?” he asks, though he already knows the answer.

“To find her.”

“Uh… who?”

“To find my mate.”