33. Chapter 33
Ivy
The launch party felt endless. The whole day was supposed to be an opportunity, one for me to get closer to Pack Vale, hopefully to somehow show them what was going on. I felt like I had made progress with Elias and hoped that he, of all of them, would put two and two together.
But then it all went to hell. After I’d been accused of stealing, my fathers told me to stay put in the back and not cause any more trouble.
I sat there in shock, still unable to process what had happened.
Arabella had set me up in a way that made me look insane.
It looked bad - even I would have trouble believing I was innocent if I were looking from the outside.
She’d simply walked into the VIP room and smirked at me, then grabbed her bag and started screaming like a banshee until our whole family, and Pack Vale, came running in.
I sat there, my body aching with the need to run to my mates.
I needed their comfort, I needed them to believe me.
It hurt more than anything to see the disappointment in their eyes when they saw the necklace in my purse - one that I knew Arabella had planted.
I sat with my knees to my chest, trying to breathe in deeply. I had to get through this. I had to.
People walked by occasionally, though the few that had witnessed the incident looked at me warily.
Every smile I forced onto my face hurt. I could see everyone else enjoying the event despite the drama.
Hundreds of people were here to celebrate the launch.
But all I could focus on was the sight of my mates standing beside another woman.
My mates. Even thinking the words hurt now.
I had spent weeks trying to convince myself that I could survive this.
I had tried burying myself in work. I had tried avoiding them.
I had tried suppressants, descenters, and every distraction I could think of.
None of it worked. Every time I saw Hunter's hand settle on the small of Arabella's back or Elias smile at her, or Ronan standing close to protect her, my omega instincts screamed that it was wrong.
Yet somehow I was the only person who seemed able to see it.
I took a deep breath and got up to grab some water.
I’d been exhausted lately, my body begging me for relief.
Even with extra suppressants, my biology was nearly overriding the drugs.
I would get flashes of heat at night, sweat beading across my body any time I was stressed - like right now.
I walked toward the drink station and grabbed a glass.
I was standing in one of the side hallways when Arabella appeared.
The moment I saw her approaching, I knew it was bad news. She was carrying a glass of red wine and wearing the expression she always wore when she knew she had won.
"What now?" I asked quietly, my body shaking with anger that I didn’t dare show now. Arabella smiled.
"Aren't you having fun?" she asked sweetly. I looked away, willing myself to stay calm. Just get through this, I thought to myself.
"What do you want?" I asked, desperate for her to leave me alone. Her eyes moved toward the ballroom where Pack Vale stood talking with investors.
"I just wanted to thank you." She said, giving me that damn stupid smile.
"For what?" I asked, my patience thinning.
"For finally learning your place." Before I could respond, her wrist flicked, and red wine splashed down the front of my dress. Arabella gasped theatrically.
"Oh no. So sorry." Her tone was complete mockery.
I stood there, so used to her bullshit that I knew better than to give a response.
Instead, I swallowed my humiliation, turned, and walked away.
By the time I reached the bathroom, I was shaking even more.
I managed to clean most of the stain, even though my hands were trembling.
I just had to get through this. I had to soldier on.
When I finally walked back out, the first thing I saw was Arabella curled comfortably against Hunter's side. Hunter had one arm around her shoulders while Elias sat beside her. Ronan was next to Elias, and to be honest, they looked like a family already. Like a bonded pack waiting for the last formality to be completed. I should have looked away. But Ronan’s deep, piercing gaze caught mine, pinning me into place.
Arabella saw, then tilted her head back and smiled up at Hunter.
"So," she said sweetly. "When are you finally going to bond me?"
My heart stopped. Hunter laughed softly.
"Sooner than you think. In fact, the sooner the better." He replied, and then something inside of me snapped.
For months, I had been forced to stay silent while everyone else decided who I was.
I had obeyed my father's bark. I had accepted the insults.
I had watched another woman steal my work, my identity, my match, and my future while I stood quietly in the background because I genuinely believed I couldn't fight back.
But hearing them talk about a bond - a permanent closure to the match that should have been mine - I finally made a choice.
Screw my family. Screw everyone. I needed to save Pack Vale from Arabella.
Before I could stop myself, or even realize what I was doing, I was running over, the eyes of the pack on me with surprise and wariness.
I opened my mouth to speak. The bark that had squeezed my throat wasn't holding me anymore.
My father's command, which had strangled every attempt to tell the truth, was weakening with every step forward. For once, I didn’t care about my family anymore.
I cared about Pack Vale. I cared about myself.
I took a breath, fighting like hell against the alpha command that tried to suppress my voice.
I pushed through it, the urgency of what I had to say overriding everything else in my mind.
"Stop!"
My voice cut through the room, and the entire pack, plus Arabella, stared at me. “You can’t bond with her!” I said, pointing at Arabella. I could already see Hunter’s brows crease, a look of anger flash across his face.
“How dare you-” He started, but I held a hand up, defying him.
“She’s lying to you!” I yelled. “The compatibility report she submitted was mine!”
It felt so good, so glorious to finally say those words aloud.
All this time, I had tried to find a way to tell them the truth, and I finally managed to get it out.
I felt the relief flow through me as I watched their reactions.
Elias looked shocked, Ronan looked wary, and Hunter still looked angry.
Arabella's smile vanished, and a look of panic flashed across her face.
"What did you just say?" Elias asked carefully.
"The report," I repeated, my voice trembling. "Pack Vale, I saw your reports. I saw mine. I tried to submit mine to the matching database, but it didn’t let me, it said my ID was already being used. When I compared my report to yours, I saw that we were compatible, a real match. Arabella submitted my profile under her name!” I yelled.
Shock flashed across the room. Now, I had everyone’s attention. But Arabella started laughing, way too loudly.
"Oh, my God." Her hand flew to her chest. "You're serious? Ivy, that’s crazy!” She said, looking at me like I was completely insane.
"I'm telling the truth," I responded, standing my ground. I looked at each of them. “Surely you can feel it? Don’t you? Because I could feel it with each of you. I didn’t need a compatibility report to know!” I spoke freely now, the alpha command no longer affecting me.
My care for Pack Vale and my own life had finally broken me free.
My fathers suddenly appeared, running from across the event at the commotion.
"You need to stop!” Phillip ordered. I felt the alpha command hit me, but I didn’t care anymore.
Not about him, or any of them. His alpha dominance pressed into me, demanding I submit.
He was my father, and I had always, always listened to him.
But I fought against it. I’d never submit to him again.
"No." My words shocked even me, and I saw my father's eyes widen at my disobedience. Years of pain erupted out of me all at once.
"No, you need to stop. Arabella stole my report.
You let her! You let her steal everything.
" I said, turning back to face Arabella. “And you, you know that I was behind every best-selling product we have! You claimed all those as your own. You take everything from me. But I won’t let you take them!” I said, pointing at Pack Vale.
The room suddenly exploded into chaos. Clara rushed forward immediately, pulling me back, her claws scratching at me as one of my fathers stepped between us. People were staring and murmuring, and I looked at Pack Vale. Surely they could feel it, now that I told them what happened. They had to.
Hunter’s face faltered, the first sign that something wasn’t making sense.
He glanced down at Arabella, who was looking at him with horror.
Elias’s eyes never left me, and Ronan stood, his massive muscles tensed the moment Clara grabbed me, and started crossing the room like he was about to tear my family off of me.
“Let her go!” Ronan roared, and my family froze. Arabella looked at me, and then I saw her quickly move her hand into her purse. She pulled out a small vial. The entire pack was focused on me, their eyes changing as they started to recognize something. Yes, please, please feel it, I willed.
But then, so quickly that it was barely noticeable, Arabella lifted the vial to her neck. Two sprays. That was all it took. The vial disappeared into the purse, and within moments she let out a whine.
Hunter, Elias, and Ronan froze. They were all headed toward me, but now they stopped in their tracks. Their heads slowly turned, their pupils growing large, as a strong scent filled the air around us. My family also stopped, everyone turning to look at Arabella.