Mira’s POV
I had nothing to say about what happened with my mother back then.
But my father’s way of handling this was chilling.
Tears pricked at my eyes.
“Dad, you’ll regret this. One day you’ll realize you trusted the wrong people. You’ll see what kind of venomous snakes surround you.”
Marcus pointed at me.
“The most venomous one here is you! You ungrateful girl! Seraphina treats you so well, and you pick on Vivienne at every turn. I had such high hopes for you, and look at what you’ve become.”
Vivienne seized the moment.
“Dad, don’t talk about Sister like that. She’s been working hard too. She even entered the jewelry competition hosted by Silvercrest Pack. She must be thinking about bringing honor to Mooncrest.”
Marcus’s reaction was immediate.
“Mira, withdraw from the competition. If people find out my daughter is submitting substandard work to a competition this important, it’ll only bring more shame to Mooncrest.”
I knew my father was still upset with me over the Elias situation.
And I admitted I’d been foolish.
I’d let my obsession with love derail my studies, and my grades were at the bottom of the class.
But hearing my own father dismiss me as worthless, every word designed to elevate Vivienne.
I swallowed the hurt and the resentment and said, word by word, “I am entering this competition, and that’s final. Whether I’m eliminated or I win, it has nothing to do with Mooncrest.”
Just then, a warm hand settled on my shoulder.
I looked up and saw Cale’s sharply sculpted face.
He stood there, backlit by the hallway light, his voice quiet but carrying a steadying weight.
“Sorry I’m late.”
The distance from where we lived to the Enforcement Squad was far, and traffic had been bad, though he’d driven as fast as he could.
He frowned at the visible scratch on my jaw, his tone sharpening.
“Who did this?”
I hadn’t expected that.
No reproach, no questions, just concern. Read this novel at g.com for the best experience.
My own father had done nothing but criticize me since he walked in.
Suddenly I felt like a child who’d been wronged and was finally hearing someone speak to her gently, and my eyes burned.
Cale brushed the loose strands of hair from my face, tucking them behind my ear, and studied the scratch.
“You let someone scratch you like that and didn’t hit back?”
I managed a weak smile and shook my head.
“I hit back. She didn’t come out ahead either. It’s fine now. Let’s go.”
From start to finish, Cale treated Marcus and Vivienne like they didn’t exist.
Marcus sputtered with rage.
“So you’re the one who’s been corrupting my daughter! Fighting is wrong to begin with, and you’re encouraging her to hit back?”
Cale laughed.
“An Alpha who can’t even protect his own daughter has no right to judge her actions. She could burn the world down, and I’d cover for her. But Alpha, what can you do for yours?”
Marcus opened his mouth.
Nothing came out.
My heart jolted.
I looked at the man beside me.
He was supposed to be bankrupt, drowning in debt, running from people who wanted him dead, yet even his bluffs carried this kind of weight.
Cale’s arm came around my shoulder.
“Let’s go.”
”Stop right there!” Marcus was livid.
He looked Cale up and down with contempt.
“Don’t put on airs with me. I just paid the fine, and now you’re waltzing in to take my daughter? What kind of nonsense is that? Let me tell you, if you know what’s good for you, you’ll stay away from my daughter.”
A smile played at the corner of Cale’s mouth, but his eyes were ice.
“And if I don’t?”
Marcus narrowed his eyes.
“Kid, don’t think I don’t know what you’re after. You know Mooncrest has money. You got rid of Elias, and now you want to muscle in on a free ride. If you really loved my daughter, where were you before bail was posted? I pay the fine, and you swoop in to play the hero.”
Cale’s smile turned cold.
“How much was the fine? I’ll give you a hundred times that amount. I’ll write it right now. My condition: you stay out of Mira’s affairs from now on.”
I stared at him, incredulous.
Was he out of his mind?
Posturing like this in front of Marcus just to save face for me?
He was bankrupt.
If Marcus actually made him pay, what would he do?
I grabbed his arm.
“Cale, I’m hungry. Let’s go home. I don’t want to waste another word on people who don’t matter.”
Vivienne studied him from the sidelines, her eyes brimming with undisguised mockery.
“Mr. Cale,” she said, her voice light, the smirk impossible to hide, “my father just paid ten thousand in fines.
A hundred times that is one million.
Are you sure you can write that check?”