Sylvia’s POV
Oh my god.
How did things spiral like this?
Adrian…
Adrian actually walked out with Ava.
Just took her, like it was the most natural thing in the world, leaving the real Crawford heir, his official fiancee, standing there left out in the cold.
What was even going on?
I stared after their silhouettes, totally stunned.
An Omega?
Having anything to do with the Bloodmoon Alpha?
No way.
Absolutely impossible.
Beside me, Damon was clearly just as blindsided.
His brows were scrunched so tight they practically formed a knot, and that usually composed, handsome face was dark with confusion and something sharper, suspicion.
He didn’t even look at me.
He just strode straight toward Bella, who was still frozen in place.
“Ma’am,” he said, polite but distant, “may I ask, what exactly is the relationship between that she-wolf and Mr. Thorne?”
Bella blinked like she’d just snapped out of a nightmare.
She let out a tiny sigh, her expression soft and helpless, almost fragile.
“I… I really don’t know. I only recently returned to the family. The engagement between me and Mr. Thorne was arranged by the elders. We barely interact. As for whether he has… other women… I’m honestly clueless.”
She looked like someone whose world had just cracked in half.
Vivian immediately squeezed in, her eyes blazing.
“No wonder that woman was acting so smug! Turns out she’s got Alpha Adrian backing her up! Wow, who would’ve guessed, an Omega pulling strings like that.”
The crowd erupted instantly, buzzing again.
“Yeah, seriously, never judge by appearances.”
“But no matter how cocky she is, she’s just a hidden fling.
Bella is the future Luna of the Bloodmoon Pack.
That’s never changing.”
“Exactly!
Once the novelty wears off, she’ll be the one crying.”
Listening to them, I couldn’t deny it.
I was pleased.
And I could tell Damon’s expression had gone pitch black, like he was a second away from exploding.
I slipped closer to him, putting on a worried tone while nudging exactly where it would hurt.
“Damon, I never imagined Ava would turn out like this. The way she was with Alpha Adrian just now… it was way too intimate. And she… she hasn’t even divorced you yet. To behave like that… she really made our Darkmoon Pack lose face out there.”
Damon’s fist clenched hard at his side, veins standing out beneath his skin.
“Don’t talk nonsense. Ava isn’t that kind of woman.” His voice came out rough and raw, like every word was scraped out of his throat.
He was clearly holding himself back as he looked at me and said, “I’ll find the right time and ask her myself.”
He was still defending her.
The moment I heard that, I shut my mouth.
I could say with absolute certainty that Damon really, genuinely cared about that woman.
And that realization burned me up.
But here, in this place, I had to swallow it.
Ava’s POV
I followed Adrian into a spacious, luxurious dressing room backstage.
A brand-new gown was already waiting for me, and a professional stylist stood by, ready to start.
While I was changing and getting my hair fixed, I immediately texted Alvin, asking about Bella.
He replied almost instantly: “My sincerest apologies, Ms. Crawford.
That ring was originally custom-made for you, but it went missing.
We’ve been searching for it.
We’ll find out who’s been using your identity.”
I answered, “Bella being able to get the dress and the jewelry…
a normal person couldn’t pull that off.
When you figure out the truth, notify me first.
Don’t act yet.”
Alvin responded respectfully, “Understood.”
I finished changing and had my makeup touched up before stepping out.
“Thank you.” I looked at Adrian, who was lounging on the sofa flipping through a magazine like he couldn’t care less.
My thanks came from the heart.
He stood up and walked toward me, his tall figure casting a huge shadow over me.
His voice was low when he said, “You don’t need to thank me. Tonight, you’re with me. I take responsibility for that.”
His breath brushed across my cheeks, warm enough to stir something fluttery in my chest.
I swallowed hard.
I knew he didn’t mean it romantically, just duty.
But compared to Damon’s behavior…
I forced myself not to get pulled in.
“Either way, I should still thank you. Now let’s get out there. I’m supposed to speak as the Crawford Pack’s sponsor representative.”
But just as I took a step, my heel twisted.
I let out a startled gasp, thinking I was about to face-plant.
Adrian caught me immediately.
“Careful! your face looks like you downed two pounds of whiskey. Are you sure you can still give that speech?”
I tried to ignore the heat radiating from where he held me and pushed myself upright again.
I came tonight to prove I deserved the Crawford heir title.
But at this rate, I looked like a disaster waiting to happen.
Adrian’s blunt words actually snapped me back to my senses.
“Alpha Adrian, I appreciate you helping me out of responsibility, but if you keep doubting your partner’s abilities like this, I’m guessing our engagement is going to hit a lot of roadblocks. Don’t you think?” I said, irritation slipping through.
“Respect is earned, not spoken,” Adrian replied, his voice low and steady.
I ignored the provocation in his tone and said calmly, “Alpha Adrian, let’s head out now.”
If he had actually seen how I handled things, he wouldn’t have thrown that comment at me.
The doors of the banquet hall swung open again, and the first thing I saw was Damon and Sylvia staring at me like they’d just been hit by lightning.
Even Bella froze.
I had asked him beforehand to keep the sponsor’s name off the record.
No one needed to know I was the Crawford heir, not when my divorce with Damon wasn’t even finalized.
The moment I stepped onto the stage, a ripple of shock moved through the crowd.
“Why is it her?”
“I heard the main sponsors tonight were the Crawford Pack and the Bloodmoon Pack.
Adrian’s representing Bloodmoon, so who is she?”
“Wait…
is she actually the Crawford heir?”
Damon’s eyes widened so dramatically he looked like someone had pulled the floor out from under him.
The host quickly added, “The Bloodmoon Pack’s Alpha has entrusted his companion, Ms. Crawford, to deliver the speech on his behalf. Let’s welcome Ms. Crawford!”
It felt like a thousand spotlights snapped onto me all at once.
My palms were sweating, my stomach clenched, and for a second, I thought my legs might betray me.
But I couldn’t back down now.
Forcing myself steady, I walked up to the podium.
“Good evening, everyone.” My voice wavered just a little, barely noticeable unless someone was really listening.
“Mr. Thorne asked me to deliver his speech for him tonight.”
The murmurs in the audience flared up again.
Right then, Adrian rose from his seat in the front row.
Just that simple motion shut the entire room up instantly.
He looked straight at me, his voice carrying through every corner of the hall.
“I did authorize her.”
With those words, the hall finally fell into complete silence.
I drew in a slow breath and braced myself for the speech.
The topic was history, the legacy of our kind, and where we hoped our future would go.
At first, the nerves got the best of me.
I stumbled over a few lines, and I could hear a couple of suppressed sighs from below.
But I forced myself to focus, pushed aside the stiff, formal script, and started speaking from my heart instead.
That was when I finally found my rhythm.
“…Compared with humans or vampires, those ancient races with thousands of years behind them, the history of werewolves is actually pretty short, just a few centuries.
But for any race to survive and thrive long-term, passing on its culture really matters.
Humans build museums, put their past into textbooks, and teach every generation.
That alone shows how important it is to look back at where we came from if we want a future worth having.”
“Today, we’re gathered here not just to remember the past, but to figure out how to move forward.
And yeah, we can’t pretend everything’s perfect.
Our kind is still dealing with all kinds of issues, wars sparked by resource shortages, disasters hitting way too often, territories with shaky infrastructure, the mess caused by illegal substances, and even genetic problems that come from mixed bloodlines…”
“We’re all werewolves.
We live under the same sky.
That makes us a community with a shared fate.
Every single one of us should be willing to give something, to carry the responsibility of shaping the future of our race.”
“I believe that with everyone here doing their part, the werewolves’ tomorrow will be brighter, stronger, and so much better.”
As the last word left my lips and I bowed deeply, the banquet hall went quiet for a few long seconds.
Then applause erupted, loud, thunderous, rolling on and on without stopping.