Chapter 22
Siena’s POV
The air on the terrace is sharp and cool, a stark contrast to the suffocating heat of the ballroom.
Raiden’s grip around my wrist still lingers like a phantom, even though he’s already let go. I stand several feet away from him, arms crossed tightly over my chest, trying to shield myself from the chill.
Or maybe from him.
He’s pacing now, his movements controlled but tense, his jaw clenched as if he’s holding back words that are barely contained. I don’t know why he brought me out here. Maybe he thought prying eyes didn’t belong in whatever this is.
But I know better. Raiden doesn’t do anything without a purpose.
I break the silence first, my voice sharper than I intended. “What do you want, Raiden?”
He stops pacing and turns to face me, his expression unreadable. “That stunt inside-”
“Don’t,” I cut him off, my tone like ice. “Don’t you dare pretend this is about me embarrassing you.”
“You’re reckless, Siena. You don’t think before you act, and then you wonder why people talk.”
I let out a bitter laugh, the sound cutting through the tension between us. “People talk because of her, Raiden. Because you let her flaunt herself like she owns you. Like she owns this.” I gesture vaguely toward the ballroom, toward the kingdom that’s supposed to be ours–at least in name.
“She doesn’t own anything,” he says coolly.
“Doesn’t she?” I snap, stepping closer. My heart is pounding now, and my wolf is stirring, growling low and restless. “Then tell me, Raiden. Tell me the truth. Is the mark real?”
His face hardens. For a moment, he says nothing, and the silence stretches too long, too loud.
“It doesn’t matter.”
I blink, stunned by the sheer audacity of his answer. “It doesn’t matter?”
“No, it doesn’t,” he says, his voice calm, almost detached. “We have an agreement, Siena. A fake marriage, remember? A partnership. That’s all this has ever been.” His gaze holds mine, void of all feeling. “And soon, even that will be over with.”
He’s right.
This was always the plan–to end this farce of a union and go our separate ways. And wasn’t that what I wanted? To escape the constant pain of being tied to a man who looks at me like I’m nothing?
But even knowing that, hearing him say it so plainly, so carelessly, tears something inside me.
“You’re right, that’s what we agreed on. But if that’s the case, then maybe you should remind Lila of that. Her flamboyant dramatics are starting to blur the lines, and I wouldn’t want your arrangement to be jeopardized by her little… performances.”
His jaw tightens, the only sign that my words hit their mark. “Lila’s not the issue here,” he says, his voice low.
“No?” I tilt my head, a bitter smile tugging at my lips. “Then what is, Raiden? Me? Are you going to stand there and tell me that I’m the problem? That everything wrong in your life begins and ends with me?”
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Chapter 22
He doesn’t answer. He doesn’t have to. His silence is enough.
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I laugh again, but it’s hollow, brittle, like glass ready to shatter. “You know what? It doesn’t matter. You’ve made your choice. You made it a long time ago
“Siena-
“No,” I cut him off, my voice steady and cold. “You don’t get to do this. Not again.”
His gaze locks with mine, and for a moment, the mask slips. I see something flicker in his eyes–something raw and unguarded.
The mark Siena, it’s not real, my wolf whines in angst.
But it doesn’t matter.
It doesn’t change anything.
Raiden’s POV
The silence she leaves behind is deafening.
I watch her step away, her back to me, her arms wrapped tightly around herself. The moonlight catches on her hair, and for a moment, I can’t look away.
Siena has always been a storm–fiery, relentless, impossible to ignore. But tonight, she’s something else entirely.
She’s quiet.
Still.
And it unsettles me in ways I can’t explain.
My wolf growls low in my mind, pacing restlessly, his voice sharp and accusing.
You’re the one who walked away first. Don’t forget that.
I exhale sharply, dragging a hand through my hair as I try to make sense of the storm inside me.
This is what I wanted, isn’t it?
To end this farce of a marriage, to move on, to finally be free.
So why does it feel like I’m the one being left behind?
I glance back at Siena, at the rigid set of her shoulders, the way her hands grip the stone railing like it’s the only thing keeping her upright.
She doesn’t look at me.
She doesn’t say anything.
And it makes something inside me twist painfully.
“What did you do to her?” I demand, my voice cold and clipped.
I don’t have to say her name. We both know who I’m talking about.
Siena turns slowly, her movements deliberate, her expression carefully blank. But her eyes–they burn with something
08:37 Sun, 20 Apr
Chapter 22
fierce, something raw, and it unsettles me in ways I don’t want to admit.
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“What did I do?” she echoes, her voice quiet but sharp, like the edge of a blade. Are you even going to ank what happener Raiden, or are you just going to assume I’m the villain? Again?
I fold my arms across my chest, keeping my stance firm, unmoving “You don’t exactly give me much reason to think otherwise.”
Her lips curve into a bitter smile, one that doesn’t reach her eyes. “Of course not. Because Lib’s always the victim, ist the And I’m always the problem.”
She takes a step closer, her voice rising slightly, the anger she’s been holding back starting to spill over. “Did it ever occur to you that maybe she’s lying? That maybe the perfect little mark on her neck isn’t what it seem?
I exhale sharply, my patience already wearing thin. “Why would she lie about something like that?
“Why wouldn’t she?” Siena snaps, her tone biting. “She’s been playing this game for years, Raiden. Manipulating you, manipulating the pack. And you-” She shakes her head, letting out a bitter laugh. “You fall for it every single time?
Her words hit harder than I expect, but I don’t let it show. Instead, I straighten my shoulders, my voice turning colder. “This isn’t about Lila. This is about you, Siena. About you not knowing when to back down, when to stop.
Her wolf growls low in her chest, and I can feel the tension radiating off her. But she doesn’t lash out. Instead, she takes a slow, deliberate step forward, her gaze locking with mine.
“And what exactly am I supposed to stop, Raiden?” she asks, her voice soft but laced with steel. “Am I supposed to stop fighting for my place in this kingdom? Am I supposed to stop trying to protect our pack from her? Or am I supposed to stop caring altogether?”
I clench my jaw, refusing to let her words get under my skin. “This isn’t about caring. It’s about control. You let your emotions get the better of you, and it’s going to cost you–cost us–everything.”
She laughs again, the sound bitter and hollow. “Cost us? Don’t make me laugh, Raiden. There is no ‘us. There hasn’t been an ‘us‘ in years.”
Something sharp twists in my chest at her words, but I shove it down, burying it beneath the layers of anger and frustration that have built up over the years.
“I told you from the beginning what this was,” I say, my voice low and even. “A partnership. A political arrangement. That’s all it’s ever been.”
Her eyes flash with something I can’t quite name–hurt, betrayal, anger. Maybe all three. But when she speaks, her voice is calm, controlled, icy.
“Right,” she says softly. “A political arrangement. That’s what you tell yourself, isn’t it? That’s how you justify everything you’ve done–or didn’t do.”
I don’t respond. I can’t.
She takes another step closer, and for the first time, I see the cracks in her armor, the pain she’s trying so hard to hide.
“You want to talk about control?” she says, her voice trembling slightly but no less powerful. “Let’s talk about control, Raiden. Let’s talk about how you’ve spent years controlling this narrative–she spits the word like poison-”
Her words are like a slap, and for a moment, I can’t find my voice. “This was never about…I never meant to hurt you,” I say finally, the words slipping out before I can stop them.
She lets out a bitter laugh, shaking her head. “No. You just didn’t care enough not to. Just business right?”
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Chapter 22
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The silence that follows is deafening.
Siena turns away, walking back toward the edge of the terrace. Her shoulders are tense, her hands gripping the stone railing tightly.
For the first time, I don’t know what to say.
Horace growls low in my mind, his voice sharp and accusing “Fix this, he snarls. Fix it before it’s too late.”
But how? How do you fix something that’s been broken for so long?
“I don’t regret this,” I say finally, my voice quiet but firm.
She doesn’t turn around.
“Of course you don’t,” she says softly. “Why would you?”
Something inside me twists painfully at her words, but I shove the feeling aside. “This isn’t about regret, Siena. It’s about moving forward. For both of us.”
She turns then, her expression calm but her eyes bright with unshed tears. “You’re right. It is about moving forward. And I can’t do that while I’m tethered to you.”
Her words hit like a physical blow, and for a moment, I can’t breathe.
“Tell her Raiden. Tell her the mark isn’t real,” My wolf urges, but I don’t.
I will not.
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