E

    At 928, I quietly slipped away from the banquet to meet Lilith.

    I wasn’t sure why she had asked me to meet in the women’s bathroom, but if she had, then it had to be

    important.

    Of course, my mind immediately went to her condition after that security guard had shoved her–was she more hurt than I initially thought? Was she unable toe to the banquet? Or was it something else?

    No one noticed as I left the banquet hall. Thankfully, most people had hardly paid me any mind since the incident; I’d received a fewments and someughs, but mostly everyone was too busy focusing on their new Alpha King to think about my blunder.

    I was d for it. Blending into the background on a night like tonight was ideal. Alexander hardly cast me more than a nce when I touched his arm and left him to continue his conversation about politics. with a group of Alphas who were clearly kissing his ass.

    Just before I slipped away, though, I couldn’t help but pause to drink him in. Alexander looked incredibly handsome in his ceremonial crown and cape–an outfit I knew he would only wear for special asions, but still. It seemed to be made for him. He held himself like a true Alpha King, fitting into the role with. such ease that it stole my breath away every time I looked at him tonight.

    It also made me wonder where we stood.

    Officially, I was his Luna Queen. The woman who was meant to stand by his side throughout his time in

    office.

    But what were we, really? Alexander seemed confused when I mentioned how he left without me earlier, and he had gone to such lengths to make me feel better after the whole incident. He’d said those sweet things in private, too, and that couldn’t possibly just be an act for the cameras because we’d been

    No, my heart said otherwise. Maybe, after our night of passion together, things really had begun to

    change.

    Maybe we could finally put this age of push–and–pull behind us and could simply be together. Mates.

    Husband and wife. Parents to a child who would be adored.

    The way things were supposed to be.

    Before I could dwell on it for long, though, I tore my gaze away from his perfect side profile and stepped into the hallway. A couple of minutester, at 9:30 on the dot, I found the bathroom Lilith had specified. It

    was the same one Alexander had found me crying in earlier.

    But when I stepped into the room, there was no one there. I frowned, looking around for Lilith, and even began opening the stall doors. The bathroom was empty.

    It was when I opened the final stall door, the very same one I’d been crying in earlier, that I found the envelope. It wasrge and yellow and clearly thick as if it had a bunch of papers in it. And it had my

    name on it.

    “Hello?” I looked around, wondering if Lilith was ying some kind of prank on me, but the bathroom.

    remained quiet.

    I stared at the envelope sitting on the top of the toilet for a moment before picking it up. My name was indeed printed on the front, although I couldn’t discern whose handwriting it was. Definitely not Lilith’s.

    Too curious to ignore it any longer, I shrugged to myself and tore the envelope open. Inside was a stack of papers, maybe twenty pages thick. The first page made my eyebrows shoot up.

    “Subject: E of Stormhollow

    ssification: Ongoing Surveince

    Authorized by: Alpha Alexander Ashw”

    I blinked at the words, not quite processing what I was reading Surveince? What the hell was this?

    I flipped to the next page and found a detailed timeline of my entire life. My birth date, high school graduation, the day I found out I was mated to Alexander, even a copy of our wedding certificate.