Chapter 161: Chapter 161 The Silence That Broke Her
Freya
"What are you thinking about?"
At noon,a hand landed gently on my shoulder,pulling me out of the fog that had settled over my mind. I blinked,startled to find myself still in the office,my screen glowing with unread reports.
"Nothing important," I said with a faint smile that didn’t quite reach my eyes.
My colleague—a Beta wolf from the Silver Crescent sub-pack—arched an eyebrow,trying to mask the way she subtly scented the air between us. I knew what she was doing. All of them did. Wolves were attuned to emotional changes in scent,and mine had shifted in a way that couldn’t be hidden. The bond had been severed. The emptiness it left behind had its own smell—faint,metallic,hollow.
She hesitated before asking softly,"Not calling your daughter today?"
My throat tightened. I forced myself to keep typing. "No. Not anymore."
Two simple words,but they landed like stones.
For years,I’d called Isabella twice a day—once at one in the morning,matching her breakfast time in the Northern Territory,and again at noon to hear her talk about school,the pack,the small things that filled her world. It had been our ritual.
Everyone in the office had known about my "mystery child," though not her father’s identity. They didn’t know that Isabella’s father was our company’s Alpha investor—the very man who had once promised me forever. That secret was one I’d protected fiercely,allowing my daughter to grow up with some semblance of normalcy.
But that part of my life was gone now.
When the clock hit six,I left work on time for the first time in months. The sunset washed the city in hues of gold and smoke. I stopped by the grocery store to pick up vegetables,tea,and—after a moment’s hesitation—a small potted wolfsbane plant.
The cashier,another pack wolf,noticed. His gaze flicked to the plant,then to me,and he quickly looked away. He knew what it meant. Wolfsbane could dull the pain of a severed bond if brewed right—never enough to numb it completely,but enough to make it bearable.
I thanked him quietly and headed home.
The new apartment was small but full of light. My old home with Silvano had been vast and luxurious,but sterile—a place that never felt entirely mine. Here,the scent of fresh paint mingled with the herbs I’d placed by the window. For the first time in a long while,the space felt... peaceful.
After dinner,I sat by the window with my laptop,scrolling through the latest updates about the upcoming technology expo. The exhibitor list was long,full of names I hadn’t seen in years. The sight brought a strange ache of nostalgia—and something else. Determination.
I picked up my phone and dialed an old number.
"Please reserve a ticket for me for next month’s tech expo," I said once the line connected.
Silence. Then a familiar voice,cold and edged with disbelief. "Are you serious this time,Freya?"
I closed my eyes. "Yes."
A sharp exhale came from the other end. "The last two times you asked,I saved a spot and you didn’t show up. Do you know how many wolves dream of getting those tickets? You just wasted them."
I deserved the rebuke. In our world,wasting opportunities—resources—was disrespectful to the pack.
"I won’t waste it this time," I said quietly. "If I don’t attend,I’ll never ask again."
Another pause. Then a soft click. The call ended. But I knew that silence meant agreement.
I set the phone down and leaned back,staring at the faint reflection of my face in the window. I barely recognized myself anymore,but for the first time in months,my reflection didn’t look broken.
It looked... ready.
The truth was,I wasn’t just planning to attend the expo. I intended to reclaim what I had left behind—the company I helped build before I became gamma of the Stone Lake Pack.
Years ago,I’d been one of its founding partners—the one who bridged the gap between human engineering and supernatural innovation. The AI systems I’d designed had once been at the forefront of hybrid tech research.
Even during those dark years tangled in Jasper’s web,I had never truly abandoned the work. It had been my lifeline,the one part of me he couldn’t control or corrupt.
But when I chose Silvano—when I chose love and motherhood over ambition—I stepped away.
Now I saw how naïve that had been.
My departure had disrupted the company’s trajectory. They had survived,even succeeded—but they’d never achieved what we once dreamed of. My partners had every right to resent me for walking away at our peak. In the years that followed,our correspondence dwindled to brief,impersonal updates.
And now I wanted back in.
But I couldn’t just return as if nothing had changed. The industry had evolved beyond recognition,its pace ruthless. I had spent too long buried in pack affairs and domestic routines. My skills were outdated,my knowledge dulled by years of neglect.
The words felt foreign and freeing all at once.
Over the next few days,I settled into a rhythm. I worked during the day,studied at night,and avoided thoughts of Silvano and Isabella entirely. They hadn’t called. I hadn’t expected them to. Even before I’d left,our communication had already become one-sided. I was always the one reaching out,always the one trying to keep us connected while they drifted further away.
By the end,their replies had been little more than polite acknowledgments.
Now,the silence was complete. And for the first time,it didn’t terrify me.
Some nights,my wolf whimpered softly,reaching for the familiar warmth that was no longer there. The instinct to comfort,to nurture,was still there—it always would be. But each time,I closed my eyes and whispered,We’re going to be okay.
Sometimes,loving someone meant letting them go.
Especially when they had already let you go in every way that mattered.
And so I let the bond stay broken. I let the silence stretch.