Betrayed and Claimed by the Lycan King Chapter 134

ISOLDE'S POV

My eyelids felt like they had weights attached to them as I trudged toward the training center. After a sleepless night of tossing and turning in my luxurious bed at the Privilege Apartments, I was exhausted. All night, I had waited for Alpha Ezra to summon me, for my special phone to ring, for one of his men to come knocking.

Nothing.

This was the first time in two weeks I'd woken up in my own bed. It felt strangely empty, like I'd just gone through a breakup.

I entered the training center, forcing a smile as I greeted Orion and the other trainers. I deliberately avoided making eye contact with Evanthe, who was stretching in the corner with her usual perfect form.

And then I saw him.

Ezra was sitting in the rest area, adjusting the laces on his expensive training shoes. My heart immediately lifted, and I couldn't stop the smile that spread across my face. I walked toward him, suddenly forgetting all my fatigue and disappointment.

"Good morning, Mr. Silverwood," I said cheerfully.

He didn't look up. His fingers continued working on his shoelaces as he muttered a distracted, "Morning," without the slightest hint of warmth.

My heart sank, a physical pain spreading through my chest.

"What are you still doing here?" Ezra finally looked up, his gray eyes cold and distant. "Go prepare for training."

His tone was icy, businesslike. I felt a chill run down my spine, and my face drained of color. I was too shocked to form words.

"Go," he prompted again, and I stumbled forward, looking back once to see him still watching me with those steel-gray eyes, gesturing for me to continue walking.

An unfamiliar energy surged through my body – a mixture of anger and despair I'd never felt before.

I realized with painful clarity that Ezra was treating me like any other girls. There was no hair-tucking, no smile, no warmth in his voice. His words were cold.

---

I needed air. The realization that Ezra had apparently ended things between us without even telling me was suffocating. I slipped out to the rear terrace of the training center, gulping in the morning air.

He's done with me, I thought. No phone call last night, the cold greeting today – it was over. Whatever had been building between us for the past two weeks had apparently meant nothing to him.

"Breathing in the fresh air must feel good, especially after being humiliated like that."

I didn't need to turn around to know Evanthe had followed me. She was wearing a custom Silver Moon athletic set, her perfect blonde hair pulled back in a sleek ponytail, a mocking smile playing on her lips.

"Get away from me!" I snapped, in no mood for her games.

"I don't think I will," she replied calmly, leaning against the railing.

I clenched my fists, trying to control my anger. "What the hell do you want from me?"

Evanthe's smile widened. "Everything you have. And with my position and power in this company, I'll get it all."

She moved closer, her voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. "You know, common werewolves like you have always tried to climb the ranks by seducing Lycans. It's been happening for centuries. But no matter how hard you try, you'll never be one of us."

"You don't know anything," I retorted, though her words hit a nerve.

Evanthe's perfectly manicured fingers tapped against the railing. "Yesterday, the Silver Moon Group board of directors held an emergency meeting with Ezra. Apparently, rumors about your intimate relationship with the Lycan King had reached their ears, so they decided to convene and discuss the matter with him."

I stared at her, surprised. Evanthe continued, her voice dripping with mock sympathy.

"The directors reprimanded him for getting involved with a debt girl like you. They were quite harsh, from what I heard."

"You're lying," I said, though uncertainty crept into my voice.

Evanthe shrugged elegantly. "Observe his reaction when he sees you. That should tell you everything you need to know."

She moved to touch my cheek, and I jerked back. "Don't you dare touch me with your filthy hands."

"Listen carefully, Isolde," Evanthe's voice hardened. "Even if Alpha Ezra chooses you as his second mate – which he won't – the board and the elite of our society would never accept it. Lycans would never allow a common werewolf from a debt transaction to become their Luna."

Deep down, I knew she was right, but I wasn't about to admit it. "You don't know what you're talking about."

"Your relationship with Alpha Ezra has an expiration date," she said, her blue eyes cold as ice. "He's using you for now, but it won't last. If you back off now, I promise that when I become Luna, I'll give you a decent position within Silver Moon Group."

She leaned closer, her voice dropping to a menacing whisper. "But if you continue to fight me, I will, on the day that crown sits upon my head, order your head to be served to me on a silver platter."

I watched as Evanthe switched emotions like she switched PR roles – from threatening to cordial in an instant.

"You're a smart girl, Isolde. I trust you'll make the right choice." She patted my shoulder with a PR-perfect smile and walked away, leaving me alone on the terrace.

I stood there, feeling more lost than I had since arriving at Silver Moon. "I never signed up for these power games," I whispered to myself.

*But we're in them now,* Lyra growled inside me.

The realization settled over me like a heavy blanket. I had been thrust into a world of politics and power plays I'd never asked for, all because of my father's debts. And now, just when I'd started to develop feelings for Ezra, everything was crumbling around me.

What hurt most wasn't just Ezra's cold shoulder, but the dawning understanding that Evanthe might be right. Someone like me – a debt payment, a common werewolf – would never be accepted as the Luna of Silver Moon Group.