Chapter 0376

Hannah

I read the words on the card over and over, as if they were gospel. “You are cordially invited to the wedding of Alpha Noah and Zoe of Nightcrest Pack…”

“A joyous occasion,” I read in a wry tone, tossing the invitation aside. My hand shook, but I quickly hid it beneath the desk. As if Viona couldn’t already tell how furious I was.

“The gall,” she growled, reaching out to take the invitation. “We should tear it up and throw it in the fireplace where it belongs.” Her lips then twisted into an evil little smirk. “Maybe we can send them back the ashes for good measure. Really drive the point home.”

Viona picked up the invitation, the golden lettering glinting in the sunlight spilling through the large window, but I stopped her.

“No,” I said firmly, surprising even myself with the steadiness in my voice. “I’ll go to the wedding.”

Viona’s eyebrow shot up in shock, her mouth hanging open for a moment before she found her words. “What? Hannah, you can’t be serious. Why would you put yourself through that torture? Haven’t you been through enough?”

I rose with some effort, clutching my lower back as I made my way to the window. Outside, late summer was reaching its end. Autumn would be coming soon, and the gardener was already beginning to pull up some of the summer flowers in preparation for the winter.

“I’ll be fine,” I said, rubbing my belly as I looked out the window. “When is the wedding?” I’d been so shocked by it all that I forgot to look.

“It’s on the winter solstice,” Viona replied. “But Hannah, are you sure—”

“I have to create a good image,” I said, cutting her off matter-of-factly. “With so many people transferring to Silvermoon lately, I need to keep up good relations with Nightcrest. Otherwise, Noah might try to do something… rash.”

Viona was silent for some time. I watched the gardener work, her large straw hat blocking my view of her head and shoulders. Somewhere in the room, a clock ticked. But I could hardly hear it over the sound of my own blood rushing through my ears.

Finally, Viona murmured, “Hannah, don’t you think that this is a recipe for disaster?” She came to stand beside me at the window, and I looked over to see her eyebrows furrowed with concern. “Seeing Noah and Zoe getting married could break your heart all over again. You don’t have to do this. We can find another way to maintain relations.”

I bit my lip, thinking for a moment. Viona was right; there was more that could be done to maintain relations. The due date was coming up soon, and the baby would be born by the wedding, so I could easily claim that I couldn’t make it due to motherhood duties and send a gift and a card. And even if Noah and Zoe still tried to start something, I wasn’t really too concerned about it because of the support of my friends and the Luna Council.

But part of me… wanted to go. Wanted to do what Noah hadn’t done for me.

“He didn’t come to my coronation,” I whispered.

“Exactly,” Viona huffed. “Which is why you shouldn’t go to his wedding.”

“No. It’s precisely why I should go to his wedding.” Viona shot me a confused look, and I added, “People will notice. They’ll see the lengths I’ve gone to in order to be kind, and they’ll see what he hasn’t done, and they’ll hate him even more for it.”

Viona sighed. “So that’s what this is about? Turning the public against him even more?” She touched my arm. “I don’t believe for a second that you actually think that’s necessary, Hannah. I think you want to go because you want to see him.”

I flinched at those words. My eyes flashed as I glanced at Viona, but when I opened my mouth to bite out a retort, I found that I couldn’t. Maybe she was right. Maybe I did want to see him. If only to show him how far I had come in spite of his cruelty.