I Left Before He Learned My Worth novel Chapter 83

Chapter 83

ARIA

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*No, my quarrel is not with you. It’s with the system that allowed my mate to be stripped of his title and imprisoned for exercising what he believed-rightly or wrongly-were his rights under ancient pack law. It’s with Alpha Kael, who could have handled the situation with more diplomacy but instead chose public humiliation and harsh punishment.*

*And it’s with Ivory.*

*The healer who deliberately deceived my mate. Who promised assistance and delivered betrayal. Who directly caused Damon’s imprisonment through her manipulations.*

*I understand she was protecting her pack. I even respect the strategic thinking that went into her deception. But actions have consequences, Aria. You of all people should understand that.*

*Ivory chose to interfere in matters that had nothing to do with her. She chose to insert herself between Damon and his pursuit of what he believed was his rightful claim. And now she must face the consequences of that choice.*

*I’m writing to you because I believe you’re reasonable. Because I think you understand, better than most, the complicated dynamics of pack politics and personal loyalty. And because I’m offering you a choice.*

*Convince Ivory to leave Shadowmere. Encourage her departure from the pack she’s endangered through her actions. Help her understand that her presence is the problem, that as long as she remains in Shadowmere, she puts everyone around her at risk.*

*If Ivory leaves—truly leaves, goes somewhere far from both our territories—I’ll call off my people. The threat to your pack will disappear. Your healers can gather herbs in peace. Your children can play in the woods without fear. Ivory herself will be safe, living somewhere new where the consequences of her actions can’t reach her.*

*All it requires is your influence. Your willingness to do what’s necessary to protect your pack.

*If you refuse, if you insist on keeping Ivory close despite the danger her presence represents, then what comes next is on your conscience. Every attack. Every injury. Every death that results from this conflict-those will be your responsibility, Aria. Because you had a choice, and you chose loyalty to someone who isn’t even loyal to you over the safety of your entire pack.*

*

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Chapter 83

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*I’m giving you one week to convince her. Seven days to make Ivory see reason and depart peacefully. After that, the situation escalates, and I won’t be able to control what my pack members choose to do in pursuit of justice for their imprisoned Alpha.*

*I trust you’ll make the right choice.*

*With regards,*

*Luna Sera Cross*

*Blackwood Pack*

The silence that followed my reading was absolute. I looked up from the letter to find both Kael and Nina staring at me with expressions of disbelief and fury.

“She’s trying to manipulate you,” Nina said, her voice tight. “Everything in that letter is designed to make you feel responsible, to make you think forcing Ivory to leave is somehow your duty.”

“It’s blackmail,” Kael added, his hands clenched into fists. “Thinly veiled threats wrapped in reasonable-sounding logic. She’s trying to make you her weapon against Ivory while framing it as protecting the pack.”

“I know,” I said quietly, though my hands were shaking as I held the letter. “I know what she’s doing. But Kael, she’s not wrong about one thing.”

“What?” His voice was sharp, almost challenging.

eyes. “Not “Ivory’s presence does put the pack at risk,” I said, forcing myself to meet his because of anything she did wrong-she was absolutely right to protect your bonding ceremony. But because Sera has decided to blame her for Damon’s imprisonment, her continued presence here makes us all targets. If she left, if she went somewhere Sera couldn’t reach her-”

“No,” Kael interrupted flatly. “Absolutely not. We don’t negotiate with threats, and we certainly don’t exile pack members because enemies demand it.”

“I’m not suggesting we exile her,” I protested. “I’m just saying… Ivory was already talking about leaving. About how being here has brought her nothing but injury and danger. Maybe this is the push she needs. Maybe helping her find somewhere safe, somewhere she can start fresh without all this baggage-maybe that’s actually what’s best for her.”

“You can’t be serious,” Nina said, staring at me like I’d grown a second head. “Aria, Ivory is one of our most valuable pack members. Her knowledge, her skills-we can’t just let her walk away because Sera threatened us.”

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Chapter 83

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“Can’t we?” I challenged. “Nina, you saw her in the clinic. You heard her talking about leaving. She’s not happy here anymore. Every time she tries to help, she ends up hurt. Maybe facilitating her departure isn’t betraying her-maybe it’s actually giving her what she wants while also protecting the pack from further attacks.”

“This is exactly what Sera wants,” Kael said, moving closer to me. “She wants us divided. She wants you feeling guilty enough to push Ivory away. She wants to isolate us, weaken us, make us turn on each other. Can’t you see that?”

“I see all of that,” I said, and I was surprised by how steady my voice was despite the chaos of emotions churning inside me. “But I also see that we have limited options. We can’t prove Sera is behind the attacks. We can’t retaliate without starting an actual war. We can implement security measures and hope they’re enough, but Kael, you heard Thomas. There are Blackwood pack members actively planning to hurt Ivory. How long before one of them succeeds? How long before our security fails and she ends up dead because we insisted on keeping her here?”

“So we just give Sera what she wants?” Nina demanded. “We let her dictate our pack dynamics through threats?”

“We do what’s necessary to keep people safe,” I countered. “Isn’t that supposed to be our priority as leaders? Not our pride, not our refusal to be manipulated-actual safety for our pack members?”