Crippled Luna's Farewell: Half A Life Without My Alpha's Deadly Deception

Chapter 152 "Mom didn't answer," he said softly.

Arnold smiled, though a flicker of something unreadable passed through his gaze. "She's probably busy." "Let's not bother her," he continued. "How about Daddy takes you out to dinner tonight?" Alex's face brightened. "Can we invite Aunt Linda too?" Arnold nodded, ruffling his hair. "Good idea." With that, Alex slid off his lap, his small feet padding across the polished floor as he ran back to his playroom. Arnold, however, remained seated. A weight settled on his shoulders as he returned to the parlor where his guests awaited.

The air inside the parlor was thick with expectation.

The assembled guests, all prominent figures in the werewolf world, had cwith their own agendas.

Most had only heard whispers of Arnold's heir, but now that they had seen Alex with their own eyes, speculation spread like wildfire.

"He's been hiding a child all this time?" one murmured to another.

"Was he secretly married?" "If so, why hasn't he introduced the mother?" Their unspoken questions hung in the air, but Arnold remained indifferent to their curiosity. He had no obligation to explain himself.

Among them were families who had cwith a clear purpose-introducing their daughters to Arnold, hoping to secure a powerful marriage alliance.

They had prepared carefully, dressing their daughters in elegant gowns, instructing them to charm and impress. But Arnold hadn't even looked their way.

His disinterest was a quiet but brutal rejection.

Sof the fathers in the room clenched their fists in frustration.

So even if he wasn't married, their daughters still had no chance? Arnold sipped his whiskey, unfazed by the silent battle of ambitions playing out before him.

Let them think whatever they wanted. It didn't concern him.

Meanwhile, at the arcade, Sarah remained unaware of the world outside.

Cole had something to do just now and took Abby to leave first, while Sarah had spent a lot of trecently working on her thesis, which was now nearing completion, just in tto relax by playing the game.

She didn't notice the woman standing outside, watching her with amusement.

It was Flora, Linda's friend..

Just then, Flora smirked.

Still the same, aren't you, Sarah? To Flora, the sight of Sarah alone in an arcade was something to mock.

In college, Flora had always been part of the popular crowd-friends with Linda, the kind of woman who thrived on exclusivity and social power.

And Sarah? She had always been different.

Too smart.

Too independent.

Too unwilling to play their games.

Flora withdrew her gaze and turned on her heels. Linda would love to hear about this.

Linda's house was lavish, every corner decorated with the finest taste.

Her mother, Jenna, sat on the couch, sipping a cup of tea when Flora arrived, practically bursting with excitement.

"You won't believe what I just saw," Flora announced, sliding onto the couch with a tic flourish.

Linda barely glanced at her. She was reading a document, her expression calm and detached.

Jenna, however, leaned forward with interest. "What is it?" "I saw Sarah," Flora said, her voice carrying a sharp edge of glee. "In an arcade, playing games-alone. She looked so miserable." Jenna's laughter was loud and unrestrained. "That girl? Still wasting her tlike a child?" Flora nodded eagerly. "Exactly! Can you believe it? After all these years, she's still the salways pretending to be above everything, but in reality, she's just pathetic." Jenna shook her head with mock pity. "Speople never change." Linda, however, remained indifferent. She flipped a page in her document without looking up.

"She has nothing to do with us anymore." That was the difference between Linda and the rest of them.

Where Flora thrived on petty gossip, and Jenna took pleasure in belittling others, Linda was simply indifferent.

Sarah didn't matter to her. Not anymore.

And yet, if that was true, why did she feel the need to say it out loud? The arcade had been a fun distraction, but as soon as Sarah stepped through the door of her quiet home, reality settled back in.

The brief excitement of neon lights and victorious games faded into the background as she kicked off her shoes and set her plush prize on the couch.

With a deep breath, she walked straight to her desk, where her laptop waited, screen dimmed but still open to the unfinished document. Her research paper.

She rolled her shoulders and sat down, fingers flexing before settling onto the keyboard.

The quiet of her apartment was broken only by the sound of keystrokes and the occasional sigh the as she rewrote sentences, adjusted references, and meticulously checked her citations. Somewhere around the second hour, she leaned back, rubbing her eyes, the screen's glow making them sting. *"Almost done," she murmured to herself.

The desire to submit it immediately burned at the back of her mind, but she knew better than to rush.

Colton was thorough-he'd scrutinize every detail, and she refused to send him anything less than polished. When she finally hit send, a wave of exhaustion settled over her.

Stretching her arms above her head, she stood and made her way downstairs, intending to grab a glass of water before heading to bed.

The moment she reached the living room, she noticed the soft glow of headlights pulling into the courtyard.

A sleek black car rolled to a stop.

Her brow furrowed.

Before she could fully process the unexpected arrival, the car door swung open, and a small figure bolted out.

"Mom!" mmMwWLlilofiflo&1 mmMwWLlilofiflo&1 mmMwWLlilofiflo&1 mmMwWLlilofiflo&1 mmMwWLliIofiflo&1 mmMwWLlilofiflo&1