Chapter 6
Five Fears Waiting, I Was Just a Lie Chapter 06
Maeve’s POV
By the time I made it back to the Eastmere Pack hospital, my dad was out of surgery. He was stable.
The second I walked into the room, every relative in there turned to look at me.
I recognized the look. The same mockery and contempt I’d gotten at Southvale Command.
“Maeve, what were you thinking?”
“You threw away a perfectly good career to be some man’s side piece?”
“No wonder you had eight hundred grand for the upfront payment.”
“So the Alpha Commander was bankrolling you this whole time.”
“You’ve dragged the Vale name through the mud.”
I didn’t have the energy to fight them. I was numb.
I went straight to my mom.
She’d gone grayer since I last saw her. Her eyes were swollen from crying.
“Maeve.”
“That eight hundred grand…”
“Is it…”
On my old salary, there was no way I could’ve come up with that kind of money. Of course they assumed it came from Harlan.
I shook my head. But the tears came anyway.
“Mom.”
“It’s over between us.”
“I got that money by making a public apology.”
“I’m not a mistress.”
“He’s the one who lied to me.”
My mom pulled me close and broke down.
“Oh, sweetheart.”
“You didn’t deserve any of this.”
My parents had always been against Harlan. They said long-distance doesn’t work.
He was in Southvale. I was in Eastmere.
We were apart more than we were together.
But back then, Harlan was all I could see.
I told them to trust me.
I promised we were going to register. We were going to have our mating ceremony.
The first year, when Harlan got his first warrior stipend, he sent me eight grand.
It hurt to take it.
“Things are hard enough for you at Command. Keep more of it for yourself.”
He laughed on the other end.
“You’re on your own out in Eastmere. Take care of yourself, okay? Don’t hold back on spending it.”
The second year, Harlan told me he’d made Border Captain. The pay was better.
We spent hours on the phone making plans. Once things settled, he said, he’d put in for a transfer back to Eastmere.
Or I’d leave active duty, move to Southvale, and find something near Command.
I poured everything into my career for that future. Top commendations came year after year.
My colleagues called me a workaholic. I was the only one who knew why.
All of it was for Harlan. For the home we were supposed to build.
By the third year, my family started pushing me to settle down.
I kept telling them to give it more time. That once Harlan’s position was secure, everything would fall into place.
By year five, the pressure was relentless.
My parents stopped dancing around it. If Harlan kept dragging his feet on the bond, there was a reason.
They wanted me to end it.
We had a huge fight over it.
I believed in Harlan. I believed in what we had.
It turned out my parents had been right about everything.
A few days later, Harlan showed up outside the pack hospital.
He pulled me into his arms before I could stop him. His voice was shaking with relief.
“Maeve.”
“I finally found you.”
I shoved him off. My voice was flat.
“Harlan. We already broke up.”
“Maeve, I know what Serena did to you. I know everything.”
He grabbed my hand and pressed it against his chest.
“What Serena and I have is just an alliance bond. Nothing more.”
“You’re the one I love. You’ve always been the one.”
“Come back with me.”
“I’ll give you anything. Everything except the Luna title.”
“I’ll get the best healers for your dad. Money will never be a problem again.”
I looked into his eyes and felt nothing but disgust.
Five years together, and I’d never really seen him.
He wanted the Blackwood power. He wanted Ashford backing.
And he wanted me too, because letting go was the one sacrifice he wouldn’t make.
He already had a mate. He still wanted to keep me tucked away, hidden, someone he’d never have to claim in public.
I was there first. His cowardice and his selfishness turned me into the villain everyone wanted destroyed.
