Chapter 118: She Has No Idea

The workday at the factory felt suffocating.

Sofia stared at the flashing cursor on her screen, her mind a chaotic battlefield. She should have been relieved—Alaric had finally let her go. She was getting her own apartment, her own life, her own space.

​But the puzzle pieces wouldn’t fit. Every time she tried to lock the label villain onto Alaric, the image of that single tear rolling down his cheek shattered the idea. If he truly was the mastermind behind everything, why had he looked like a man who had just lost his entire world?

​By noon, the office walls felt like they were closing in on her.

Needing air, she slipped out of the building and walked three blocks until she found a quiet, sunlit restaurant.

​She sat at a corner table, staring blankly at the menu, her thoughts miles away.

She was so lost in her mind that she didn’t notice the sudden shift in the atmosphere—the way the other customers lowered their voices, or the powerful scent of pine and lightning that slowly filled the air.

​A shadow fell over her table.

​Sofia lifted her head, expecting a waiter. Instead, her breath caught in her throat. Standing before her was Alpha Lucas.

The Alpha of the Midnight Pack.

One of the most famous—and feared—leaders in the northern territories.

The last time she had seen him was during that strange, brief encounter at her cottage. He had looked at her with an intensity that made her skin prickle… and then he had simply disappeared.

​”You aren’t eating,” Lucas said, his voice a deep, resonant rumble that seemed to vibrate right through the table.

​He didn’t ask for permission; he simply pulled out the chair across from her and sat down. His presence was massive, commanding the space in a way that made the bustling restaurant feel small. His eyes searched her face, noting the paleness of her skin and the dark circles beneath her blue eyes.

​”Alpha Lucas,” Sofia managed to whisper, her heart beginning to race. “What are you doing in the city? I haven’t seen you since…”

​”I have been busy,” Lucas finished for her, his jaw tightening. He leaned forward, his large hands resting on the table. “You don’t look good. Are those men not taking care of you?” He asked.

Sofia didn’t answer right away. Instead, she gave her order to the waitress standing nearby.

When the waitress left, she turned back to him.

​What are you doing here, Alpha Lucas?”

Lucas raised an eyebrow but didn’t respond immediately.

He simply stared at her.

​Stared at the woman the prophecy had spoken about—the woman who would make kings and Alphas question themselves. The woman who would ignite a war without even realizing it.

But Sofia knew none of that.

She had no idea what storm she carried inside her.

​Feeling uncomfortable under his gaze, she spoke again.

“Is there something you want to say?”

​Lucas didn’t respond; he only signaled a waiter, who rushed over, bowing.

​He didn’t even look at the waiter as he ordered a vintage red wine and the most expensive steak on the menu, his eyes never leaving Sofia’s face. When the waiter scrambled away, Lucas leaned forward, his presence so overbearing that the air seemed to hum with his alpha energy.

​”I believe things are not going well with you and Alaric,” Lucas said, his voice a low, honeyed growl. “And I believe you don’t want to go back to Damien. So, let me make an offer.”

​Sofia gripped the edge of the table, her heart thudding. Every man in her life seemed to have a plan for her, a script they wanted her to read.

​”Come work for the Midnight Pack,” Lucas continued, his gaze intense. “We have a lot of opportunities there. Far better than your job at the factory.”

​Sofia narrowed her eyes. “Why me, Alpha Lucas? There are a thousand talented pack members who would kill for a position in the Midnight Pack. Why go through the trouble of tracking me down at a random restaurant?”

​Lucas reached out, his finger tracing a pattern on the tablecloth just inches from her hand. “Because you are you.”

Sofia frowned.

“Because I am me?”

Lucas nodded once.

But he said nothing more.

​ He didn’t want to scare her with the prophecy—with the power and doom she possessed.

​”Tell me something,” Lucas said instead.

“Have you shifted yet?”

Sofia swallowed.

She hadn’t.

So much had happened in her life that she had barely even thought about shifting.

Her silence answered the question.

“By your silence,” Lucas said calmly, “I assume the answer is no.”

​Sofia frowned deeper.

“And how does that concern you, Alpha Lucas?”

Lucas leaned back in his chair.

“You should shift soon.”

Her eyes narrowed.

“Is there something you’re not telling me?”

​Lucas didn’t answer. He just looked at her with a heavy, unreadable expression, as if he were mourning a version of her that was about to disappear forever. He knew the moment she shifts into her wolf, the scent of the prophecy would cling to her like a golden crown—and every Alpha within a thousand miles would smell it.

And they would come for her.

​He took a slow, deliberate sip of the vintage red wine the waiter had brought, his eyes hooded. He cut a small piece of the steak, ate it with a calm that unnerved her, and then set his silver fork down with a quiet clink.

​”When things start unfolding, Sofia,” he said softly, “contact me.”

His voice had changed now.

It became lower.

Protective.

Almost possessive.

He reached into his pocket and placed a sleek black card on the table.

“I can protect you.”

His eyes locked onto hers.

“I am the only one who can.”

​He stood up, his massive frame momentarily blocking out the warm restaurant sun. Without another word, he turned and strode out of the building, his presence leaving a vacuum in the air that made Sofia feel suddenly very cold.

​Sofia stared at the black card, her mind spinning. What does he mean, “when things start unfolding”? What could possibly be left to unfold in her life?

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Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep