Married To The Billionaire Alpha King-Chapter 125 - saying goodbye

125

~Lira’s POV

I pushed the door open and walked outside. The night air hit me immediately and it was cold in a way that felt like it was trying to remind me that I was still alive, even if I didn’t feel like it anymore. The breeze touched every part of my body and I wrapped my arms around myself while I walked. My breaths came out in small clouds and I kept moving without really knowing where I was going until I found myself jogging, slow at first and then faster, like I was running away from my own thoughts.

My feet took me to the edge of the town and before I knew it, I was hearing water. The sound was steady and calm, completely different from what was going on in my head, and I followed it until I reached a beach. There were no people around and the sand was cold, but I still walked forward and sat near the edge where the waves touched the shore gently. I pulled my knees close to my chest and stared at the water.

It looked endless and peaceful, like it didn’t care about anything that happened in my life, like the world was bigger than my mistakes. That thought made something inside me feel heavier.

I whispered to myself, even though no one was there. "Where did I get it wrong?" My voice shook a little and it surprised me. "How did I become this person?"

The wind blew my hair across my face and I pushed it away slowly, staring at the water like I could find answers there. I thought about everything I had done and every moment I could have chosen a different path, but I didn’t, because I was blinded by something I thought was love.

"I was stupid," I said quietly. "I was stupid to think that I could force something that wasn’t mine."

Images of Alpha Darlon’s face flashed through my mind, the way he looked at Elara, the soft way he spoke to her like she mattered more than anything in the world. I used to think that I could take that from her, that I deserved it more, that I should have been the one beside him. But sitting there in the cold, listening to the waves, I realized that I had built my whole life around something that never belonged to me.

"I was obsessed," I admitted quietly. "I was obsessed with him and I did not even see how wrong I was."

My chest felt tight because I knew there was no way to undo everything. I thought about the title I used to carry. Princess of the Blueberry Pack. A future leader. Respected. Protected. Wanted. Now look at me. Sitting on a cold beach, hiding in a cheap hotel, running like a criminal.

"I ruined everything," I whispered. "I ruined my name. My future. My family. And for what? For a man who never wanted me."

The words tasted bitter, but I let them fall out anyway. "I lost everything because of a stupid obsession over Alpha Darlon. And now Elara is the one he chose. She is the one carrying his child. She is the one he wants to protect. And I am here like a shadow."

I wiped my face with the back of my hand and realized I had started crying without noticing. It made me feel small. I hated the feeling but I could not stop it. I lowered my head and my voice came out softer. "Princess of the Blueberry Pack, now a wanted criminal. That is what I am."

Saying it out loud made it feel real and I felt a sting in my chest that almost broke me open. I pressed my hand there like I was trying to hold myself together.

"I messed up. I messed up so much," I said. "And I do not even know how to fix it anymore."

For a moment, the thought came to me. The thought of just walking into the pack lands again and surrendering, letting Alpha Darlon take me, letting him lock me up so everything could just stop. I imagined myself raising my hands and giving in because I was tired. I was tired of running. Tired of hiding. Tired of pretending I was not scared.

Maybe if I surrendered, all of this would end.

But as soon as that thought settled in my mind, I shook my head. "No," I whispered firmly. "If I do that, my life is over. And I cannot let it end like this."

My phone buzzed in my hand, the vibration cutting through the sound of the waves. I almost ignored it, but the name on the screen made my stomach twist.

Stella.

I hesitated before answering, but I picked it up anyway. "Why are you calling me?" I asked, my voice sounding rough, like I had been screaming even though I hadn’t.

There was a small pause and then Stella’s voice came, soft but steady. "Where are you? Are you okay?" she asked. She sounded worried in a way that confused me.

I scoffed and looked back at the dark water. "I am fine. Or maybe I’m not. I don’t even know anymore." I rubbed my face. "Honestly, it is so strange that you know me this much. More than my own parents. You always follow me, always defend me. Even when I was wrong. Even against Elara," I said, my voice getting smaller at the end.

Stella did not reply immediately, and I could almost feel her thinking. I pulled my knees closer to my chest and stared at the sky. "Sometimes you even sound like my mother," I said quietly. "It used to annoy me, but right now... I don’t know. It makes sense in a painful way."

I heard a soft sound, like she cleared her throat to hold something back. "Lira," she said slowly, "check your account."

"What?" My eyebrows pulled together.

"Check your account," she repeated. "I sent you something. A large amount. Use it well. Live quietly. Do not return to the pack lands. Do not let yourself get caught. Do not throw your life away."

I blinked. "Why would you do that? Why are you helping me?"

Another pause. It was too long. Like she was stopping herself from saying something she would regret.

"Just... don’t waste it," she said, and her voice was tight now, like it hurt her to speak. "I have done everything I can for you. Even more than I should. This is the last time. Take it and go far away. Start again." 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

"Stella, wait," I said quickly, sitting up straighter, my heart pounding. "Why do you care this much? Why are you always behind me? Why does it feel like you are protecting me from something I don’t know about? What are you not telling me?"

I got nothing but silence.

"Stella," I whispered.

She exhaled once. "Goodbye, Lira," she said, voice trembling for the first time in my life. "Take the money. Live. Do not call back."

And she hung up.

I froze, staring at the phone like it could answer the questions she left hanging in the air. My fingers shook as I opened my banking app, expecting maybe a small amount or nothing at all.

Then the number popped on the screen.

₦500,000,000.

Half a billion.

My breath left my body all at once. "What," I whispered. "What is this..."

At another point in my life, that number would have been nothing. I was a princess. I grew up in a palace. Money was like air. But right now, hiding in a dirty hotel, smelling like cigarette smoke and fear, that number looked like freedom. It looked like a second chance. It looked like everything I did not deserve but somehow got anyway.

"Why would she give me all her hard work," I whispered, the shock making it hard to speak. I swallowed. "Is this really for me? Or is she saying goodbye?"

I stared at the screen for a long time. The ocean kept moving and the wind kept touching my skin and I suddenly felt very, very small.