Ch. I Hid My Supreme Rank, Regret of the Pack 3 I Hid My Supreme Rank, Regret of the Pack 3

Chapter 3

Dinner tasted like cardboard.

The second I choked down the last bite, Grayson showed up at the door with two iced drinks.

Iced mango refreshers. Both of them.

One for Catalina. One for me.

Catalina took a long sip and shot him a thumbs—up.

“You get me. Nothing beats something ice—cold in the middle of August!”

I wrapped my hands around my plastic cup.

The chill bled through my palms and sank into my chest.

Back before Grayson ever met Catalina, he told me he had an older brother too.

The kind of brother who burned so bright as the perfect Alpha heir that the rest of the pack went blind to anyone else.

I actually believed we were cut from the same cloth.

Then he met Catalina. “Your sister really is easier to love than you.”

That’s what he said.

And I still liked him anyway.

Because he was the only one who thought about Catalina and still remembered my name existed. Whenever he bought something, he bought two. Identical. Every time.

Until somewhere along the way, both gifts became things only Catalina would ever want.

“Clara. What are you zoning out for? Drink it. I got that one for you.”

Grayson nudged me, eyes never leaving Catalina’s grin.

I turned to him. “Grayson. I’m allergic to mango. And my stomach can’t handle anything iced.”

The room went dead quiet for a beat.

His brow pinched. He was clearly digging around in his memory.

Then his voice sharpened with a flat edge of annoyance.

“Really? Pretty sure I’ve seen you eat mango before.”

“And come on. It’s August. What cafe doesn’t dump ice in?”

“Quit being so needy, okay?”

The time he was thinking of was the first time I ever tried mango.

He’d sobbed and apologized and swore up and down he’d never forget about my allergy again.

Turns out “never” had a shelf life of three years.

Declan scoffed from across the room.

“Clarinda. You seriously about to throw a fit again the second everyone’s happy?”

My eyes dropped. Something cold curled in my gut.

Thank the Moon Goddess I hadn’t picked a college in the capital.

Four more years of this. I couldn’t.

The next morning, Mom and Dad were heading to the hotel to lock in the celebration banquet.

Down at the curb, I just stood there.

The August sun beat down on the asphalt, making the air shimmer with a suffocating heat.

Dad barked out the window. “You getting in?”

“Where? There’s no room.”

His forehead knotted up.

“You’re old enough. Squeeze in already.”

Mom jumped in right behind him.

“Your sister gets carsick. She needs the front seat. Grow up a little.”

But Catalina was in the passenger seat, casually flipping the sun visor down.

Mom and Declan each claimed a window in the back.

Grayson was wedged in the middle, hugging the new laptop bag they’d just bought for Catalina.

Not one inch was mine.

Even if I forced my way in, I’d be crammed in like a stray dog nobody wanted.

“There’s no room.”

“Then grab a cab. It’s not far.”

I nodded. Stepped back. “You guys go. I’ll—”

Dad slammed the gas before I could finish.

The car tore off.

Exhaust hit me in the face and burned all the way up my nose.

I walked home the same way I came. Slow.

In the kitchen, I dropped noodles into a pot for myself.

Loaded it with chili. Too much chili. My eyes watered. My tongue was on fire.

I ate every bite.

After, I rinsed the bowl and wiped down the counter.

My phone buzzed against my thigh. Voice message from Mom.

Loud background noise. Everyone laughing. Everyone gushing about Catalina.

“Clara, why aren’t you here yet?”

“Get a cab. Now. Don’t keep us waiting!”

My thumb hovered between the block button and the reply box.

Two words. That’s all I sent.

“Not coming.”

Back in my room, I started packing.

Just summer clothes. I’d buy the heavier stuff once I got to the south.

Everything else stayed. Even the gray e—reader. All of it left on the desk.

Then I pulled my small lockbox from under the bed.

A few loose coins and a crumpled five—dollar bill sat at the bottom.

That was it.

The thick stack of hundreds I’d saved was gone.

I tore the room apart. Under the mattress. Inside the drawers. Behind the books.

Nothing.

Where the hell did it all go?

My hands were already shaking, phone half out to call the pack enforcers, when the door swung open.

Catalina dangled a gold bracelet in front of my face.

“Pretty, right? Mom got it for me. Super pricey. Thirty—eight hundred~”

Thirty—eight hundred.

The exact amount missing from my lockbox.

My head snapped toward Mom.

“You went through my money?”