My son, Kylo's last wish was simple: to see the ocean with his parents, a dream that should have been easily fulfilled. But Alpha Caspian Asmund of Bloodvenom Pack, my mate, never cared for us—neither me nor our son. I begged him relentlessly until he grudgingly agreed. Yet, on the eve of our departure, Caspian vanished, leaving us behind. That same night, Kylo took his last breath, his wish forever unfulfilled.

I buried our son alone, with no comfort from the mate who should have been by my side. Days later, I discovered the truth—Caspian hadn't left us for duty or obligation. He was with my sister, Ophelia Laurentia, in the snow-capped mountains, smiling in her Instagram post. Her caption cut through my grief like a blade, [I said I wanted to see the snow, and you took me thousands of miles just to find it.]

Without a tear or a word of anger, I packed my belongings and prepared to leave the life I once knew. But as I walked away, it was Caspian who broke down, his tears and pleas falling on deaf ears.

---

It wasn’t surprising that Caspian would drop everything for Ophelia. I’d never been his priority—never the exception. To him, I was just the desperate, attention-seeking mate he was forced to take. How could I ever compare to my sister, his beloved childhood sweetheart? Between us, it had always been Ophelia he wanted.

I returned from the cemetery to the pack house—the place that was supposed to be our home. Yet, it had never felt like mine, not really. Caspian rarely set foot here, leaving it as more of a shared residence for me and our son, Kylo. An Alpha who barely even resides in his own pack house—how ironic. The one place that should have been his sanctuary was nothing more than an empty shell.

Kylo's presence lingered in every corner of the house, a haunting reminder of the life we shared—the life that had been stolen from me. As I moved through the rooms, I could almost hear his laughter, see his small hands tugging on my dress, begging for just one more story before bed. But now, the rooms were silent, and I was left alone to erase the traces of our time together. Each toy I packed away, each piece of clothing I folded, felt like I was erasing him from existence, and it shattered me. My tears fell unchecked as I clutched his belongings, my heart breaking with every item that vanished into the suitcase.

But it had to be done. I couldn’t stay here any longer, surrounded by the ghosts of what could have been. I had to leave—leave this house, this pack, and the man who had never truly been mine.

Dragging my suitcase down the stairs, I froze as I came face-to-face with Caspian. He was carrying Ophelia, her arms wrapped around his neck as if she belonged there. His face, usually so cold and distant, was etched with concern as he brushed past me without so much as a glance, treating me like a stranger in my own home.

I had grown used to this. With Ophelia around, I was nothing more than a shadow, invisible to him.

But now, as the finality of my decision settled in, my mind felt clearer than it had in years. If it had been Ophelia who became his mate, she would have been the Luna of the Bloodvenom Pack by now. And yet, it was me—me, who had given him the power to become Alpha. And still, he never declared me as his Luna. I was nothing more than a placeholder, a name on paper, and nothing in his heart.

Caspian stopped abruptly, his gaze finally falling to the suitcase at my feet. His voice was cold, as it had always been. "Claire Laurentia, is this just another one of your dramatic stunts?"

Ophelia, nestled comfortably in his arms, looked up at me with feigned innocence. "Claire, I twisted my ankle, and since Caspian said the Bloodvenom Pack was close by, he brought me here to take care of it. You don't mind, do you?"

A twisted ankle—that was all it took for him to rush to her side, to carry her as if she were made of glass. I watched as Caspian gently settled her on the sofa, his hands careful as he placed an ice pack on her foot. His tenderness was a knife in my chest, twisting with every gentle touch he gave her.

And now, they were together again, weren’t they? He must have visited her at the Shadow Crest Pack, bonding with her, ensuring she was always happy, while I and our son remained nothing more than an afterthought.

I remembered the time a rogue attack in the woods had left me with a broken leg. Desperate and in pain, I had reached out to him through our mind link, hoping for some shred of concern. His response had been as cold as ice, "A broken leg isn't life or death. You already escaped the rogue. Why bother me?"

That was when I knew—Caspian never cared. Even though his wolf must have sensed that his mate was in danger, he remained indifferent.

Finally, I said the words I’d been rehearsing for days, "Alpha, as you wish I'm going to sever—I'm leaving."

I almost slipped, almost blurted out that I wanted to sever our bond. But I held back. After all, we only had a rushed mateship ceremony. We weren’t even officially married—just the ceremony to honor our bond, and nothing more. There was no love, no commitment beyond the bare minimum. Just a hollow connection, one that had never truly been forged in the first place.

The Alpha didn’t even look up, his focus still on Ophelia, as if I was a nuisance disrupting his perfect world. "What? Changing your tactics now?" His voice was cold, dismissive. "You think you can’t threaten me with your son anymore, so now you’re using yourself as leverage?"

His words hit me like a slap to the face. A year ago, Kylo had fallen ill with an untreatable disease. His weak heart, his lack of healing abilities—everything pointed to a grim future. He was just a child, too fragile to shift, too weak to connect with his wolf. His life hung by a thread, and I had watched in helpless agony as he slipped further away, longing for a glimpse of his father that never came.

Caspian had never visited him, never showed an ounce of concern. To him, I was using Kylo, our son, to gain sympathy, to manipulate him. After a decade of life together, this was how little he thought of me, of our family.

I wiped away the tears that threatened to fall, forcing myself to stay strong. "Think what you want, Alpha. I'm leaving."

I turned, ready to drag my luggage out the door, but Ophelia’s voice suddenly sounded. "Alpha, didn’t you plan to take Kylo to the ocean? You didn’t cancel that for the mountain trip with me, did you? Claire is upset..."

Caspian’s soothing response was like salt in a fresh wound. "Don’t worry, I know my priorities. We can go to the ocean anytime, but once the snow melts in the mountains, it’ll be a long time before we can see it again."

I scoffed coldly, the sound bitter and filled with years of pent-up resentment. How could he be so blind, so oblivious to the pain he’d caused? He didn’t know—he couldn’t know—that there was no next time, no next month for Kylo.

Ignoring them both, I dragged my suitcase out, each step heavier than the last. But Caspian wasn’t done with me. He rushed forward and grabbed my hand, his frustration palpable. "It’s the middle of the night, Claire. You really think this is necessary? Missing a trip to the ocean—Kylo can wait. Why are you crying over something so trivial?"

His words were like knives twisting in my heart. He didn’t understand. He couldn’t. He saw my swollen eyes and finally, a flicker of pity crossed his gaze. "Let me clear my schedule next month, and I’ll take Kylo then, okay?"

Next month? How ridiculous. What next month did Kylo have? If only he cared enough about our son, he wouldn’t be saying such foolish things.

I pulled my hand away, my voice trembling with barely restrained fury. "No need!"

At that moment, Caspian stared at his empty palm, stunned. He had never expected the woman who once clung to him, who had once loved him so desperately, would now avoid him as if he were a plague. He snapped back to reality and tried to follow, but Ophelia, always the center of his universe, grabbed his arm.

"Alpha, it’s all my fault," she said, her voice dripping with false remorse. "Even though I knew Kylo was faking his illness, I shouldn’t have competed with a child for your attention. Now it’s made Claire angry at me."

Faking... faking his illness?

My mind went blank, the world tilting on its axis. By the time I regained my senses, I had already slapped Ophelia across the face.

My sister stumbled back, her hand flying to her cheek, eyes wide with shock. But I didn’t care. My hand still tingled from the impact, but it wasn’t enough—not nearly enough to ease the raging storm inside me.

Caspian's face, initially tinged with guilt, shifted instantly. His expression hardened as he positioned Ophelia protectively behind him, his eyes narrowing at me. "Claire, what are you doing? She is your sister!"

I glared at Ophelia, my fury barely contained. "You'd better watch your mouth."

Ophelia, her eyes wide and brimming with mock hurt, leaned closer to my mate, making my wolf uncomfortable. "Alpha, don’t let me come between you two. If my sister won't admit that Kylo is faking his illness, I'll just drop it."

My brow furrowed in disbelief. I turned to Caspian, my voice trembling. "You think Kylo is faking it too?"

His silence was all the confirmation I needed. He didn't believe me. He never did.

Then, I saw him glance around, hoping to catch a glimpse of Kylo, but he was nowhere to be seen. "Where did you hide him again?"

The accusation in his voice cut deep. If only he would come home more often, he’d see the table covered in medications and herbal medicine, the endless pile of medical records written by our wolf healers, and the truth of our son’s condition. But he never did. He preferred to listen to Ophelia’s lies, the lies that painted Kylo as a manipulative child rather than the sick boy he truly was.

I remembered the day Kylo told me he didn’t have much time left. He had one final wish: a trip to the ocean. He had always loved the sea, fascinated by its mysteries and beauty, a love nurtured by the stories his late grandmother used to tell him. But we lived far from the coast, and the only way to make his wish come true was to convince Caspian to join us.

I had begged him—no, I had humiliated myself, kneeling before him, clinging to his pants as I pleaded for Kylo's last wish. "Please," I had whispered, my voice breaking. "This will be the last time I ever ask anything of you. I promise... I’ll set you free."

Caspian had looked down at me then, a flicker of emotion in his eyes. Was it joy? Was it relief? I couldn’t tell. "You mean that?" he had asked, his voice cold and calculating.

"Yes," I had murmured, tears streaming down my face as I closed my eyes, feeling my heart shatter.

The truth was, when Caspian was young, his parents were killed in a rogue attack, leaving him a wanderer. I still remember the day I found him, a skinny, half-starved boy lying on the forest floor, barely alive. I was just a child, playing among the trees, when I stumbled upon him. He was nothing but skin and bones, too weak even to speak.

My heart ached for him. "You poor thing," I whispered, brushing a strand of hair from his dirt-streaked face. "You must be starving."

He looked up at me with those haunted eyes, and something inside me broke. I couldn't leave him there. I couldn't let him die.

I took his frail hand in mine and pulled him up with all the strength I had. "Come with me," I said, determination flooding my young voice. "I'll take care of you."

When I brought him home, my parents—Alpha Aldous and Luna Eveline Laurentia of Bloodvenom Pack—were reluctant to take him in. My father’s stern voice echoed in my ears. "Claire, he’s a stranger."

But I wouldn't back down. "Please, Father," I pleaded, my voice breaking with desperation. "He has no one else. If we don’t help him, he’ll die!"

My mother, ever the gentle soul, looked at the boy with pity. "Aldous," she whispered, "he's just a child."

My father’s resolve wavered, but he still wasn’t convinced. It was then that I made the boldest decision of my young life. I went on a hunger strike, refusing to eat until they agreed to adopt him.

Days passed, and my strength waned, but I never gave up. Eventually, my parents relented. "Alright, Claire," my father sighed, his voice tinged with resignation. "We’ll take him in."

That day, Caspian became our brother. Or so I thought.