I had just fallen asleep when a burst of giggles broke through the quiet, waking me up. Trying to suppress my irritation, I opened the door to find Azaria Scott clinging to Alpha Giovanni Edwards’ arm, her smile as radiant as ever. Upon seeing me, Azaria beamed, "Morning, Luna Emryn! I’ll be staying over for a while, so bear with me!"

I glanced at Alpha Giovanni, silently asking for an explanation.

He grinned, his towering frame casting a shadow over me. "Azaria’s territory lease ended, and the neighboring pack won’t renew. She’ll be with us until she finds a new pack to settle in."

His tone carried the unmistakable weight of his Alpha authority, leaving no room for negotiation.

I kept my face neutral as I replied, "What if I’m not okay with this?"

Alpha Giovanni looked at me with confusion, his broad shoulders tensing slightly. "Why not? We have an extra room, and I know you’re not fond of Azaria, but she’s like family to me. What’s the harm in her staying here?"

Tears welled up in Azaria’s eyes and fell with a blink. Her voice was soft and pleading, "I know you’re upset about last night, Luna Emryn, but it wasn’t on purpose. Please don’t let it affect your bond with Alpha Giovanni."

She turned to him with a sad expression. "Alpha Giovanni, I know Luna Emryn doesn’t like me. Don’t fight with her because of me, and don’t let me be the reason for any problems between you two. I can leave if that’s better."

She turned as if to go, but Alpha Giovanni caught her wrist, pulling her close. He kissed her forehead, a mix of protectiveness and affection.

Azaria leaned against his chest, her tears framing a smile directed at me. "You’ve given your heart to me, and you don’t have a pack of your own. How could I leave you without a home?"

"Azaria, my pack will always welcome you, and not even Luna Emryn can change that."

Alpha Giovanni then turned to me, his gaze icy, his smile sharp. "Emryn, I also have a say in this pack. I decide who stays."

"If you don’t agree, you can take a room to yourself. Azaria and I will have the other."

With that, he led Azaria into the master bedroom. Soon after, my belongings were tossed out carelessly. My makeup lay shattered, its bright colors staining my clothes. Among them was my pristine mating dress, once a symbol of happiness, now ruined. Much like my mate bond.

Alpha Giovanni looked at me with disdain, chuckling softly before closing the door without hesitating. Indecent noises soon emerged from my room, on my bed. They couldn’t even wait.

I knelt, picking up the broken glass that cut into my hands. Blood dripped onto the already sullied mating dress. Unbothered, I retrieved scissors from the drawer and shredded the dress into pieces.

I went downstairs briefly to dispose of the trash. Maybe because I hadn’t eaten breakfast, dizziness overtook me, and as I climbed back upstairs, my vision darkened. My head hit the stairs, blood soon covering my face.

It was a low blood sugar episode, and I couldn’t even call for help as I slipped into unconsciousness.

When I came to, I mustered some strength, wiping blood from my eyes. With effort, I picked up my phone, opened my eyes, and dialed that all-too-familiar number. The call was quickly answered.

"Alpha Giovanni, I’ve hurt my head on the stairs. Can you help me get to the pack healer?"

I panted, my plea hanging in the air. Silence, then Azaria’s chilling voice.

"Oh! Luna Emryn, you’ve fallen, but Alpha Giovanni is in the shower. He’s quite energetic, isn’t he? Could you never satisfy him? He just can’t get enough of me. Since you can make calls, maybe you should get to the healer yourself!"

With that, she hung up, leaving me alone with the sound of the disconnected line. A bitter smile formed as my last bit of strength faded away.

Then everything went dark.

When I woke up, the sterile scent of the hospital filled my lungs, and my hand instinctively reached for the bandage wrapped around my head. The sharp sting of the wound made me wince, but the pain was nothing compared to the heaviness in my chest.

Giovanni sat at my bedside, his broad frame tense, his Alpha aura radiating concern. His deep voice carried the weight of authority, but there was a crack in it—a rare moment of vulnerability. "Emryn, why didn’t you mind-link me when you got injured? If the janitor hadn’t found you, things could have been much worse."

I stared at him, disbelief tightening my chest. "I did, Alpha. Azaria answered. She told me to get myself to the hospital."

His eyes darkened, his Alpha tone sharpening. "Emryn, Azaria told me she answered the mind-link but heard nothing. She assumed it was some kind of interference."

I held his gaze, my voice steady despite the ache in my heart. "I told you the truth, Alpha."

For a moment, he hesitated, his stern expression faltering. But then a loud crash shattered the silence, followed by the sound of sobbing.

I turned my head.

Azaria stood there, her golden hair disheveled, her face streaked with tears. Scalding coffee dripped down her dress, but her eyes were locked on Giovanni, pleading and desperate.

"Alpha, don’t you trust me either? I swear I didn’t hear anything. You know Emryn has never accepted me!"

Then, she turned to me, her knees hitting the floor, the hot coffee searing her skin. She winced but didn’t rise, her voice trembling with anguish.

"Luna, why are you trying to turn Alpha against me? He’s the only family I have. If he casts me out, I’ll have nothing. Please, I’m begging you, just let me stay."

She bowed her head repeatedly, her pitiful cries echoing in the room. Giovanni was at her side in an instant, his Alpha presence overwhelming as he gently lifted her from the floor. In his haste, he yanked the IV line from my arm.

The needle tore through my skin, blood welling up and staining the sheets a deep crimson.

He didn’t even notice.

Giovanni cradled Azaria as if she were fragile china, her legs, wrists, and forehead already blistering from the burns. She looked up at him with those wide, tear-filled eyes, and his expression softened.

"Are you satisfied now, Emryn?" His voice was cold, his Alpha tone cutting through me like a blade. "Why can’t you just accept her into the pack?"

A bitter laugh escaped my lips. It wasn’t that I couldn’t accept her. It was that Giovanni and Azaria were so entangled in their own world that I was left on the outside, a forgotten shadow in my own pack.

He carried her out of the room without a backward glance, leaving me alone—just as he had done so many times before.

The difference between love and indifference was painfully clear.

I pressed a tissue against the bleeding spot on my arm, the sting of the wound nothing compared to the ache in my chest. Tears spilled down my cheeks, mingling with the bloodstains like blooming red flowers.

They reminded me of the time Giovanni had scaled the Alps to pick those flowers for me, just to see me smile. He had vowed I would never cry again in this lifetime.

But he had broken that promise.

The Giovanni who had once been distraught over the slightest injury I sustained was gone.

And soon, I would break my promise too.

I clutched my chest, where the mate bond once burned brightly. Now, it felt cold and hollow, as if a hole had been carved into my very soul, letting icy winds whistle through.

I had tried so hard to mend us, to stitch together the fragments of what we once were. But as I watched him walk away, his Alpha aura a shield around Azaria, I realized it was pointless.

My wolf stirred within me, a quiet growl of pain and resignation. *He’s a fool,* she whispered, her voice weak. *He’ll regret this.*

But I wasn’t so sure. The Giovanni I had known was gone, replaced by an Alpha who saw me as nothing more than a pebble under his feet. And as the cold seeped deeper into my bones, I knew it was time to let go.