The packhouse was alive with music and laughter, the sound of celebration carrying all the way to the forest’s edge where I sat alone. The sight of the gravesite I’d dug for Evy—a small mound of earth marked with wilting flowers—felt like a knife in my chest.

Two weeks. That’s all it took for them to forget her. For him to forget her.

A burst of laughter reached me, Serena’s voice loud and carefree. My hands clenched into fists.

I couldn’t stop myself. I stood and marched toward the packhouse, my blood boiling with every step. As I approached, the scene came into view: Serena stood on the steps, glowing with joy as the pack surrounded her. Leo clung to her hand, his face lit up with a grin that matched Isaac’s.

Their cheers echoing through the clearing as they celebrated her return. While I was drowning in pain, they were smiling, celebrating, and acting as if nothing had happened.

Every laugh felt like a dagger to my chest. Did they even care that I was still grieving? That I had lost my baby while they threw a party?

Isaac. He stood right beside her, his hand resting protectively on Leo’s shoulder, his face brighter than I’d seen in months. He looked… happy. Like his daughter wasn’t buried in the ground. Like he hadn’t shattered me two weeks ago.

The sight tore something loose inside me.

“Isaac!” I shouted, my voice cutting through the laughter.

The crowd went silent, all eyes turning toward me. Serena’s smile faltered, her hand instinctively pulling Leo closer. Isaac’s expression froze, his face paling as he saw me.

“What the hell are you doing?” My voice cracked, trembling with grief and fury. “You’re celebrating? Laughing? While our daughter is dead?”

Isaac stepped forward, his face hardening. “Blaise, don’t do this here.”

“Don’t do this here?” I echoed, my voice rising. “Do what, Isaac? Remind you of the child you buried while you stand here playing happy family with her?”

Serena’s brow furrowed as she stepped closer to Isaac. “Blaise, I think you need to calm down.”

“Calm down?” I laughed bitterly, my voice sharp and venomous. “You have the audacity to tell me to calm down? My daughter is dead, and you’re out here throwing a damn party like she never existed!”

The pack began murmuring, shifting uncomfortably as I took a step closer.

“You chose her,” I spat, my eyes locking on Isaac. “You chose her and her son, didn’t you? It didn’t matter that she left you, that she broke you. The second she came back, you couldn’t run fast enough, could you?”

“Blaise, stop!” Isaac growled, his tone warning me, but I didn’t care.

“You chose her,” I continued, my voice trembling with rage. “You chose to save her son, and now you stand here like nothing happened? Like she didn’t matter?”

Serena scoffed, pulling Leo closer. “Blaise, we’re all grieving—”

“You?” I cut her off, my voice a sharp blade. “You’re grieving? You’re standing here smiling, celebrating like you’ve won! You don’t get to grieve!”

Serena’s mouth opened to respond, but I was already moving. Before I could think, my hand lashed out, the slap echoing like a crack of thunder.

Serena stumbled back, clutching her cheek as tears welled in her eyes. Her dramatic sobs filled the air, “She hit me! In front of my son!”

Leo burst into tears, pointing at me. “You’re a bad mom!” he cried, his face scrunched with anger. “You’re mean, and you’re a bad mom!”

I froze, my chest heaving as the pack erupted into murmurs.

Isaac stepped in front of Serena, his eyes blazing with fury. “What the hell is wrong with you, Blaise?”

“What’s wrong with me?” I snapped. “What’s wrong with you? You’re smiling, celebrating while our daughter is dead!”

“I’m trying to move forward!” Isaac shouted back, his voice shaking with anger.

“With her?” I spat, my words venomous. “You didn’t hesitate to save her child, Isaac. You didn’t even think about Evy. You chose them. You chose her.”

Before I could say another word, Isaac’s hand flew out and connected with my face, the slap ringing out like a shot fired. My head whipped to the side, the sting of it sharp and immediate.

I staggered back, stunned and disoriented.

Isaac didn’t give me a chance to recover. He pulled Serena closer, his arm wrapping protectively around her. “From now on,” he said coldly, his voice steady and final, “Serena will be my second mate, with or without your consent.”

The words hit me like a slap of their own.

The weight of the pack’s judgment pressed down on me, thick and suffocating.

I blinked, trying to make sense of the reality crashing down on me. Not only had I lost Evy, but now I was losing Isaac, too. He wasn’t just choosing Serena; he was making it official.

Isaac brought Serena and Leo into the house like they belonged there, like they were home. He smiled more in those days than I’d seen him smile in years. They laughed together, played games, and ate dinner like a picture-perfect family.

Meanwhile, I was fading. Slowly, piece by piece, I felt myself disappearing.

Serena didn’t make it any easier. She mocked me with her every move—taking over the kitchen I’d once ruled, sitting in my chair at the dinner table, even humming while she folded laundry. She made sure I saw her every time she whispered something to Isaac that made him laugh or kissed Leo’s forehead as if he were her own.

But tonight… tonight was the final straw.

I walked into the bedroom I used to share with Isaac, and there she was. Serena. Standing in front of the mirror, wearing my wedding dress.

The dress I’d worn when Isaac and I said our vows.

“What the hell are you doing?” I hissed, my voice low and shaking with rage.

Serena turned, a smug smile on her face. “Oh, this? I figured I’d use it for my wedding to Isaac. No point in buying a new one, right?”

My blood boiled. “Take it off.”

She shrugged, the smile never leaving her face. “Why? It’s not like you’ll need it anymore.”

I snapped.

Before I could stop myself, my hand connected with her cheek, and I grabbed the dress, yanking it off her. Serena stumbled back, gasping dramatically as tears spilled down her cheeks.

“You’re insane!” she screamed, clutching the torn fabric to her chest. “You’re beating me! Oh my Goddess, someone help!”

The door flew open, and there stood Isaac, with Leo by his side, holding a soccer ball.

Leo’s eyes widened at the sight of Serena crying, and he turned to me, his face contorted with rage. “You’re a bad witch!” he screamed, running toward me. “Die! Die!”

His tiny foot kicked at my legs, and I stumbled, nearly falling.

“Leo!” Isaac barked, but instead of pulling him back, he rushed to Serena, who was sobbing like I’d just tried to kill her.

Isaac gently cupped her face, his thumb brushing away her tears. “What happened?”

“She… she hit me,” Serena sobbed, clutching Isaac’s arm. “All because of a wedding dress. I didn’t mean to upset her, Isaac, I swear.”

Isaac’s gaze snapped to me, cold and hard. Without a word, he stepped toward me and slapped me so hard I saw stars.

“You’re pathetic,” he said, his voice dripping with disgust. He turned back to Serena, his tone softening. “Don’t worry, love. I’ll buy you a new dress. Something beautiful and dashing, just like you deserve.”

I stayed on the floor, trying to catch my breath as the sting of Isaac's slap still burned on my cheek. My ears rang, but I could hear Leo’s small voice, sharp and innocent, cutting through the silence like a blade.

“Dad, when will that witch go away from our house?”

Isaac’s answer came swiftly, cold and unfeeling. “Soon, son. Very soon.”

Tears blurred my vision, but through them, I saw Serena glance back over her shoulder. Her lips curled into a smug smile, her eyes glinting with triumph as if she had won some twisted game.

I touched my face, my fingers coming away sticky with blood from my nose. The pain in my body was nothing compared to the ache in my chest.

I was nothing to him now. Not a wife. Not a partner. Not even a person. Just a shadow in the home that used to be mine.

Sitting alone in the dark bedroom, I scrolled through my phone aimlessly, trying to push down the ache in my chest. But then, like a slap to my already bruised face, I saw it.

Serena’s social media post.

She stood in a stunning wedding dress, posing in a boutique, her face lit with pure joy. The caption hit like a dagger: “I’m so excited to finally marry my one true love and mate, the man who waited for me all these years.”

I couldn’t breathe.

As if that wasn’t enough, I noticed she’d tagged me in the comments. I hesitated but tapped to read her words: “You should’ve come to watch the fitting, Blaise. It would’ve been nice to have your support.”

Support? My hands shook as I stared at the screen. The pain from Isaac’s slap throbbed in my cheek, but this? This hurt so much worse.

The phone slipped from my hand onto the bed, and I sat there, hollow, tears spilling over silently. Then something snapped.

I grabbed my suitcase and threw it open, yanking clothes from the closet and drawers. My movements were frantic, the sound of hangers clattering and zippers buzzing filling the silence.

Then I saw it—the picture frame on the nightstand.

It was a photo of me, Isaac, and Evy from happier times. Evy was in the middle, smiling so big it lit up the whole image.

My heart cracked open all over again. I ripped the photo from the frame, my fingers trembling as I tore Isaac’s part off, leaving just Evy and me. I crumpled his face and tossed it into the trash bin.

Every photo of us I could find—our wedding picture, candid shots from pack events, even one from our first date—I shredded with scissors, the pieces falling like confetti around me. Even my wedding ring and all the gifts he gave to me.

By the time I finished, my chest was heaving. But it wasn’t enough.

I grabbed Evy’s favorite stuffed animal, the tiny blanket she always carried, and packed them carefully alongside my clothes. I threw in a few essentials—enough to last until I could figure out where I was going.

Finally, I zipped up the suitcase and wheeled it to the door.

I didn’t look back. Not at the house, not at the shattered pieces of my life.

At the airport, the flight attendant smiled as she checked my ticket. “Have a safe trip,” she said.

I gave her a weak nod, clutching Evy’s blanket in my hand like a lifeline. As I boarded the plane, I told myself one thing over and over again:

I was done. Done with Isaac. Done with the pack. Done with pretending I had anything left to fight for there.

It was time to leave. Time to start over. For me. For Evy. For the life we should’ve had.