Faye, are you truly resolved? Once you leave this pack, you’ll never be able to return, and I can’t promise you’ll find your way back to your original pack.

"If you fail, you’ll die for real."

My tears had long dried in the wind as I cradled the lifeless, withered body of my pup, nodding numbly. After seven long years, I was utterly drained.

Once, out of love, I chose to forfeit my position and stay in this pack after completing my duties as Luna. But now, with Theo, my mate and Alpha, having taken the life of our child, there’s nothing left for me here.

I’m ready to pay any price, even death, to leave this place.

Seeing my determination, Lyric Freeman, the rogue who had always been a shadow in the background, didn’t try to dissuade me further. "All right, in seven days, I’ll arrange for an incident to help you escape."

With Lyric’s words, I took one last, lingering look at my pup’s small body before burying him in the modest grave I’d dug with my own hands. As I covered him with earth, fresh tears poured down my face, and I wept uncontrollably.

Just this morning, my dear pup had been celebrating his first birthday. He laughed endlessly as the pack members entertained him, wagging his tiny tail, his barks as clear and bright as a bell.

But by the afternoon, his own father, the Alpha, had placed him into a tank filled with leeches, letting them drain away his life.

If only I had realized he was missing sooner.

If only I had figured out Theo and Bianca’s intentions earlier.

If only I had left Theo sooner...

A tidal wave of pain and regret threatened to consume me entirely.

By the time I returned to the Alpha’s house, disoriented and weary, it was dark outside.

Before I could even enter, I heard the laughter of Theo and Bianca, an Omega who had wormed her way into our pack, with her pup, Lylah. Theo was reading "Snow White" to the little girl, while Bianca sat next to him, gazing at him with soft eyes, like the perfect family portrait.

When the story reached the part about the evil stepmother, the little girl pointed at me standing in the doorway and asked, "Daddy, does the wicked witch look like her?"

Before I could even feel anger, Bianca stepped in front of the girl, feigning an apology, "Oh, pups just say things. She’s too young to know better, and there’s nothing between Theo and me, Miss Faye, please don’t misunderstand."

Theo glanced at me with a frown, his tone icy, "What’s the point in explaining? The innocent remain innocent. If she wants to impose her twisted thoughts on us, let her."

I shot them a cool look, feeling empty inside. Since Theo brought Bianca and her pup into our pack, I’ve heard similar things countless times.

Bianca gets lost when she goes out, but instead of calling for help, she tearfully mind-links Theo to pick her up.

When her pup falls ill with a fever, rather than calling the healer, she barges into our room, pleading with Theo to help.

Even our marking anniversary wasn’t exempt from her presence, as she insisted on staying close with her pup.

And Theo? Every single time he had to choose, he would abandon me without a second thought.

In the past, I might have felt hurt and argued with him.

But now, I expect nothing from Theo.

Still, I couldn’t bring myself to be civil to the very people responsible for my pup’s death. My nails dug into my palms as I lowered my gaze and headed upstairs.

Theo, however, called after me with a frown, "What’s with the attitude, Faye? Lylah is just a pup, are you really that jealous?"

"I told you to stop being so paranoid. If there were anything between Bianca and me, you wouldn’t have any right to be Luna. Can you please cut me some slack?"

Upon hearing those words, I paused on the staircase and turned to face the Alpha I had loved for so many years. This wasn’t the first time I had gazed at him with such intensity over the past seven years, but it would be the last.

When I first arrived in the Silverclaw Pack, I swallowed my pride, pursuing him tirelessly for seven long years. As an Omega, I was seen as unworthy of an Alpha’s attention, let alone his mate bond. People called me an opportunist, shameless even, but I never gave up. Eventually, I won him over, and we completed the mate bond. We had a wonderful time together as mates. During thunderstorms, he’d hold me close and hum a soothing melody to calm my fears. When members of the pack would try to bring up my past to ridicule me, he would use his Alpha tone to silence them without hesitation.

Back then, I truly believed we could continue like this forever. But then Bianca returned, severed from her mate bond and with a pup, after enduring abuse from her former pack. And everything changed.

Initially, I sympathized with Bianca’s situation, feeling sorry for her trusting the wrong mate. Out of kindness, I decided to bake some cookies for her pup, Lylah. I even asked Bianca if Lylah had any allergies, just to be safe, and she assured me there were none. However, when I offered the cookies to Lylah, she took just one bite and immediately broke out in red welts, crying hysterically.

Right there, Bianca fell to her knees, crying and pleading, “I know you have issues with us, but please, take it out on me. The pup is innocent; she’s so young…”

I was in shock, struggling to process what she meant until Alpha Theo suddenly slapped me, jolting me back to reality.

“Faye, how could you be so heartless? Lylah is just a pup!”

Stunned and in pain, I tried to explain, but Alpha Theo looked at me with disdain, shoving me aside before picking up Lylah and storming out.

From that moment on, he started siding with Bianca and her pup, ignoring me and viewing me as the villain. No matter what I did, he believed I was out to harm them. Meanwhile, Bianca kept up a façade of gentle innocence while secretly mocking and undermining me.

Even her pup, barely five years old, would make faces and spit at me when Alpha Theo wasn’t around, calling me a "wicked she-wolf" and accusing me of stealing her father.

That’s when I realized Bianca and her pup were trying to push me away and take my place as Luna. I tried telling Alpha Theo, but he never believed me.

When I suffered severe complications during childbirth, he chose to believe Bianca’s fabricated kidnapping story and left me alone on the cold medical table. If Lyric, a rogue wolf, hadn’t shown up in time, I might not have survived. My body was still weak from the hemorrhage, and Alpha Theo took advantage of my bedrest to secretly take our pup, who had just celebrated her 100th day. By the time I got there, she was already pale and lifeless, covered by a swarm of insects.

Heartbroken, I asked him why he did it. His reason? Because Lylah was severely depressed and found joy only in seeing insects cover the pup’s body.

It’s absurd and tragic! Even a wild wolf won’t harm its own pup, yet Alpha Theo tortured his own child for a stranger’s sake. I thought I would break down and cry hysterically, but in reality, all that remained was a silent despair.

Now, I no longer have the strength to argue. I averted my eyes, nodding numbly, “Then let her be Luna of the Silverclaw Pack.”