There was nothing new in it. I was accustomed to being cursed by my mother-in-law every time she saw me. Earlier, Lucas would stand up for me and defend me in front of his mother, even if it was a feign concern. But now that his beloved was standing before his eyes, fresh and cheerful, he didn't bother even looking at me.

“Uncle…” Suddenly Ember jumped over Lucas, hugging him tightly, her chest rubbing against his and lips almost brushing with his as she said while looking upward to face his eyes, “Long time no see, Uncle. Have you already forgotten me now that you have Auntie by your side?”

“How can it be possible, Ember? No one can take your place in my heart. Ember… I-”

“Sssh…” Ember pressed her finger on Lucas's lips, a gesture looking very passionate as she continued, “I know Uncle misses me. You don't need to explain anything to me. I understand! I was joking with you.”

The conversation going between them in public seemed to be an adorable conversation between uncle and niece but only I knew what it was about.

“Uncle, did you bring me a gift?” She asked excitedly, “Do you remember what day it is?”

“Of course,” said Lucas, “How can I forget the day we met for the first time?”

So holding a gathering in a pack was just an excuse. What Lucas wanted was to celebrate the day of their first meeting, as an anniversary. I laughed bitterly. He had never remembered or asked me about my birthday. He didn't even celebrate our anniversary, giving excuses of his mother’s dislikeness that could disturb my mood or my weak body. But, he took the chance only to celebrate a little occasion that could relate him with Ember.

Soon maids and servants wheeled in several luxurious gowns, each designed by different designers in the world and matched with executive jewelry.

Ember again jumped in excitement. She immediately hugged Lucas before placing a soft kiss on his cheeks, “You are still the best, Uncle.”

“Thank you so much for these gifts, Uncle,” she said while breaking the hug, “You gave me so many expensive gifts. I’m afraid someone would get jealous.”

After she mentioned this, Lucas' gaze could shift to me and see that I was wearing a plain T-shirt and jeans. He seemed to be hesitant as he reached out his hands to me, saying apologetically, “Don't overthink anything, Ava. It was a special moment for Ember and mine. So, as her Uncle I just…”

“Ouch…”

Before Lucas could complete his words, Ember held her chest and cried in pain, “Uncle, my chest is aching. I… I think my condition is acting up again.”

Lucas immediately let go of my hands and rushed to Ember’s side, asking in concern and worry, “Why are your chest aching all of a sudden? Where exactly is it hurting? No, I should check it right away.”

After throwing out these words, he immediately picked her up in his arms and headed straight to the stairs to take her upstairs, showing his back to me in front of the whole pack members.

"No wonder Lucas would rather lavish Ember with attention and gifts, but treats his wife like a mere afterthought. A woman of her... limited abilities isn't worthy of being the mate of the pack's future alpha, let alone deserving of his affection."

"If not for his obsession with Ember, why would he have ever married her who looked similar to Ember? I bet she used her pitiful health to manipulate him into this union. Pathetic! She'd even cling to him like a leech just to maintain her status."

“I heard her mother died in one of the rituals Lucas performed. I bet she killed her own mother just to blackmail Lucas into marrying her. After all, he is the best shaman in our kingdom. How could he make such a mistake to even cost a life?”

“But, isn't Ember Lucas nice? How can they show affection for each other publically? Isn't it wrong? If the late Alpha was alive, would he let this happen in his pack?”

The murmurs grew louder, their voices sharp as claws. Seeing that they didn't mind pulling their Alpha Lucas into mud along with me, Lucas's mother, clearly disgusted, sneered at me. "What are you still standing here for, embarrassing us? Get back upstairs and bring back your husband this instant! Haven't you shamed us enough already?"

"My son was gracious enough to accept you as his mate despite your... frailties; it's your good fortune to have him! If your mother died in the rituals you asked for her, how is that my son's fault? You should be grateful instead of trying to cling to him. You'll get what's coming to you one day!”

My mother-in-law’s words passed chills down my spine. But, I chose to stay silent. Arguing with her would do no good to me. It was even useless to keep standing there and listen to the packmates’ whispers and my mother-in-law’s taunts. Also, I was looking for a chance to bring up the divorce with Lucas. So, I decided to follow her instructions and walked upstairs through the stairs, intending to clear things between us.

I had only reached out the door and my ears were filled with Lucas's voice, laced with concern and worry.

“Ember, what are you doing?” He asked in desperation, “Your condition is acting up, you should lay still on the bed. Please don't get up.”

As I reached out to the door, my legs got frozen at their place. I couldn't move at all. There was a scene, too improper to even watch, let alone interrupt. Ember's hands were wrapped around Lucas’s shoulder and legs around his waist. He had held her on him with the support of the wall, clinging to each other as passionately as they could.

“Ember…” he moaned, “Please don’t do this.”

“Why, Lucas?” She said seductively before brushing her lips against his, “Don't you like this?”

“Are you worried about my condition?” She asked after partying her lips, “I lied! Just to get you up with me alone.”

“Why are you holding back, Lucas? I know you want me as desperately as I want you. Aren't you married to Ava just because she has similar facial features as me?” She asked seductively, “Tell me, Lucas! How many times have you slept with her imagining me in your bed? I bet it's everyday.”

“Ember…” he moaned, struggling hard to not respond to her kisses as he groaned, “You are making things harder on me,”

“That's what I want, Lucas.” she said while moving her hands downward to his shirt, “I want you to get harder!”

As soon as her hands grabbed the zipper of his pants, he lost all his control. He couldn't hold himself anymore and soon the sound of undressing the clothes echoed in the room, followed by the sound of skins’ intervention. I clenched the door’s knob in my hand, that hadn't been pushed open till now, and ran away, leaving them alone to bring shame to their relationship and to the pack.

I burst out and reached the balcony, gasping for air. The thought of them intervening to each other, naked in the same bed, was disgusting to me. But even the cool night breeze couldn't calm the storm raging inside me. I felt like I was drowning, like I was losing myself in a sea of despair.

And at that moment, I knew I had to get out. I had to leave Lucas, leave Ember, leave the pack. I had to find a way to heal, to move on, to forget.

I reached for my enchanted stone and used it to contact one of my trusted friend and ally, a fellow werewolf named Lucy.

"I need your help," I whispered, my voice barely audible over the sound of my own heartbeat.

Lucy's response was immediate. "What do you need, Ava?"

I took a deep breath, steeling myself for what was to come. "I need you to help me take back what's mine."

There was a pause on the other end of the line, and for a moment, I wondered if Lucy would abandon me. But then, her voice came back, strong and resolute. "I'm with you, Ava. Always."

At first, I wanted to confront Lucas and talk to him face to face about what he did to me. But now, I was disgusted with the thought of even looking at him. There was nothing left to talk about. What's done was already done. I could not change what had already happened in the past. But, my future was in my hands and I would never let myself be bewitched by him again. So, in that short moment, I had already decided what I needed to do next.

The full moon was rising, and with it, a new era would begin. I was ready to unleash my inner wolf and take back what was rightfully mine.

I hadn’t moved from the bench placed on the balcony for what felt like an eternity, the scent of damp earth and pine needles doing little to soothe the ache in my soul. Suddenly, an iced mug of frozen beverages spilled across my head. The chilling sensation made me shiver in the cold.

Ember, her eyes gleaming with cruel amusement, sauntered into view. She’d shed her human guise and stood before me in her magnificent wolf form, a cup of the chilled beverages clutched in her powerful jaws.

"Ava," she growled after shifting to her human form, her voice a low rumble, "Did you enjoy the show? Watching you leave with tears in your eyes, was truly delightful."

So, she’d been watching.

"I heard your wolf is rejecting the change. Shivers, fever, weakness… you must be suffering, hmm? You can’t even hold your wolf form properly. But me? I shift effortlessly. You're now a half-breed, but at least your life force was good for something. I owe you one. Thanks for the… entertainment."

“Do you know I never needed a life force! I purposely defected my life force just at the time when your mother needed yours, forcing Lucas to put yours in my chest, causing your mother to die instantly.”

"And our father, the late Alpha, that fool had a change of heart after knowing how I slept with your mate, causing the death of his first wife. He really thought he could challenge me for Alpha and give my pack to you? Keep dreaming. They belong to me. You were nothing but a weakling, a disgrace."

"The old fool had the nerve to challenge me when I demanded him to leave the Alpha's position to me. So, of course, I had to teach him a lesson. I shifted and… persuaded him to yield. He was so humiliated. But, he was still powerful. That fool would have won, had I not whispered into his ears how I snatched your life force, causing you the suffering for your whole life. That was when he lost his desire to live, and died, murmuring your name in his last breathing.

"When the elders were considering you as Alpha since you are the eldest daughter, I reminded the pack of your human weakness. As I expected, they were easily swayed; they chose me instead. Your human blood made you vulnerable, they needed a pureblood Alpha."

"By the way, you were too weak to witness your father's final submission. He whimpered like a pup, his tail tucked between his legs, as he was forced to surrender his title to me. Serves him right! He dared question my claim, so I took his leadership in return!"

My eyes burned with a fury I’d never known.

I had never imagined this was the true reason for my father's decline.

My body trembled, overwhelmed by the shock. How could she be so ruthless? How could she usurp my birthright and speak of it with such callous indifference?

I lunged, claws extended, ready to tear her apart, but before I could reach her, Ember deliberately spilled the chilled beverages over herself, letting out a dramatic yelp.

The next instant, someone shoved me violently backward.

Lucas, my husband, still sweating and wearing wrinkled clothes, stood protectively in front of her, his eyes narrowed with fury as he snarled at me, "Ava! What in the name of the Moon Goddess do you think you're doing?!"

With feigned distress, Ember whimpered, "Lucas, I only wanted to offer her some comfort and apologize for stealing her mate. But she accused me of killing her father, attacked me, and even… poured the frozen beverages on me on this cold night. If you hadn’t intervened, she might have killed me!"

"Offering her drink was my idea," she added, affecting a wounded expression. "I know they weren’t much, but it was a gesture of goodwill. And now I’m even injured…"

Lucas’s expression hardened immediately.

"Ava, your father was weak. He couldn’t handle the pressures of Alpha. He shouldn’t have challenged Ember’s rightful claim. Before the challenge, it’s expected for the Alpha to prove their strength. Ember was only asserting her dominance, and instead of accepting the natural order, you’re blaming her for everything?"

I couldn’t believe the absurdity of his words.

"Lucas, tell me the truth. How did my mother truly fall? Did she truly receive my life force?"

Lucas’s face tightened with annoyance.

"Of course. Didn’t I already explain? The ritual backfired. These dark rituals can be brutal. Didn’t I tell you already? Don’t you understand? And now you’re turning Ember into the villain. Apologize to her. Now."

A bitter laugh escaped my lips.

Tears welled in my eyes, the weight of betrayal crushing me. This was the man I had loved for seven years, who wouldn’t even offer me the truth.

In a haze of despair, I snatched another cup of chilled beverages from Ember's hands. She had emptied only one forth of it on herself, I emptied the rest in one sip.

The moment the liquor hit my empty stomach, a searing pain ripped through me, and I stumbled, collapsing to the earth, my wolf form flickering uncontrollably, the chilled beverages, now poison, chilling my veins.