Alpha Chose My Half-Sister, I Left

I was the daughter of the Ashford Pack Alpha — the most beautiful she-wolf in the entire southern territory. Alphas lined up to pursue me, and I couldn't be bothered to give any of them a second glance. Until my best friend dared me: "Sera, I've got a bet for you. Think you can make my brother Kieran fall for you? Win, and I'll give you my mother's healing moonstone necklace. Lose, and you hand over that limited-edition sports car you love so much." Countless beautiful she-wolves had tried to get into his bed. Every last one of them had been turned away cold. The very first night after I took the bet, I saved Kieran from a silver poisoning, and spent the rest of that night tangled up with him while he burned through his heat. For the two years that followed, he grew more and more obsessed with me. On the long conference table in the pack meeting room, he pinned me down against the papers. In every room of his private estate, we left traces of ourselves behind. I gradually fell in love with him during countless intimate moments. Until the night only to overhear his conversation with the pack elder. "Alpha, it's time to announce who will be Luna." The Elder's voice was low and deliberate. "Miss Seraphina has been by your side for two years now. According to pack tradition—" "Enough." Kieran cut him off. "She and I were just having fun." The Elder was quiet for a moment. "And your first love? When you two separated, she asked for two years apart to try other partners. Those two years are up now. Isn't it time for her to come back?" "Yes." Warmth finally crept into Kieran's voice. "It's time for her to come back." That was when I realized — his so-called true love was my half-sister. The person I hated most in the world. For two years, I had been just his experiment while he "tried someone else". I turned and walked away without a second thought. But this powerful Alpha went mad — tearing through the entire wolf world searching for me. Chapter 1 At the full moon banquet, I slipped away from the Alphas trying to court me and drifted, bored, into a corner. I was the daughter of the Ashford Pack Alpha — the most beautiful she-wolf in the entire southern territory. Alphas lined up to pursue me, and I couldn't be bothered to give any of them a second glance. My best friend Emily appeared at my side, her eyes glinting with mischief. "Seraphina, I've got a bet for you. Think you can make my brother fall for you? Win, and I'll give you my mother's healing moonstone necklace. Lose, and you hand over that limited-edition sports car you love so much." I raised an eyebrow. I'd been coveting that moonstone necklace for a long time. A rare gem said to accelerate a werewolf's healing — and there was only one like it in the entire territory. I glanced across the hall to where Kieran Frost stood. He was speaking quietly with a few other Alphas, his fitted black suit outlining a long, lean frame. Everyone in the werewolf territory knew it: the Alpha of Frost Pack had never marked a single she-wolf. Countless beautiful she-wolves had tried to get into his bed. Every last one had been turned away cold. "Deal." I lifted my chin and drained my glass in one swallow. That night, while I was patrolling the territory borders, I caught the scent of blood. In the moonlight, a massive wolf was writhing in pain. Kieran Frost. He'd been poisoned with silver. The moment I got close, I could feel the scorching heat radiating off his body. Leave it any longer, and even an Alpha would die. I shifted quickly, bit open my own foreleg, and let my blood drip into his open wolf's mouth. White wolf blood is a natural antidote — and I was the only white wolf in the entire territory. But I realized almost immediately that something was wrong. The silver poisoning had triggered his heat. He lunged before I could react. Massive wolf paws pinned my body down. His burning breath fanned across the side of my neck. I tried to pull free. He held me down completely. His teeth closed on the back of my neck — exactly where a wolf marks their mate. My whole body went rigid. But he didn't bite down. He stayed there, a low, broken whimper rising from deep in his throat, like he was holding himself back from something. On the moonlit grass, we stayed tangled together until dawn. When I woke, I was back in human form. His suit jacket was draped over my shoulders. His shirt was beneath me. Kieran stood a short distance away, his back to me. "About last night—" he started. "I know." I cut him off, stood up, and pulled the jacket tighter around myself. "It was just the heat. Don't worry about it." He turned. His expression was complicated. "Your blood saved my life." "Then you owe me one." I walked up to him and looked up at his face with a light smile. "When are you going to pay it back?" He was quiet for a moment. "What do you want?" "Haven't decided yet." I smiled. "I'll let you know when I figure it out." For the two years that followed, he was, in his way, repaying that debt. Every time I wanted him, one message was all it took. He came running. After a while, he was the one who couldn't get enough. On the long conference table in the pack meeting room, he pinned me down against the papers. In the woods of the deep forest hunting grounds, he caught me behind a tree and claimed my lips. In every room of his private estate, we left traces of ourselves behind. I gradually fell in love with him during countless intimate moments. I thought this Alpha, so icy to everyone else, had fallen for me too. Tonight, I received a gift box he'd sent over. Inside was a set of black lace lingerie. I put it on and studied myself in the mirror. The lace traced every curve of my body — seductive and undeniable. I knew he liked this. The study door wasn't fully closed. I was about to push it open when I heard voices inside. "Alpha, it's time to announce who will be Luna." The Elder's voice. "Miss Seraphina has been by your side for two years now. According to pack tradition—" Kieran's voice was cold. "She won't be Luna." My hand froze on the door handle. "But she's the Alpha's daughter of Ashford Pack," the Elder pressed. "And her white wolf bloodline—" "Enough." Kieran cut him off. "She and I were just having fun." My heart clenched like a fist had closed around it. The gentle moments played back through my mind, one after another. Him grooming my fur — his touch so careful, like he was handling something precious. Him shifting into wolf form in the moonlight and carrying me on his back, letting me see every corner of the territory. Him holding me through a thunderstorm, murmuring quietly that I didn't need to be afraid. The Elder was quiet for a moment. "And your first love? When you two separated, she asked for two years apart to try other partners. Those two years are up now. Isn't it time for her to come back?" "Yes." Warmth finally crept into Kieran's voice. "It's time for her to come back." His first love? I was just his experiment while he "tried someone else"? My hands were shaking as I pushed the door open. Kieran's gaze dropped to the lingerie visible beneath my coat. Something flickered in his eyes — want — then went out just as quickly. The Elder turned instinctively to look at me. Kieran stepped forward, putting himself between us. "Out." He said it to the Elder without looking at him. The Elder sighed and left. "Do you have anything to say for yourself?" I forced my voice steady. Kieran stood, walked to the bar cart, and poured himself a whiskey. "Nothing to explain." He took a sip. "You know what this is between us." "Fuck buddy?" I stepped closer. "So for two years, that's all I've been to you?" "Wasn't that what it was?" He turned and looked at me. "I know about your bet with Emily. The healing necklace, wagering whether you could get me." My breath caught. "You—" "Of course I knew." He paused. "I was playing along." He pulled a cheque from the drawer. "Consider this compensation. Two years of being available whenever I called — you've earned it." "I wasn't—" My shaking hand pushed it away. I grabbed the hem of his shirt. "Wasn't what?" He frowned. He'd never seen me like this before — so fragile. "Just playing around." I heard my own voice trembling. "My wolf chose you." Kieran went still. His mouth opened like he was about to say something — and then his phone buzzed. A message: Kieran, I'm back. Kieran looked at me in silence. Moonlight poured through the window, casting shadows across his face. "But mine didn't." Kieran got to his feet. "This ends here." He calmly pushed my hand away, turned, and walked out of the study. I stood there, staring at my reflection in the mirror — at myself in that lingerie. For the first time, I felt like I was the punchline of a joke. Chapter 2 I stormed out of the study, ripped off that damned black lace, and drove to the bar at the edge of the territory. Alphas and Betas kept trying to talk to me. I ignored every last one of them and drank myself numb, one glass after another. The alcohol blurred my vision, but the pain in my chest was a blade that stayed sharp. Two years. Two years of intimacy, warmth, and possession — and I had been nothing more than his experiment while he "tried someone else." "Another bottle." The bartender hesitated. "Miss, you've already had quite a bit—" "I said another bottle." Through the haze, the bar door swung open. A familiar Alpha scent drifted in, and my wolf came alive instantly. Kieran. He was wearing a black shirt, his expression cold. I lifted my head, squinting through blurred vision toward the entrance. When I saw the figure beside him, my glass nearly slipped from my fingers. It was Melody Ashford. My half-sister. She was in a white dress — gentle and delicate — head slightly bowed, nestled against his side. My nails dug into my palm. She and her mother were the two people I despised most in this world. When I was two years old, my mother died on the battlefield protecting my father Marcus during a territory war. Three months later, Marcus brought home his mistress Vivian, along with their three-year-old illegitimate daughter, Melody. Marcus claimed my mother had used her family's influence to force him into the marriage. That his heart had always belonged to Vivian. But I knew the truth. My mother was the daughter of the former Ashford Pack Alpha. Marcus had pursued her himself. After they married, she gave up her right of inheritance to let him become Alpha. She gave him everything. She died for him. And in less than three months, he married his first love and made her his new Luna. Now I watched Kieran pull out Melody's chair for her — that careful, considerate attention he had never once given me. He never held my hand in public. Never stood by my side at pack gatherings. I had convinced myself he was just cold by nature, that he didn't like showing affection in front of others. Only now did I understand. His tenderness had always belonged to someone else. My heart felt like it was being carved out with a silver blade, cut by cut. I stood up and stumbled toward the exit. "Well, well. A lady this drunk — want us to walk you home?" Three rogue wolves closed in around me. "Get lost." I laughed coldly. "Ooh, feisty." The one in front reached for my shoulder. I needed to hit something. I shifted into my white wolf and launched myself at the worthless bastards. My claws found flesh almost immediately. But something was wrong. These rogues had come prepared — their claws were coated in silver dust. The burning hit me fast. My movements slowed. One of them seized the moment and sank his teeth into my shoulder. Blood ran through my fur and dripped to the ground. Then that familiar Alpha scent came closer. I raised my head and, through the blood and haze, saw Kieran. He stood at the edge of the crowd, moonlight falling across his sharp features. He was looking at me. Worry and fury flickered across his face — like he was about to push through. Our eyes met. One second. Only one second. "Kieran, I'm scared." Melody's voice floated up, soft and fragile. "These rogues are terrifying. Did you see someone you know?" Kieran stopped. He looked away. "No. Don't be afraid. Just some rogue wolves fighting — nothing to do with us." Then he wrapped an arm around Melody and walked away without looking back. I stood there, frozen. Stray wolves with nothing to do with him. Two years. In his heart, I had always been nothing more than a stray wolf with nothing to do with him. I wanted to laugh, but blood and tears ran together down my face. Chapter 3 I drove the three rogues off with everything I had left, then collapsed from the silver poisoning. When I opened my eyes again, I was in the healing center. My body felt like it had been taken apart. The silver was still moving through my blood, the burning spreading from my shoulder to my limbs. The door opened. Footsteps approached, carrying that familiar cedar scent. Kieran. He walked to the bedside, a delicate crystal bottle in his hand. "Moonlight herb. For silver poisoning." I kept staring at the ceiling. Didn't look at him. "Let me change your bandages." He moved to step closer. I jerked away, twisting my body to avoid his hand. The movement was too fast. My shoulder wound tore open with a searing pain. I bit down on the inside of my cheek and laughed coldly. "What are you doing here? Come to check on a rogue wolf?" Kieran's eyes darkened, those ice-blue irises fixed on me. "If I don't come to see you," He paused. "who else will?" That hit harder than any wound. It cut straight through. Because he was right. My mother died fighting to protect my father on the border. My father brought home his mistress and her bastard daughter. That place called home had stopped belonging to me a long time ago. It was Kieran who had given me the illusion — two years of making me feel like I still had someone, like I could lean on him. Until last night, when he walked away with Melody. Until he called me a rogue wolf with nothing to do with him. I forced my pride upright and stretched my mouth into something like a smile. "There's no shortage of young, strong Alphas lining up to check on me." I held his gaze. "Kieran. What I said last night about having feelings — that was just playing along. Did you really think I liked you? You were convenient. Now I'm bored of it. We're done." I tried to look fierce. I tried to make my smile sharp enough to cut. But my eyes had already gone red. Kieran stared at me for a long moment, his expression cooling degree by degree. "Is that so." A nurse knocked and entered. "Alpha, Miss Melody is outside asking for you." "Go be with your true love!" The words came out louder than I intended. "Get out of my sight!" Kieran was quiet for a few seconds. "I came because Emily asked me to check on you." He said it, then turned and walked out. I laughed. Laughed until my whole body shook, laughed until the tears came. "Don't worry, I'm not deluded enough to think otherwise." Kieran stopped in the doorway. He frowned and looked back at me — the first time he had ever seen me cry in front of him. He seemed to want to say something. His lips moved. But in the end, nothing came out. The door closed. I sank back on the hospital bed. Tears ran silently — for a long time, until my eyes were dry and raw and there was nothing left. In the days that followed, I changed my own bandages. The silver burns made me sweat through the pain. I gritted my teeth and cleaned the wound myself, applied the moonlight herb, came close to passing out more than once. But I didn't call for help. At night when I couldn't sleep, I scrolled my phone. Somehow I kept landing on Melody's social media — those carefully staged photos where Kieran was peeling apples for her, making breakfast for her, Melody leaning softly against his shoulder. Her caption read: "The best Alpha gives you the whole world's tenderness." I stared at those photos until my chest ached in waves. But I didn't cry. I told myself I would never shed another tear for Kieran Frost. A week later, I was discharged. The silver poisoning had mostly cleared, but the scar on my shoulder remained. Like a brand. A reminder of how stupid I'd been. I went to the edge of the territory and knocked on the witch's door. "I need a potion — one that alters a wolf's scent and severs all bloodline ties." The witch studied me, eyes wide. "Are you sure? Once you drink this, there's no going back. Your pack bond will break. Your bloodline connections will vanish. Even your wolf's scent will change. It takes effect in two weeks, and there's no antidote." I didn't hesitate. I tilted my head back and drank it in one go. It was bitter. Bitter like all the tears I'd ever swallowed. Two weeks left. The family. Kieran. I didn't want any of it anymore. Chapter 4 After drinking the potion, I drove back to the Ashford pack estate. My stepmother Vivian was standing in the foyer. The moment she saw me, her expression curdled. "Out all night. You're exactly like your shameless mother." Her arms were folded, her voice razor-edged. I set down my luggage, looked her in the face, and slapped her. The sound rang clean and sharp through the foyer. Vivian screamed and clutched her cheek, staring at me with a mix of fury and fear. "A rogue she-wolf who destroyed someone else's mate bond." I said it quietly. "What gives you the right to lecture me about anything?" Footsteps thundered from upstairs. Marcus came rushing down to steady Vivian. "You come home and start trouble the second you walk in? You've disrupted this whole pack!" I watched him rush to that woman's side and felt nothing but contempt. "Give me my share of the pack's assets, and I'll leave this territory for good. You'll never see me again." Marcus's expression immediately shifted to concern. "What are you talking about? This is always going to be your home." I laughed like I'd heard a joke. "Home? The day my mother died, I stopped having one." Marcus went rigid. "Name your price," I said. "I want what's mine." He was quiet for a long time, then let out a theatrical sigh. "What are you so upset about this time? Fine. We'll give you half a million to clear your head, take a little trip." "You only became Alpha because my grandfather founded this pack. My mother gave up her right of inheritance to put you on that throne." I smiled without warmth. Marcus's face changed. He glared at me like I'd touched something forbidden. "She used her life to bring you home from that border battle and let you keep your Alpha title. And now you're here living off her pack, keeping your mistress and your bastard daughter in her father's estate — and you're going to pay off her daughter with half a million dollars?" I kept going, not giving him the chance to interrupt. Marcus's face had gone red. "How much do you want?!" he shouted. I pulled documents from my bag and set them on the coffee table. "One hundred million dollars and half the territorial rights." Marcus shot to his feet. "You're insane! You'd gut the entire pack! Absolutely not!" I walked to the window and looked out at the night. "My mother told me, before she died, that there's a forbidden ward buried beneath this territory." My voice stayed light. "If it's activated, the entire pack is destroyed." The sharp intake of breath behind me was satisfying. "She said she set it up to protect against rogue invasions." I turned to look at them. "Funny how it turned out to be useful for something else entirely." Marcus's fingers began to tremble. "So. Either you sign." I said it calmly. "Or we all die here tonight." "You wouldn't dare—" Vivian shrieked. "I'm leaving this territory anyway. What exactly do I have to lose?" Marcus stared into my eyes for a long moment, his hands shaking, then picked up the pen and signed. I lifted the document and checked the signature. "What a coward." I let the smile show on my face. "My mother's biggest regret in life was probably marrying you." "You—" Marcus pointed at me, his finger trembling too hard for him to finish the sentence. I didn't give him the chance. I turned and headed for the stairs. "Your sister is bringing her Alpha mate home tonight," Marcus said, forcing down his rage. "I've prepared a welcome dinner. That's Kieran Frost — Frost Pack's Alpha. Don't you dare make a scene." I stopped on the stairs. My hand tightened on the banister. That fast. Kieran was coming tonight, and he was coming as Melody's mate. I was about to move when the front door opened. Melody walked in on Kieran's arm, all smiles. Chapter 5 "Mom, Dad, I'm home." Her voice dripped with sweetness. Marcus and Vivian transformed on the spot. The two people who had barely looked at me moments ago were now beaming, warm and fawning. Vivian hurried forward. "Melody's back! Are you tired? Hungry?" Marcus's gaze landed on Kieran, and he straightened immediately. "Alpha Kieran, welcome to Ashford territory. It's an honor to have you." I stood on the stairs and watched them orbit around Melody and Kieran like planets, performing for an audience. Kieran's gaze swept the room and landed on me. He frowned, just slightly. "And this is?" As if he had never seen me before. Marcus blinked. "Oh — this is my other daughter. Seraphina." Kieran gave a small nod and said nothing more. He didn't spare me another glance. Melody smiled. "She's my younger sister. Since Kieran is here, you should stay for dinner, Seraphina." Her smile was warm and gracious. The triumph in her eyes was completely naked. At the long dinner table, Melody and Kieran sat on one side. I sat across from them, alone. The odd one out. The Omega servant Margaret brought out roasted chicken and venison. Kieran glanced at the plate in front of Melody and frowned slightly. "You don't like venison." His voice was gentle with concern. Melody gave him a sweet, slightly put-upon look. "You noticed. But Seraphina loves it, so we've always kept it on the menu." Without a word, Kieran lifted the venison off her plate and set it aside, then moved the roasted chicken in front of her. It was a gesture so practiced it looked like habit. Margaret poured white wine. Kieran glanced at it. "Switch to red. She prefers red." Melody looked at him, her eyes full of warmth. "You remember everything." I watched this unfold, gripping my knife and fork hard. My heart felt like it was being cut open with a dull blade, slowly. Vivian smiled pleasantly. "How did you two meet?" Melody lowered her eyes, a flush rising to her cheeks. "It was during a border patrol. I found Kieran lying in a pool of blood — he'd fallen into a wolfsbane trap. I got to him in time and treated him with moonlight herb." She looked up at Kieran, her eyes full of devotion. "Otherwise, the outcome would have been unthinkable." Kieran took her hand. "So I knew she was the one. She saved my life." Melody's face went pink. She looked like the happiest she-wolf in the world. I listened to this story and suddenly laughed out loud. The sound cut through the quiet dining room. Everyone turned to look at me. Marcus frowned. "Is something funny? Keep your voice down." I set down my knife and fork and looked at Melody. "You're sure it was you who saved him? With moonlight herb?" Melody's smile flickered. "Of course it was me. Who else?" "Melody." I said it simply. "You couldn't tell moonlight herb from wolfsbane when we were children. Remember my pet rabbit? The one that died because you fed it the wrong plant." "So when did you suddenly learn to identify wolfsbane poisoning symptoms?" I tilted my head. "Remarkable, isn't it." The atmosphere at the table froze. Melody's eyes went glassy. She bit her lip, the picture of hurt. "Seraphina, why would you say that? I'm not lying." Vivian slapped the table and stood. "Seraphina! That's enough! Melody saved Alpha Kieran — that's a fact! What gives you the right to slander her out of jealousy?" Marcus's face hardened. "Apologize. Right now. To your sister." I leaned back in my chair and said nothing. Melody dabbed at her eyes, then suddenly smiled. "It's all right. Don't blame Seraphina. She probably just hasn't found her own mate yet and is in a difficult mood." She looked at me, her concern perfectly performed. "Have you chosen a mate yet, Seraphina? When's the marking ceremony?" I looked at her act for a moment. Then I smiled — bright and wide and unguarded. "Too many to choose from." My gaze swept past Kieran and settled back on Melody's face. "Not like you, taking three years to land one this ordinary. The Alphas pursuing me could fill every road from Ashford territory to the Northern Snowlands. Genuinely can't pick." Marcus slammed his hand on the table. "Enough! Have you no manners?" Vivian's chest heaved. "You shameless thing! How dare Ashford Pack have a daughter like you!" Melody pressed a hand to her mouth, tears falling. "How can you say something like that?" She turned to Kieran, helpless and injured. Kieran set down his utensils and slowly wiped his mouth with his napkin. Then, unhurried, in front of everyone, he reached over and took Melody's hand where it rested on the table. "Melody doesn't need to compete with anyone." His voice was cold and certain. "In my eyes, no she-wolf compares to her. She is the best." Melody's tears broke into a radiant smile. She turned her hand over and held his tightly, happiness and triumph glowing on her face. I watched their joined hands. My heart turned to dust — a pain so sharp I could barely keep my face intact. But I raised my head. My smile was bright and careless. "Then congratulations. I wish you every happiness." Kieran's face darkened in an instant. Chapter 6 I didn't look at him. I pushed back from the table and walked out of the estate on legs I had to force steady. My heart felt like it was about to explode. Margaret called after me from behind. I didn't answer — just quickened my pace toward the deep woods along the territory's edge. "No she-wolf compares to her." Kieran's words played back like a blade, over and over. I stopped walking, tilted my head back, and looked at the moon. Then I shifted into my white wolf. I ran. I ran as hard as I could, trying to fling that sentence out of my head, trying to outrun the pain in my chest. "Running away, Seraphina? You were so talkative at the dinner table." Melody's voice came from behind me. I stopped and turned. She had shifted too — smaller than me, her coat dull and mottled with brownish-grey patches. Not pure Alpha bloodline, and it showed. I laughed coldly. "You chased me out here to brag about whatever sweet nothing Kieran said to you?" "Jealous, Seraphina? Makes sense — Kieran only has eyes for me now." Melody suddenly lunged. I stepped back on instinct. In the same moment, urgent footsteps sounded from the distance — Kieran was coming. I caught the flash of calculation in Melody's eyes. She spun abruptly, bolted toward the cliff nearby, and threw herself over the edge with a scream. "Melody!" Kieran leaped after her almost before she'd finished falling. I stood frozen. I knew that cliff. It was barely three meters high. Below was soft earth and shrubs — nothing that could seriously hurt a werewolf. But Kieran clearly didn't know that. He jumped without hesitation. Not even a half-second of doubt. When he went over the edge, his eyes held only Melody. I looked down from the clifftop. Kieran was holding her — careful, impossibly gentle, like something precious in his hands. He climbed back up carrying her, Melody curled against his chest, trembling. Melody looked up at me with tear-filled eyes, her voice soft and fragile. "Seraphina... why did you push me?" I laughed. This performance was so pathetic it made me sick. Footsteps came from behind. Marcus had arrived with several Ashford elders. Vivian shrieked. "My daughter! You vicious creature! You pushed her off that cliff!" "You actually believe her?" I ignored everyone else and looked only at Kieran. I looked at the suspicion and revulsion in his eyes, and suddenly felt cold — a chill that went all the way to the bone. Marcus stared at me, his eyes full of disappointment. "Seraphina. How could you do this? She's your sister." Kieran said nothing. But his expression said everything I needed to know. Everyone gathered around Melody, fussing, asking after her. No one asked me a single thing. "You said I pushed you?" I walked toward Melody, and let myself smile. In full view of everyone, I raised my front paw and brought it down hard on the back of Melody's leg, enough to come close to the bone. "Remember this. This is what it looks like when I actually attack you. If I'd really wanted to hurt you, I wouldn't have just pushed you off a three-meter drop." My laugh was cold. Melody screamed. Kieran shoved me back. The full force of his Alpha dominance hit me like a wall, nearly driving me to my knees. But I stayed upright. Head high. I looked him in the eye without flinching. Kieran turned to the Ashford elders, his voice cold enough to frost the air. "Your pack has no discipline. In Frost Pack, a she-wolf who attacks another pack member like this would be put in the silver dungeon." Then he picked up Melody and walked away without a backward glance. I stood there, barely believing what I'd heard. The silver dungeon was one of the harshest punishments a pack could impose — reserved for the most violent rogues. When I was three years old, I'd wandered in by accident and seen a rogue being tortured inside, barely recognizable through the blood. It gave me nightmares for three days. Once, after we'd been together in bed, I told Kieran that memory. He rubbed my back gently and promised me I would never see the inside of that dungeon again. And now — over Melody's injury that would heal in less than a day — he was having Marcus put me in there. Chapter 7 At Marcus's order, the guards rushed me immediately and clasped silver chains around my wrists to suppress my shift. Two guards dragged me into the silver dungeon. My knees hit the stone floor hard. Marcus stood in the doorway, his face iron. "Chain her. Silver whip. Ten lashes." A guard lifted a silver whip from the wall. In the dim light, it gleamed with a cold, killing edge. I fought with everything I had. "Marcus! What the hell is wrong with you?! I'm your daughter!" Two guards pinned my shoulders. I was forced face-down onto the floor, my back exposed. When the first lash came, I clenched my jaw tight. The silver burned through skin and went straight to bone. My consciousness began to blur. My mind, without my permission, drifted to a rainy night in a cemetery. It was the anniversary of my mother's death. I'd been sitting in the rain at her grave, not wanting to go home. Kieran had found me. He draped his jacket over my shoulders. "Don't sit in the rain. You'll get sick." Then another night — a pack council meeting where he stepped between me and a group of elders who were questioning my presence. "Seraphina is an Alpha's daughter. She has the right to sit in on any council decision." His voice was cold and certain, and every challenge fell silent. I had believed, back then, that his care was something real. That I was different to him. Looking back now, I had simply been fooling myself. I started to laugh, quietly. Vivian blinked. "What are you laughing at?" I raised my head. Blood at the corner of my mouth. "I'm laughing at the two of you. A mother and daughter who have spent their whole lives picking up someone else's scraps." Vivian's face twisted. "What did you just say?!" She crossed the room and drove her foot into my ribs. A sharp crack. Something broke. Blood flooded my throat. I opened my mouth and coughed it out — a mouthful, then darkness. When I came to, I was in my own room. My body was agony, every part of me in shreds. Margaret was sitting at the bedside, her eyes red and swollen. "You're awake. I put moonlight herb on you — I had someone smuggle it from the pack healer. But silver wounds are so hard to close..." Margaret had once nearly died on the border. My mother had brought her home. After my mother died, Margaret stayed voluntarily and served in the pack house to look after me. "Please." Margaret was crying. "Go apologize to the Alpha. If you just show a little humility, he'll soften. He's your father, in the end." I laughed, and the movement tore at my wounds. Another wave of pain. "Show him humility, and I'll end up worse than my mother." Margaret wept harder. I forced my arm out against the pain, reached under the pillow, and pulled out a bank card. I pressed it into her hands. "I'm leaving. I won't be coming back. This is enough for the rest of your life — get out of Ashford Pack." Margaret's hands were trembling around the card, tears streaming. I suddenly thought of the venison soup she used to make when I was small. My voice came out softer than I meant it to. "Margaret. I want some of your venison soup." She stopped. Then she wiped her eyes and stood up. "I'll go make it right now." For the next few days, I lay in my room recovering. Marcus never came. Neither did Vivian. Neither did Melody. It was as if I had already ceased to exist. I pushed through the pain and began to pack. Clothes. Documents. I opened the drawer at the very back of my wardrobe. Inside were everything Kieran had ever given me. The moonstone necklace. A custom-made silver wolf sculpture. And one of the Frost Pack family crests. He'd been drinking the night he pinned the crest to my collar. Said it would keep other male wolves from getting too close. My heart had raced. I thought it was a courtship signal. Now I could see it for what it was — a careless joke. Together, those things were worth nearly fifty million dollars. Part of me wanted to throw it all away. But then I thought: what a waste. Better to let those things do some good. I called the pack alliance's charity auction house and told them I had items to donate. That evening, I hired a car and hauled several large boxes to the alliance's charity hall. The staff member checking the items looked up with wide eyes when he saw what was inside. "Miss Ashford, these things..." "Auction everything." I cut him off. "Every cent goes to the orphanages in neutral territory." He nodded and packed the items away with careful hands. I turned to leave. Made it to the door. And stopped. There they were. Kieran and Melody, walking in hand in hand. Kieran's gaze caught the boxes of items near me. Something shifted in his eyes — a flicker of displeasure, quickly suppressed. His eyes swept over me, paused for a moment on my pale face, then moved away with indifference. Like I was a stranger. Melody spotted me too. She tightened her grip on Kieran's arm. At an angle he couldn't see, she gave me a slow, triumphant smile — then rose on her toes and murmured something in his ear. Kieran tilted his head down. He smiled, indulgent. He pulled her into his arms and kissed her. That kind of kiss. Tender. Reverent. A kiss that made a promise. Nothing like the possession he'd shown me in bed. My heart seized. I couldn't breathe. Just then, a drunk rogue wolf swayed toward me. "Hey, beautiful—" He reached for my waist. The smell of liquor hit me like a wall. I stepped aside. He crowded in again. "Don't run—" His mouth was moving toward my face. I was about to slap him when Kieran appeared in front of me in an instant. Chapter 8 He kicked the rogue wolf aside in a single motion. Everyone around them froze. So did I. But Kieran barely glanced in my direction. He turned his Alpha dominance on the auction hall manager instead. "I thought this event was restricted to Alphas. How is a rogue wolf getting in?" The manager nearly dropped to his knees apologizing. But Kieran had already turned back to Melody, his voice gentle. "I know seeing rogues unsettles you. It's handled. Don't let it ruin your evening — find something you like and I'll get it for you." Melody looked up at him, her eyes bright. "Anything I want?" "Anything." His voice was quiet and indulgent. Melody smiled like a child who'd been given the world. She rose on her toes and kissed his cheek. "You're so good to me." I stood there watching, and suddenly felt like laughing. This man who was protecting his true love — and still, a second ago, had moved to protect me. What exactly did he think he was doing? I turned and pushed through the doors to the terrace. I leaned against the railing. My phone buzzed — an Instagram notification. I opened it. Melody had posted. Nine photos. Kieran had spent fifty million dollars on a massive diamond ring for her. The second photo: Kieran holding her hand, sliding the ring on. The third: the two of them in profile. Kieran looking down at her — with a tenderness I had never seen from him. Had never received from him. The last photo: the two of them together. Melody nestled in his arms, glowing like the happiest she-wolf alive. Her caption: "#Proposal. My Alpha, my everything." The likes were already in the tens of thousands. The comments section was flooded with congratulations. "Oh my god, she's so lucky!" "I can't believe she got the Frost Pack Alpha!" My grip on the phone tightened until my nails nearly cracked the screen. In two years with Kieran, even at his most intimate, he had never given me a ring. Had never offered anything that looked like a promise. I breathed in slowly. Then I went back inside. Kieran was gone. Only Melody remained. The auctioneer was presenting the next lot. "An ancient alchemical formula manuscript — said to be the life's work of a renowned alchemist from twenty years ago—" I was on my feet before I realized it. That was my mother's handwriting. Years of her research and her heart, bound into those pages. It should have been locked permanently in her laboratory. How was it here? I looked at Melody. She was sipping champagne, utterly at ease. She raised her glass in my direction, her smile curling with a challenge. "Opening bid: one million dollars." The price climbed. I kept my paddle raised, teeth clenched, driving the price to five times its market value. The auctioneer raised his hammer. "Fifteen million — going twice—" "My apologies, everyone." Melody rose gracefully, her smile sweet as honey. "This manuscript is a personal keepsake of mine — I'm afraid it's not actually for sale. A staff member made a mistake including it." She walked up to the stage, took the manuscript back from the auctioneer, and as she turned away, winked at me. I followed her backstage and cut her off. "Melody." I kept my voice level. "Give me back the manuscript." "Why?" She tilted her head. Perfectly innocent. "It's mine." "It was my mother's." "Oh." She nodded, almost thoughtfully. "But your mother is dead. It's in my hands now. Doesn't that make it mine?" I curled my fingers into my palms, nails cutting into skin. "What do you want for it?" "I'll trade it for anything — the estate inheritance, a bank account, even your title as the Alpha's daughter. Name it." Melody smiled, that exquisitely sweet smile. "Look at you being so humble. That's not like you at all." She paused, then pointed toward the industrial furnace burning nearby. "But I'll give you a chance." "I hear you're very proud of your Alpha bloodline. The furnace runs hot. But an Alpha should be able to take a few seconds, right?" "If you can go in there and pull the manuscript out before it's ash, it's yours." I lunged to stop her, but she had already thrown the manuscript into the flames. I didn't think. I shifted into my white wolf and threw myself into the fire. The heat hit me like a wall. It scorched through my fur. The stench of burning filled my lungs. I bit down and held on, and pulled the manuscript from the fire just before it turned to nothing. I stumbled back out and shifted to human form, sinking to my knees. My beautiful dress was in tatters. My hair was singed and curling. My hands were raw and bloody. But I held the manuscript against my chest. Like I was holding my mother. Melody had already drifted back into the main hall. At that moment, Kieran's car pulled into the car park. He stepped out — and the first thing he saw was me, on my knees on the ground, looking like wreckage. Chapter 9 Kieran paused. In two years, every time I had appeared before him I'd been vivid and striking and completely put-together. He had never seen me like this. He frowned and stepped toward me quickly, reaching out as if to help me up. "What happened? How are you this injured?" "Don't touch me." I stepped back and nearly fell. Kieran's expression hardened. His Alpha dominance radiated off him. "Seraphina. What are you doing? Over a few burned pages?" He looked at the charred manuscript in my arms, uncomprehending. "You didn't even flinch when you donated things worth a fortune. But now you're risking your life for scorched paper?" I laughed. It came out loud, and then the tears followed — one after another, dropping onto the blackened parchment. I raised my head and looked straight into his eyes. "Brother-in-law." I said it slowly, watching the color drain from his face. "You don't understand. You'll never understand. Stay out of my business from now on." Kieran went rigid. His eyes narrowed and turned a dangerous shade of red. "Seraphina—" His voice dropped to something close to a threat. A scream cut him off. It came from the hall entrance — Melody's voice. We both turned. Flames were erupting from the entrance to the charity hall. "Help!" Melody stumbled out of the fire, her dress scorched through in several places. She ran, sobbing, and threw herself at Kieran. Kieran caught her instantly, pulling off his suit jacket to drape around her. "You're safe. I'm here." His voice went warm and soft in a way that had been completely absent when he spoke to me. Melody cried beautifully. "I only went back in to get the necklace — the first thing you ever gave me. I couldn't stand the thought of it burning... I had no idea there'd be a fire..." She looked up at him, all helpless devotion. The hall staff came running, faces white with panic. "Alpha! The fire started near the furnace area — there's no way that furnace should have spread like this — and the suppression system malfunctioned—" Kieran's expression changed. He turned slowly, and his gaze landed on me. His Alpha dominance crashed down over me like a wave. "Did you start this fire?" I stared at him. "What?" "Were you jealous of Melody?" He walked toward me, each step deliberate. "Jealous enough to try to kill her?" I opened my mouth. Nothing came out. "Pull the security footage. Now." Kieran's voice was ice. Staff scrambled back. Minutes later, a tablet was placed in Kieran's hands. On the screen, my silver wolf form was clearly visible near the furnace, and then the fire spreading out of control. Every gaze in the crowd swung toward me. Condemnation, all of it. Melody was still tucked against Kieran, her shoulders shaking — but I caught her eyes, darting up to check my reaction. The triumph in them was unmistakable. "I didn't—" My voice came out barely above a whisper. "The evidence is right there." He cut me off. "What are you trying to argue?" His voice was without feeling. "Enforcement team. Take Seraphina to the silver holding cell to await Alpha Council judgment." The enforcers came for me immediately. Cold silver cuffs locked around my wrists, burning through to the bone. Kieran watched without moving. As they turned me away, I saw Melody lean back into his arms. Smiling at me. Chapter 10 The Alpha Council sentenced me to ten days in the silver holding cell. I sat in the corner, every wound suppressed by the silver, unable to close. My wolf was completely neutralized — I couldn't even attempt a shift. On the third day, the guard rotation changed. The new guard arrived with a smile. "Miss Seraphina. Someone sent you a gift." He pressed play on a recording. "Melody..." Kieran's quickened breath made my whole body go still. "Do you love me?" A woman's voice, soft and coy. "I love you." His voice was different — a tenderness I had never once heard from him. "There's only you. Forever." "What about my sister?" Melody pressed, playful. "Don't think I don't know you spent two years with her. She's so beautiful. You couldn't have fallen for her, could you?" "Just someone to warm my bed." Then the sound of fabric, and shallow, muffled breathing. "You're the only one I've ever loved. Forever." Just someone to warm my bed. My heart was punctured a thousand times over. I covered my ears. But the sound bled through anyway. Those tender whispers. Those intimate words. All the things he had never once said to me. The recording played on loop. Twenty-four hours without stopping. I curled in the corner and listened to that man speak the most gentle words in his gentlest voice, saying the cruelest things. On the seventh day, I started bleeding from my nose. Silver poisoning symptoms. The guard saw it and smiled. "Three more days. Hang in there, Miss Seraphina." I closed my eyes and thought of the message on my phone. The exit permit had been approved. The potion that severed the pack bond had fully taken effect. I was a free rogue now. That thought kept me alive. On the tenth day, the cell door opened. "You're free to go." The enforcer's voice was flat. I stood. My legs barely held me. But I held myself up and walked out of that cell, one step at a time. Sunlight hit my skin. It had no warmth. Emily was waiting outside, and she wrapped her arms around me the moment she saw me. She had been in Europe for years. The moment she heard about the silver cell, she had come straight back. She looked at me, and her eyes went red. I had once been vivid and brilliant — the most beautiful, most sought-after she-wolf in the entire southern territory. Now I was covered in wounds and my clothes were rags. "I'm sorry. This is all my fault." Her voice cracked. "At the full moon gathering, I made that bet because I knew Kieran had just been left by his ex, and I wanted him to forget her completely." Emily was crying now. "I never thought... that she'd turn out to be Melody." I patted her on the back. "It's not your fault. I'm leaving. I'm leaving this territory for good." Emily looked like she wanted to say something. But she didn't. She just nodded, and drove me home to pick up my things. My bag was light. I didn't want to take anything. A few changes of clothes, my passport, and the plane ticket to the northern territory. I carried the bag downstairs and stopped at the front door. I reached into my bag and pulled out a small box. Inside was a timed explosive. Emily drew a sharp breath. "Sera?" I set the timer. Ten minutes — more than enough time to get clear. I hit the trigger and placed the device on the entry table. "Let's go." Five minutes down the road, I heard the explosion behind us. The estate came down in a burst of fire and smoke, the dust and rubble swallowing everything from the past. Emily gripped the steering wheel, her knuckles white. "Sera... I'm sorry. I really am so sorry." I leaned against the window, watching the scenery blur past, and forced my mouth into a smile. "Don't be. I'm this beautiful — every Alpha I meet from now on is only going to be stronger and love me more." Emily cried harder. The car reached the airport. I lifted my hand in a small wave, turned, and walked toward the security line without looking back. Emily watched me disappear into the crowd. Then she sank to the ground and sobbed. For a long time. Finally, she couldn't hold it in any longer. She drove straight to the Frost Pack council hall. Emily's eyes were swollen and raw. She looked at Kieran, and the tears fell again. "You finally drove her out." Her voice was shaking. "Are you satisfied now?" The council hall went quiet. Kieran was silent for several seconds. Then he spoke. His voice came out as if something had rusted in his throat. "Who did you say left?"