Alpha Mate Chose Half-sister, I Changed Groom

A week before our marking ceremony, I told Ethan Stormwind I wanted to break up at his friend's party. Everyone laughed. They all knew that for the past six years, my life's goal had been to become his marked Luna. With only a week left until the ceremony, how could I possibly want to break up? Even Ethan thought I was being unreasonable. "Just because I need to take Selene to the healer for her follow-up on our ceremony day, you're throwing a tantrum about breaking up?" "We're both adults. Can you act more mature? You could just reschedule the ceremony. Why do you insist on that specific day? I don't have time for your jealous games." I nodded silently. Yes, something needed to be changed. But it wasn't the ceremony date. It was him. I was going to accept someone else's mark instead. Chapter 1 A week before our marking ceremony, my Alpha mate-to-be told me to reschedule the ceremony because he was going to take my half-sister to the healer for her follow-up on our ceremony day. After I mentioned breaking up, the air in the private room froze for a few seconds before erupting into deafening laughter. "No way, is she that desperate? Pressuring Ethan into the marking ceremony?" Selene's eyes flashed with triumph, though she sighed with apparent concern. "Ethan, don't blame her. After all, she's turning twenty-five soon, too old to be a Luna. She must be anxious." "It's just that I need to go to the healer on Saturday for my leg examination. The appointment was so hard to get. If she's really that desperate, then... then let's prioritize her. I can reschedule my checkup." As she spoke, her eyes reddened. A man in a loud patterned shirt immediately chimed in with a laugh. "Exactly, Ethan. Everyone knows she's crazy about you, that she won't accept anyone else's mark, that she's been waiting all these years. Of course she has to seize the chance to pressure you. She's scared you'll slip away." Ethan's brows furrowed. Finally, he looked up at me. The dim lights in the room fell across his sharply defined features. This face that once made my heart race now showed clear disapproval and reproach. "You know Selene needs this follow-up. Do you know why her leg is like this? You just have to pick this exact day to compete with her for attention?" My heart felt like it was being squeezed by an invisible hand, a sour ache spreading silently through my chest. I knew. Last week, he'd nearly been attacked by the rogue wolves at the pack border. Selene pushed him out of the way and fractured her leg in the process. I clenched my fingers, my voice barely audible. "Do you even remember what Saturday really is?" Ethan clearly froze. He was silent for a moment. When he spoke again, his tone had softened, though it still carried that unmistakable insistence. "I know it's your birthday. I also know you want to fulfill your mother's dying wish, to give her peace." He sighed, as if patiently tolerating my childishness. "But Aria, people need to be flexible. Why does it have to be your birthday? A day earlier or later wouldn't make any real difference." I opened my mouth, but all the words lodged in my throat. What could I say? Should I tell him I'd communicated with the Alpha Council six months in advance for the ceremony that day. Or should I remind him that seven years ago, beside my mother's deathbed, he'd held my hand tightly with red-rimmed eyes and made a promise? "Don't worry, ma'am. I swear I'll mark Aria as my mate before her twenty-fifth birthday!" Those vows he'd probably long forgotten, I'd clung to like a lifeline, never daring to let go. In the end, all my struggles and explanations crashed against my heart like silent waves before retreating helplessly. I simply answered softly. "Okay." Hearing my response, Ethan's furrowed brow finally smoothed, relief flickering across his face. "I knew it. My Aria is always so understanding." His voice grew gentle. "Be good, don't make a fuss. Once Selene gets through her checkup safely, I'll take you for the marking ceremony right after. How does that sound?" Chapter 2 I made up some excuse and left that suffocating room. The laughter and conversations behind me were cut off the moment the door closed, leaving only the cold, hollow echo of the hallway. Outside the club, the midnight wind hit my face with a chill. I stood silently by the roadside waiting for my car, my thoughts drifting back to ten years ago. When I was fifteen, my mother accidentally discovered that my father had another family on the side, complete with an illegitimate daughter my age. The news destroyed my mother instantly. Her wolf couldn't bear the betrayal of its mate and disappeared. She collapsed and fell ill. Before I could even process the sudden implosion of my family, a woman named Rebecca brought Selene into our home, brazenly tearing apart every bit of stability I'd once had. I met Ethan Stormwind during that darkest, most desperate period of my life. He was the notorious troublemaker at school, rebellious and fearless. Yet this same person was willing to awkwardly hand me tissues when I hid in corners crying. He'd step forward without hesitation when rumors attacked me, driving everyone away with the fiercest attitude. He'd tell me in that unique tone of his, impatient yet firm. "Aria Greenwood, why are you crying? Are you that weak? Lift your head up!" What surprised me was that he actually stayed with me, helping me climb out of life's swamp step by step. What gave me even more security was that when faced with Selene, who'd already learned to play innocent and pitiful, winning over almost everyone in our class, Ethan couldn't even be bothered to glance at her. Selene would deliberately drop her books when he passed by, or gaze at him with those doe eyes as if she wanted to say something, only to be met with Ethan's undisguised disgust and a blunt "get lost." That was one of the few things I could win against Selene during those gray years. His favoritism was my only armor. We naturally became a couple. Not long after, Selene seemed to disappear from our world entirely. When my mother's condition worsened and she was on her deathbed, she held both mine and Ethan's hands, her eyes full of worry and reluctance. "I'm entrusting Aria to you, Ethan. I hope you can complete the marking ceremony before she turns twenty-five, so she'll have someone to rely on." Ethan's eyes were red then. He gripped my hand tightly and made the most sincere promise to my mother. "Don't worry, ma'am. I swear I'll mark Aria as my mate with a proper ceremony before her twenty-fifth birthday." After my mother passed, I clung to that promise like it was my only lifeline. I thought life was finally taking pity on me, that things would gradually improve. Until six months ago. Selene reappeared. Ethan and I were inspecting one of his pack territory projects. As we passed the break room, Selene rushed out carrying a cup of tea and crashed right into Ethan, spilling it all over him. She was wearing an old, faded outfit, looking haggard, apologizing repeatedly. When she looked up and saw Ethan, her eyes immediately welled with tears. Her lips trembled as if she wanted to say something, but in the end, she only whispered softly. "Ethan, long time no see." Ethan froze for a moment, then furrowed his brows, his tone carrying his usual disgust. "Why is it you? Can't you watch where you're going?" When we got back, he even held me, complaining about his bad luck. I don't know when they started getting entangled again. By the time I noticed something was wrong, Selene had already become his secretary, using the excuse of "my family went bankrupt, life is hard, I just need a chance." I made scenes. I complained. I screamed hysterically, forcing Ethan to fire her. The way he looked at me gradually changed from explanation to reproach. "Aria, being an illegitimate daughter wasn't Selene's choice. Be reasonable. Don't keep taking out your parents' grudges on her. She's pitiful now. She just needs a job." Every argument carved a deep crack between him and me. I watched helplessly as he drifted further and further away, powerless to stop it. Meanwhile, he and Selene, working under the same roof, had countless hours and spaces I couldn't reach. The image of that young man making his earnest vow in the hospital room years ago surfaced before my eyes again, so vivid it felt like yesterday. Now, there were five days left until my twenty-fifth birthday. The cold wind blew past, bringing a sharp, sobering pain. My car arrived. I opened the door and got in. No one truly can't live without someone else. Ethan Stormwind, I don't want to wait for you anymore. Chapter 3 Late at night, Ethan rushed in carrying the cool night air with him. When he saw me sitting on the living room couch, he visibly relaxed. He changed his shoes and walked over, holding out a paper bag with an upbeat tone, looking like he wanted praise. "Here, weren't you begging for this shop's chestnut cake a few days ago? I drove all the way out to get it. Still warm." That shop was in the old district, at least forty kilometers round trip from our current apartment. As he spoke, like he'd done countless times before, he tried to pull me into his embrace. I stood up, using the motion of placing the chestnut cake on the coffee table to bend down and dodge his descending arm and intimacy. My throat tightened. I forced out a smile. "Let's save it for later. I don't have much appetite right now." Ethan's arm paused in mid-air, then withdrew as if nothing had happened. He looked me over, his expression unchanged, treating it like I was just throwing a tantrum. Without much concern, he turned toward the bathroom. "Fine, eat it when you're hungry. I'm going to take a shower." The water started running. Just then, his phone screen lit up on the couch where he'd casually tossed it. Like I was possessed, I picked up his phone. No password. I'd always known that, but I'd never thought to check before. The screen lit up, jumping straight to a message thread with Selene. A photo filled the view. An extremely exquisite and elaborate cream cake. The logo on the cake box was from the same shop as the chestnut cake he'd just brought me. Below it was a line of text. "The cake is so delicious! Thank you for the recommendation, Ethan~ Being able to eat such amazing dessert before my checkup makes my leg hurt less [cute emoji]" So that was it. My supposedly special treat that required a forty-kilometer round trip was just table scraps he'd tossed my way while carefully selecting a cake for someone else. My heart felt like it had been dunked in a glass of iced lemon water, sour and bitter, clenching painfully. Ethan emerged from the shower, his hair still dripping, wearing only a towel around his waist. He approached with humid warmth, trying to embrace me again. I pushed him away like I'd been electrocuted, scrambling for the clumsiest excuse. "Don't... I'm on my period. Not feeling well." The warmth on Ethan's face quickly drained away, replaced by extreme impatience and coldness. He roughly grabbed his wet hair, his eyes rolling with suppressed rage and irritation. "Aria Greenwood." He called me by my full name, his voice cold and hard. "Do you have to be this relentless and aggressive?" He raised his voice, as if accusing me of being unreasonable. "I don't understand. Why do you insist on scheduling our ceremony right when Selene has her checkup? What difference does a day earlier or later make? Did I say I wouldn't complete the marking ceremony with you? Are you really so desperate that you have to throw tantrums over this?" Each word was like a dull blade, stabbing viciously into my heart. He remembered everything. He remembered the promise he'd made at my mother's bedside, remembered that agreement about my twenty-fifth birthday. But he didn't care. Just like he didn't care that Selene was my half-sister, didn't care that that woman and her mother's appearance had indirectly driven my mother to her death. He only thought I was being unreasonable, that I was misdirecting my anger. My heart ached to numbness. I lost all strength to argue, just stood there silently with lowered eyes. My silence seemed to enrage him further. He stared at me, his chest heaving violently several times, before finally letting out a cold laugh. "Fine, you're really something now!" He spun around, grabbed his jacket and car keys from the couch, and slammed the door as he left. "BANG—" The massive sound echoed through the apartment, making my eardrums ring. I silently watched that door still trembling slightly, watching his resolute departing figure, and suddenly thought of that passionate, spirited young man from before. When we were at our poorest, we shared a tiny basement apartment together. He spent his days seeking investors to help build his pack territory, and his nights working odd jobs as a guard for other packs. On my birthday, he worked three all-nighters to earn four hundred dollars, just to buy me a cake. Back then, Ethan really, truly loved me. Every glance, every word was filled with love for me. I'd seen what it looked like when he loved me. So his hesitation and wavering now, I could spot it immediately. Not long after he left, my phone buzzed. A text from an unknown number appeared on the screen, but I recognized that tone instantly. The photo showed a dimly lit corner of a bar. Ethan was drinking with his head tilted back, his profile sharp and cold. In one corner of the photo, you could vaguely see a slender hand with nude-colored nail polish resting on his jacket. "Aria, Ethan seems really unhappy. Looks like you made him angry again. Don't worry, I'll comfort him properly. Want to guess if he'll come back to you this time?" "Everything you have—Dad, the family home, and Ethan—will all eventually be mine. You'll never beat me." My fingers trembled, barely able to hold the phone. It took enormous effort to type out a reply, word by word. "Is that so? Too bad the trash I don't want is only treasured by someone like you, so thrilled to pick up my garbage." Chapter 4 I took a deep breath outside the pack office building before pushing the door open. This pack had once been all of mine and Ethan's blood, sweat, and dreams. Back then, though he was the young heir of the Stormwind pack, he stubbornly insisted on carving out his own territory. The Stormwind family rules were strict. Without proving yourself, you received no support whatsoever. Those early days were unimaginably difficult. The funds dried up, we couldn't pay salaries, enemies surrounded us on all sides. To help him through that crisis, I picked up my paintbrush and painted day and night. One painting after another, selling them to galleries, to anyone willing to pay, using that meager income to barely keep the pack afloat. The massive painting at the pack office entrance, "Daybreak," was the first painting I ever sold. My technique was still immature back then, but it was full of reckless determination. After the pack's situation improved, the first thing Ethan did was track down that buyer by any means necessary, buying it back at ten times the price. I remember how carefully he hung it there himself, then gently and proudly ruffled my hair amid all the pack members' teasing, his eyes shining brilliantly. "Aria, look, it's come home. Later, when we're even more successful, I'll buy back every single painting you sold for me and fill our home with them!" His words back then were a burning promise. And I believed him. But he only recovered this one. After that, he encountered Selene again. This promise, like so many other things, was silently shelved and forgotten, never mentioned again. The moment I stepped into the pack office, my heart sank. The most prominent wall by the entrance was empty. Where "Daybreak" had hung, there was now a saccharine, technically precise commercial floral oil painting. My heart jumped. I rushed to the front desk, my voice tight. "What happened to the painting at the entrance? Why was it changed?" The receptionist looked up and saw me. Her eyes flickered, her smile awkward. "Alpha Stormwind ordered it changed. Miss Selene said the original painting's tones were too heavy and depressing, so Alpha Stormwind had someone replace it with something brighter." Selene didn't like it, so he replaced it. This painting was the pack's origin story, the witness to our love, and his promise to me from years ago. But now, just because of Selene's casual complaint, he'd removed it from this position symbolizing our beginning and glory, disappeared to who knows where. My heart felt like it had been struck by a blunt object, a dull, spreading ache bringing a suffocating daze. As I stood before that empty wall, trying to digest this bone-chilling coldness, the security guard walked in carrying a large rectangular box. "Miss Greenwood, you're here. You have a delivery that just arrived. I need you to sign for it." I froze. "My delivery?" I hadn't sent anything personal to the pack office in a long time. The guard checked the name on the receipt. "Yes, the recipient is definitely you." Confused, I signed and took the heavy box. I went to the nearby break area and opened the package. Beneath layers of protective paper, a pristine white emerged. When I fully unfolded it, my breathing nearly stopped. It was a wedding gown. Classical lace long sleeves, delicate pearl embroidery, an elegant A-line skirt. Every detail was so familiar it made my heart tremble. This was the style of the wedding dress from my mother's old photo album, the one she'd worn! My phone buzzed at that exact moment. A text from an unknown number appeared. "The wedding gown recreated from your mother's photo—do you like it?" Chapter 5 Seeing that text, I froze for a few seconds before suddenly remembering who owned this number. My freshly minted, not-yet-public flash mate-to-be, Caspian Shore. He was one of the most powerful Alphas in the Northern Territories, and Ethan's most hated rival. Last month, after Ethan once again abandoned me without hesitation for one of Selene's phone calls, Caspian found me on the roadside. He didn't offer comfort. He just draped his jacket over my shoulders and asked bluntly. "Aria Greenwood, watching him treat you like this, do you still plan to continue? Want to consider switching to someone else?" At that moment, alcohol and fury were burning through my rationality. The deadline for my mother's dying wish was approaching, yet Ethan kept breaking his promises again and again. I spoke without thinking. "Switch to someone else? What's the point of just dating! Caspian Shore, why don't you just marry me?" The moment the words left my mouth, the cold wind sobered me up considerably. God, what was I saying? I'd just proposed to Ethan's mortal enemy? He'd definitely think I was insane, mock my delusions with the most cutting words. However, Caspian simply raised an eyebrow slightly. He agreed without any hesitation. "Alright. It's a deal." Now, looking at that line about the wedding gown on my screen, I couldn't control the slight upward curve of my lips. Did I like it? I more than liked it. The design for this gown was drawn by my mother's own hand, stroke by stroke, when she was pregnant with me. She'd said it was a gift for her future daughter, hoping she'd wear this gown and walk toward the happiest moment of her life. Before she fell ill, my mother was one of the country's top wedding dress designers. The words she said to me most often were: "Aria, the moment a girl puts on her wedding dress is the most beautiful flash of her entire life. I'll make sure you become the happiest bride." I'd mentioned it to Ethan more than once, begging him to help me find the best craftspeople to turn my mother's design into reality. I wasn't greedy. I didn't even dare hope I could actually wear it at a wedding ceremony. I just wanted to wear it to my mother's grave someday, twirl around for her to see. Then tell her that her daughter wore the gown she designed, that I was happy, so she could rest in peace. Ethan always readily agreed. "Sure, sure, baby, I'll find someone after I finish this project." "Don't worry, I remember. Next time I'm in Italy, I'll ask the master craftsmen." But one "next time" followed another. The promise always stayed verbal. Perhaps in his heart, anything related to me, important or not, always sat at the very bottom of his priority list. The Plan B that could be delayed or canceled at any time for other people. Yet this dream I'd anticipated for so long, this wish I couldn't fulfill, had suddenly materialized in an almost dreamlike way through the alliance marriage partner I'd chosen in a fit of spite. A complex mixture of bittersweet emotion and warmth welled up inside me. I took a deep breath and reached out, wanting to touch that delicate lace and pearls, to feel this intention from my mother. Just as my fingertips were about to make contact. Another well-manicured hand with nude-colored nail polish reached in from the side, getting there first, lightly pinching a corner of the gown's sleeve between her fingers. The owner of that hand spoke with feigned surprise. "Oh, what a beautiful wedding gown! Aria, is this for your ceremony with Ethan?" Chapter 6 Selene showed no care at all, her sharp nails catching on the lace, her rough movements even tearing off several small diamonds sewn to the cuff. "What are you doing! Stop!" My heart clenched instantly, fury rushing to my head. Without thinking, I stepped forward and shoved her away hard. "This isn't something you can touch! My mother designed this! You're not worthy!" Selene stumbled from my push, staggering back two steps, her eyes immediately reddening. She sniffled, her voice trembling as she looked toward Ethan behind me. "Ethan, I've just never seen such a beautiful wedding gown before. I couldn't help myself. Is Aria misunderstanding something?" She turned her gaze timidly toward me, then quickly lowered it, as if terrified. "Aria, did Ethan prepare this gown for you? Are you two getting married? If so, just tell me. I'll definitely prepare a wedding gift early and sincerely bless you both." Ethan looked somewhat guilty, unusually speaking to her coldly. "Aria is my future Luna. If I don't marry her, who would I marry?" Selene choked, jealous hatred flashing in her eyes. She bit her lip, her voice low. "But having the wedding gown delivered to the pack office like this seems a bit inappropriate, doesn't it? It looks like she's forcing you to marry her." A look of "I knew it" flashed across Ethan's face as he looked at me knowingly. "Aria, I know you love me, but this week really won't work. How about this—I promise you, we'll do the marking ceremony on Monday. Okay?" Selene leaned against Ethan's side. When she heard "marking ceremony," jealous hatred flashed through her eyes. I watched the two of them in their seamless performance. My heart felt like it was being repeatedly torn, aching unbearably. But at the same time, an extremely absurd sense of ridiculousness welled up. I couldn't be bothered to argue with them anymore. I just silently bent down, wanting to carefully pack up the wedding gown and leave this nauseating place. Just as I lowered my head to arrange the skirt, Selene suddenly leaned close to me, speaking in a voice only we could hear, smiling triumphantly. "You think these pathetic relics from your dead mother are enough to compete with me for Ethan? Your mother couldn't keep a man back then, and the daughter she gave birth to is just as useless and worthless! She deserved to die early—" "SMACK—!" I used every ounce of strength in my body. Selene screamed, her head snapping to the side from the slap. But her hands violently shoved me back! Caught off guard, I stumbled backward hard, my lower back crashing brutally into the cold edge of a desk. Sharp pain shot through me instantly, making my vision go black. And Ethan didn't even glance at me. "Selene!" Ethan gasped, immediately pulling her into his arms. Seeing the red mark on her cheek, he was both shocked and angry, looking at me with complete disappointment. "She's your sister. How could you hit her?" Selene sobbed pitifully, looking utterly wronged. "I was just trying to help Aria arrange the wedding gown. If she didn't want me to touch it, she could have just said so. Why treat me like this?" "You're being completely unreasonable." Ethan gave me one cold look. He lowered his head and patiently comforted Selene. "Selene, don't be scared. I'll take you to the healer." His voice carried unprecedented nervousness and tenderness, completely different from the cold harshness when he'd just reprimanded me. He held her, turned, and left without looking back. Leaving only me, clutching my agonizing waist, standing there alone. Looking at the wedding gown that had been pulled into disarray, and the empty doorway. I laughed soundlessly, though tears rolled down from the corners of my eyes. Chapter 7 I carefully packed up the wedding gown and sent it to the small villa under my own name. On the way back, my phone kept buzzing. The screen filled with one taunting text after another from unknown numbers, every word dripping with Selene's barely concealed smugness and malice. I scanned them expressionlessly, left them all unread, and blocked the number directly. The world instantly became peaceful. When I pushed open the front door, I was surprised to find the living room lights on. Ethan was actually home. He sat on the couch, seeming somewhat restless, and immediately looked up when he heard the door. I thought he'd instantly demand answers for me slapping Selene earlier, even prepared myself for another fierce argument. However, the look he gave me was unusually gentle, even carrying a hint of guilt. He stood and walked toward me, pulling out a bracelet from his pocket. "Aria, you're back." "I was wrong about earlier today. I got too emotional. On my way back, I saw this bracelet and thought it would suit you. Want to try it on?" He paused, his gaze falling on me, something complex—like reminiscence and longing—flashing in his eyes. "That wedding gown means something different to you, a keepsake from your mother. I shouldn't have said what I said about it. The design is truly beautiful and unique. You'll definitely look stunning in it." I stood there, watching coldly, not even accepting the bracelet. If I remembered correctly, the photo Selene had just sent me included a matching necklace. A bonus gift, yet he expected me to accept it with joy. Seeing my silence, he tried to do what he'd done countless times before—caress my cheek and pull me into his embrace. Just as his fingertips were about to touch my skin. His phone exploded with sound from his pocket. Ethan's movement froze. His impatient expression instantly changed after hearing the call's content. "What?! I'll be right there!" Ethan dragged me to an abandoned warehouse in the suburbs. Pale lights illuminated the chaotic scene outside the warehouse entrance. Several Alpha Council enforcers were still setting up barrier tape, and Selene sat on a broken crate, wrapped in an oversized jacket, crying inconsolably. The moment she saw Ethan, her tears flooded out even more dramatically as she threw herself into his arms. "Ethan, you're finally here. I was so scared, I was really so scared..." She sobbed breathlessly, yet her gaze kept drifting toward me. "I don't know why Aria would do this to me. Yes, I'm the daughter of a mistress, but I didn't get to choose my birth. If I could have chosen, I'd rather not have come into this world than carry this original sin." She cried until she could barely breathe. Ethan's heart ached terribly as he patted her back repeatedly, consoling her constantly. "It's okay now, it's okay, Selene, don't be afraid, I'm here." As if encouraged, Selene looked at me even more miserably. "Just because of this birth I couldn't choose, does Aria have to hate me this much, even hire rogue wolves to ruin me? Just because I accidentally touched your mother's wedding gown today? But I really didn't mean to. I didn't know the gown was so fragile. If I'd known, I absolutely wouldn't have touched it." At this emotional point, she choked up so much she could barely speak, looking so fragile she might faint at any moment. Ethan's expression grew darker and darker as she spoke. He looked at me, his face full of disappointment. "She's your sister. How could you do this to her?" I bit my lip hard. "I didn't do it." "If not you, then who!" Ethan didn't believe me at all. "Selene has always been kind to everyone. Besides her friction with you, who else would do something this vicious to her? Over a wedding gown, you can't tolerate her existence? Aria Greenwood, you've disappointed me so much!" My gaze swept over one of the rogue wolves being held by enforcers nearby, cursing and swearing. The rogue wolf's eyes flickered, glancing imperceptibly toward Selene. I understood immediately. This was all her staged performance. I gritted my teeth, trying to defend myself. "It wasn't me. You can check the security footage, I—" "Enough!" He wouldn't listen to any explanation, just convicted me on the spot! "After all this, you're still making excuses. You're hopeless!" Selene trembled in his arms, speaking at just the right moment. "Ethan, don't blame her. She just hates me too much. It's all my fault." Ethan suddenly grabbed my arm, ignoring my struggles, and shoved me into an adjacent empty, abandoned storage room covered in wolfsbane rust. "You stay here and clear your head! When you recognize your mistakes and truly reflect on them, I'll let you out!" Chapter 8 "Ethan, let me say a few more words to Aria, okay? Maybe I can talk some sense into her. I'm a bit worried about her being alone in there." Ethan's steps paused. He glanced at me coldly. As if waiting for me to soften and beg for mercy. But I just stood straight in the center of the dim warehouse, silently meeting his gaze. My silence and stubbornness completely enraged him. "Whatever! If you want to talk to her, go ahead. Look at her attitude—she doesn't know what's good for her!" With that, he irritably shook off his hand and strode away to deal with the aftermath outside. But then Ethan's guards returned. "Sorry, Miss Aria. Alpha said that in order to prevent you from hurting Miss Selene again, we need to tie you up with silver chains." The silver seared into my skin instantly, the burning pain making me cry out. I felt my wolf being suppressed, pushed down, rendered completely powerless. The silver burned deeper, leaving angry red marks across my wrists and arms. All my werewolf strength drained away. I was left as weak as a human, unable to fight, unable to escape. The others and enforcers gradually dispersed. Soon, only Selene and I remained at the warehouse entrance. Almost the instant other people's footsteps faded, the fragile expression on Selene's face vanished completely. She turned and walked toward me step by step, her face showing only triumph. "SLAP! SLAP!" She used all her strength to viciously slap me twice across the face. Burning pain instantly spread across my cheeks. "That's for the ones you gave me earlier today!" "Aria Greenwood, you have this day too?" She pressed closer, her lowered voice filled with twisted pleasure. "See? Ethan will always believe me! In his eyes, you're just a jealous, vicious madwoman! You and your dead mother are both worthless! You deserve to be abandoned by men! No one will ever love you. Everything you have is mine!" After pouring all her smugness and humiliation onto me, she finally snorted with satisfaction. Like a victorious peacock, she turned and swayed away. The heavy iron door was pulled shut from outside again, the sound of the lock clicking into place clearly audible. Not long after, the door suddenly showed a crack of light. Instinctively, I looked up, only to discover in horror that several rogue wolves had pried the door open and slipped inside. Seeing me, their eyes lit up immediately. "Well, well, she really is a fine catch!" My heart panicked terribly. I had no intention of exploring what they meant. "Stay back! I'm the fiancée of Caspian Shore, Alpha of Shore pack!" Those rogue wolves laughed heartily. "You? Then I'm the President of the Alpha Council!" They closed in on me bit by bit, completely ignoring my shouts and warnings. The silver chains held me fast. I couldn't shift, couldn't fight back. I tried to call for help, but there was no signal here. Just as I was about to despair. "CRASH!" A massive collision suddenly rang out! That impossibly heavy iron door was forcibly smashed open from outside with tremendous force! Blinding headlights suddenly flooded in, instantly dispersing the darkness inside the warehouse. The brightness made me instinctively close my eyes. A tall figure against the light rushed in anxiously, his voice carrying unprecedented panic and concern. "Aria! I'm sorry, I'm late!" Almost simultaneously, my phone, which had been silent all night in my pocket, finally caught a sliver of signal. A text notification from Ethan appeared on the screen. I looked down instinctively. "After being locked up all night, have you learned your lesson?" Looking at this condescending message, then raising my head to see the man whose face was full of anxiety for me in the backlight. I suddenly smiled. I sent Ethan one final message. "Let's break up. I hope you and she are perfect for each other. May you have a wonderful life together." Then I decisively blocked and deleted him with one click, completely erasing that name I'd once treasured from my world. After finishing all this, I lifted my head and looked calmly at the man at the door who had come for me. Slowly and firmly, I extended my hand and placed it in his warm, strong palm. "Let's go." From now on, Ethan and I would have nothing more to do with each other. Caspian held me tightly in his arms, looking coldly at the thugs who'd collapsed to the ground nearby, bloodlust flashing in his eyes. "Don't be afraid. I won't let a single person who hurt you get away with it!"