Chapter 4

When I woke up, every bone in my body felt like it had been crushed.

As soon as I opened my eyes, I saw my mother, the current Luna of White Pack, sitting by the bed.

I grabbed her wrist, choking back tears despite the pain.

"Mom, Kael cheated on me with Lila. They left me in the wilderness. The baby and I almost died."

I thought she would at least curse Kael for being a bastard.

But she just pulled her hand back impatiently and wiped the spot I touched with a handkerchief.

"Making a fuss over such a small thing. Which Alpha doesn't have a bunch of Omegas around him?

You can't satisfy him while pregnant, and you won't let him find someone else?"

My emotions surged. "But he cheated with Lila! My sister!"

"I know."

I looked up in disbelief, meeting her calm gaze.

"Lila is sensible and gentle. She helped you keep your Alpha's heart steady. Instead of thanking her, you blame her?"

She had absolutely no intention of speaking up for me, only annoyance at my lack of understanding.

"You knew?" I grabbed her arm, my voice breaking. "You knew and you watched them together?"

"What are you shouting about?" She shook off my hand. "Since childhood, haven't you always given in to her? Now it's just one Alpha. What are you competing with her for?"

I looked into her eyes. There was no guilt whatsoever, only dissatisfaction with me.

"You can't keep your Alpha's heart. Who's to blame?"

One casual sentence, pushing all the blame onto me.

In the afternoon when Kael and Lila came to see me, my mother deliberately stood up to give them her seat.

As soon as Lila entered, she rushed to my bedside crying. "Elara, I'm sorry. If I hadn't left you alone in the tent, you wouldn't have been attacked by rogues. It's all my fault."

She cried hard but deliberately dangled the wolf-pattern necklace Kael bought her in front of my eyes.

I turned my face away, not even bothering to look at her.

She cried even harder, then turned and threw herself into Kael's arms, tugging at his sleeve coquettishly.

"Kael, is Elara mad at me? I'm so stupid, I don't even know how to apologize. I can't make Elara feel better."

Kael reached out to pull her into his arms, patting her back gently to comfort her.

"It's not your fault. She's just petty. It has nothing to do with you."

After comforting Lila, he finally turned to look at me. His expression instantly darkened, his tone full of impatience.

"Elara, didn't you hear Lila apologize to you? Who are you making that face for?"

I looked at Lila in his arms, tears falling uncontrollably.

Kael probably felt he'd gone too far. He casually pulled out a small doll from his pocket and tossed it on my bed.

"Alright, I know you were scared. The doctor said you and the baby are fine.

This is a snow rabbit doll Lila specially brought for you and the baby. Don't be ungrateful."

That crude doll wasn't even as good as what street kids played with.

I stared at him and asked, "Kael, what capacity are you speaking for her in? As her brother-in-law? Or as her lover?"

Kael's expression instantly turned cold. He sneered.

"No wonder your mother doesn't like you. Lila is still gentle and understanding. Unlike you, covered in thorns. If I were your mother, I'd favor her too."

I broke down and grabbed the doll from the bed, hurling it at them. "Get out! Both of you get out!"

Perhaps out of guilt, when Kael came the next day, he finally placed in my hands the wolf-pattern necklace I'd begged for over a year.

His tone carried condescension. "Elara, stop making a fuss. I bought you the necklace you wanted. Let's turn the page on this. We'll live a good life from now on."

The necklace lay in my palm, cold as ice.

I'd begged him for one year and three months. He never took it to heart.

Now that I'd caught him cheating, he brought it out to placate me.

I threw the necklace back in his face. Looking at his stunned expression, I said calmly, "Kael, let's get divorced."

My mother exploded instantly, pointing at my nose and cursing.

"Are you crazy? Who'll want you after divorce with a child? Without Kael, you're nothing!"

But Kael pulled out a divorce agreement he'd already prepared from his pocket and threw it on my bed.

"I've been waiting for you to say that."