After Alex left, I couldn't hold on any longer.

The pain in my abdomen came in waves, each one worse than the last, until my whole body shook.

A rush of warm liquid poured out beneath me.

My water had broken.

Dark red blood mixed in with it, soaking through my dress within seconds.

I bit down on my lip so hard I tasted blood.

With everything I had, I dragged myself up off the cold floor.

Bracing against the wall, I pulled my heavy body toward the door, one agonizing step at a time.

I finally reached the handle and shoved the door open.

"Help..." I called down the empty hallway.

An Omega servant passing by heard me and came running.

One look at the blood soaking through my dress and her legs nearly gave out.

She let out a terrified scream and stumbled away to get help.

The pack's physician arrived quickly with a team and began emergency treatment.

They loaded me onto a gurney while someone called the Ashford Pack.

My father rushed over the moment he received word.

He didn't send anyone to find Alex.

He was done with that man.

But in my haze of agony, I found myself calling Alex's name over and over, completely beyond my own control.

The physician heard me and took it upon himself to call Alex.

Alex answered. He was silent for a long time on the other end.

Then he hung up and sent a short text message.

"I took Ivy for a checkup last week. Everything was stable. She's not due for a while yet."

"If she's feeling unwell, handle it through the standard process."

The physician read the message aloud.

The moment those words reached my ears, my eyes snapped open. I had a brief, terrible clarity.

I didn't cry. I didn't complain.

I said one thing to the physician.

"Don't contact him again."

I gripped the sheets beneath me with white knuckles.

"Save my baby."

What followed was a long, brutal fight.

I heard the physician barking frantic orders. The sound of Omega servants running back and forth.

I heard my mother arrive, her voice breaking with sobs.

And then — a sharp, clear cry split through the chaos.

"It's a girl," the physician said breathlessly.

My consciousness was slipping to the edge.

All I could see in my mind was Alex's cold face as he walked away.

"You survived because you were lucky."

His words echoed in my ears.

Why should I be the one to die?

I wasn't the one who did anything wrong.

I still had parents who loved me. And now I had a newborn daughter.

I was not going to die here.

That fierce, burning thought was the only thing keeping me alive.

I gritted my teeth and clawed my way back from the edge.

I drifted in and out of consciousness for days.

When I finally woke up fully, several people stood in the room.

My red-eyed parents. Bramwell. And an officer from the Alpha Council.

Bramwell stepped forward and presented me with a formal document.

"Miss Ivy, the Mate Bond dissolution petition has been reviewed and approved by the Alpha Council."

"Alex Blackwood has signed it."

"Effective immediately, your Bond is officially dissolved."

"The Alpha King has publicly announced the full reclamation of the Blackwood Pack's territory and all associated assets."

My trembling hand took the thin piece of paper.

The instant the document touched my fingers, I felt it — the Mate Bond inside me snapping apart.

A violent spasm seized my heart. I gasped from the pain.

But through that pain, tears in my eyes, I smiled.

I was finally free.