Four days until the celebration.

After wrapping up the handover, I went home and packed everything that was mine into a suitcase. Every gift he'd ever given me, every photo we'd taken together—I threw it all into the yard and set it on fire.

The flames roared skyward. Every memory of us turned to ash, dissolving into nothing. Just like what we'd had. In the end, there was nothing left.

The house felt empty. I looked around the bare rooms and felt something in me go quiet.

Late that night, Adrian slipped into my room carrying his usual cloud of perfume. The mattress dipped beside me, and his low voice came from above.

"Serena, I know you're awake. I know you're angry, but will you please just hear me out?"

I kept my eyes shut and said nothing.

He had the nerve to sound hurt. "You know everything I've done has been for the pack. There's a huge project about to break ground but we don't have the funding. As Alpha, the pressure is crushing me. This was my only option."

"On one hand, my pack. On the other, the woman I love. I had to sacrifice personal happiness for the greater good. I didn't have a choice."

He went on and on about how hard things were for him, then pivoted to how deeply he loved me. It was quite the performance. Would've been convincing too, if not for the fresh marks Vivian had left on his neck.

When I still didn't respond, he sighed, left something on the nightstand, and walked out.

Once his footsteps faded, I sat up. A small box—inside, an expensive necklace. This was his pattern. Throw money at everything and assume it would fix things. He never understood that I'd never wanted his money. All I'd ever wanted was his heart.

I tossed the necklace in the trash.

The next morning, he came downstairs to find breakfast already on the table—my plate empty, his untouched. His brow furrowed. I'd always waited for him before eating.

He chalked it up to yesterday's fight, laughed it off, and came up behind me for an embrace. I tilted away. His arms hung in the air, then dropped. Unease crept into his eyes.

He recovered quickly, flashing a grin. "Still upset? I explained everything last night, didn't I?"

"I'm only getting close to her for business. Please don't be angry."

"Okay," I said flatly, without looking up.

My calm unnerved him. He'd expected tears, a fight, drama. Not this. Not indifference.

It should have been a good thing, so why did his heart feel so uneasy?

After a long silence, he seemed to wrestle with something, then spoke. "There's an important reception at the pack shrine tomorrow. Come with me."

My pulse jumped. It was the first time he'd ever invited me to appear in public. I started to speak, but he cut me off.

"Everyone thinks Vivian is my mate now, so when you get there, could you maybe... keep your distance? So no one figures out—"

He trailed off, but the meaning was clear.

I agreed anyway. Not for him. Because I'd left something at that shrine—something I needed to get back. Adrian and I had once buried a prayer charm beneath the tree there, promising to dig it up on the day of our mating ceremony.

That day was never coming.

He smiled and kissed my forehead. That night, he didn't come home—"pack business," he said. But Vivian's feed updated again. Adrian with his head pressed to her belly, her hand holding a medical report.

No caption needed. The message was loud and clear.

My grip on the phone turned my knuckles white. They were having a baby. And mine? My baby hadn't even had the chance to form, to see the world—and had died in agony. I'd buried that child with my own hands. I couldn't even put a name on the headstone. And the father was out celebrating a new baby with another woman.

The grief swallowed me whole. I sank to the floor, covered my face, and wept—not just for the child I'd lost, but for eight wasted years.

When the tears stopped, I dried my face. Eight years to see someone for who they really were. At least I saw it.

After today, I would never cry for anyone again.

I went to the shrine, but the guards stopped me at the entrance.

"Sorry, Serena. You'll need an invitation. We can't let you in without one."

I froze. Adrian had never mentioned any invitation.

From inside came the tinkling sound of laughter. Vivian stood among the guests in a Luna's formal gown, the center of everyone's attention.

"Adrian, you're so lucky to have such a beautiful mate. Don't forget to invite us when you have the mating ceremony!"

Adrian's smile was so warm it made me doubt my own memories. "Absolutely. Being with Vivian is the greatest blessing of my life. I'll always take care of her."

Their laughter cut like glass.

The guard shifted awkwardly. "If you don't have an invitation, I'm afraid I'll have to ask you to leave."

I fixed him with a stare that shut him up instantly.

"I don't have an invitation. Will this do?"

I produced a gold insignia. The guard's eyes went wide. It was the crest of the Oceanridge Pack Alpha's direct bloodline—only immediate family carried the gold. Regular members received silver. Offending a direct heir of the most powerful pack in the wolf world was unthinkable.

His demeanor transformed instantly, and he ushered me inside.

All eyes were on Adrian and his soon-to-be Luna. No one noticed me. I stood in a corner, watching in silence.

Vivian pointed at a towering Moon Tree and laughed. "Adrian, remember? We buried a prayer charm under this tree. We said we'd dig it up on our mating day."

Adrian stroked her hair. "Of course I remember. After you left, I came here every year to check on it. Every time, I missed you."

She pouted playfully. "Are you blaming me for leaving?"

"Never. I'm just glad you came back. Every woman I met while you were gone—I saw your face in all of them."

The glass in my hand went still. My whole body locked up.

He'd taken me to that tree every year. I'd thought it was our ritual, our special thing. Now I realized he'd been revisiting old memories—pining for the woman he'd actually loved all along.

All those times he'd looked at me with what I thought was love—had he been seeing someone else?

He probably figured that since I was just an orphan, I should feel honored to serve as Vivian's stand-in. That even if I found out, I'd never leave.

He was wrong. No one was irreplaceable.

I walked out without looking back. I booked a flight home that same day and boarded the plane with my suitcase.

Three days until the celebration. Three days, and everyone who'd hurt me would pay.

The reception made headlines across the wolf world—what was supposed to be a business event had turned into an engagement party. Meanwhile, "Oceanridge Pack Celebration" quietly climbed the trending topics.

On the day of the celebration, my parents hosted a grand banquet at the pack shrine, inviting Alphas from every major pack and a full press corps for live coverage.

Everyone assumed my father would announce Vivian as his heir. No one knew she was just a refugee whose family had been destroyed by rogues. My father had found her during a campaign. Missing me after I'd run away, he'd brought her home to raise as a daughter.

Vivian arrived in a lavender designer gown on Adrian's arm, all smiles as she worked the room. But Adrian looked distracted—restless since the moment he'd walked in. He hadn't heard from me in weeks. Calls unanswered. Texts ignored. I'd vanished.

He'd assumed I was just throwing a tantrum and would come crawling back. Instead, he'd received notice that I'd formally left his pack.

Before he could make sense of it, Vivian had dragged him here. He couldn't afford to upset her, so he shelved his worries. But his mind was elsewhere.

His friend noticed. "Still worried about that little mistress of yours?"

Vivian's brow twitched. Adrian glanced at her and forced a shrug. "No chance. She was just a fling. Not worth worrying about."

"Good. You've got Vivian now. Time to settle down. She's the one you'll spend your life with."

His friends had always known Adrian kept an orphan on the side—they just didn't know who. In their eyes, only someone like Vivian was worthy of an Alpha.

Vivian's lips curved in satisfaction. Then a figure crossed her line of sight, and her eyes went wide.

"How? What is she doing here? That woman is like a curse that won't die."

Vivian muttered under her breath. She'd planned to use the celebration to introduce Adrian to her parents and lock down the alliance. If her father found out Adrian had a mistress, the deal would fall apart. She couldn't let that happen.

She took a sip of wine, then suddenly clutched her chest and collapsed.

"Adrian... I—I don't feel well."

Adrian rushed to her side. "Vivian! What's wrong?"

She lay in his arms, her voice faint. "I don't know. I felt sick right after drinking that wine."

Every eye went to the glass. One of Vivian's friends—a healer—caught the signal. She rushed forward, inspected the wine, and gasped.

"Wolfsbane! Someone poisoned it! Who would want to hurt Vivian?"

Vivian bit her lip, tears glistening. "This is supposed to be the most important day for my pack, and someone's trying to kill me."

Adrian took charge. "Don't panic. The dose doesn't seem lethal—I'll get you medicine. Lock down all exits. The poisoner is still here."

Everyone nodded and helped Vivian to a chair. That's when her gaze locked onto something—someone—heading upstairs with a bag slung over her shoulder.

"Serena? What are you doing here? I don't recall sending you an invitation."

Her friend jumped in. "I saw her lurking near Vivian's glass earlier! She's probably the one who did it!"

All heads turned to me. Guards dragged me in front of Vivian.

She put on her best wounded-innocent act and waved the guards off. "Serena, I've already forgiven you for chasing Adrian. But why won't you leave me alone? Why would you try to poison me?"

Whispers rippled through the crowd.

"Isn't she the one from the news? The she-wolf stalking Adrian?"

"First she destroyed the portrait out of jealousy. Now she's trying to murder Vivian."

"Jealousy is a terrifying thing."

I looked down at the crowd, unflinching. "You're saying I did it. Where's the proof?"

"Proof? Let's search her bag—I bet the bottle's still in there."

They lunged for my bag. I held on tight. "On what grounds?"

"On the grounds that you're a murderer! An orphan nobody wanted. Your parents probably weren't much to speak of either."

"She’s probably some illegitimate daughter who can’t show her face in public—no wonder her own parents abandoned her."

They could insult me all they wanted. But my parents were off-limits. I nearly screamed. "Do you have any idea who my parents—"

A figure stepped between us, cutting me off. Adrian. His cold gaze swept over me, his voice low. "What are you doing here?"

He kept glancing around nervously, terrified someone might realize we had a history. Vivian pressed in, tears flowing.

"Adrian, I think the one who poisoned me is Serena. But she won't admit it."

Adrian's face expression turned thunderous. Without even verifying, he turned on me. "You put wolfsbane in Vivian's drink?"

I met his gaze head-on. "I didn't."

He hesitated, then looked away. "First the portrait, now poison. I let the painting slide, but you've gone too far. How could you become so vicious?"

Once, words like that would've broken me. Now I just wanted my name cleared.

"I'll say it one more time. It wasn't me. Check the cameras. If you find proof I did it, you can do whatever you want to me."

Vivian's friend laughed. "Why bother with cameras? Just search her bag."

Guards grabbed me and yanked at my bag. I held on. The strap snapped. Momentum slammed me into the wall hard enough to rattle my bones. My bag hit the floor, its contents scattering everywhere.

A small green bottle rolled across the tiles and stopped at Adrian's foot. He picked it up, sniffed it, and his expression hardened.

"Caught red-handed, Serena. What's your excuse now?"

The crowd closed in around me like a wall.

"Attempted murder of a pack member is a capital offense! Banish her to the Wastes!"

"Exile her!"

The shouts crashed over me in waves.

Then a voice cut through the noise like a blade: "And what exactly do you think you're doing to my daughter?"

The room went silent. Every head turned toward the upper balcony.

And the moment I saw my father, tears filled my eyes.