Becky’s POV

I turned my back on Kiera, my voice flat.

“Farewell.”

But she didn’t budge. Her presence lingered like a bitter scent, clinging to the air, testing my already-thin patience. My phone had just buzzed with the updated flight time—if I missed it again, I wouldn’t get another chance. And the Moon Goddess knew I needed to get out of here. Away from this toxic pack, away from their lies.

“What are you playing at?” I asked, my voice low, barely concealing the growl under my breath.

She smirked, her lips curling like a she-wolf who just found prey.

“I want to see tears, Becky. I want to see you break.”

I huffed. “You’ll die waiting.”

I dragged my suitcase along the linoleum floor, the wheels squeaking against the sterile silence. And then, like some cheap insult, she flicked a couple of crumpled bills at me.

“Here. For your pathetic human fare,” she giggled cruelly.

That was it. My wolf surged, my hand moved faster than thought, and the slap echoed through the hospital corridor like a gunshot. Her face jerked to the side.

“How dare you,” I growled through clenched teeth, fury burning just beneath the surface of my skin.

She wailed like she was being gutted, right as Alpha David and youngDorian burst into the room, the scent of panic trailing after them.

“What the hell happened here?!” Alpha David roared, his eyes locking on Kiera’s reddened cheek.

I scoffed. “What happened? You ran the moment she cried, like a dog chasing a bone. Where were you when your son nearly maimed me? Where was your concern when I passed out in my own blood?!”

Corvin pointed a trembling finger at me, his baby-blue eyes wide.

“Bad woman! She hurt Kiera!”

Kiera whimpered from the floor, her voice trembling with perfectly timed innocence.

“I-I only came to ask her to stay. I even offered money. She attacked me…”

“Cut the crap, Kiera!” I snapped, claws of rage pressing against my will. “Stop pretending you’re the victim.”

“You stop!” Alpha David barked, his Alpha voice laced with command. “I’ve tolerated enough. You’ll return with us—if you apologize.”

I stared at him in disbelief, then let out a cold, humorless laugh.

“Even if you were the last Alpha on this continent, Alpha David, I would never return to your side.”

He bristled, jaw tightening.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

I stepped forward, my voice sharp as a silver blade.

“Eight years, and you never wanted a pup. But the day your son shot me, I find out Kiera is carrying your heir.”

His head snapped toward Kiera, guilt and confusion flashing across his face like a cloud passing over the moon. She had told me, and now he knew it.

“We’ll talk about that later. Just come home. We can fix this,” he said softly, trying to reclaim the Alpha charm.

“In your dreams, Alpha.”

I turned on my heel, tuning out his enraged shouts as I walked away from the only pack I'd ever called mine.

Minutes later, I was at the airport, my boarding pass in hand. Relief coursed through me like the first breath of a new moon. I was leaving it all behind.

Just as I powered down my phone, it rang again. Alpha David. I picked up, already regretting it.

“What now?”

“I understand you’re angry about Kiera,” he said, tone low and coaxing. “But come back. Give me a pup, Becky. If you do, I’ll name you in my will. You’ll have security—for you and your bloodline.”

I nearly choked on my laughter.

“Burn in hell, Alpha David.”

I hung up. Then blocked him. For good.

The flight was long. I drifted in and out of sleep, haunted by memories, by betrayal. But when the plane touched down, I felt lighter—as if my wolf had finally found a breeze to run with.

I stepped into the arrivals hall, where a tall man in a tailored tuxedo held a sign that read: Becky Blackridge.

He spotted me instantly.

“Miss Blackridge,” he greeted, bowing slightly. “I’m Joe. Your personal guardian.”

Guardian? Not just a driver, then. My grandfather wasn’t taking any chances.

“Thank you, Joe.”

He took my luggage, loaded it into a black SUV that smelled like new leather and pine. The drive through the hills was quiet, comforting. Then, rising from the woods like a fortress, stood the ancestral estate of the Blackridge lineage.

It had been three years since they contacted me—Elder Appleby and Luna Liora Blackridge, my mother’s estranged parents. I’d been shocked when they first reached out. My mother had eloped with a low-ranking wolf from another territory, choosing love over the mate bond arranged for her. She’d been cast out… until she was dying. That’s when she told them about me.

I was their blood. And now, I was their legacy.

“Becky!” My grandmother’s voice rang like a lullaby across the courtyard.

She and Elder Appleby wrapped me in warm, welcoming arms. The scent of herbs, family, and old power lingered in their embrace.

“We’re so glad you came,” they said, their voices trembling with joy.

“Thank you,” I whispered. “For letting me in.”

“Nonsense,” Luna Liora said firmly. “You are of our blood. This pack, this legacy—it’s yours.”

Elder Appleby placed a strong hand on my shoulder.

“You’re now the rightful heir of the Blackridge Empire. And of this land.”

And I smiled.

Because the time for retribution had come. And my enemies had no idea who they had tried to cast out.