After deciding to leave, I didn't feel as sad as I had thought that I would.

Maybe out of guilt, David suddenly showed up two days later, saying that he had come to take me back to the castle. He even brought my favorite dish—cream of mushroom soup.

It was the first time he had ever taken the initiative to show me kindness.

For seven years, no matter how impatient or cruel he was to me, I would eagerly rush back to his side as long as he offered me the slightest bit of warmth.

But this time, I didn't even open the door.

Outside, David was fuming with the bowl of soup in his hands.

"Did you run away for days and abandon your own child just because I made you kneel and apologize for Sarah?

"Hah! You've grown some nerve, haven't you, Evelyn? Don't regret this!"

That very night, he moved Sarah into the castle.

The next time I saw him was three days later when I returned to pack the few belongings I had left.

When I saw Sarah Lloyd acting as the lady of the house, I felt nothing.

I went upstairs to collect my things calmly.

David, on the other hand, seemed furious at my indifference. The moment he realized that I was only there to pack, he stormed into his study and slammed the door shut, making a show of his anger.

Sarah, assuming that I had returned to beg for forgiveness, stood in the doorway with her arms crossed as she sneered. "See how David treats you? He doesn't even want to look at you!

"Look at yourself. Your body's completely out of shape after giving birth. How do you still have the confidence to parade yourself in front of him?

"There's no place for you in this castle anymore. Get out."

I knew that she was trying to provoke me.

The old me would have argued with her and insisted that I was David's true mate, the rightful Luna. But now, I simply looked at her the way one would look at a clown.

She was infuriated by my lack of reaction. Hearing the study door creak open, she suddenly threw herself backward, tumbling down the stairs.

She landed perfectly in David's arms, then looked up at me with pitiful eyes.

"Luna Evelyn, I never wanted to take your place. I never wanted to be Luna. I just wanted to stay by David's side. How could you push me down the stairs?

"David, thank goodness you were here, or I—"

She choked back a sob and buried her face in his shoulder as she trembled.

This was her usual trick.

In the past, I would have panicked, scrambling to explain to David that I hadn't pushed her and that she had done it to herself. But this time, I kept quiet.

I simply stood there and watched David carry Sarah up the stairs toward me. His eyes burned with fury.

"What's wrong? You acted all calm when you refused to come back, pretending you didn't care. But now that Sarah's moved in, your jealousy is making you lose control, huh?

"Evelyn, there's a limit to how far you can take your jealousy! Pushing Sarah down the stairs? Were you trying to kill her?"

David set Sarah down. When he saw the small wound on her forehead, his expression darkened. He turned to me and ordered coldly, "Apologize to Sarah. If you do, I'll let you stay. Otherwise, get out."

I didn't even spare him a glance as I turned toward my room.

He grabbed my wrist, his voice thundering with rage. "Apologize now!"

He yanked me forward, forcing me toward Sarah. The sudden force made me stumble. I slammed into the doorframe. A sharp pain shot through my forehead as blood started trickling down my face.

I stared at the crimson drops in a daze.

He was still the same selfish person he had always been. He was violent toward his mate who had nearly died giving birth to his child.

When he saw the blood streaming down my face, his expression flickered with unease. But just as quickly, he composed himself. "You hurt Sarah, and now you're also bleeding. That makes things even," he said coldly.

I let out a bitter laugh, unable to suppress the anger and resentment bubbling inside me.

I rolled up my sleeve, revealing the countless scars crisscrossing my arm. "This is fair? Then what about these?"

His eyes widened in shock. His voice trembled as he asked, "How did you get those wounds on your arms?"

He seemed to forget that when he was young and gravely ill, the pack's healer said that only a pure healer's blood mixed with rare herbs could save him.

I was the only one in the entire pack with pure healer's blood and had fallen for him at first sight.

Time and time again, I cut open my arm, mixing my blood with herbs to create medicine that saved him from the brink of death.

Celine had witnessed my sacrifices and had been so moved by my love for him that she did everything she could to bring us together, telling him that Nighthowl Pack would have no other Luna but me.

He stared at my scars for a very long time.

I almost thought that he would remember. But in the end, he simply tightened his grip on my arm and sneered.

"Nice trick, Evelyn. So now that acting indifferent doesn't work, you're trying to get my attention by self-harming?

"Werewolf healing is strong. These wounds should've healed by now. Are you deliberately keeping them open just to gain my sympathy?"

Hearing those words, I realized that I wasn't even disappointed anymore.

Pure healers had extremely weak regeneration—even weaker than Omegas.

But it didn't matter. I had no interest in explaining.

Loving a heartless person was nothing but a waste of life—no matter how much blood, love, or hope you gave them.

His grip tightened painfully around my scars, but I didn't flinch.

It didn't matter.

The thought that I'd be leaving soon made the pain easier to bear.

While David was busy tending to his beloved Sarah's wounds, I hastily treated my own before continuing to pack my things.

I first needed to take down the oil painting hanging in the center of the bedroom. It was the one of me and David.

I had commissioned it in a moment of joy when David agreed to be my mate.

But the David in the painting was much softer than the real one. Back then, he had sat before the easel, visibly impatient and eager to leave. Ultimately, he couldn't even be bothered to wait until it was finished, so he simply turned and walked away.

The painting had only been completed based on my descriptions and the artist's faint impressions.

David had never liked it. He frowned at it daily, telling me to take it down.

Later, when he stopped coming into this bedroom altogether, he no longer cared enough to say anything about it.

"You loved that painting, didn't you? Why are you taking it down now?"

I hadn't noticed when he arrived, but there he was, leaning against the doorframe, watching me with narrowed eyes. "What game are you playing this time?"

He sneered, but his expression turned ice-cold when he saw the packed luggage. "Are you really moving out?"

I ignored him, silently stepping in his way to block him from entering the bedroom.

But he shoved past me and pushed me down onto the bed. The anger on his face was unmistakable, as if he could no longer tolerate my uncharacteristic behavior. "Didn't I tell you that acting cold doesn't work on me?

"Oh, I get it now. You're throwing a tantrum because I haven't touched you in a long time, huh? Fine. I'll satisfy you."

He sneered, reaching to tear at my clothes as his lips moved toward my neck.

Disgusted, I could no longer hold back my fury. I slapped him hard across the face. "Get off me! Go find some other woman. I find you disgusting!"

He froze for a moment, then wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, his smile full of scorn. "Go ahead and keep this up. The one who'll regret it in the end is you."

He slammed the door on his way out.

Not long after I finished packing, I heard the all-too-familiar sounds coming from the next room—David's heavy breathing mixed with a woman's moans.

It was David and Sarah.

"Come on, babe. Be louder. Let everyone in this castle hear how good I make you feel." David's voice was low and thick with pleasure.

As soon as he finished speaking, the bedframe began to shake violently, and Sarah's moans echoed throughout the castle.

They hadn't even bothered to close the door.

When David saw me standing outside, he smirked, lifting himself off of Sarah, who was flushed red and gasping beneath him. He pressed her back into the sheets.

"What are you looking at? Do you want to join in?"

His grin was a provocation, silently daring me to regret my choice.

The old me would have broken down, screaming and crying, tearing at them to separate them. But now, I felt nothing but revulsion. I simply looked away.

David, however, was enraged by my indifference. He grabbed the vase from the nightstand and hurled it at me. "Get out! Stop interrupting us!"

I still felt nothing as the vase shattered against my head.

Blood trickled down my forehead, dripping onto the floor.

He briefly hesitated, but Sarah wrapped her arms around his neck before he could react and whined. "David, focus on me. Didn't you say that Evelyn was too boring, and that's why you dragged me into bed with you?

"If you get distracted again, I will stop."

She traced her tongue along his lips, and he sank into her embrace once again.

He chose her over me yet again.

I felt lightheaded. I wiped at the blood on my forehead. But no matter how much I wiped, I couldn't seem to clean it away.

Nevertheless, it didn't matter.

This would be the last time I ever let myself be humiliated and hurt because of him.

I picked up my suitcase, steadied myself against the wall, and slowly left the castle.

It wasn't until David had spent himself in Sarah's arms that his mind finally cleared. He called for a maid.

"Where's Evelyn? Has she calmed down yet?

"Tell her that if she comes in and bows her head, I can pretend that none of this ever happened."

The maid hesitated. "Alpha David… Mrs. Jones left while you and Ms. Lloyd were… occupied."

"What?" His expression darkened as he shoved Sarah aside.

He urgently asked, "Where did she go?"

"Alpha David, I-I don't know either. When I asked her, Mrs. Jones just smiled quietly," the maid answered, her expression troubled.

But David let out a breath of relief and smirked. "It looks like she's just throwing a tantrum this time.

"Don't worry about her. Where else could she go without me? She's probably hiding out in that shabby little wooden cabin, waiting for me to come and coax her.

"Let her wait a little longer. Otherwise, she'll think that I can't live without her."

Lying undressed on the bed, Sarah swayed her hips and pressed herself against David again.

"Exactly! David, you're so perfect and charming. There are plenty of female werewolves who adore you! Why can't Evelyn appreciate what she has? She always gets upset over the most trivial things.

"Is a mate who throws fits all the time really suited to be your Luna?"

She glanced up at David, trying to gauge his reaction.

But he looked distracted, completely missing the implication in her words.

Indeed, I used to throw tantrums all the time. Whenever I caught him with another she-wolf, I would cry and scream for days, making such a fuss that even Celine would get involved.

But ever since I gave birth, I had changed. Since then, I never cried or made a scene again.

An ominous feeling washed over David.

He suddenly pushed Sarah away and threw on a robe before running straight to my bedroom.

Falling off the bed, Sarah clenched her teeth as she watched him leave quickly, her hands balling into fists as she pounded against the mattress in frustration.

My room was empty.

He stood there in a daze, staring at the vacant space. The blank wall where our portrait once hung stood out more than anything.

That bad feeling intensified.

He started searching frantically. That painting was our only portrait together, and I loved it.

David figured that I must have taken it with me. He was sure that I was in that tiny wooden cabin, hanging the painting up and waiting for him to take me back.

He told himself this over and over again. But as he opened every drawer and checked every corner, the portrait was nowhere to be found.

His breathing steadied slightly until his foot knocked over the trash bin.

Shredded fragments of the painting scattered across the floor.

"Evelyn!"

His eyes instantly turned red. He let out a furious roar before shifting into his wolf form and dashing out of the castle like a madman. By the time he caught up, I was already crossing the Nighthowl Pack's border.

My body was weak and injured, so I could only move slowly.

I had thought that as long as I could make it past the waterfall cliff ahead, I would finally be free of David forever. But in the final moment, I was caught.

The one who grabbed me was Sarah.

The she-wolves who had followed her pinned me down in the mud, slapping and jeering at me. "You homewrecking woman! Are you trying to run after being caught red-handed? Beat her!"

They held me down and yanked at my hair.

They only stopped when David arrived.

Sarah instantly shed her vicious demeanor, clutching David's sleeve, her eyes pooling with tears. "David, please don't be mad at them. They only wanted to stand up for me because they thought that Evelyn was bullying me."

"Bullying you?" For once, David didn't immediately take the other side.

His eyes were inexplicably red.

He looked at Sarah, then narrowed his gaze at me. "What happened?"

One of the she-wolves who had attacked me yanked on my hair and dragged me upright as she rushed to answer.

"She's been spreading lies all over the pack, claiming that she's the real Luna and that Sarah is the third party between her and Alpha David! Sarah was slandered so badly that she cried from the injustice!

"When she got exposed, she tried to flee. As Sarah's friends, how could we just let her get away with it?"