Talia POV

"Damon...What the hell is wrong with you?!"

I shouted at him, fury surging through me. He had always been cold, but I never imagined he could be this cruel.

The auctioneer hit the gavel with finality and declared me as sold.

The glass enclosure opened, and Damon’s Beta, Abby, approached me.

She wore her signature high ponytail. Her sharp cheekbones and icy blue eyes gave her a fierce appearance.

When Damon and I were together, she wasn't exactly kind to me, but she wasn’t outright cruel either.

She leaned closer, whispering in a mocking tone. "Talia, Damon asked me to give you a special gift."

Before I could react, she swiftly forced a bitter pill into my mouth.

I tried to spit it, but she clamped her hand over my mouth. I had no option but to swallow, and a wave of heat surged through my body.

"What... what was that pill for?” I stammered.

"Just helping you enjoy the party!" she sneered and winked at me.

My jaws clenched, bitterness filling my chest.

Damon ordered to drug me. The man who once held me close can hate me and stoop to this level.

Just four months ago, he told me I was the most precious thing in his world, and today, he handed me to other men. How could he?

Soon, the men in the audience began approaching me, and Damon, standing in the distance, watched the scene unfolding.

At that moment, whatever love I had for him dissolved into utter hatred.

Suddenly, an unbearable pain rippled through my abdomen, and my consciousness began to fade. Strangely, I felt a sliver of relief.

Perhaps dying would be a better option at this moment.

I don’t know how long I was unconscious, but when I woke up, the smell of disinfectant filled my nostrils.

I blinked to find myself in the hospital, and my hands instinctively moved to my stomach.

Oh, thank god, my baby is safe.

I breathed a sigh of relief.

Muffled voices reached me through the blue curtain surrounding my bed.

"Stay here and watch her. When she wakes up, bring her over."

"Yes, Alpha Damon."

I froze.

Damon and Abby are here. They have no plan to spare me.

Moments later, I heard Damon’s footsteps fading, and Abby slid the curtain aside. I quickly shut my eyes, feigning sleep.

"When you wake up, I’ll send you back to that place. You think playing dead will help you escape?" Abby leaned down and patted my face mockingly.

That place? My heart sank.

Damon wanted to send me back to the auction. So he still wanted to punish me. He didn’t save me out of love or pity.

Damon, how can you be this heartless?

I forced back my tears, determined not to let Abby notice anything.

"Nurse, didn’t you say she’d wake up soon? It’s been over an hour, and she’s still unconscious. What’s going on?" Abby demanded.

"Her vitals are normal. We already checked, but it’s probably because of her pregnancy. Don’t worry, she’ll wake up soon. "

Abby sighed in frustration as the nurse adjusted my IV and left.

"Humans are so fragile," Abby muttered before her phone chimed. She answered it and walked out of the room.

The second she left, I ripped the needle out of my palm and slipped out of the bed barefoot.

Peeking out, I saw Abby still engaged in a call, her back facing me.

This is my only chance. I couldn’t let them send me back! I have to save myself and my child.

I gathered my courage and bolted for the elevator.

Each step felt like walking on blades and my heartbeats thudding in my chest, but I succeeded.

I ducked into a narrow alley as soon as I got out of the hospital.

Werewolves have a hundred times stronger sense of smell than mine. s I had to get as far as I could before they tracked me down.

A taxi approached, and I stumbled into the street, flagging it down.

"Take me out of the city!"

The driver alternated his eyes between my hospital gown and swollen belly, "Are you okay?"

I removed the pink crystal necklace from my neck and handed it to him.

"Please, do as I say!” I begged.

This necklace was Damon’s birthday gift to me six months ago. I continued to wear it even after I rejected him, but now it meant nothing.

Talia POV

"Miss, we’ve now left Turin. Where exactly do you want to go?"

The driver asked after driving for more than an hour.

"Please help me find a nearby motel," I replied.

“Sure.” He replied positively, and a few minutes later, he pulled up to a decent motel.

"Here we are."

"Could you... lend me $1,000?" I asked the driver hesitantly."This necklace is worth at least $30,000."

He looked back at me with furrowed eyes. "We had an agreement, right?!I drive you out of the city, and you give me the necklace. How can you go back on your word? Besides, just because you say it's worth $30,000 doesn’t mean it really is. Now, get out!"

His words hurt me, but I had no choice. I got out and stood in front of the motel, having no clue what to do without money.

Just then, a group of men on motorcycles pulled up at the motel entrance.

"Well, well, look what a pretty little thing we have here,” A red-bearded man said with a smirk. “ Did some guy knock you up and dump you?”

Seeing the danger, I walked away, to which he got off the bike and followed me.

Oh god, princess, look at your swollen feet. Why don’t you be my woman? I’ll take good care of you."

He let out a sharp whistle, prompting laughter from his companions.

I quickly turned and tried to run into the motel, but they blocked my way.

Before I could scream for help, a strong voice echoed. "Let go of her!"

I turned toward the voice and froze.

Carson!

He stepped between me and a bearded man, his posture confident.

"I’ll give you $10,000 if you let her go. Otherwise, I’m calling the police," Carson said, his voice firm.

The red-bearded man gave Carson a once-over. "You her husband?"

Carson didn’t answer. Instead, he pulled out his wallet and handed over all the cash he had.

"She’s just a pregnant woman. Let her go," Carson said politely, and the man ordered his group to leave.

Once freed, Carson turned to me. “Are you okay?

“Mmm…But how did you find me?” I asked curiously.

"There’s no time to explain. Get in the car. Damon’s on his way," he said, ushering me into the car.

Before I could even buckle my seatbelt, I caught sight of a black Lamborghini in the rearview mirror.

“Damon is alreay here, Carson!” Fear gripped my heart.

Carson sped off. but Damon’s car closed in even faster, and with a loud crash, his car rammed into ours.

I clung tightly to the door handle, my body drenched in cold sweat by the time Carson’s car came to a stop.

Before I could balance myself, Damon opened the door and yanked me out.

"Damon, how can you be such a bastard?! Talia is carrying your child!" Carson shouted, jumping out of the car and grabbing Damon by the collar.

But his strength couldn’t match Damon. He was just a human like me.

Damon sneered and pushed Carson to the ground with a single punch. "My child? This is probably just your excuse to protect your own."

"Alpha Damon," Abby cut in, approaching Damon with a small bag of white powder. "This was found in their car. It’s the same wolfbane that’s been used against our pack’s werewolves."

Damon sniffed the powder, his expression instantly darkening.

"I loved you so much, and yet you keep betraying me! You even conspired with your lover to harm my pack! Maybe I should’ve never trusted you malicious humans in the first place!" Damon shouted, his hand closing around my neck.

I wanted to defend myself, but I could barely breathe.

"Damon, have you lost your mind? We didn’t do anything!" Carson said, struggling to his feet and prying Damon’s hand away from my throat.

"The evidence was found in your car, and you still dare to deny it?" Damon snapped. "Abby, take them both to jail. I don’t want to see them again."

Abby nodded.

"Damon! I didn’t do anything! You have to believe me—I was framed!" I coughed and called after him as he walked away.

"Damon!"

He didn’t look back.

"This is your doing, isn’t it?!” Carson turned to Abby, his face reddened with rage. “You’re the one who framed us! You planted that wolfbane in my car.”

Abby instantly shifted into her wolf form and slashed Carson’s chest with her claws.

And before we could do anything, a police car pulled up and stopped right in front of us.

Talia POV

"Talia, you are accused of poisoning the Nightstar Pack, violating the Inter-Species Peace Act. According to criminal law, you are sentenced to three years of imprisonment. If you are dissatisfied with this ruling, you have the right to appeal..."

As I listened to the judge read my verdict, my mind went blank.

I turned my gaze to the plaintiff's seat, where Damon sat. His eyes were as cold as ice.

A bitter smile crept onto my face. "Damon, if I told you I truly did nothing, would you believe me?"

"No." He answered without a moment of hesitation.

I looked at Abby, sitting next to him, and my mind cast back to Carson’s words–

Talia!! Abby set us up. She was the one who told me to come save you, but Damon showed up right after.

I took a deep breath and faced Damon again. "Damon, it’s Abby! She is the one framing Carson and me!"

"Motive?" Damon sneered coldly, his eyes full of mockery. "Abby has countless scars on her body from protecting me and the Nightstar Pack. She would never do anything to betray the pack. But you? Your parents were killed by werewolves. I saved you out of kindness, but it turns out you got close to me just to seek revenge on werewolves!"

"No, that’s not true. I truly loved you! I can never dream of hurting you.”

"Love?! You rejected me—is that love? You slept with another man and even got pregnant—is that love? You poisoned my pack—does that count as love, too?" Damon’s expression grew grimmer, and his voice sharpened. "You’re not worthy of love, and you don’t deserve mine!"

Each accusation struck me like a dagger, and my knees buckled. I realized that anything I said wouldn’t matter.

"Your Honor, I’m pregnant. I request a suspension of my sentence," I said, placing my hand on my abdomen.

"You can give birth in prison.” Damon interrupted before the judge could respond. “Did you think being pregnant would shield you from the consequences of poisoning my pack? No way."

"Do you really hate me this much, Damon? I asked, tears streaking my face. “Do you want me dead this desperately.?"

Memories of our tender moments flooded my mind—his kisses, his caresses, his sweet words—all of it now felt like a cruel joke.

At that moment, I almost wished the child in my womb wasn’t his.

"I’m not as cruel as you! I only want you to face the punishment you deserve." Damon’s voice broke my reverie.

"Damon, I didn’t do it, believe me!” I screamed at Damon with all my might as two police officers escorted me away. “I didn’t do anything! One day, you’ll regret this—I hate you!"

He didn’t flinch. He didn’t even once look back.

***

Perhaps because I was pregnant, I was assigned a solitary room.

I received some special treatment with my meals. Even the doctor visited regularly for checkups. However, the room was damp and cold, without windows or sunlight. I could feel the weight of the environment affecting not just me, but also the little ones in my belly.

“I’m sorry. It’s Mommy who’s making you all suffer,” I whispered to my unborn children as I gently caressed my stomach while curled up on the small bed.

“Talia, someone’s here to see you,” a prison guard announced, knocking on my door.

I froze for a moment. Could it be Damon?

I hurried to the visitation room only to find Carson, not Damon.

“Carson?! You here? How did you manage to come here?” I asked, surprised. “Weren’t you imprisoned like me?”

“No, my father paid for my bail,” he explained.

I should have guessed. Carson came from a wealthy family. They owned a vast medical conglomerate.

“Carson, you and me both know nothing has ever happened between us, then why did the paternity test claim you as the father of my children? Did you do it on purpose?”

Carson gave a bitter smile and shook his head.

“Talia, I admit I’ve been selfish and arrogant before, and I might have caused you trouble. But I can’t do something this despicable, especially to you. I’m damn sure, Abby is behind all this. What I don’t understand is why she’s targetting us? ”

“I’m sorry, Carson.” I reached out and held his hand. “I didn’t mean to doubt you.”

“Yeah, that’s fine.” He gave an assuring smile.

“Can I ask you for a favor? Can you deliver the real paternity test for my baby—and yours—to Damon? Even though I no longer held any affection for Damon, I had to think about the three babies growing inside me. I didn’t want them to come into the world as orphans.”

Carson shook his head, regret etched on his face.

“Coming here was already done behind my parents’ backs. My father won’t even let me leave the house anymore. Besides, Damon already sees me as a criminal. There’s no way I can get close to him.”

I sighed in disappointment.

“No, problem.” I smiled at him.“Thank you for everything you did for me. I know it was you who made sure I was treated here gently.”

“What do you mean, me?” Carson looked puzzled.

“I mean the guards. They’ve treated me kindly—Giving me good food, no hard labor. Of course, it must be you.”

“No, It wasn’t me.” Carson confessed.

“Oh…if it is not you, who can be? Carson, I’m so worried. I just want my babies to be safe. They are my only family now.”

“ I promise I will do everything to ensure your children are born safely,” Carson said in an assuring tone. “It’s my fault you were falsely accused by Damon. If I hadn’t pursued you, maybe Damon wouldn’t have rejected his own children. I owe you that much.”

After Carson left, an uneasy feeling crept into my heart.

I couldn’t stop thinking about the doctor’s warning during my last prenatal checkup. I feared something might go wrong during childbirth.

The doctor had told me I was carrying triplets, and my uterine wall was stretched dangerously thin. The risk of severe bleeding during labor was high.

If something were to happen to me, who would take care of my children?

With this thought, I picked up the pen and wrote a letter to Damon.

“Damon, I want to see you—just one last time.”