Then it was just Wendy and me in the study.

In the suffocating silence, Wendy slowly turned to face me, her gaze venomous.

She stared for a few seconds, then sneered.

"Don't think for a second that Ethan's mercy means you're safe.

"The role of the Gibson family matriarch is mine and mine alone; no one else stands a chance!" she declared.

With her head held high, she strutted off, deliberately slamming her shoulder into mine as she passed.

I gripped my shoulder, my back slick with a cold sweat. In that instant, fear was the furthest thing from my mind; all I could think about was the puzzle of it all.

Ethan was known for his ruthlessness, so why had he spared me? He did not even lose his temper when the family heirloom diamond got slobbered on by the pups.

The three little pups seemed to sense they were in trouble, cautiously coming over to lick my hand. "Don't cry, Mommy. The meanies who picked on you are gone now."

I held them close, but the tears just kept coming.

The next morning, Ethan took his helicopter on a business trip at the crack of dawn. He had barely left when my door was violently kicked open.

Wendy stood there, makeup flawless, her gaze lethal. A line of muscular bodyguards flanked her, each one clutching a hefty hockey stick. With a sadistic grin, Wendy's eyes locked onto the pups. "Ethan's too busy to deal with you, so I'll do the honors. First order of business, these filthy mutts can't stay."

She snapped her fingers. "Get rid of them! Beat those three dogs and flush them away!"

The bodyguards moved in.

"Stop!" I screamed, throwing myself in front of my babies. "They're not mutts; they're my precious ones! Ethan said it was over yesterday. What gives you the right to hurt them?!"

"What right?" Wendy sneered as if I had told a joke, then landed a kick in my stomach. "I'll be the Gibson family's leading lady, and you? You're nothing but a shameless imposter!" With that, she signaled the guards, who grabbed my hair and threw me to the ground.

The corner of the table hit me with a thud, sending a sharp pain through my skull.

Blood streamed into my eyes, painting everything a hazy shade of red.

The three little ones yelped in shock.

Their words were not human, but somehow, I understood they were crying for their mom.

In an instant, their eyes turned a chilling shade of blood red.

Fur on end, they growled with a deep, menacing rage.

The oldest, Xylon, lunged, sinking his teeth into the bodyguard's leg!

"Argh!"

He screamed as flesh ripped from his calf.

Wendy stumbled back, then fury took over.

"Rabid beasts! Biting? Really?!" She lost it, screeching commands. "You've got those sticks, right? Use them! Beat Chloe too!

"We'll tell Ethan it was just an accident; he won't blame me!"

A flurry of sticks rained down.

Pain forgotten, I scrambled back, pulling the little ones into a fierce embrace.

"It's okay, my loves... Mommy's here..."

The sticks beat down like a storm on my back, shoulders, and legs.

Each blow echoed with the thud of my bones.

I clenched my teeth, refusing to let go.

The kids whimpered in my arms. "Stop hitting Mommy... We'll bite you to death..."

Blood ran down my back.

My sight dimmed. My mind started to slip.

Was this the end?

Maybe it was for the best.

This time, I had shielded my children.

As the heaviest stick was about to crash down on my head, the door burst open with a bang!

A tall silhouette appeared, framed by the backlight: it was Ethan.

His face darkened with fury as he took in the scene.

"Stop!"