Three

Chapter Three

Valerie's POV

The morning sun slipped through the curtains, but it brought no warmth with it.

I opened my eyes after what felt like only a few minutes of restless sleep. My head throbbed from crying, and my chest still carried the weight of everything that had happened the previous day.

The pregnancy test rested inside the drawer of my bedside table.

I stared at it for a long moment before gently placing my hand over my stomach.

"I'll protect you," I whispered.

The promise was the only thing keeping me together.

I had already made up my mind.

Until I understood the truth about Selena and the little boy, Darius would never know about our baby.

I slowly climbed out of bed.

The space beside me was cold and perfectly made.

He had never returned.

I forced myself not to think about where he had spent the night.

Instead, I washed my face, changed into a simple cream-colored dress, and tied my hair into a loose braid before leaving the bedroom.

The corridor was unusually noisy.

Servants hurried back and forth carrying expensive furniture, luggage, flower arrangements, paintings, and even children's toys.

My footsteps slowed.

"Martha."

The head maid immediately turned around.

"Luna."

"What is happening?"

She looked uncomfortable.

"The Alpha instructed us to prepare the east wing for Miss Selena and her son."

I blinked.

"The east wing?"

She nodded.

"Miss Selena said the guest room was too small for a child, so the Alpha ordered us to move them into the east suite."

The east suite.

It was the largest guest residence inside the mansion.

It shared the same corridor as the Alpha and Luna's bedroom.

For years, Darius had refused to let distinguished guests stay there because he claimed he valued our privacy.

Yet he had given it to Selena after only one night.

"I see."

My voice sounded calmer than I felt.

Martha hesitated before speaking again.

"The Alpha also asked us to prepare a playroom beside the suite."

A playroom.

For her son.

I smiled politely.

"Thank you for letting me know."

I continued walking.

Each step felt strangely heavy.

It was amazing how quickly someone could begin replacing another person's place without ever asking permission.

As I reached my bedroom door, I noticed it was slightly open.

I frowned.

I distinctly remembered closing it.

Perhaps one of the maids had come in to clean.

Without thinking much about it, I pushed the door open.

Everything inside me froze.

The room looked as though a hurricane had swept through it.

Every drawer had been pulled open.

Clothes covered the floor.

Broken glass glittered beneath the morning sunlight.

Cabinet doors hung crookedly from broken hinges.

For several long seconds, I simply stood there, unable to breathe.

"No..."

The word escaped my lips in a whisper.

I slowly walked inside.

The first thing I noticed was our wedding portrait.

It had once hung proudly above the fireplace.

Now it lay shattered on the floor.

The heavy frame had broken apart, and the photograph itself had been ripped straight through the middle.

My own smiling face remained on one half.

Darius's face remained on the other.

Separated.

Almost as though someone had deliberately wanted to tear us apart.

My knees weakened.

I bent down and carefully picked up my half of the photograph.

Three years ago, that smile had been real.

I had believed I was marrying the man who would love me for the rest of my life.

A sharp ripping sound suddenly came from behind me.

I turned around.

My breath caught inside my throat.

Selena stood beside the wardrobe.

In her hands was my wedding dress.

The beautiful white gown I had treasured ever since the day Darius slipped the Luna ring onto my finger.

A long tear now stretched from the shoulder all the way to the hem.

"Oh."

She gasped dramatically.

"I'm so sorry."

Before I could react, the little boy ran across the room laughing happily.

He grabbed the bottom of the dress and pulled it.

The delicate fabric ripped apart completely.

"My superhero cape!" he shouted excitedly.

He spun around the room while dragging what remained of my wedding dress across the dusty floor.

I instinctively rushed forward.

"Please stop!"

Selena caught the child first.

"Ethan."

She gently took hold of his shoulders.

"You mustn't do that."

Then she looked at me with eyes filled with false guilt.

"I'm terribly sorry, Valerie."

"I only looked away for a minute while unpacking."

"He wandered in here without me noticing."

"Children are naturally curious."

My gaze slowly traveled around the room.

No.

This was not the work of a curious child.

Every drawer had been opened.

Every keepsake box had been emptied.

Someone had carefully chosen every item connected to my marriage.

Our wedding album lay open on the floor with photographs ripped from their pages.

The dried roses from my bridal bouquet had been crushed beneath muddy footprints.

The silver necklace Darius gave me on my eighteenth birthday had been snapped in half.

The music box he bought during our honeymoon had been smashed beyond repair.

My memory chest had been emptied completely.

Movie tickets.

Pressed flowers.

Birthday cards.

Little handwritten notes.

Every tiny reminder of the happiest moments of our marriage lay scattered like rubbish.

Then my eyes landed on something that made my heart stop.

A small white box.

It had been opened.

The tiny knitted baby shoes inside were covered with dirty footprints.

I hurried over and picked them up with trembling hands.

One of the little shoes had been flattened.

A tear rolled down my cheek before I even realized I was crying.

Those shoes had represented hope.

Now even they looked broken.

"Oh dear," Selena murmured softly.

"I didn't know they were important."

"I'm truly sorry."

Her voice sounded apologetic.

Her eyes were anything but.

Footsteps echoed outside.

Darius entered the room.

His brows knitted together as he looked around.

"What happened?"

Before I could answer, Selena lowered her head.

"Darius..."

Her voice trembled.

"I'm so sorry."

"Ethan slipped away while I was unpacking."

"I tried to stop him, but he was too fast."

"He thought everything here was a toy."

The little boy hid behind her dress.

"I'm sorry..."

Darius immediately crouched in front of him.

"It's alright."

"You didn't mean it." Then he looked at me.

"Valerie."

"He's just a child." I stared at him.

Slowly, I lifted the torn wedding dress.

"This was the dress I wore when I married you."

His expression softened slightly.

"I'll have another one made."

I pointed toward the shattered wedding portrait.

"Our first photograph as husband and wife."

"We can take another."

I picked up the broken necklace.

"You gave me this when we first became mates."

"I'll buy you a new one."

Every answer pierced my heart, Because he sounded completely indifferent.

To him, they were objects.—to me, they were pieces of the life I had built around him.

I swallowed the lump in my throat.

"They weren't just things, Darius."

"They were memories." He sighed.

"You're overreacting." My heart finally went silent.

He looked toward Selena again.

"Take Ethan downstairs."

"I don't want him frightened." She nodded before leading the little boy toward the door.

Just before leaving, she looked back. Only for a second.

The guilt disappeared from her face. A satisfied smile took its place.

Then she was gone.

I stood alone among the ruins of my marriage. Without another word, I slowly knelt on the floor and began gathering the broken pieces.

A torn photograph. A broken necklace. A crushed flower. A ripped anniversary card.

Then something slipped from beneath the destroyed memory box.

A faded envelope.

I frowned and opened it.

Inside was an old recommendation letter.

To Miss Valerie Ashford,

The most promising medical student I have taught in twenty years...

My fingers trembled.

Professor Harrison.

My mentor.

The man who had begged me not to abandon medical school.

At that exact moment, my phone began to ring.

The screen displayed an unfamiliar number.

For reasons I could not explain, I answered.

"Hello?"

A warm, familiar voice laughed softly.

"Valerie."

My eyes widened.

"Professor Harrison?"

"So you finally answered."

"I've been trying to reach you for weeks."

My throat tightened.

"It's been a long time."

"It has."

"I heard you left the academy."

"I also heard you became the Luna of the Blood Moon Pack."

He paused.

"But I never believed you stopped being a healer."

I looked around the destroyed room.

At the broken memories.

At the torn wedding dress.

At the shattered portrait.

Then my gaze settled on the old medical recommendationletter still resting in my hand.

Professor Harrison spoke again.

"The Royal Medical Institute is reopening its Advanced Healing Program."

"I've kept a place for you."

My breathing stopped.

"What?"

"I always believed you would come back one day."

"You were born to save lives, Valerie."

"Don't waste that gift."

For the first time in what felt like years, something inside my chest stirred.

Not pain.

Not grief.

Hope.