02|Cut off all ties.

It all made sense.

Now that I thought about it, it all did. The late-night meetings with the Alpha triplets that happened more often than they should, the unfamiliar female perfume I sometimes smelled on him when he returned home… and even the damn red lipstick stain on his shirt that I’d seen last week.

A disbelieving scoff slipped past my lips as I chuckled bitterly under my breath.

There were signs. So many signs. But I chose to ignore them. I’d told myself that Kael had helped my family and me enough, that he’d assured me of his loyalty and that he wouldn’t do something like this.

But that had only been a fool’s dream.

I should’ve listened to that nagging voice in my head. But I didn’t.

And now…

“S-So this whole time… this past month, you’ve been cheating on me with her? You found your mate and hid it from me? Is that what you're telling me?” I asked, my voice trembling as I stared at Kael.

He lowered his head in shame, refusing to meet my gaze, looking completely flustered.

“I—I didn’t know she was pregnant, I swear I didn’t—”

“But you do now,” Seraphina cut him off sharply. “So what are you going to do? Cut ties with her completely… or lose our child?”

Both of us turned to Seraphina at the same time. She had her hands on her hips as she glared at Kael, her red lips curled into a deep frown.

My chest tightened as I watched just how far she was willing to go to force Kael into cutting me off completely. I wasn’t even sure what I had done to her.

Even though we were never that close, I’d once considered her a friend, we had hung out together a few times. But everything changed after what happened to my family.

All of my so-called friends, including Seraphina, had outright distanced themselves from me.

According to them, I no longer belonged in their social class.

But this?

This went beyond anything I could’ve imagined.

To go as far as threatening Kael not to pay for my mother’s hospital bills, fully aware she’d die without them was something I couldn’t understand.

What had I done to her?

What did I do to deserve this?

The tears spilled freely down my cheeks, hot and relentless, as I lowered my head, already knowing how this would end.

There was no way Kael would continue helping me when his unborn child was involved.

“Seraphina,” Kael called her name breathlessly, and I watched as he stepped toward her, hand reaching out, his eyes pleading like he was desperate not to make this choice.

“Please be reasonable. Aunt is the only person Lilith has left in this world. The hospital bills are high, she can’t afford them alone. If she’s left on her own, Aunt will die. I promise to cut off all ties with her completely… but don’t make me do this.”

Seraphina’s lips curled into a snarl as she yanked her hand away and glared at him.

“What does that have to do with me? Why do I always have to be the one who’s understanding? Why should I care about her?” Her voice trembled with fury as she pointed at me, eyes burning with hatred and jealousy.

“I can’t believe that for a whole month, I let you hide me because you didn’t want to hurt her precious little feelings.” She scoffed bitterly. “You kept saying it wasn’t the right time to tell her, that her mother’s health was getting worse but enough is enough. I am your mate. I will never be the other woman. So it’s your choice, Kael. You either cut off all ties with her… or we reject each other.”

Kael looked slightly taken aback, as though he hadn’t realized she’d been feeling this way.

“B-but—” he stammered, trying to find the right words, but before he could finish, I inhaled a shaky breath and cut him off.

“Please…” I whispered, my voice barely audible.

Both of them turned to me at the same time, but I kept my gaze fixed on Seraphina. And as she stared at me in surprise, I slowly began to crawl toward her, stopping just inches away, catching her completely off guard.

At that moment, the world felt like a cruel joke as I slowly clasped my hands together and brought them up in front of me.

Yes, I was about to beg the woman who had been sleeping with my boyfriend for a month. I was about to throw away the last shred of my dignity and plead.

Ever since my eighteenth birthday, life had been nothing but a cruel joke, but no matter what happened, I couldn’t lose my mother. She was the only thing keeping me alive.

So… I begged.

“Please, Seraphina… don’t do this to me. I know you’re upset, but I promise, I’ll cut all ties with Kael. Just… please don’t let him stop.”

Especially not now—now that my mother needed surgery soon. Even if it wouldn’t cure her, it would keep her alive long enough for me to find a witch doctor skilled enough to help her. And with my job at the restaurant, there was no way I’d be able to raise enough money in time.

“P-please, for the last time… my mum needs this surgery,” I pleaded, my voice cracking. “He doesn’t have to give me the money for free—I swear I’ll pay him back as soon as I can. So… please, don’t do this.”

I could see Kael look away from the scene, his hands clenched tightly into fists.

Seraphina’s eyes narrowed at me, but her expression shifted in a blink. The corner of her lips twitched into an amused smirk as her gaze locked onto mine.

There was delight in her eyes as she watched me cry. Slowly, she curled her lips into a mocking smile and stepped toward me, hands on her waist as she looked down at me.

“Aww, this is really sad, and I feel sorry for you, Lilith,” she said in a sweet voice. “But I’m not the one who makes that decision. That’s Kael’s choice to make.”

She turned to Kael, who still had his head lowered.

“Right, mate? So, what will you choose?”

Her tone was confident as she asked Kael and rubbed her belly, clearly already knowing what his choice would be.

And as Kael let out a sigh of frustration and his fists slowly unclenched, I knew, he had already made up his mind.

Fresh tears blurred my vision as I lifted a hand to my face, my body wracked with sobs.

“Lilith…” he whispered, “I’m really sorry, but this is my child. I can’t—”

“Of course, you can’t,” I cut him off with a bitter laugh. “Of course you can’t reject your mate when she’s pregnant.”

I slowly rose from the ground, though my legs felt far too weak to hold me.

Anyone else would’ve made the same choice in his position. I hadn’t expected anything different, it would’ve been selfish of me to hope otherwise.

I drew in a deep, shaky breath and wiped my tears away before meeting his gaze. His familiar blue eyes held mine, and in them, I saw it clearly—pity.

Now that I realized it, that was the look he had always given me. When the tragedy struck my family… when he started helping with my mother’s hospital bills… when he whispered those words—

“I love you.”

“I’ll never leave you.”

“You’re enough for me.”

—It was always that same look.

The look of pity.

Kael had never loved me. No… he pitied me.

And I was the fool who had known it deep down but still chose to believe him.

“Lilith…” he whispered, but I reached up and wiped at my tears, shaking my head to stop him.

“Don’t say anything… please.” I took a step back. “Even if all you’ve done is hurt me in the end, I’m still thankful for the help all these years. So… thank you, Kael. And congratulations on becoming a father.”

That was all I could manage to say before I turned and walked toward the exit without looking back.

“Lilith…” I heard him whisper again.

But he didn’t come after me.

Not when I stepped out into the heavy rain pouring from the sky.