Chapter 2

Damon stood in the doorway and stared at me.

One second.

Two seconds.

Three seconds.

Then he suddenly laughed.

"Ivy."

He walked back to the bed, his voice carrying a hint of resignation.

"When did you learn to pull tricks like this?"

I froze.

He looked down at me with something almost indulgent in his eyes, like he was coaxing a child who didn't know better.

"I know today was rough. Serena, what Asher said — it all hurt you. But you can't make up something like this just to keep me here."

"I'm not making it up."

"No?"

He raised an eyebrow, his smile deepening.

"Do you know what I put in the Herbal Moon Tea I handed you after every time we were together?"

Damon leaned down, his mouth close to my ear, his voice soft enough to sound like a love confession.

"Diluted Wolfsbane. It suppresses fertility."

My pupils shrank.

He straightened up and looked at my white face. Pain flickered in his eyes.

"I had no choice. You being around was making Serena act out. It was the only way to keep her calm."

"I never planned to tell you, but I didn't expect you to lie to me."

"Ivy, just this once. You know I don't tolerate women who play games."

"Get some rest. I'll come see you tomorrow."

He turned, pushed the door open, and walked out.

The door shut softly.

The infirmary room went terrifyingly quiet.

I sat on the bed, my head buzzing, and all those moments I'd thought were sweet came flooding back.

Every time after, he would pour me a cup of Herbal Moon Tea himself, watch me drink every drop, and only then go to shower.

I used to think he was so good to me. So thoughtful.

Turns out even that cup of tea was part of his plan.

I pressed my trembling hands to my belly.

The pup was supposed to be my surprise for him, but now it just made me look like a joke.

The pain in my abdomen twisted again.

I gripped the sheets so hard my nails cracked, but it didn't match even a fraction of the pain inside.

I wanted to scream. Nothing came out.

I wanted to cry. I had no tears left.

My body slid toward the edge of the bed on its own.

The next second, I hit the floor hard.

As my vision blurred, young Damon's face grew clearer and clearer.

That year, my father tried to sell me as an Arranged Mate to an older Alpha for a handful of Pack resources.

Damon shielded me behind him, eyes red, and said anyone who touched me would have to kill him first.

Back then he was just a castoff — the Alpha's illegitimate son, thrown out with no power and no status — but sheer recklessness was enough to keep me safe.

For me, he fought rogue wolves. The long scar on his back is still there.

To scrape together money for my food, he dove into frozen rivers in the dead of winter to catch fish and lost a fingertip to frostbite.

Later when I got sick and he had nowhere to turn, he went back to Thorne Manor and knelt before the stepmother who'd made his childhood hell, begging for medicine.

That boy, proud to the bone, crushed his own dignity under his feet for me.

He held me through the fever and said:

"Ivy, I'll protect you for the rest of my life."

The light in his eyes that night — I remembered it for years.

I thought that light would last my whole life.

But now...

I couldn't understand how the man who once loved me so much could now admit to cheating so calmly.

I even wondered if this was all just a nightmare.

When I woke up, the boy would still be there.

But the cruel thing was —

Over the next few days, Damon never showed up.

Only that anonymous account, sending new videos right on schedule every day.

My mate and my son were busy fussing over another woman.

They took Serena to the Pack Healer for her checkup, flew to Northern Aurora Territory for the Blood Moon Festival, traveled to the Southern Savanna for the Great Pack Migration.

His private jet was on standby around the clock. Wherever Serena wanted to go, she'd be there the next morning.

The worst part: on the very steps where I'd lost my pup, Damon knelt on every step praying to the Moon Goddess for a blessing on Serena's baby.

The pain in my chest nearly split me apart. I couldn't sleep, night after night.

The television in my room played Damon's grand Bonding Ceremony preparations for Serena on a loop.

The man who couldn't stand a speck of dirt knelt on the ground and kissed Serena's feet.

He said he'd love her for the rest of his life.

I grabbed everything around me and hurled it at the screen.

Damon's face shattered, but his voice wouldn't go away.

The Healers' assistants in the hallway gossiped about their beautiful love story.

Outside my window, the fireworks he'd set off for Serena kept going and going.

I was being driven out of my mind.

I picked up my phone and called the Alpha Council.

"I need to report a violation of Mate Bond law."