Chapter 2

I hung up the phone and went straight home, ignoring the Healer’s attempts to stop me.

When I pushed open the bedroom door, I saw Isabella plastered against Lucas.

She was wearing a silk nightgown so thin it was basically transparent, barely covering anything.

She wasn’t wearing a bra, and her chest was pressed tight against Lucas’s arm, rising and falling with her breathing to create deliberate friction.

Lucas sat on the edge of the bed, frowning slightly, a file in his hand, his body stiff.

He tried to pull his arm away, his tone sounding helpless. "Isabella, go put some clothes on. You're a big girl now. I'm your brother; you can't walk around in front of me like this."

Isabella didn't back off.

Instead, she doubled down, melting into his arms. She pouted her lips, tears instantly welling up in her eyes.

"Lucas, don't you want me anymore? Am I ugly now?"

"I just wanted a hug. You used to love hugging me. Did I do something wrong? Waaah..."

That sickly sweet, childish voice, paired with her mature, seductive body, made me want to vomit.

Lucas softened.

He stopped pushing her away, sighed, and reached out to pat her back. "Don't cry. I didn't mean that. Of course I want you; I'm your brother."

Isabella buried her face in the crook of his neck, making satisfied noises.

But from an angle Lucas couldn't see, she lifted her head, her gaze locking onto me at the door.

There was no five-year-old innocence in those eyes—only naked provocation and gloating.

I didn't storm in to stop them like I used to. I just watched coldly.

Lucas finally noticed me.

He jumped like he’d been electrocuted, shoving Isabella away so hard she stumbled and hit the nightstand.

Ignoring Isabella's cry of pain, he strode toward me, panic and concern written all over his face. "Babe, you're back? How are you feeling? What did the Healer say?"

He tried to gloss over the awkwardness, reaching out to support me. "Don't stand there, go lie down. Just now... Isabella was just throwing a tantrum. She doesn't know any better, don't take it to heart."

I sidestepped his hand.

He had just touched that woman's skin. It felt dirty.

Lucas’s hand hung in mid-air before he awkwardly retracted it.

He took a deep breath, trying to soothe me gently. "I know you're hurting. About the baby... I'm heartbroken too. But we have to look forward. The Healer said it was an issue with your constitution. Once you recover, we can definitely have another child."

I sneered internally. There would be no more children.

But I couldn't be bothered to argue. I just nodded silently.

Seeing me nod, he relaxed. "Get some rest then. I need to handle some pack business in the study."

I nodded, went to my room, and started packing. Half an hour later, two suitcases were full.

After packing, I remembered the nursery.

It held everything I had bought for Leo over the last five months, including a pair of little deerskin boots I had sewn myself.

Even though the baby was gone, I wanted to take those shoes.

But when I pushed the door open, I went cold.

The nursery was a wreck.

The crib Lucas had built was overturned. The plush toys in the corner were ripped open, stuffing flying everywhere.

The mural I had painted on the wall was splashed with red paint, dripping down like blood.

And the little clothes I cared about most, along with those boots, were now a pile of shredded fabric at Isabella's feet.

Isabella held a pair of sharp scissors.

She stood in the middle of the ruins, snipping apart the last pacifier.

Hearing the door open, she turned around.

The innocent expression on Isabella's face was gone.

She played with the scissors, her eyes venomous and mean, a cruel smile curling her lips.

"Oops, you caught me."

Her voice wasn't that disgusting baby voice anymore; it was dripping with mockery.

"Shame about the cute clothes." She stomped on the pile of rags, grinding her heel into them. "But it doesn't matter. That little bastard won't be wearing them anyway. Keeping them is bad luck. I got rid of them for you; you should thank me."

I stared at her, my nails digging deep into my palms. "You're faking it."

"Is this your first day realizing that?" Isabella laughed, trembling with mirth. "Only a moron like Lucas believes I have the IQ of a five-year-old. But thanks to you being so stupid and swallowing everything, I got to play this game for so long."

She stepped closer, lowering her voice. "How did the Wolfsbane taste?"

"Too bad you didn't die. But I'm so happy that bastard in your belly is dead."

Slap!

I used every ounce of my strength to slap her hard across the face.

Isabella's head snapped to the side, blood trickling from the corner of her mouth.

But she didn't fight back. Instead, she smirked triumphantly.

The next second, she let out a piercing scream and threw herself backward, tumbling down the stairs.

"Ahhh! Luna, don't kill me! I'm sorry!"

"Isabella!" Lucas's horrified roar came from downstairs.

He rushed over and scooped up Isabella, who had rolled to the bottom of the stairs.

Isabella, covered in blood and shivering in his arms, pointed at me standing at the top of the stairs, crying hysterically.

"Lucas... Luna wants to kill me... She said I killed the baby..."

"I just accidentally broke something in the baby's room... and she pushed me..."

Lucas snapped his head up to look at me.

His eyes were full of disbelief and suppressed rage.

"Emily! Are you crazy?"

He roared, "She has the mind of a five-year-old! Even if she broke something, you can't push her down the stairs! She doesn't have a wolf right now; you could have killed her!"

I stood at the top, looking down coldly at the pair.

"I didn't push her. She jumped. And her brain isn't damaged. She's acting. She trashed the nursery, and she poisoned me with Wolfsbane. She just admitted it."

Seeing my cold expression and the hatred in my eyes, a flicker of doubt crossed Lucas's face.

He looked at Isabella in his arms and asked seriously, "Did you jump?"

"I didn't! My head hurts so bad..." Isabella switched back to the childish voice, looking at me with terror, shaking her head frantically. "Lucas, it wasn't me! I'm not a bad girl... Lucas, don't throw me away..."

Seeing her pain and fear, Lucas's doubt turned into heartache.

"Enough, Emily. How can you slander her like that?"

Lucas looked at the mockery in my eyes, his tone softening but patronizing. "I know you lost the child and you're traumatized, but I saw Isabella's brain injury happen with my own eyes. She can't be faking. She's just like a child; maybe she just wanted to play with the toys and broke them by accident. How could you hurt her?"

"Apologize to Isabella now, and I'll pretend this never happened."

Apologize?

Killing her wouldn't be enough, and he wants me to apologize.

In that moment, the last shred of affection I had for Lucas vanished.

I walked down the stairs, step by step.

Lucas thought I was coming to apologize and let out a sigh of relief.

But I just stopped in front of him and said calmly, "Let's dissolve the mate bond."