Chapter 3

I ran through the hospital in a panic, only to find my father's body lying still, covered by a white sheet. He would never open his eyes to look at me again.

I felt like the whole world was crashing down.

"Dad!" I collapsed to my knees, sobbing, my hands searching for any sign of warmth, but all I felt was a cold, lifeless body.

The hands that once guided and protected me were forever stilled.

An agony sharper than anything I'd ever known tore through my chest.

"Why? Why did this have to happen?" I sobbed.

My vision blurred with tears as I grabbed the healer's coat and screamed, "How could my father just die like this?"

The healer looked guilty. "I'm so sorry, Ms. Morgan. It was Ms. Cole… She said the hospital needed to save on electricity and ordered us to cut the power.

"Mr. Cole told us her word was as good as his. After the power was cut for half an hour, the ventilator stopped working. We did everything we could… But your father…"

Cassandra! It was her again!

A surge of fury and hatred consumed me.

As I fought back my tears, I asked the healer to handle my father's arrangements. Then, I shifted into my wolf and dashed home like a flash of silver lightning.

But as soon as I reached the house, deafening music greeted me. Cassandra was throwing a party.

I was about to kick down the door when I heard her voice drift out above the noise, talking to her friends.

"If her useless father hadn't saved Sebastian, do you really think he would've ever marked Vivian? She was never good enough for him!"

"So, you ruined their marking ceremony?"

"Of course!" Cassandra said, her voice sickeningly sweet as she spoke the cruelest words. "Sebastian wanted to mark that vixen on my mom's death anniversary! It disgusted me! So, I arranged for those Rogues to take out her mom."

"Aren't you scared she'll find out and come after you?"

Cassandra just laughed smugly. "Why would I be scared? Sebastian will always protect me! Now that her useless father is dead, what do you think he'll do? At most, he'll tell me to behave. That's it!"

Every word from her lips ripped away the last of my restraint. Something inside me snapped.

A furious howl erupted from my chest, shattering the party's music.

I kicked the door open and lunged at Cassandra, my claws slashing across her face as blood sprayed.

She shrieked and fell to the floor, clutching her face in disbelief. "You! How dare you hurt me?"

With a shout, she called for help. Several male wolves shifted instantly and pinned me to the ground.

"Your father was just a lowly Omega. He was wasting hospital resources. I did you a favour by saving that money!"

Cassandra strutted over in her heels and pressed her foot down on my face, grinding it into the floor. Her eyes gleamed with triumph.

The pain was so sharp it nearly knocked the air out of me.

"Idiot, do you get it now? I could kill your parents, and you too. Sebastian will always take my side." Cassandra sneered down at me. "And you? You're nothing but trash."

The pounding music drowned out my cries as her friends joined in, kicking and hitting me.

I tried to fight back, but it only led to more brutal blows and the searing pain of silver.

I was trained, but there were too many of them.

Soon, I was left gasping for breath, bruised and barely conscious, staring up at Cassandra through a haze of blood and rage.

"Cassandra... You will pay for this..." I said through ragged breaths.

"Pay?" She sneered, slapping my face. "Pathetic. You still don't see how things are? I'll show you what real pain feels like."

Then, she turned to her followers and ordered coldly, "Lock her in the dark room!"

They tied up my hands and feet and threw me into a dark storage room.

The darkness only made the grief worse, crashing down on me. Both my parents were gone, and my world had fallen apart.

I struggled to break free, but the ropes were too tight.

Just then, I heard Sebastian's voice outside the door. For a moment, I felt a spark of hope.

But when I looked through a crack, I saw Cassandra push Sebastian onto the bed and climb on top of him.

"What's all the noise out here?" Sebastian asked, pinching her nose. "Tell everyone to leave. Vivian doesn't like all this noise."

Cassandra pressed herself against him, her voice soft and seductive as she twisted in his lap and ran her tongue along his throat. "You're obviously responding to me, Sebastian. Why are you still pretending?"

Sebastian frowned, his voice strained. "Cassandra, you're my sister..."

She got up off him. "So you don't want me? Then, I'll just find someone else."

He immediately pulled her back, holding her tightly. "Don't go! Cassandra, you really are a little devil... No one else can ever know about this. Vivian is my Luna."

In the next second, they tore at each other's clothes, desperate and hurried.

Through the narrow crack of the door, the light caught the outline of their bodies tangled together.

Sebastian possessed her with a rough urgency, letting out a low growl of satisfaction.

I pressed my hand over my mouth, nails digging into my palm so deeply that I nearly drew blood.

Deep inside, the mate bond shook violently, and my wolf howled in agony. The pain was sharper than any burn from silver.

My lips bled as I bit down, the taste of blood spreading across my tongue.

The man who was supposed to be my mate betrayed me with the woman he called his sister.

I was overwhelmed by unbearable pain. I curled up, unable to shed a single tear. Numbness and devastation took over, leaving nothing but a cold, burning hatred.