Chapter 8

When I woke up at the infirmary, Claude was sitting by the bed. His eyes were bloodshot, as if he hadn't slept all night.

"I might've gone too far last night." He raised a hand to touch my forehead, but I pulled away.

"Noble Alpha, you'd better keep your distance. After all, you wouldn't want a vile she-wolf like me to tarnish your reputation, would you?"

My voice was ice-cold, and it inexplicably irritated Claude.

"That's enough, Heather! Victoria's already agreed to let what happened last night slide, and yet you still have the audacity to make a scene?"

I glared at him fiercely, as if he were my enemy. "A scene? In your eyes, I'm always the one making scenes, always the unreasonable one. Get out! Go be with your precious Victoria! It's not like you'd believe anything I say anyway!"

With that, I turned my head away, refusing to look at him anymore.

This behavior seemed to anger him further.

He suddenly leaned in, pinning both my hands above my head with one hand while the other gripped my chin, forcing me to meet his eyes.

"How dare you act so self-righteous?" His breath washed over my face. "You're the one who made Victoria look bad over the authorship issue. We've already found the evidence, so is it really that hard for you to admit fault?"

Looking at him from such close proximity, I suddenly realized how unfamiliar this face had become.

"I told you, I didn't sabotage the spell. What I tore up was just the original manuscript. It had no effect on the s—"

"Shut your mouth!" He cut me off roughly. "Even now you're still lying? Heather, when did you become so vain and vicious? Isn't this all because you're jealous of how I treat Victoria? You want my affection, don't you?"

A flicker of obsession passed through his eyes. "Fine, since you want it so badly, I'll give it to you."

He lowered his head, ignoring my struggles as he forcibly tore open my collar.

His warm lips landed roughly on the side of my neck, carrying the weight of punishment.

He wasn't wrong. There was a time when I'd longed for this kind of deep intimacy with him. But I understood what he was doing to me now wasn't love, but humiliation.

It was the punishment a master inflicted on a disobedient pet, an attempt to use primal instinct to break my will.

His actions only made me feel disgust.

Just as his teeth were about to pierce my gland, I somehow managed to summon a burst of strength from somewhere deep within my already weakened body.

I wrenched my head to the side and bit down on his forearm with all my might.

Blood spread across my lips, its metallic taste filling my mouth.

Claude grunted in pain, his movements halting abruptly. He stared at me in disbelief, momentarily dazed as he looked at the deep, bone-baring teeth marks on his arm.

Seizing the opportunity, I shoved him away and scrambled off the bed. Then, I wiped my mouth repeatedly, as if it had touched something utterly filthy.

At last, the tears broke free—not just from hurt, but also from relief.

I looked at him, my gaze utterly hollow. "Claude, you truly disgust me."

Claude froze on the spot, as if he hadn't expected me to describe him as disgusting.

"This bite is to mourn the ten years I have given to a heartless wolf."

With that, I turned and rushed out without sparing him another glance.

Claude stood there dumbfounded. He instinctively moved to go after me, then abruptly stopped in his tracks.

Behind me came his enraged voice, "Heather, don't bother coming back! If you won't be Luna, there are plenty who will!"

I smiled self-deprecatingly. Still, I didn't look back.

Half an hour later, I stood at the security checkpoint at the human airport in new attire.

I took out my phone and noticed dozens of missed calls, all from the Council of Elders. They probably wanted to inquire about the defense spell.

I pried out the SIM card expressionlessly and, with a flick of my wrist, dropped it into the nearby trash bin.

Goodbye, Moonwing pack.

Goodbye, Claude.

From this moment on, Beta Heather ceased to exist.

And in her place, there was only Heather Ashwood—a human and a designer.