Chapter 2

I stayed at the healing center for three months.

Caleb stayed with me for all three months. He tended to everything I needed, including meals, washing, and medicine.

The nurses whispered of his devotion, while the elders praised his sense of responsibility.

Amid Caleb's "devotion", the pup I lost was quietly forgotten by everyone.

On the day I could finally get out of bed, the room was filled with my favorite roses.

"Selina, you're doing better. There's a document I need you to sign."

Caleb wrapped his arms around me from behind, his chin brushing my shoulder. His voice was soft.

"They caught the culprit. He had a pup infected with wolfsbane, so he was desperate. That's why they used him.

"He's willing to accept punishment from the council and pay compensation. Once you sign the settlement, this matter ends here."

I lowered my head and said nothing.

In the silence, the door opened quietly.

Alison walked in.

She wore a white dress, her pregnant belly round and full beneath it.

"Selina, are you feeling better?"

I looked up, and the necklace with the Moon Goddess pendant around Alison's neck caught my eye.

Just days ago, it had rested quietly in my jewelry box.

Now, it was on her.

I pushed Caleb away.

"You said that the necklace is passed down through generations of Lunas. It was said to be blessed by the Moon Goddess to protect a mother during childbirth.

"Now that I don't have a pup, you think I don't need it anymore, is that it?"

Caleb froze, guilt flashing across his eyes.

Alison hurriedly took off the necklace and tried to put it into my hands.

"I'm sorry, Selina. I didn't know."

I didn't take it.

The necklace slipped from my palm, hitting the floor with a heavy, dull thud.

"That's not what I meant, Selina. I just think that no matter what happens, we should move forward. We can still have a second pup."

"Alison is about to give birth," Caleb added after a pause. "I'll have the nursery prepared for her and her pup."

I snapped my head up.

The nursery.

The room that I had started preparing the very second I found out I was pregnant.

On the wall was my own painting of a moonlit forest and him, the "invincible Alpha father".

In the cabinet were tiny robes I stitched by hand, with the sleeves redone three times before they finally sat right.

Now, he was going to hand it all over to Alison.

Sensing my silence, Caleb added, "I promise, when our second pup is born, I'll prepare an even more beautiful room."

"What if I don't agree?"

He froze for a moment, his eyebrows knitting together.

"Selina. Don't make a fuss."

"A fuss?"

My voice sharpened. "Our pup has been gone for only three months, and you want me to forgive the one responsible for his death, and give everything that was mine to Alison? Caleb, you don't deserve to be a father!"

My voice rose as I lifted my hand to strike him.

But Alison suddenly rushed forward, stepping in front of him.

My smack landed squarely on her face, and her pale cheek flushed instantly, swelling beneath the blow.

The vivid red mark on her face and the tears pooling in her eyes made her look heartbreakingly fragile.

"Selina! You're being completely unreasonable!" Caleb roared.

Alison collapsed into his arms, seizing the moment to say, "I'm sorry, Selina… This is all my fault. You should hit me and blame me. It's only right…"

My whole body trembled with rage.

Caleb, however, only cast me a cold glance.

"Selina, you need to calm down."

Just like that, I was taken to the nursery.

Werewolves moved in and out. The room I once knew was already half dismantled.

I tried to step forward and to stop them, but Caleb grabbed my wrist.

"Selina… you have to face the darkness if you want to move past it."

Caleb's hand was warm, but all I felt was coldness that seeped deep into my bones.

I watched as they took the tiny clothes out of the cabinet one by one, folding them carefully and placing them into boxes.

The little robe, the one with the sleeves I had redone three times, was at the very bottom.

They covered the mural with white cloth, saying it would be repainted.

As such, the moonlit forest vanished behind it.

At that moment, I finally understood that the instant Caleb made his choice, it wasn't just our pup that died. The mate who once loved me with everything he had had already become someone else's support.

My eyes burned, and tears slipped down before I could stop them.

"Caleb, I hate you."

His entire body stiffened.

Then, almost instinctively, he pulled me tightly into his arms.

"I'm sorry."

In the next instant, the Beta, Marcus Knight's voice rang out in sudden panic.

"Alpha Caleb! Alison tried to take her own life!"