Chapter 1

Stone fragments kept tumbling down, and dust permeated the air.

Unable to dodge in time, I was trapped in the crevice by a huge boulder. My left leg was jammed tight.

At that moment, even the astounding healing abilities in my blood were completely useless. I immediately felt a searing pain in my lower abdomen.

I was shuddering from the pain as I painstakingly dialed the pack communicator. "Help me! The cave collapsed, and my leg got stuck. My belly hurts—"

Before I could finish speaking, the warrior of the pack interrupted me in a cold voice, "Ms. Mason, the Alpha has already informed us beforehand that you'd harbor resentment after that conflict with Ms. Alicia.

"He said you're very likely to cause trouble on purpose by falsely claiming to be in danger, hence wasting rescue resources. If you're trying to get him to pity you and force him to show up by faking distress, please stop wasting your time."

As the wind and sand whipped across my face, I froze in place, and my heart suddenly sank. "No, I'm not lying! The walls actually caved in, and there's a huge boulder pressing against my leg. I can't even move an inch!"

My voice was filled with terror as I continued, "Please, think of the pup in my womb. If this goes on, both the pup and I will be in danger! Please come over as soon as you can!"

The warrior scoffed in annoyance. "Rescue resources are reserved for pack members who are in real danger! You're the one who messed things up yourself, so don't get us involved."

The next moment, the line went dead.

Immense pain spread across my body in waves. I bit down hard on my lip and tasted blood on my tongue.

Strong winds whipped up debris that incessantly rained down on me, and the air was thick with dust.

I was choking so much that my eyes teared up, and I began to cough violently.

My trapped leg gradually turned numb, but the churning pain in my lower abdomen was relentlessly tormenting me.

Pressing my palm against my belly, I whispered in a comforting tone, "It's okay, little one. I'll try calling for help again."

For the sake of the pup, I refused to give up.

With trembling hands, I dialed the communicator again.

As soon as the call went through, an obviously irritated voice rang out. "You again?"

Tears welled up uncontrollably in my eyes as I burst out sobbing, "I swear I'm not lying!"

I extended the communicator out through the crevice, hoping that the continuous loud rumble of falling rocks made it through to the other end of the line. "Listen! The cave is collapsing! I'm not sulking! I swear, I'm really trapped here!"

The relentless pain in my lower abdomen was indicating that the pup's life was slowly being snuffed out.

But I was trapped by the huge boulder, and I couldn't do anything. "My belly is in serious pain, and I can't hold on anymore! Please just send someone to rescue me!"

However, only mocking voices sounded from the other end of the line. "Her again? She doesn't know when to quit, does she? With such a difficult future mate clinging to him, no wonder the Alpha favored Ms. Alicia instead."

I begged, "Please, I'm really dying. Why won't you believe me…"

My voice had already turned hoarse, but as if they hadn't noticed it, they coldly warned me, "Cecilia, you're making a scene here. If you keep pestering us, we'll log this on record and hand it over to the elders of the pack for judgment!"

Immense helplessness seemed to be choking me in a death grip.

I was the victim here, but everyone just assumed I was taking advantage of the opportunity to throw a tantrum!

Before I could defend myself, the line went dead once again.

Shortly after the screen went dark, a personal message appeared.

It was a message from Ethan Steele, and his words were bone-piercingly cold. "Cecilia, just give it a rest, will you? I only told you to reflect on your mistakes. Do you really have to push me this far?

"The rescue team has real duties to attend to. They don't have time to play along with your nonsense! Anyway, Alicia just woke up. If you're done playing games, just get back here."

I stared at the screen, stunned. Then, hot tears streamed down my face.

The rubble could bury me at any moment. I was in an extremely dire situation, and my life was hanging by a thread.

But no one believed me.

Alicia Mason claimed I had pushed her into the basement, but I never even touched a hair on her.

Ethan was my future mate, but for another woman's sake, he drove both me and the pup in my womb into a dead end.

Coldness and desperation welled up within my chest. I gritted my teeth and dialed the pack's dedicated emergency channel. "The cave collapsed. I'm severely injured, and I'm bleeding profusely while pregnant. I need urgent medical support!"