Chapter One: Reborn

Celestine Sterling

It’s his birthday today.

I told Tyler that I had to spend the day handling matters between the Stone and Sterling Packs, making up excuse after excuse until he finally believed me. 

Every word that left my mouth was a lie, but it was a lie I gladly told because I wanted to surprise him.

A quiet giggle escaped my lips as I carefully carried the cake box toward our house, my heart fluttering with excitement at the thought of seeing the look on his face.

The real reason I had come up with that excuse was so I could secretly bake his birthday cake in the kitchen of Sterling's main house. 

Dad helped me from beginning to end, and the two of us laughed, teased one another, and reminisced so much that it felt as though we had been separated for years instead of only a few days. 

While we baked together, Dad casually mentioned that Vanessa still wasn't getting along with her husband. According to him, after their wedding, the two of them barely saw each other anymore.

He said the man was constantly occupied with his pack affairs.

But that couldn't possibly be true...could it?

Vanessa is my step-sister, and six months ago, both of us got married to men who would strengthen Sterling Pack's most important alliances.

The Stone Pack.

The Montero Pack.

Because my birthday fell the very next day, Dad allowed me to choose first. There wasn't even a moment of hesitation before I made my decision.

I chose Tyler.

He had always been my first love.

We had been together ever since we were little pups, growing up side by side as though we were destined to share every moment of our lives. 

Tyler and I were inseparable. We didn’t even care if we were mates or not, but were glad that we were.

We laughed together, cried together, dreamed together, and loved each other with every piece of our hearts. There had never been anyone else for me, nor had I ever wanted there to be.

Vanessa, unfortunately, wasn't as fortunate.

Rumors surrounded her husband long before the wedding ever took place. People whispered that he had abandoned his former pack before building one of his own from nothing. 

He was feared throughout the region for his ruthless reputation and cold, unreadable nature, yet no one could deny his strength. His wolves were among the strongest, and his people followed him with unwavering loyalty and absolute trust.

Sterling Pack owed a great debt to the Montero Pack for their continued support in dealing with the rogue wolves scattered throughout the Everest Mountains. 

Their alliance had protected countless lives over the years, making the marriage between Vanessa and the Montero Alpha as much a political necessity as it was a family obligation.

Even so, many people questioned why the Alpha insisted on living deep within the Forbidden Forest instead of establishing his territory closer to the neighboring packs. 

Because of that, Vanessa firmly requested permission to remain at our family's main house until her husband eventually built a residence somewhere near the borders shared by the Stone and Sterling Packs.

Unfortunately, that day never came.

As a result, despite being married, Vanessa spent most of her time living at our main house instead of with her own husband. 

Looking back now, it almost felt as though nothing had changed after her wedding. She was always there, joining us for meals, lingering in the living room, and filling the house with her familiar presence.

We never questioned it.

She is my step-sister, my family.

Our home had always been hers, and we welcomed her with open arms every single time she walked through the door. 

I looked up the moment our front door came into view. Tilting my head slightly, I frowned when I noticed how quiet the house was. 

It looked as though he had already gone to bed. The living room was shrouded in darkness, with every light switched off, while a warm glow seeped through the crack beneath our bedroom door upstairs.

Careful not to make a sound, I slipped inside the house and quietly made my way up the stairs.

A smile lingered on my lips as I imagined surprising him. I couldn't wait to see the look on his face when he realized I had surprised him. All the excitement I had carried with me throughout the trip made my heart flutter.

Then I heard it.

A strange sound drifted through the silence.

At first, I thought I had imagined it, but as I took another step closer to our bedroom, I heard it again.

A soft, breathless moan.

My entire body went cold the instant I recognized the voice.

“Oh...that's it…”

The smile disappeared from my face as though it had never existed.

Every hair on my body stood on end, while my heart pounded so violently against my chest that I could hear nothing else. My breathing became uneven, and an overwhelming sense of dread settled deep inside me.

No...

That couldn't be.

My trembling feet carried me toward the door. It was slightly ajar, leaving only the smallest gap, as though fate itself wanted me to witness what was happening inside.

With shaking fingers, I slowly pushed the door open.

The cake box slipped from my grasp before I even realized I had let go. It crashed onto the floor with a dull thud, the sound echoing through the room.

Two naked bodies froze on our bed before both of them turned toward me.

The world around me seemed to stop.

Time stood still.

The air vanished from my lungs, and my heart shattered into countless pieces inside my chest. Tyler and Vanessa, the two people I trusted the most, were fucking on the bed we shared after our marriage.

“My moon goddess…what the hell is going on here?” I asked, my voice trembling despite my desperate attempt to keep it steady.

Vanessa didn't look guilty in the slightest. Instead, a smug smile curved across her lips as she slowly climbed out of the bed, making no effort whatsoever to cover her naked body.

“Oops,” she giggled with a playful shrug. “Looks like we finally got caught after six months.”

She turned toward Tyler as if I wasn't even standing there. “So,” she asked teasingly, “what are we going to do now?”

Tyler glanced at her before meeting my shattered gaze.

“It's not what you think,” he said, sounding almost irritated that he had been interrupted. “I was only giving her what her husband couldn't.”

My chest tightened so violently that it became difficult to breathe. 

“What...the hell did you just say?”

The words escaped in nothing more than a whisper. I didn't know whether I wanted to collapse onto the floor or tear the two of them apart with my own hands.

“For six months?” I repeated, my voice rising with every word. “You've been sleeping with someone else for six months...and not just anyone.”

I pointed at Vanessa with a trembling hand.

“My step-sister, Tyler.”

The tears burning behind my eyes finally spilled over.

“You've been cheating on me with my own sister behind my back for six months... even after we got married?”

My voice cracked as the unbearable weight of betrayal settled over me.

No one answered me.

“How could you do this?” I raised my tone, unable to stop anymore. I laughed bitterly through my tears. 

“You looked me in the eyes and told me you loved me. You made promises to me. So tell me…” My voice broke completely. “How could you do something like this?”

“What did I even do to you to deserve this?”

“Is this why you refused to mark me even though I was your mate?” I demanded. “Was it because you didn't want our mate bond exposing your betrayals? Because you knew I'd feel every single lie?”

Tyler had insisted that we didn't need a marking ceremony. According to him, our marriage was already enough, and there was no reason to follow the old wolf traditions.

I believed him without question.

I hadn't even told Dad about it because I knew he would question Tyler's loyalty. I trusted him completely, believing with all my heart that he was loyal not only to me but also to our pack.

How stupid and blind I have been.

Silence surrounded the four corners of this room.

Vanessa's gaze drifted toward the ruined cake lying upside down on the floor before she chuckled, utterly amused by my heartbreak.

“We simply saw an opportunity,” she said casually. “Arman Sterling asked me to stop by your house, and you happened to leave to take care of pack matters.”

She crossed her arms with a satisfied smile. “Tyler told me you'd be gone for hours, and I had nowhere else to be.”

Her grin widened shamelessly. “So we figured this place would be perfect for spending some quality time together.”

She laughed softly. “Tyler always takes such good care of me, step-sis.”

Her eyes sparkled with cruel amusement.

“Especially in bed.”

My entire body trembled with fury as I looked between the two of them. 

I couldn’t stop myself from approaching her to slap her as hard as I could.

What hurt almost as much as the betrayal itself was Tyler's expression.

There was no guilt.

No shame.

Not even the slightest hint of regret.

He sighed as though I was the one making everything difficult. He stood up and pulled me away from Vanessa as if I would dare to hurt her more.

“Celestine,” he called as if he was trying to scold me, “stop being difficult, let's talk about this later, okay? You know how much I love you.”

His voice faltered. 

“This is just...I just…” The words died in his throat; even he couldn't come up with a believable excuse.

“Oh, Ty, don't even bother explaining,” Vanessa said with a laugh after she recovered from what I did to her. She looked at me with open mockery.

“You were simply too confident.” A slow, victorious smirk spread across her face. “You really believed no one could ever take him away from you.”

Then she laughed.

It was loud, triumphant, and merciless, echoing throughout the room while the pieces of my heart shattered one after another beneath my feet.

“Dad will hear about this,” I said through trembling breaths, my voice shaking with fury and heartbreak. “I'm severing all ties between the Sterling and Stone packs. Whatever this is...it's over.”

I pointed at both Tyler and Vanessa, my entire body trembling as I fought to keep myself together.

“We're breaking our bonds.”

The moment those words left my lips, I turned around and walked away before either of them could stop me.

I hurried out of the house, my vision blurred by tears as I stumbled across the yard. Every instinct urged me to run as far away as possible, but after only a few steps, I instinctively slowed down.

Right...I couldn't risk running.

Not anymore.

My hand instinctively drifted to my stomach as another wave of grief crashed over me. I wanted to surprise him.

I wanted to tell my husband that we were finally going to have the family we had dreamed of on his birthday as another special gift.

Our baby.

I had imagined the look on Tyler's face when I told him the news. I pictured him lifting me into his arms, laughing, crying, kissing my forehead while promising to protect us both.

Instead...I found him in bed with my step-sister.

A sob escaped my lips as tears streamed uncontrollably down my cheeks. The future I had imagined only moments ago had already crumbled into pieces.

The wind suddenly shifted around me.

I slowly looked over my shoulder and saw Tyler running after me, his jaw clenched so tightly that the muscles in his face twitched with restrained anger.

“You're not going anywhere,” he shouted, his voice echoing through the clearing. “And you're not telling your father about this!”

I stopped walking before letting out a bitter, humorless scoff.

“You shoved your dick inside another woman, and now you're afraid people will find out?” I turned to face him, disgust written across my face. “You're fucking insane, Tyler.”

His breathing became heavier as he closed the distance between us. “You can't cut ties with my family,” he snapped. “You know exactly why.”

“If you sever the alliance, Vanessa's husband will find out what happened. You know what kind of man he is. If he learns she cheated on him, he'll kill her.”

For a long moment, I simply stared at him. I couldn't believe what I was hearing.

He had cheated on me, betrayed our marriage right in front of my eyes. Yet the only thing he cared about...was protecting Vanessa.

How could I have been so blind?

“Then figure out your problems on your own,” I said coldly, forcing myself not to cry in front of him.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Vanessa approaching from behind him, completely unashamed.

I turned away, determined to leave. 

Before I could take another step, Tyler's hand shot forward and wrapped around my wrist with crushing force.

Pain exploded through my arm. “Let go!” I cried, struggling against his grip. “You're hurting me!”

He didn't even flinch. 

Instead, something inside his eyes changed.

The warmth I had once fallen in love with disappeared, replaced by something cold...something terrifying.

My gaze shifted downward as I noticed his hands were holding something.

A silver dagger.

“So...” he said quietly, “you really won't stay silent.”

“Then I guess we'll just have to come up with a different story.”

My entire body froze.

Behind him, Vanessa let out a soft, amused laugh.

“Right! We’ll start with…a rogue attacked,” she said with a wicked smile. “And murdered Arman Sterling's precious daughter.”

“What the hell are you saying?!” I screamed.

My blood ran cold.

No...

Surely...

They couldn't...

The realization struck me a second too late.

Tyler lunged.

Everything happened within the span of a single heartbeat.

One second, I was staring into the eyes of the man I had loved with every piece of my soul.

The next...

A violent, searing pain erupted through my chest; the silver dagger plunged deep into my heart.

A strangled gasp escaped my lips as the world seemed to stop turning. He pulled it out, and my sister took the dagger from his hands to stab it into my wounded chest over and over again.

Every sound disappeared; I couldn't even fight back because of the tremendous shock.

Everything dissolved into an unbearable silence, as though I had been ripped away from reality and thrown into an endless void.

The pain was beyond anything words could describe. It ripped through every nerve, every muscle, every fragile piece of my existence.

Yet somehow...the agony tearing through my heart wasn't caused by the blade.

It was caused by him.

Tyler had chosen this, that I deserved to die.

All for Vanessa.

My own stepsister.

Warm blood poured from the wound, soaking through my dress before dripping onto the ground beneath me. Each drop felt like another piece of my life slipping away.

My breathing became ragged.

Every breath burned.

Every heartbeat grew weaker than the last. My legs finally gave out beneath me, and I collapsed onto the cold earth. 

Darkness slowly crept into the edges of my vision, swallowing the world little by little.

With what little strength I had left, I lifted my head one final time. Through tear-filled eyes, I looked at Tyler and her.

Their faces blurred before me.

Tyler Stone...Vanessa…how could you?

The last thing I felt was not the blade lodged inside my chest...

It was the unbearable agony of a heart that had been loved too little by the man it had loved too much.

—

“Celly? Celly, can you hear me?” A familiar voice broke through the void.

I blinked repeatedly. For a moment, all I saw were shifting colors and blurred shapes dancing before my eyes.

Slowly, the world came back into focus, and the first thing I realized was that I was sitting inside my father's study.

My father's study.

The recognition struck me like a bolt of lightning, stealing the air from my lungs as I stared blankly at the room around me. 

My chest rose and fell unevenly while cool, air-conditioned air filled my lungs, a sensation so ordinary and yet so impossible that it left me feeling dizzy.

I swallowed hard, struggling to make sense of what was happening.

Hadn't I died just moments ago?

The memory was still vivid, painfully clear, lingering at the edges of my mind like a nightmare I couldn't escape.

My hand immediately flew to my chest.

I froze.

There was no blood staining my clothes.

No dagger buried in my flesh.

My trembling fingers pressed against the spot where unbearable pain should have been, searching desperately for some sign that what I remembered had actually happened. 

Instead, all I felt was the steady rhythm of my heartbeat beneath my palm.

Alive.

I was alive.

I was alive.