Chapter 3

Earlier the next morning, Dominic stopped me before I could leave the house.

"Here, this is for you."

He fished out a thin metal chain that he helped me put on my wrist. It was incredibly light and had the sort of golden sheen that came from cheap materials. However, the instant my sensitive skin came into contact with it, I felt a stinging pain.

This wasn't real gold, but an iron chain coated in silver and made to look like gold.

In werewolf culture, gifting a mate an iron chain symbolized "imprisonment" and "enslavement". Usually, it was put on low-ranking werewolves who had done something wrong.

He had gifted Vivian a moonstone bracelet that could soothe and nurture the wolf inside, yet what I got was a silver bracelet that could kill me.

Staring at me with an "adoring" look, he said, "Although it's not anything expensive, I feel like it suits you very well, as it can lock our love."

I lowered my head to gaze at the cheap silver chain, my fingers trembling slightly.

The mate had to wear shackles while the mistress got to wear precious jewelry.

Fighting hard to squash the impulse to rip the chain off of me, I shot him a sweet smile. "Thanks. I love it a lot."

Satisfied, he kissed my cheek and left.

…

The next morning, I specifically took the long way around to my parents' house. Even before I stepped through the door, the laughter and happy voices drifting out from within were already loud enough to reach my ears.

"Aurora sure is stupid. Just look at how touched she was to receive a lousy chain!" Vivian's voice was shrill and mocking. "Once Dominic hands me the pup, I'll chase her out of the pack and turn her into a rogue!"

My mother, Sierra Black, said in a nauseatingly sweet voice, "Don't worry, sweetheart. Did we not succeed in snatching the position of Jason's mate for you?"

My father, Ollie Morris, was puffing away at a cigar. He added in a stern voice, "The moment we get the pup, Aurora will be of no use to us anymore. Just find a random excuse or say that she went crazy after the labor and have her banished to the far north."

In response to that, Dominic spoke up, tone gentle but determined, "You don't have to worry about a thing. The pup is healthy and strong. I'm willing to do anything and everything if it's for Vivian!"

From where I stood outside the door, I felt as though all the blood had frozen in my veins.

As it turned out, this was a plot that everyone was involved in together. This so-called family of mine had never once thought of me as one of them. I was nothing but a surrogate mother, a piece of trash that could be thrown away at any moment.

Several minutes later, a maid opened the door to bring in drinks.

Dominic happened to be standing in the foyer, so the instant the door opened, his gaze snapped to the threshold.

There was nobody there.

However, scattered across the floor were the links of the silver chain I had ripped off with my bare hand, along with a piece of paper that had my bloody fingerprints on it.

In werewolf culture, to return a gift from a mate along with one's blood signified that one was rejecting the mate bond.

Dominic's eyes widened, just as a sharp pain lanced through his heart. His hand flew up to clutch at his chest, the agony causing him to fall to his knees.

That was a sign that a crack had appeared in our mate bond.

Face devoid of all color, he dashed out of the house as though he had lost his mind.

Nonetheless, the streets were empty, with only the cold wind howling all around him. The docile she-wolf who had always patiently waited for him was gone.

Terror swamped him, threatening to drown him under.

Hands shaking, he desperately dialed my number.

The moment the call connected, his bellowing voice blasted through the speakers. "Aurora! Where are you?"

I didn't speak.

Instead, what came over the line in reply to Dominic was the cold voice of a healer, asking, "Ms. Aurora, the high-purity wolfsbane serum is ready. This will kill the pup in your womb and sever its bloodline connection to its father. Please sign here."

I distinctly heard Dominic stop breathing.

Several seconds of dead silence later, he abruptly exploded. "Wolfsbane! You're going to kill our pup? That's my only heir! How dare you, Aurora!"

His furious roars simply had my lips curling into a cruel smile, and I didn't hesitate to end the call.

Goodbye, my Alpha!

Goodbye to the pup that was never truly mine!