Chapter 3

I sat in the car for a long time before finally driving toward the safe house Alexander and I shared. It was a mating gift from my father. Every blade of grass, every piece of furniture and decoration had been personally selected and designed by me.

More importantly, my daughter Ella was still at home. I didn't want adult problems to affect her.

From a distance, I could see the villa blazing with lights.

As I pushed open the door, I heard the boy's crude, malicious laughter mixed with the weak whimpers of our pet dog.

My heart sank. Alexander had already brought Amber and her son home. Thinking of Connor's rudeness, I became even more afraid that he would hurt my daughter, so I walked into the house faster.

I froze as I heard a man and woman's voices.

"Alexander, your daughter lives in a room as luxurious as a palace, yet you want to drive away your son?"

"That's not what I meant..."

"He's your son! Haven't we suffered enough all these years? Back then, you sent pregnant me to the southern territories to pursue Raven, leaving an Omega to live alone. I barely managed to raise the child, and now you have the heart to let us wander the streets?"

After a long pause, I heard the man sigh.

"Fine, for now you and the child can stay at my parents' place in the elder district. I'll let him pick a room here and have it decorated according to his preferences. Once I explain everything to Raven, I'll bring you both back. Raven is kind-hearted. She'll definitely accept you both. Just give me some time."

Connor was jumping around in the room, his mud-caked boots trampling on expensive custom carpets, his dirty hands leaving stains on walls and furniture. He carelessly threw himself into Alexander's arms, acting spoiled: "Daddy! This dump is huge! So much better than the doghouse me and mama lived in! I want the biggest room."

Alexander looked pained, but when he looked up, his eyes met mine.

"Raven... when did you get back?"

Connor in his arms whipped around, eyes venomous as he spat at me: "Get out! You stinking bitch! This is me and my parents' home! Mama says this will all be mine someday. Get out of my house!"

His snarling expression twisted that face so similar to Alexander's.

Alexander scolded: "Mind your manners. Amber, is this how you've been raising the child?"

Amber's eyes welled with tears.

"I'm sorry. Connor has lacked father's love for so long, suffered with me, and no one taught him proper behavior... It's my fault for being useless..."

Hearing this, Alexander turned to me and said, "Raven, just let it go. Don't argue with a child. The carpets and walls he damaged don't matter to you. We can just replace them." Amber's affected sobbing reached my ears.

I pulled at the corner of my mouth. My mate of five years was actually asking me to yield to his bastard child.

"Amber, this isn't lack of father's love. This is lack of proper upbringing." I didn't care how ugly their expressions became after I said this. Since entering the house, I hadn't seen my daughter anywhere. I walked directly toward Ella's room.

Connor suddenly blocked my path with considerable force. Alexander stood behind him, seeming to support the boy's defiance.

"Daddy said I could pick whichever room I like. This room is the biggest and best, so I'm living here! You can't go in!"

Amber pretended to intervene: "Connor, be good."

Seeing their coordinated behavior, I grew increasingly worried about my daughter's situation. Ignoring Alexander's attempts to stop me, I forcefully pushed past them and burst into Ella's room.

The scene that greeted me stopped my heart completely.

The husky Peter lay motionless in a pool of blood, his white fur stained crimson. Multiple deep lacerations covered his small body, and his breathing was so shallow it was barely detectable. His usually bright eyes were dim and unfocused, filled with pain and confusion.

Four-year-old Ella was huddled in the corner like a broken doll, her tiny body trembling with fear. A clear handprint marked her small face - red, swollen, and undeniably from a hand much larger than her own.

The mark stood out starkly against her pale skin, and I could see finger impressions bruising along her delicate cheek.

She was crying, but no sound came out. Just silent tears streaming down her face as she stared at me with eyes full of terror and pain.

"No..." The word escaped my lips as barely a whisper. "No, no, no..."

The shock hit me like a physical blow, stealing my breath and making my vision blur. This was my baby, my innocent little girl who had never hurt anyone in her short life. And Peter - sweet, gentle Peter who had been Ella's constant companion since the day she was born.

"Ella?" My voice cracked as I called her name. "Baby, what happened? How did this happen?"

The moment she saw me, Ella rushed over like a startled animal, clinging tightly to my legs. Her small finger pointed at Connor, her voice trembling and broken: "Mommy... he... he hurt Peter... it hurt so much... Peter cried... he laughed... he hit me too... my face hurts..." Her little body shook violently.

I crouched down, carefully lifting Ella and pressing her tear-stained face against my shoulder. Only then did she finally let go completely, her silent sobs becoming heart-wrenching wails that echoed through the room.

The sound of my daughter's anguish broke something fundamental inside me. No mother could hear their child cry like that and remain unmoved.

How dare he? How dare this vicious little monster hurt my daughter and torture an innocent animal? And how dare Alexander stand by and let it happen? He was supposed to be here, supposed to be protecting our family, and instead he had allowed this... this savage child to run wild in our home.

My grief transformed into fury so intense it felt like fire in my veins.

My icy gaze swept past Connor and Amber at the doorway before fixing on Alexander's pale face.

Amber shrieked first: "Impossible! Connor is just a child! How could he..."

But Connor lifted his chin, his eyes fierce and proud: "Serves them right! Who told that stupid dog to bark at me! The little brat dared to glare at me too!"

The color drained completely from Alexander's face. He looked at Connor, his voice strained: "Connor... you..."

"So what if I did!" Connor stuck out his neck defiantly, showing no remorse. "That dog deserved to die! That little brat deserved to be hit! Everything here will be mine someday! They all need to get out!"

Hearing Ella's heartbroken sobs, Alexander's expression flickered with what looked like genuine concern. His Alpha instincts seemed to kick in at the sound of his daughter's distress, and he took several steps toward us, his arms reaching out as if to embrace both Ella and me.

For a split second, I thought he might actually choose us.

But then his gaze fell on Amber and Connor standing in the doorway. Connor's defiant expression had shifted to something more vulnerable, more childlike, as he seemed to sense the tension in the room.

He closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, his gaze toward me was filled with complex pleading: "Raven... he... after all, he grew up without a father, lacking discipline... his mind isn't mature... he doesn't understand..."

"We can get another dog," he continued, as if Peter's life meant nothing. "A better one, maybe. As for Ella's injuries, they're not that serious. Children heal quickly. What's important is that we show Connor what a real family looks like, teach him how to behave properly."

Hearing his words, I felt the last vestiges of love I'd held for this man crumble to dust.

"Doesn't understand?" I interrupted him, my arms tightening around Ella. My daughter continued sobbing in my embrace. I looked at Alexander, at this mate I'd been with for ten years, at his face as he still made excuses for his bastard son after his own daughter and mate had been so brutally hurt.

"Alexander," my voice was unnaturally calm, cutting through Ella's sobs and Amber's protests, "let's dissolve our mate bond."