Chapter 1

Elena Asher held the moonstone in her hands while tears glistened in her eyes. "I'm sorry, Caius. I didn't know this was a symbol of your love. I'll return it to Natasha right away."

Marcus Kramer, my pup, spoke angrily next to her. "Elena, Mom is doing this on purpose to embarrass you! She knows how precious it is, yet she still gave it to you. She must be trying to make Dad mad.

"Mom, you're so mean!"

Caius Kramer didn't stop Marcus. Instead, he turned to me, Natasha Kramer, with undisguised exhaustion in his eyes.

"Natasha, I genuinely want us to build a good life together. Why are you being so unreasonable, just like you were three years ago?"

I almost laughed when I heard what he said.

Three years ago, Elena had taken a liking to one of my bracelets. It was one of the spoils of war Caius had brought back after defeating another pack, and it had been the first gift he'd ever given me.

When I refused to give it to her, Caius accused me of being unreasonable.

Now, I was willingly giving Elena whatever she wanted, yet Caius was still dissatisfied.

I took off the bracelet and handed it to her as well. "Elena, you can have this too."

Caius' expression darkened instantly. He shot to his feet. "Natasha, can't you talk things out like a normal person? I gave that to you, and now you're giving it to Elena. Are you trying to provoke me?"

I shook my head. "I'm not."

Caius closed his eyes briefly before standing in front of me. There was a hint of pleading in his gaze.

"Natasha, you're still angry, aren't you? I've explained this to you so many times. Elena was in worse condition than you were back then. As the pack's Alpha, it's my responsibility to protect every member of the pack.

"All these years, I've been searching for the special moon dew that can heal you. Natasha, I don't want to see another tragedy like that happen either.

"Natasha, please stop being angry with me. Forgive me, and let's live a good life together. Okay?"

A powerful Alpha rarely needed to plead anyone. Looking into his eyes, I hesitated before finally nodding.

Caius smiled and was about to say something when Marcus' shriek interrupted him.

"You're so mean! Dad already apologized to you! Why are you still acting like you don't care?

"No wonder everyone hates you! You're nothing compared to Elena!"

His words pierced my heart like a sword.

I looked at Marcus, the pup I'd nearly sacrificed my life to save, and snorted. "Why should I care if others hate me? I don't like any of you either!"

Caius froze in place. His expression turned cold.

"If you don't care about anything and don't like anyone, then from today on, you'll sit at the very end of the table during banquets. At the hunting grounds, you'll take whatever others leave behind. And without my permission, you're not allowed to touch anything that belongs to the pack."

I didn't argue. I simply turned around and calmly walked out of the main tent.

Behind me, Marcus clapped his hands and cheered. "This is awesome! Mom can't fight Elena for anything anymore!"