Chapter 3

My already weakened wolf spirit could no longer endure it.

Wave after wave of pain threatened to rip me apart from the inside.

I dragged my weakened body across the room and tried to reach for the moon dew I drank every day. That was when a small figure suddenly darted out and snatched it from me.

"Who said you could drink moon dew without permission? You can't touch anything unless Elena says so!"

Marcus glared at me viciously.

I didn't have the strength to argue with him. I only wanted to reach for the moon dew.

But before I could touch it, Marcus poured every last drop onto the floor.

"This isn't your home! You're not worthy of drinking such precious moon dew!"

I heard a loud buzzing sound in my ears. Under the crushing strain, my weakened wolf spirit teetered on the verge of disintegration.

Unable to hold myself up any longer, I collapsed to the floor.

Memories of the past flashed through my mind.

Ever since Marcus was born, he had suffered from an unstable wolf spirit. Other pups could stabilize their wolf forms by three months old, but even at three years old, he still couldn't complete his transformation.

The healer had said his wolf spirit was too weak and that he wouldn't survive until adulthood.

I had found a witch in Black Forest. She gave me a potion that could stabilize Marcus's wolf spirit, but the price was that I had to sacrifice half of my own wolf spirit in exchange.

I didn't hesitate.

After Marcus drank the potion, his wolf spirit stabilized, and he became healthy.

But from that day on, my weakened wolf spirit left me extremely fragile. I needed large quantities of precious moon dew just to stay alive.

Yet on the very first day Marcus was able to get out of bed, he didn't come to see me. Instead, he ran straight to Elena.

"Elena, when will you finally become my real mom? Natasha is so annoying. I don't want her to be my mom!"

Standing outside the door, I felt my heart aching like it was being pierced by needles.

I swallowed the lump in my throat and stepped forward. "Marcus, do you know that I sacrificed half of my wolf spirit to save you?"

Elena immediately stepped in front of him. Her voice was gentle but protective. "Natasha, he's still a pup. Do you really have to hold this against him?"

Marcus hid behind Elena while poking his head out to scream at me.

"I hate you! You're nowhere near as nice as Elena! Dad doesn't like you either! On the day Grandpa was buried, Dad claimed he was too drunk to answer the phone, but he was actually at the amusement park with us!"

Those words hit me like a truck.

My entire body went stiff, and my blood ran cold. My vision went black, and I collapsed.

When I opened my eyes again, Caius was sitting beside me.

I pushed myself up and stared into his eyes. "Where exactly were you on the day of my dad's funeral?"

He remained silent for a long time before finally answering in a calm tone. "Since you already know, I won't lie to you. I was indeed at the amusement park with Elena and Marcus that day."

It felt like my heart had been ripped open. Humiliation and fury surged through me, and I shouted at him. "Caius! How could you skip my dad's funeral to take them to an amusement park?"

"Elena was in a bad mood that day, and Marcus had been looking forward to it for a long time. I couldn't refuse them. I didn't tell you because I was afraid you'd make a scene like this.

"What's done is done, Natasha. Can you please stop bringing it up?"

I slapped him across the face. "What makes you think I can just let it go?"

Caius stood up with a look of disappointment in his eyes.

"Natasha! You grew up with loving parents, and you had me by your side. You never lacked anything, but Elena has nothing. She has no mate, no family, and nowhere to belong."

"How can you keep holding these things against her?"

His words shattered any remaining hope in my heart.

My voice was hoarse. "Caius, let's sever our mate bond."

"That would only make both of us miserable, Natasha. Don't make such an unwise decision."

He bent down and gently kissed my lips.

"Trust me, Natasha. Marcus was just acting out. I'll talk to him and make him accept you. If it bothers you, I won't have any private contact with Elena anymore.

"You can keep raising Marcus, okay?"

I hesitated for a long time before finally agreeing.

I began to believe that Marcus would eventually understand that I was his real mom, and that I was the only one who would truly care for him.

On the day of Marcus' birthday, I left work early in hopes of surprising him.

As I approached the door, I overheard their conversation inside.

"Dad, when are we going to visit Elena? I miss her so much."

Caius lowered his voice. He was almost speaking in a whisper.

"Once your mom gets home, we'll find a way to put something in her drink. When she's completely knocked out, we'll sneak out and meet Elena."

I stopped still outside the door. It felt like I'd fallen into a freezing abyss.