Chapter 4

I walked all the way back to the pack house through the blizzard. By the time I arrived, Kade was walking out of the kitchen. He held two bowls of hot soup.

The steam curled around his face. He wore an apron he had never used before.

My Alpha mate never set foot in the kitchen. Now, he had cooked for the very first time.

I wanted him to make me a simple dinner for my thirtieth birthday last month.

He refused without hesitation. "I don't know how to cook."

"I'm busy. Go order from a restaurant if you want to eat. Use my card."

Right now, his face showed a rare trace of awkwardness. He tried to make excuses.

"The blizzard outside is too heavy. I was worried about Leo getting sick, so I made some hot soup. I figured I'd let Ruby have some too."

"There's a little left in the pot. Do you want it?"

I glanced toward the kitchen. There was absolutely no portion left for me.

"No need."

Leo sneered from the couch. He finished his dad's sentence.

"Dad didn't cook a portion for you. Dad said he'd only protect and love me and Aunt Ruby."

I told myself countless times that I no longer cared. Even so, my chest throbbed with uncontrollable pain.

Only then did Kade notice my leg.

My sock had frozen into a hard shell. Blood mixed with melted snow. It was plastered all the way from my knee down to my ankle.

His breath hitched for a second. His eyes flickered. But then he quickly furrowed his brows.

"Don't walk any further."

He blocked the entrance to the living room. "Ruby is quite sensitive to smells. She might feel sick if she smells the blood."

"The pack hasn't been peaceful lately. It'd be bad if the blood attracted rogues."

He called the butler over. He ordered him to roll up and throw away the rug I just stepped on. Then he asked for disposable shoe covers.

"Put these on. Go clean up in the bathroom first."

I stood at the doorway. I had nowhere to even take my shoes off.

Ruby sipped her soup. She clinked her bowl with Leo's.

Then she suddenly set her bowl down. She walked over to the display cabinet by the fireplace. She took out my old sketches and custom painting supplies. I treasured them like gold.

"Kade, the scenery at the mountain resort will be beautiful. I want to take Cora's top-tier painting supplies to sketch."

Those art supplies traveled across the continent with me. They were my companions, not toys.

I stopped her. My voice was hoarse. "No."

Ruby's eyes turned red with hurt. Tears threatened to fall.

Kade shot me a surprised look.

Then, he acted like he didn't hear me at all. He handed all the art supplies right to Ruby.

"Don't mind her. She's just throwing a tantrum," he said with a smile. "She wouldn't actually keep these from you."

Ruby smiled through her tears. She leaned intimately against Kade's shoulder.

Her eyes darted around. She picked out the most expensive set.

Kade smiled. "Just one set? Take a few more to try out."

I stared at the set in her hands. The side of the painting box was engraved with two initials. They were the first letters of our names.

He had forgotten. That was his mating gift to me.

Leo looked at me and smiled smugly. He smashed the remaining sets onto the floor. Paint tubes rolled away with a dull thud. Expensive pigments spilled everywhere.

My mind went completely blank. I squatted down to pick them up. The custom walnut box was cracked. The paints inside were totally ruined.

My dreams and passion had been destroyed. The people closest to me treated them like trash.

I reached out to grab a custom paintbrush that rolled away. Suddenly, my injured calf gave out.

I fell heavily to my knees. My knees and palms smashed hard onto the sharp shards of my glass palette.

Blood gushed out instantly. The piercing pain drained my strength. I was unable to stand.

Kade reached out to hold me, but I pushed him away.

"They're just old art supplies." He looked away. His voice was stiff. "Are you really so upset you can can't even stand?"

"When you're done with your drama, get up. Pack your bags. Our flight is at nine tomorrow morning."

With that, he led Ruby and Leo away. They turned around and went upstairs to rest.

I lay on the freezing floor. It took a long time to recover before I forced myself up.

Leo's whiny voice came from the master bedroom upstairs. "I want Aunt Ruby and Dad to sleep with me tonight."

I looked at the shards all over the floor. I dug out an old laptop from a drawer and connected it to the printer.

A mate bond termination agreement. The official version. Two pages long.

I signed my name. I placed it right in the center of the coffee table.

The lights upstairs went out. No one came down to give me a single glance.

I gathered my IDs and passport. I pulled the door open and left silently.

A home that wasn't mine. An Alpha who wasn't mine. A child who wasn't mine.

I didn't want any of it anymore.