Chapter 3

Mom remained silent for a long moment before she finally sighed. "You're right, Jasmine. Our pack hasn't fallen so low that we need to sell you off. I'm so proud that you have your own plans."

Dad nodded. "That's right. I'll issue an order so that our pack never works with theirs again. Those two blind fools can stew in their own regret!"

Now that I had my parents' support, I finally felt at ease. I began packing my things and getting ready for the borderlands.

In my previous life, I buried my dreams for the sake of my family, but I ended up being murdered instead.

This time, I decided to follow my heart and no longer let love blind me.

Soon, news spread through the entire werewolf community that Julia was going to have a mating ceremony with Henry and Lester. The three of them quickly became the center of public scrutiny.

I didn't care about the gossip, but it was different for Henry and Lester.

As the Alphas of their own packs, causing such a scandal made many of the packs they worked with doubt their character. Those packs wanted nothing to do with them and began canceling their alliances.

During this time, the two of them were run ragged trying to suppress public opinion, rebuild alliances, and prepare for the mating ceremony.

As for me, I boarded a plane headed for the borderlands. Because the area was remote and supplies were scarce, I brought a ton of luggage with me.

There were no direct flights, so I had to spend a day in transit. As luck would have it, the stopover happened to be in Henry's territory.

With a whole day ahead of me, I wasn't in a hurry. I went to a large local supermarket and shopped like crazy. Having brought plenty of money with me, I spent without holding back.

In my previous life, Henry and Lester used every trick in the book to try to get money from my father through me.

Dad was furious. After countless arguments, he eventually banished me from the pack, never to return.

That was why, no matter how much Henry and Lester mistreated me in that life, I had no one to defend me.

But now, things were different. I spent all my money on myself—clothes, jewelry, handbags, and anything else I wanted.

I recalled that I had once stood with Henry under the Moon Goddess statue in his pack and prayed to be together forever. The names we carved back then were still etched on one of the altar's stone pillars.

Even just the thought of that now made me sick. I wanted to go back to the altar and erase that trace.

Just as I finished scratching up the names on the stone pillar and was about to leave, someone grabbed my wrist.

"Jasmine, what are you doing here?"

When Henry saw the names I had scratched out, he smirked arrogantly. "I get it. You're trying to get my attention this way. You stalked me and knew I would bring Julia to the altar for the protective charm, so you came early, thinking this would make me change my mind.

"Forget it. My heart belongs only to Julia, and we're about to hold our mating ceremony. You don't stand a chance."

Julia scoffed. "Henry, don't talk like that. Jasmine's actions prove that she still has strong feelings for you. Won't you hurt her if you say those things?"

I had no interest in watching their little performance, so I shook off Henry's hand.

Why would I care when their mating ceremony was? I was leaving for the borderlands tomorrow anyway.

"I only came here to get rid of the disgusting things I left behind," I said flatly.

Henry sneered. "What's that supposed to mean, Jasmine? We already canceled our mating agreement. What's the point of clinging to me like this?"

During the argument, my shopping bags tore. My clothes, along with some business cards that had been stuffed in at some point, fell out. One of them happened to be an ad for a mating ceremony banquet hall.

Henry picked up the card, and his expression immediately turned smug. "So you came here to help me prepare for the mating ceremony. You should have said so."

As I gathered the clothes from the ground, Henry talked endlessly about the arrangements for the mating ceremony.

"Julia is my Luna, so the ceremony has to be held in the grandest banquet hall in the werewolf community. Also, she needs to wear a high-end dress that is designed personally by a famous designer.

"The rings must also be made with the finest moonstone. Anything under 50 million dollars isn't fit for Julia…

"Can you remember all that? You should get a notebook and write it down."

Henry's and Lester's packs had been declining for years, and after the recent scandal, several other packs had cut ties with them. Now, they not only had no money, but they were also deeply in debt.

Just when they were worried about not having money for the mating ceremony, they ran into me. They thought I'd be an easy mark, but I had no intention of playing along with them.

I grabbed my things and was about to leave when Henry called after me. However, Lester stopped him.

"Maybe Jasmine wants to surprise us. We should give her a chance to prove herself," Lester said.

Thus, Henry simply waved me off. "Then get back and start preparing. You've got seven days. If we're not happy with what you prepared, there'll be consequences."

With that, the three of them walked off chatting and laughing. I could still hear them talking about buying rings.

How ridiculous. They were the ones who misunderstood, but I didn't feel like clearing things up with them. I hadn't said anything, after all; they had just made their own assumptions.

Two Alphas marrying one she-wolf was big news, and the media definitely weren't going to let this slip by. If they ended up humiliating themselves at the mating ceremony, they only had themselves to blame.