Chapter 2

When I returned to the pack house, I saw Seraphina standing in front of the fitting mirror, wearing the Luna wedding dress Lucas had designed.

The thousands of crushed diamonds embedded in the skirt sparkled brilliantly, stinging my eyes.

A designer was kneeling at her feet, speaking fawningly, "Miss Seraphina, we need to take the waist in another inch here. Your figure is much more slender and delicate than Miss Ella's; the original size is simply too large for you."

Lucas stood to the side, watching her with a deep, intense gaze.

My brothers, Ron and Reid, flanked her on either side. They held up various veils, comparing them against her face with doting smiles.

The scene looked exactly like a perfect family portrait.

And I was the intruder who didn't belong.

"Ella?" Lucas was the first to sense my scent.

He spun around abruptly. When he saw me standing in the doorway, covered in the chill of the night, a flash of panic and guilt flitted through his eyes.

The air in the great hall instantly froze.

Lucas walked quickly toward me, waving a hand to dismiss the designer and the servants.

"Why are you back so late?" He reached out as if to take my hand, but I side-stepped him without changing my expression.

His hand froze in mid-air, his brow furrowing slightly, but he quickly smoothed his expression and lowered his voice. "Ella, listen to me. It's not what it looks like."

I looked up, calmly meeting the eyes of the man I had loved for ten years. "Then what is it? My fiancé is dressing my sister in my wedding gown?"

A trace of pain crossed Lucas’s eyes. He took a deep breath. "Seraphina doesn't have much time."

"The healer said the silver poison has invaded her heart and lungs. She... only has one month left."

I listened without expression.

"It’s her only dying wish!" Lucas’s tone turned urgent. "She just wants to wear this dress once and hold a ceremony with me. There will be no witness from the Moon Goddess, no binding of the Mate Bond. It’s just an act so she can leave this world without regrets."

He spoke with such sincerity, as if refusing him would make me a cold-blooded sinner.

At that moment, Ron walked over, holding an exquisite box.

He opened it to reveal a gemstone necklace radiating a healing glow—"Life's Tear." It was a legendary artifact said to heal all old injuries.

"Ella," Ron said, his voice laced with an attempt to please as he looked at me cautiously. "Reid and I spent a fortune getting this from the auction house. Your shoulder always hurts when it rains. With this, your old battle wounds will finally heal."

Reid hurried over to add, "And didn't you always want to vacation in the Aurora Forest? We’ve arranged it. Once... once this ceremony is over, the two of us and Lucas—the four of us will go with you. Just you. No one else."

They looked at me, their eyes filled with expectation and a hint of pathetic begging.

This was my family.

A slap in the face, followed by a piece of candy.

The old me might have cried out in grievance, questioned them, or gone hysterical.

But the current me felt only a dead, icy silence.

I only had one week left anyway.

I looked into Lucas’s nervous eyes, smiled calmly, and nodded. "Okay, I agree."

Instantly, I heard three men let out a sigh of relief in unison.

"I knew it!" Lucas looked ready to hug me in his excitement. "I knew my Ella was the most understanding, sensible Luna. Don't worry, I’ve already marked you. This is just a show."

By now, Seraphina had changed out of the wedding dress. She walked toward me carrying a tray with a bowl of hot soup.

"Ella..." Her face was pale, her voice weak. "Thank you... thank you for making my dream come true. I know I’m being selfish, but I really... don't have much time left."

She stood in front of me, lifting the bowl with both hands. "I made this venison soup myself. I remember it was your favorite when we were little. My body is weak now, so it took a lot of effort to make this. Please, take it as my apology, okay?"

Lucas urged me gently from the side, "Take it, Ella. It’s your sister’s heart."

Under everyone’s gaze, I reached out.

The moment my fingertips touched the bottom of the bowl—a piercing, agonizing pain shot through my palm!

The bottom of the bowl was coated in high-purity liquid silver!

The pain forced me to let go.

Crash!

The porcelain bowl shattered on the floor. Scalding soup splashed everywhere, most of it landing on Seraphina’s feet.

"Ahhh—!!"

Seraphina let out a shrill scream, collapsing to the floor and clutching her ankle while sobbing. "It hurts! It burns... Ella, if you don't want to forgive me, just say so! Why did you burn me on purpose?..."

The shift happened too fast.

The smiles on Lucas and my brothers' faces vanished instantly, replaced by shock .

Reid and Ron rushed over instantly to check her burns, and I was slammed against the wall.

Caught off guard, I stumbled backward, my back slamming heavily against the hard wall. The pain made my vision go black for a second.

I leaned against the wall, trembling from the pain, unable to utter a single word of defense.

"Lucas... my foot hurts so much... am I going to die?" Seraphina curled into his chest, crying pitifully. Yet, over his shoulder, she shot me a look of pure triumph.

"Don't be afraid, I've got you." Lucas’s voice was anxious and tender.

He carried Seraphina and strode toward the medical room upstairs without even glancing at me.

They left in a clustered rush, leaving me alone in the messy hall, black blood dripping from my hand.

"Ugh..."

I slid helplessly to the floor, nearly fainting from the pain.

It was liquid silver specifically designed to harm high-ranking werewolves. The wound wasn't healing; instead, it was corroding my flesh.

If I didn't treat it immediately, I would lose this hand.

With no other choice, I gritted my teeth and called Lucas.

"Lucas..." My voice was weak. "Help me... there was silver on the bottom of the bowl... I dropped it because I was poisoned by silver... my hand..."

Through the phone, I could hear Seraphina’s pained moans.

"Lucas, does Ella really mean that someone like me—someone infected with silver venom who only has a month to live—would use silver venom to hurt her? Oh my God, she must be extremely resentful about my return to frame me like this."

Seraphina’s voice was delicate and weak, thick with tears. "Lucas, maybe... we should cancel the ceremony... cough... Ella must hate me because she loves you too much. I don't blame her, really... it’s my fault, I shouldn't have come back..."

"Don't talk nonsense!" Lucas’s voice was a mix of suppressed anger and heartache. "This isn't your fault. "

"But..." Seraphina sobbed. "Ella acted like that just now... does she think I’m stealing her dress? I’ll take it off and give it back to her, okay? As long as she’s not angry... my foot hurts so bad, will the wound get infected? Will I... not make it to next week?"

"You won't die! I forbid you to say that!"

Listening to their conversation felt like being sliced by a thousand cuts, but my hand couldn't wait. I didn't want to lose my ability to fight for the rest of my life.

"Lucas!" I shouted, enduring the agony. "Send the healer to me. I have silver poisoning."

Lucas’s voice came through the phone, ice-cold:

"Ella, Stop messing around."

"This is the Pack House! The tableware is strictly inspected. Where would silver come from?!"

"Your sister is dying of silver poisoning because she saved us years ago. You not only burned her on purpose but now you invent such a ridiculous lie to slander her? When did you become so malicious and jealous?"

Click.

Lucas hung up.

I collapsed on the floor, staring at my charred, blackened palm, and the dam finally broke.

He didn't believe me.

Even though I was in enough pain to die, he didn't believe me.

Just as my consciousness began to blur, an elderly figure rushed over.

"Oh my Goddess! Miss Ella!" It was Hans, the old butler.

When he saw the wound on my hand, his face went pale with fright.

"This... this is a corrosion wound from high-purity silver! How did this happen?! Wait here!"

Hans left for a moment and quickly returned with a small vial. It was "Moon's Essence," a priceless antidote that could neutralize silver poisoning.

After drinking it, the excruciating burning sensation in my palm finally began to subside. The corrosion stopped. Although the flesh looked gruesome, at least the bone was saved.

I gasped for air, breathing heavily.

"Thank you... thank you, Hans," I said weakly, clutching his sleeve. "This potion... it's too expensive. I... I'll transfer the money to you."

A potion of this grade cost a normal werewolf a year's income.

Hans looked at me, his eyes full of pity. After hesitating for a moment, he sighed. "No money needed, Miss. There is plenty in the house."

I froze. "What?"

"Ever since Miss Seraphina returned, Alpha Lucas has been frantically buying this potion from the black market at high prices," Hans lowered his head, his voice strained. "They stockpiled thirty bottles. They are keeping them upstairs, saying it's to extend Miss Seraphina's life..."