Chapter 3

When I opened my eyes again, I realized I was already dead. My soul, for some reason, was bound to Kellan.

I floated in the air and watched as Kellan and Lia, both dressed in lavish formal wear, walked toward the altar. However, unlike the excited Lia, Kellan looked somewhat distracted.

The moment the offering ceremony ended, he impatiently slipped away from the crowd and pulled out his phone.

"Kellan," Lia called out to him as she walked over and grabbed his arm. "Don't blame Ella. I think she's hiding because she's too afraid to face you. It's all my fault. I shouldn't have sent you that video of her throwing up from morning sickness."

The moment Kellan heard the words "morning sickness", his eyes seemed to blaze with fury. But still, he gently patted the back of Lia's hand. "This isn't your fault. If it weren't for you, I'd still be kept in the dark!"

With that, he unlocked his phone and dialed my number again. But of course, the call went unanswered. After all, a dead person couldn't pick up the phone.

Frustrated, he hung up the call and immediately texted me. "Ella, why aren't you answering my calls? Don't you think you owe me an explanation?"

Just then, Mom walked over. Clearly, Lia had also told her about my supposed pregnancy, so she apologized to Kellan.

"It's my fault for not disciplining Ella properly. Had I known about this, I would have just left her in the wilderness. But don't worry, Kellan. Once we find her, I'll teach her a harsh lesson. And if that doesn't work, we'll just exile her again!"

My father, Jacob Smith, had passed away early. Although I had long grown used to my mother favoring Lia, hearing her say such heartless words still sent a pang through me.

It was bad enough that she hadn't checked on me once during the past year, but I never imagined she would talk about exiling me again without even verifying the situation.

Kellan frowned at Mom's words. He irritably grabbed a glass of red wine, downed it in one go, then reached for the bottle to pour another.

Mom quickly stopped him. "Stop drinking, Kellan. Ella isn't the only daughter in the Smith family. Didn't you hear how everyone in the pack was saying just now that you and Lia are a perfect match?"

Kellan's hand paused on the wine bottle, and he slowly turned his gaze toward Lia.

Lia eagerly met his gaze, gushing with anticipation. "Kellan, whatever Ella owes you, I'm willing to repay it for her. I swear I'll love you with all my heart and will never betray you the way Ella did!"

Kellan stared at her in silence for several minutes. Then, he set down the wine bottle, picked up his phone, and glanced at it again. There was still no reply to the message he had sent.

He suddenly let out a bitter, self-mocking laugh. "No wonder she said those things before. No wonder she wouldn't let me visit her in the wilderness all year! So it turns out she was hiding such a huge secret!"

Floating in the air, I burned with rage at his words. They were the ones who had left me to fend for myself, and now they were twisting the truth and blaming me?

I hurled myself at him in rage. But the next second, I passed straight through him without so much as ruffling a strand of his hair.

Kellan pulled out a set of keys and handed them to Lia. "Here are the keys to my house. You can move in anytime. Also, you can decide on when you want to hold the marking ceremony."

Lia had clearly not expected Kellan to agree so readily. Her voice trembled with excitement as she asked, "R-really? Kellan, are you serious?"

Kellan did not answer her. Instead, he sent me another message.

"Ella, it seems you really did betray the vows we made back then. In that case, I'll have the Beta give you some money as a form of compensation. From now on, we're square!"