Chapter 3

"Thalia is still carrying my pup," Rylan said calmly when he saw the stunned look on Dad's face.

"What are you afraid of? Her wolf is as strong as a beast!"

Dad still used the same excuse he'd always used every time he got violent with me.

Rylan probably realized that they still needed me to protect them, so he reached out for me, a rare occurrence in itself, and wrapped his arm around my shoulder. "Are you okay?"

I frowned and escaped his touch. Elowe's scent on his body was making me want to puke.

My action shocked all three of them.

Rylan looked displeased. "You know that it's no use playing hard-to-get with me, right? I've had it up to here with you. My patience is running thin. Now find a way to get us out of here! Elowe is still very weak. She's getting frightened out of her wits!"

Rylan spoke as if he were the righteous one all along. After all, I was the one who always shielded him behind my back.

However, I wasn't going to do it anymore.

I turned, wanting to assist the other soldiers in the temple, but Rylan grabbed me in a fury.

A second later, there was a loud explosion from the temple. The building swayed violently and immediately began to crumble.

The temple was collapsing!

Both Dad and Rylan immediately sprang toward Elowe at the same time. Meanwhile, Rylan shoved me to the floor without another thought.

However, I saw that Rylan's gaze lingered on the hand I'd instinctively put around my belly for protection the split second before he covered Elowe's body with his own to shield her.

I felt an excruciating pain afterward, and I was then buried under the collapsed rubble.

…

The room was empty when I finally woke up in a hospital bed.

The healer, Dr. Holly Langsworth, looked at me anxiously.

"Ms. Furla, you're in a very critical condition now. The injuries you sustained are far beyond the capabilities of your self-healing abilities."

I had broken at least a dozen ribs, and pain shot down all four of my limbs if I tried to move, even just a little bit.

My wolf was howling in dire agony in my head, and I could also feel my pup's breathing getting more and more faint.

"My pup…"

Dr. Langsworth's forehead was beaded with sweat. "I will do my best to heal you, Ms. Furla. But I'm afraid that you have to be prepared to lose your pup in the worst-case scenario."

She then hurried out to prepare my medication as soon as she was done talking.

While still in shock, I overheard the hospital personnel saying that I had been sent here by a werewolf soldier. Meanwhile, my own mate had left with Elowe in his arms as soon as the war had stopped.

He couldn't care less about me.

Even though I had already correctly guessed it beforehand, my heart still hurt when I heard about what happened.

The healing process was very painful. My injuries were dreadfully serious, and Dr. Langsworth could only repeatedly inject the medication right into my bones over and over again. Yet, for the sake of my pup, I couldn't rely on any form of anesthesia during the process.

I was in so much pain that I nearly fainted multiple times. However, I gritted my teeth and forced myself to go through everything because I could feel my pup's heartbeat faltering.

During this crucial part, Rylan suddenly contacted me via mind link.

"Thalia, do you know that Elowe's hurt? You're her older sister! How could you just ignore her pain and now even ask about her situation?"

I didn't answer him, and Rylan's tone only got angrier. "Thalia Furla! You should be thankful that I'm still willing to put up with you being Luna! The whole world knows how much of a terrible person you are for using wolfsbane to kill Elowe's wolf!

"If it weren't for you, she would never have ended up so weak!"

Rylan didn't even bother masking the hatred and disgust in his voice anymore. He was on a roll as he continued screaming at me. "Also, about your parents, I really wonder how vile and evil a person can be to poison your own mother to death! You're a fucking witch, Thalia! A fucking evil witch!

"If we weren't wretched, fated mates, I'd never even have wanted to lay a single finger on you at all!"

My body was going through immense pain, and Rylan was still roaring unceasingly in my ears.

A split second later, I suddenly realized that the pup in my belly wasn't breathing anymore.

I couldn't hold back any longer and howled in agony. "My baby! I lost my baby! Are you happy now?"

Rylan was stunned. "What happened to our pup?"

I was in so much pain and grief that I couldn't answer him at all.

"I'm sorry, Ms. Furla, but we couldn't save your baby," Dr. Langsworth said in a grave voice full of pity.

Rylan heard her, and he held his breath at once.

"That's impossible! Thalia's wolf is very strong! She's bound to have self-healed by now. She's just trying to make you feel sorry for her!"

Rylan's voice turned angry again. "Thalia! Don't use such lowly methods to try and lie to your Alpha! If you keep doing this, I'm going to dissolve our mate bond!"

Rylan's tone was sharp, his voice ending on a threat, probably expecting me to immediately cave in as I always did in the past.

But I didn't want to anymore. Not this time.

"As you wish."

I then cut off the mind link before he could start screaming at me again.

Then, I blacked out.