Chapter 1

When I opened my eyes again, I was floating.

Down below, I saw the moldy old mattress.

Jeremy was kneeling beside it.

He wore a perfectly tailored black uniform. The crest on his collar gleamed in the dim light. The mark of a top Alpha.

He was gripping my wrist.

“Stop playing dead, Alina.” He frowned. His voice was sharp with impatience.

He thought I was throwing a tantrum.

The silver had temporarily masked the scent of death.

Veronica walked in. She crossed her arms, scanning the cramped room.

“Give it a rest, Jeremy. A little abortion pill isn't going to kill anyone.”

She let out a short, ugly laugh.

“She finds out you're not broke. That you're the strongest Alpha in North America. She's probably just so shocked she fainted.”

Hearing that, the last fake trace of worry vanished from Jeremy’s eyes.

He dropped my cold hand and stood up, smoothing his cuffs.

“You’re right. She’s always been timid.”

Veronica covered her nose in disgust. Her eyes swept over the water stains on the walls, then landed on my rough hands.

“I can’t believe you lasted a year acting in this slum. No heat, even.”

She pointed at Jeremy’s hands. His knuckles were strong and perfect.

They were completely healed now. Full of power.

“You went to those underground fights just to look pathetic. You swallowed silver dust. You suppressed your healing. All to fake a broken wolf.”

Veronica rolled her eyes. “You let your hands get torn to shreds just to make her cry? You’re sick.”

I floated there. Trembling. My spirit shattered.

Swallowing silver dust. Suppressing his healing.

I washed dishes for sixteen hours a day. My hands were blistered, raw, and cracked open.

And every night, I’d come home, hold his bloody fists, and cry as I kissed his wounds.

I thought he was fighting for our future.

It was all a lie. A sick calculation.

“It’s called a trial,” Jeremy said. His tone was arrogant, like an artist admiring his masterpiece.

“Pack bankrupt. Kicked out of the Alliance. Buried in debt. A hopeless situation. And she didn't run.”

He looked at my face, his eyes full of a conqueror’s pride.

“She gave me everything she had. That loyalty… it's worthy of being my Luna.”

Worthy.

The word pierced me like a silver blade.

To pay off his fake debts, I pawned the only thing my mother left me.

I ate one meal a day.

I didn't even dare tell him I was pregnant. I was so afraid I’d be another burden.

And in his eyes, all my pain was just a password. A way to pass his test.

“Stop wasting time. The guests for the Luna ceremony are waiting. You can’t be late,” Veronica urged.

Jeremy reached into his pocket. He pulled out an unlimited black card.

He tossed it.

It landed right on my chest. Right over my un-beating heart.

“When you wake up, take the card. Go to the luxury shop downstairs. Buy something decent. Don't embarrass me.”

He leaned down and pressed a kiss to my forehead.

His lips were warm. My skin was ice.

He didn't notice a thing.

As he turned to leave, Veronica’s shoe kicked something on the floor.

It was the packet of pills I’d emptied.

She kicked it into the trash can.

“Seriously though, wasn't testing her with the pup going a little too far?” Her voice was laced with amusement. “What if she'd actually listened to me and gotten rid of that little burden?”

Jeremy stopped.

His tall frame cast a long shadow in the dim light.

After a short silence, he spoke. His voice was completely casual.

“Then she would have.”

No warmth. No hesitation.

“Alina is always so considerate. She knows I'm doing what's best for her. Later, I’ll give her the best of everything. We’ll have the strongest heirs. She wouldn't hold it against me.”

The door closed.

The engines roared to life, then faded into the distance.

The room was silent again.

I drifted down and stopped right above the bed.

I stared at my own body. The ashen face. The eyes that would never open again.

I looked at the black card on my chest. A symbol of endless wealth.

Suddenly, I laughed.

He was right. I was always so considerate.

I even ended my own life, and our pup’s, just so I wouldn’t hold him back.

But this time, my consideration was absolute.

I wasn't even going to give him the chance to fall to his knees and beg for my forgiveness.