Chapter 8: Apologize

Tori’s POV

All this time, I had done my best, enduring and sacrificing because I believed I owed the pack and Alpha Carlisle a debt. But looking back now, I questioned if that debt had ever truly been mine to bear.

When I took over as Luna, the pack had already been on the verge of collapse. They had lost their former Alpha, Carlisle’s father, and while the entire pack was consumed by grief, war raged on at the front lines, not far from our borders.

Being situated at the edge of werewolf territory, right next to the vampire lands, had never been a concern before. Midnight River Pack was the second-strongest pack, surpassed only by the royal family, who had been blessed by the Moon Goddess herself.

As guardians of the border, we had stood as an impenetrable shield. But the sudden death of our Alpha struck a devastating blow to Midnight River Pack. Many of our core warriors had fallen alongside him on the battlefield, leaving the pack vulnerable, leaderless, and on the brink of ruin.

And in the midst of all that, I had stepped in not because I had sought power, not because I had wanted this responsibility, but because someone had to hold everything together.

Along with his death, some of our allied packs began to withdraw from the alliance, turning their backs on us at our most vulnerable moment. Worse still, these so-called allies took advantage of the former Alpha’s absence, cutting off cooperation and ceasing the supply of rations, supplies they were meant to provide.

We had never farmed or produced our own food; instead, we relied on hunting and guarding the borders, trading our game and resources gathered from vampire territory in exchange for necessities from other packs. And since our territory was located near the border, we had an agreement with the neighboring packs: in exchange for protection, they would provide a monthly supply of their finest goods, including grains, wine, animal products, and other valuable resources.

This arrangement had been upheld for centuries, becoming an integral part of our way of life. It was a system that had sustained us for generations. But who would have thought that a single tragedy the sudden death of our Alpha would bring our entire way of life crashing down?

Deprived of support, our pack weakened considerably, struggling to survive in the face of betrayal and abandonment.

As soon as I became Luna, I dedicated myself to making the pack self-sufficient by establishing our own farm. At the same time, I worked to mend alliances with other packs. However, it was far from easy. My lack of strength made others reluctant to take me seriously.

Moreover, during the war, rations were a crucial resource, and other packs were more focused on preserving their own supplies rather than aiding a struggling pack led by a newly appointed Alpha who had only recently come of age.

I faced heavy scorn from my own pack members, as nothing like this had ever been done before. Being a territory near the border, we had never even attempted trade, let alone farming. The pack had always been raised as warriors, resistant to change. I had to put in tremendous effort to convince them to work with me.

It wasn’t until we began struggling to gather enough rations, forcing Alpha Carlisle in the front lines into real danger, that the others finally started following my lead. The journey had been anything but easy.

But Sylas and I had done our best over the past three years. Yet, I had been ridiculed by the neighboring Alphas, who mocked the idea of an Omega leading a pack. Their scorn only deepened the shame and resentment of my own pack members, making them even more disdainful of me.

Now, after all the hardships I had endured, these very people, who seemed to have forgotten my sacrifices, looked at me as if I were the most despised and useless person in the pack.

But I was only human. No matter how much I tried to endure, I, too, had my limits. And now, as I reflected on the three years I had spent holding this pack together, I realized I had done enough. I had already repaid my debt to the former Alpha.

I think it’s time for me to leave.

The words echoed relentlessly in my mind. If nothing else, I knew one thing about myself: I was stubborn. I had to be. Otherwise, how could I have kept this pack together when no one truly listened to me without contempt? Despite my weakness, I had endured.

But now, after giving three years of my life to this pack, after enduring the constant backlash of my deteriorating mate bond with Alpha Carlisle, after suffering and nearly dying more times than I could count, I realized I had had enough.

Now that Alpha Carlisle had found his fated mate and was expecting the birth of his heir, stepping aside was the only right thing to do. Though it hurt, I knew I could no longer hold on. It was better to end my suffering now than to let the pain fester and consume me beyond repair.

But thinking about leaving and actually doing it were two very different things. The mere thought of walking away made my heart recoil in protest, the twisting pain almost unbearable.

Yet, there was nothing I could do. My heart and mind were at war, each pulling me in opposite directions. But for once, I needed to think of myself. I had spent years being selfless, giving everything I had, until there was nothing left. I had reached my limit.

Enough is enough.

"Victoria!!! For fuck’s sake! Don’t test my patience right now!" Alpha Carlisle roared.

The room trembled as his Alpha aura surged, a crushing force radiating from his body. Glass shattered instantly, and the pack members instinctively shrank back, lowering their heads in submission. The sheer intensity of his anger jolted me from my thoughts, pulling me back to the present.

My gaze snapped to my mate, and I could see that he was already on the edge, his patience slipping fast. Any moment now, he might lose control and slam me against the wall.

But he would never do that to Raquel. This thought whispered in my mind.

Yet I, who had done nothing wrong, was the one subjected to his wrath.

"I’m not!" I shot back, my voice rising without my even realizing it.

The pain from our decaying mate bond clawed at me, but fear? I barely felt it. Maybe it was because he was my mate, because, despite everything, there was still a lingering sense of familiarity, a twisted kind of comfort mixed with a storm of conflicting emotions.

Carlisle exhaled sharply through his nostrils, struggling to rein in his growing irritation. Roque wasn’t helping; my Alpha’s wolf was throwing a tantrum inside his head, making me an easy target for his frustration.

"Then go back and change! And before you leave, apologize to Raquel. You’ve been my Luna for three years, yet you still don’t know how to fulfill your role? Raquel is doing a better job than you ever have.”