Chapter 2

I gathered my things and checked into a nearby hotel.

My plan was simple: wake up the next morning and head straight to the airport.

But I never made it.

Just after sunrise, the door to my hotel room was kicked open.

David stormed in, his wolf's face twisted with fury.

He seized my wolf by the throat and yanked me off the bed like a rag doll.

“May! How can you be so vicious? Amy only did what she did because she loves me! What did she ever do to deserve this?!”

My wolf howled in pain. David's strength was terrifying—he truly meant to kill me.

Tears welled in my eyes. I looked up at him and whispered, “What… what did I do?”

David hurled his phone at me. It hit the ground with a loud thud.

“You recorded Amy's private video and leaked it online! You're trying to ruin her, slandering her, calling her a homewrecker!”

“Do you even realize—Amy almost jumped off a cliff because of you!”

I picked up the phone and glanced at the news.

One look was all I needed.

Another one of Amy's twisted games.

I let out a cold, bitter laugh.

“I didn't release the video. But even if I had—was it a lie? Isn't she the one who came between us?”

David was livid. His wolf grabbed mine by the hair and dragged me down the hotel hallway, all the way to the rooftop.

Only then did he let go.

He crouched down, gripping my chin hard.

“Go live. Right now. Say you were the one who got between me and Amy. Apologize to her. Get on your knees and beg for forgiveness. Do that, and maybe this ends here.”

Pain contorted my face, but I said nothing.

There was nothing left in my heart for him—not even hatred.

David's eyes turned glacial. “Fine. If that's how she wants it—then she'll get the punishment she truly deserves,” he said through gritted teeth.

His guards bound my wolf's hands, then hoisted me over the edge of the rooftop with a rope—dangling me several stories above the ground.

I looked down. The world spun beneath me.

I wanted to speak, to explain—but I knew he wouldn't believe a single word. So I bowed my head and silently endured every cruel thing they did to me.

Suddenly, I was a pup again—back on the edge of a cliff, nearly thrown off by a group of rogue wolves. That same paralyzing fear returned.

My wolf trembled, desperate to protect me, but she couldn't move. Terror rooted us to the spot.

“David… please… I swear, it wasn't me… Please… pull me up…”

The words escaped my lips like a final breath—as if I had nothing left to give.

But David didn't believe me. His voice was low, cold, and cruel:

“If not you, then who? I gave you a chance. You didn't take it.”

He turned to the guards.

“Take a photo of her pathetic face. Send it to Amy. When Amy says she's calmed down—then pull her up.”

I had no idea how long I was left hanging there.

All I knew was the pounding of my heart and the nausea twisting my gut.

My wolf vomited again and again, her breathing shallow and erratic.

Just before I lost consciousness, I looked up—only to see David gently kissing the tie Amy had gifted him.

When I woke again, I was lying on a cold concrete floor.

My wolf trembled beneath me, but at least we were grounded.

But the torment wasn't over.

David returned, more furious than ever.

Before I could speak, his wolf kicked mine hard in the chest.

Blood spilled from my lips.

Still unsatisfied, he grabbed my collar and slapped me—twice.

“May! You were the one who called my parents and told them I died in that battle, weren't you?!”

“They were attacked on their way to find me! They died because of you!”

“They treated you like family—and this is how you repay them?! You're a vicious she-wolf!”

He didn't give me a chance to explain.

He dragged me to his car and sped off, ignoring every speed limit.

My wolf is particularly faint and sensitive. She howled in agony, begging him to let me go—but he didn't care.

At last, we arrived at the destination—the Black Pack's graveyard.

Mr. and Mrs. Black's tombstones stood in silence before me.

David forced me to kneel.

Under the guards' pressure, I was made to kowtow—nine hundred and ninety-nine times.

By the end, my wolf's forehead was a bloodied mess.

Rivulets of blood trickled down my face—grotesque, raw, humiliating.

But David didn't even flinch.

He stared at me coldly. “I didn't make you pay with your life. That's already merciful.”

“You'll kneel here for two full days and nights—”

Before he could finish, I laughed. My heart had already frozen over.

“David, you believe everything Amy says. You're the biggest fool I've ever known.

And now? I'm just grateful I was never claimed by you.”

His eyes twitched. Then came another slap.

“Even now, you dare talk back about Amy?!”

Everything began to blur. My vision spun wildly out of control.

May, I thought, you gave your heart to this mate for so many years. And for what?

With the last of my strength, I looked up at David, my voice calm, empty:

“David, I didn't do any of the things you accused me of.

Even if you beat me to death—it wasn't me.”