Chapter 3

I had always been fooling myself, or perhaps I simply believed that people were good at heart and could not imagine she would ever hate me.

After all, I had given her the best of everything I had, from my room to my parents.

For her, though, it never seemed to be enough.

On Amelia's birthday, she came to my room for the first time in ages.

"Elowen, can I ask you for a birthday wish?"

In that moment, it felt like we were back in the old days, when she was small and skinny and would hold my hand and timidly say, "Elowen, I want some meat."

I nodded without hesitation.

She smiled sweetly, hiding a subtle flicker of malice. "It's getting cold. I want a cloak made of mink fur. Will you get me one?"

Minks lived a long way from the pack's territory.

I agreed anyway.

I climbed 12 mountains to get the mink fur. My hands were rubbed raw, and the wind and snow left my feet almost too numb to move.

By the time I finally had the fur, it was late at night.

I took out my phone to video call Mom and Dad so I could wish Amelia a happy birthday.

One second passed, then ten, then a full minute. My hand went stiff with cold before the call finally ended on its own, and all I could hear was the howl of the wind and snow.

I had given her my whole heart, yet I got nothing back.

Back in our warm home, Mom and Dad gathered around Amelia and sang "Happy Birthday."

She glanced at Mom's phone as the screen lit up. Her expression darkened, and she picked it up and muted my messages.

"Mom, let's take a picture together!"

Mom agreed with a smile, then paused. "Where's Elowen? I haven't seen her all day."

Amelia lowered her eyes, looking just sad enough. "Elowen probably doesn't want to see me. I told her yesterday that today was really important, but she went out anyway..."

Dad slammed his hand on the table and shot to his feet, furious. "She's trying to ruin your birthday on purpose. Forget about her."

Amelia looked at my message notification at the top of the screen and quietly smiled.

I knew nothing about any of it. All I remembered was that the snowstorm that night had been so fierce it nearly buried me.

My life only grew harder from there. Cold looks from Mom and Dad became routine. Even packmates who used to greet me with smiles now treated me as if I were invisible.

I heard the things they said about me.

"If her dad weren't the Alpha, how would Elowen ever have been named heir?"

"Every year at the hunt, Amelia brings back plenty of trophies. Elowen's the only one who comes back empty-handed."

"If you ask me, Amelia should be the heir."

Amelia stood right beside them and only said lightly, "Don't talk about Elowen like that. She's trying really hard."

She never explained that she could not hunt on her own at all. Those trophies were kills she had begged me to catch for her because she was afraid of being laughed at.

That one offhand remark branded me as useless for good.

At this year's hunt, I stopped helping Amelia. I gave it everything I had and brought down more prey than ever, even more than I used to hand over to her.

Amelia, on the other hand, had nothing but a single wild rabbit.

I dragged an entire bear toward Mom, hoping she would praise me.

A hand shot out and stopped me halfway.

I looked up and met Dad's furious eyes. "I don't know what tricks you pulled to get all these kills, but Amelia didn't do well this time, yet you still came over here to show off in front of her? That's just cruel!"

He slapped my face.

My ears rang and I covered my cheek in disbelief.

How had things come to this?

Amelia leaned against Mom's chest with her shoulders trembling, yet she was smiling when she looked at me.

She mouthed the words clearly. "You're so stupid, Elowen."

It turned out I had done nothing wrong.

However, from their perspective, everything I did was wrong.