Chapter 4

My birthday celebration was held at the most luxurious hotel in the Red Moon Pack.

Felix walked at the front with an arm around Lillian, while Toby and Amy happily stayed close beside them.

Even though I was supposed to be the focus of the celebration, I had been left behind like an afterthought.

Whispers soon began spreading through the crowd.

“Does Alpha Felix still have feelings for Lillian? They look so perfect together.”

“Exactly. They’re practically made for each other.”

“I heard they used to be together. If Camilla hadn’t interfered, Lillian might have been the one who formed a mate bond with him.”

“You mean...”

The speaker never finished, but everyone around them turned to look at me with knowing expressions.

Pretending I had heard nothing, I calmly walked past them and headed toward an empty balcony.

I had barely stopped when Lillian’s voice came from behind me.

“I already got Felix to sign the agreement, so why haven’t you left yet?”

“You’re not having second thoughts, are you?” She met my gaze, searching my expression with obvious urgency.

I gave her a faint smile. “There’s no chance of that.”

Relief immediately crossed her face. “Good. Then you can leave without worrying about anything.”

“I’m the one they care about anyway. No one will care when you’re gone.”

My smile stiffened, though I knew she was telling the truth.

Before I could respond, the enormous crystal chandelier above us suddenly broke loose and crashed down.

The impact struck my head, and blood quickly ran from my scalp into my eyes, blurring my vision.

I tried to move, but one of my legs was trapped beneath the chandelier, while pain seemed to spread through every part of my body.

Lillian had been pinned down on the opposite side and was unable to escape either.

“Felix, help me! My hand hurts so much!” she screamed.

The crash had drawn everyone’s attention, and within moments, people surrounded us, Felix among them.

His eyes landed on me first, but almost immediately shifted toward Lillian, and the concern in his expression deepened.

The children were terrified by what they saw and rushed straight to Lillian, crying as they begged her not to die.

When the rescue team arrived, however, their expressions quickly turned troubled.

The chandelier was too large to move, and even with several people lifting together, they could only raise it slightly.

Because Lillian and I were trapped beneath opposite sides, lifting one end would force most of the chandelier’s weight onto the other.

“Alpha Felix, this is an emergency. We can only get one of them out at a time, so who should we—”

“Save Lillian.”

Felix cut him off before he could finish.

The rescuer hesitated instead of acting immediately, then asked again, “Our assessment shows that the Luna is in more critical condition. Are you sure you don’t want to reconsider?”

Felix shot him a furious look.

“Save Lillian. Don’t make me say it a third time.”

With no choice but to obey the Alpha’s order, the rescue team lifted the massive chandelier with all their strength and carefully moved Lillian out as quickly as possible.

As they lifted it, the weight shifted onto me, and I couldn’t help crying out in agony.

Right before I lost consciousness, neither my mate nor my children looked back at me even once.

When I woke again, the healer happened to be speaking with Felix beside my bed.

“We’ve treated all of the Luna’s external injuries, and the head trauma appears to be a mild concussion.”

“Her leg, however...” The healer paused before continuing in a quieter voice. “She won’t be able to remain on her feet for long periods anymore.”

After a regretful sigh, he added, “If she had been brought in sooner, there might have been a chance to prevent this.”

Once the healer left, Felix turned around and met the resentment in my eyes.

He understood the question I was asking without saying a word, so he answered it directly.

“You have no idea how many years it took Lillian to become a master pianist. She spent more than twenty years getting this far.”

“I had to protect her hands.”

“You spend most of your time at home anyway. Having trouble walking won’t make that much difference to your life.”

Yet in my previous life, that supposedly insignificant problem had eventually cost me my life.

My throat tightened as I asked, “If I had died yesterday, would you have regretted choosing to save Lillian first?”

His brows drew together instinctively. “There’s no point talking about something that didn’t happen, so stop imagining the worst.”

“As long as you stop causing trouble and take proper care of the children, you’ll always be my Luna.”

But I no longer wanted to be his Luna. I didn’t want to stay by his side anymore.

The thought had barely formed before I tried to say it aloud. “I don’t—”

A ringing phone interrupted me.

Toby and Amy were crying on the other end, calling Lillian’s name again and again.

The moment Felix heard them, worry flooded his face, and without another word to me, he rushed out of the room.

He left without hesitation. There was nothing left for me to stay for.

With difficulty, I pushed my wheelchair forward, collected the belongings I had already packed, and boarded a car bound for another pack.

Goodbye, Toby and Amy.

Goodbye, Felix.