Tous les chapitres de : Chapitre 1 - Chapitre 9

Truth be told, I used to have my own spacious, private bedroom. But then Wyatt stormed in one day, whining that his personal gym was ten square meters smaller than Jaxon's. My parents were so drained by his constant complaining that they simply handed half of my room over to Wyatt. From that day on, Wyatt's gym gear gradually bled into my space, taking up way more than those ten square meters. And Jaxon, refusing to be outdone, also started dumping his stuff in my room. It was as if they were using my personal sanctuary as their own petty battlefield. I brought it up to Mom once, but she just rubbed her temples in pure exhaustion. "We've been handling pack duties all day, we're drained. We don't have the energy to micromanage these trivial things." "Harper, can't you just be a little more mature?" In the end, all I could do was swallow my pride and nod. In the past, I always forced myself to be the mature one. But now the truth hit me: no matter how mature I acted, my parents

The polite applause died instantly, replaced by an icy, suffocating silence. The blood drained from my face. Wyatt wasn't finished. "None of you know this, but Harper's first shift was so pathetic she hid in her room crying for a week..." He spun a wildly exaggerated tale, hellbent on tearing down my dignity and turning me into the evening's entertainment. The truth was, the reason my first shift was delayed and weak was because that severe fever they ignored during my childhood had permanently damaged my early development. Surrounded by the guests' muffled snickers and pitying stares, my nails dug into my palms until they bled, and I finally screamed, "Shut your mouth!" Wyatt just scoffed. "Make me. You clearly love the attention, right? Let them hear the real story." He jutted his chin out defensively. "Why does Elder Thorne kiss up to you and ignore me? It's complete garbage." I realized he was just throwing a tantrum because my praise had slightly eclipsed his special nigh

The room was gutted. Every single item belonging to Harper was gone. The heavy storage trunks she used for her clothes and botanical supplies were wiped totally clean. Even her unique, subtle scent had almost entirely dissipated from the stagnant air. The horrific truth finally slammed into Corrine and Silas. Harper hadn't returned to the estate after the birthday blowout. She had been gone for days. A cold, heavy knot of pure dread settled in Corrine's stomach. Her hands shaking violently, she reached out through the pack mind-link, desperate to locate her daughter. Harper! Where the hell are you?! You ran away from your own pack over a petty argument?! Silas stood frozen, his face darkening like a storm cloud. He didn't speak, just chewed brutally on the end of his unlit cigar. The mind-link returned a dead, hollow static. Corrine's eyes widened. She had been completely blocked. True panic set in. She grabbed Silas's forearm, her nails biting into his sleeve. "Silas,

All the color drained from Corrine's face. A high-pitched ringing pierced her ears, and a cold sweat broke out across her spine. "What did you just say?" The Guild Master looked deeply uncomfortable. "With all due respect, Luna, you should be fully aware. The Alpha personally signed her Pack Secession Agreement." Corrine's initial reflex was to scream that he was lying, that it was impossible—but a terrifying memory suddenly surfaced. She instantly mind-linked Silas. When Silas heard the words, the memory slammed into him like a freight train. The afternoon he demanded she surrender her business assets to the twins. She had handed him a document. A document he gleefully signed without even glancing at the header. Corrine's legs buckled slightly as the truth set in. She stammered, her voice thin and reedy. "Master... please tell me... exactly when did she file that paperwork?" The Guild Master gently recited the date. The final puzzle piece clicked into place. Corrine sque