Chapter 9
“Do you even believe that yourself?”
I locked eyes with him, my gaze sharp as a blade, each word cutting through the air:
“Five years ago, at the moment of the explosion, I desperately threw myself into danger to save others, not only for the pack but also to avoid disappointing you–what I thought was my Alpha mate.”
I let out a bitter laugh, my voice colder than ice.
“But what about you? You only held Kendra, shielding her from harm. Meanwhile, I was lying between life and death for twenty–five days, and you
couldn’t even find the time to glance at me.”
Each word I spoke felt like it was tearing through the falsehoods of the past.
The “love” he claimed to have was more nauseating than blood, utterly disgusting.
Ryder staggered back, his face turning ashen, his lips trembling.
“But… but I… I know I was wrong…
He tried to justify himself, but I was already fed up with his excuses.
Ashton’s expression turned cold in an instant. He pulled me close, positioning himself between me and Ryder.
His voice was filled with the weight of an Alpha’s authority, the pressure of his words practically suffocating: “Leave. Not everyone will indulge you just because you make mistakes. Have some dignity and stop clinging to Sienna.”
He took a step forward, his wolfish presence swelling, his eyes flashing with a dangerous golden gleam as he snarled, low and threatening, “If you dare approach her again, I’ll tear you apart.”
Ryder, despite his obsession, didn’t dare to challenge Ashton’s killing intent.
He lowered his head and walked away, but not without casting a lingering glance back at me, his eyes filled with a desperate longing and unwillingness to let go.
From then on, he never came any closer, but I could feel him keeping his distance, lingering in the shadows,
s, as if hoping for just one more glimpse of me.
I heard that he had driven Kendra away, and that they often fought bitterly, their arguments echoing through the halls of his now–empty house.
Three months later, Ashton and I officially sealed our mate bond.
On the day of the mating ceremony, the entire venue was under strict security. Almost every member of our pack was present, standing guard to protect the bond ceremony between Ashton and me.
Ryder tried to sneak into the ceremony, but he was stopped at the borders and couldn’t get past.
Piper sneered and whispered to me, “That scumbag later went off, pretending to be some kind of heartbroken lover, crying and laughing with a bunch of wine bottles. He drunkenly kissed Kendra in public.”
“And then?” I asked, unfazed.
“Then they went straight to a hotel,” Piper rolled her eyes. “Ashton couldn’t stand it, so he had his Beta throw Ryder out.”
Ashton was always decisive.
Ryder’s pack’s reputation crumbled after that, and many of his pack members scattered, searching for new homes. He was isolated, Josing the respect of his pack and fellow Alphas.
After sealing the bond, I became pregnant and gave birth.
Chapter 9
During the baby shower for my child, Ryder sent a gift of nine hundred ninety–nine thousand dollars in cash, with a note: [This is the money I saved when I was planning to marry you. Consider it as if I once had you.]
I read it and coldly replied with just a few words: [Stop being disgusting. This doesn’t redeem anything.]
Then I added, [The salary and benefits you promised me were much more than this.]
He didn’t respond.
The next day was his and Kendra’s engagement party.
She was eight months pregnant, dressed in a wedding gown that was grand and ostentatious, but he didn’t show up.
People said he was with a she–wolf who looked seven parts like me, cuddling and kissing in the woods. Kendra, furious, rushed there and nearly went into labor right then and there.
They eventually got married, but the marriage was filled with strife and discord.
One day, their child was hit by a car–Kendra had ordered the child to go find Ryder.
She went insane–completely mad.
Soon after, she sold the weak points in Ryder’s pack’s defenses to the rogue. That night, the pack was destroyed.
Smoke rose in the distance, and blood flowed through the streets.
The entire pack was wiped out.
Kendra was arrested and taken to the silver prison, and Ryder was publicly disowned by his Alpha parents.
Meanwhile, Ashton and I were showing our child around the training grounds. The setting sun bathed my child’s dark, curly hair in a warm glow.
“Daddy, Mommy, I want to start training early, just like the warriors!”
Isadora sat on Ashton’s shoulder, her eyes bright like stars.
Ashton held her with one hand and took my hand with the other, smiling as he said, “Your mother is the greatest warrior.”
I looked at them both, feeling calm and at peace inside.
Not all wounds bleed.
But a wolf’s memory will never forget.
