Chapter 2

"You'll be signing it sooner than you think." Damian's icy voice still echoed in the room, but I could barely hear it.

The searing pain in my leg made it nearly impossible to think, but worse was the sensation in my chest-as if my heart were being torn apart.

A decade of being mates, of sharing a life together, was undone by a single word from another woman.

I struggled back onto the bed, my trembling hand groping for the bottle of pills on the nightstand. The painkillers prescribed by the doctor were almost gone, and the agony from the curse was far beyond what ordinary medicine could soothe.

Thunder rumbled outside, heralding the coming storm.

Just like the storm raging in my life.

The next morning, while I was painstakingly tending to my wounds in bed, the door was flung open with a violent crash.

"Look at our poor former Luna," Selena's voice was sickly sweet, enough to make one nauseous.

She was dressed to the nines, looking absolutely dazzling.

Two burly werewolves followed close behind-Damian's elite bodyguards.

"Selena," I said through gritted teeth as I sat up, "what are you doing here?"

"Just here to check on you, dear cousin." She smiled brightly and glided to my bedside, just like in the old days when we had seemed as close as sisters.

"I heard you broke your leg? How pitiful. But don't worry, Damian sent me to take care of you." Her fingers lightly caressed the rough plaster on my leg. The touch seemed gentle, almost caring-until she suddenly pressed down hard.

A stabbing pain shot through me. I gasped, biting down on my lip to stop myself from crying out.

I couldn't show weakness in front of her. I absolutely couldn't.

"Does it hurt?" she asked with feigned concern. "I only wish I could share some of your pain."

"Selena," I said, struggling to keep my composure, "if you're here just to mock me, you've seen enough. You can leave now."

"Oh, no, no, no. I still have something important to tell you." She sat down in the chair beside me as if she owned the place. "Do you know, Damian told me a lot last night."

Her voice dropped to a conspiratorial whisper. "He said the little ones inside you might not survive. After all, who would want cursed pups living by their side, right?"

Blood rushed to my head.

"What did you say?"

"Oh, I almost forgot to mention." She feigned surprise, covering her mouth, but the malice in her eyes was unmistakable. "The doctor said the curse is contagious. Your pups are already tainted. For the purity and future of the pack, their disappearance would be for the best."

She paused, then added, "Damian said if these children are born, they would only bring disaster to the pack. So the best solution is... "

She made a "purifying" gesture, her smile growing even more radiant.

Rage instantly clouded my reason.

Ignoring the searing pain in my leg, I sprang up from the bed and clamped both hands around Selena's throat. "Touch my children, and see what happens!"

A flicker of panic crossed her eyes, quickly replaced by a smug smile.

"Ella, you're insane! Help! Help!" she screamed, her voice pitched with just the right amount of fear.

At that moment, the door burst open again.

Damian appeared at the threshold, his face dark as thunder.

He saw only the scene of me attacking Selena, blind to everything that had happened before.

"Let go of her!"

The crushing force of the Alpha's aura bore down on me, the suppression from deep within our shared bloodline forcing my hands to release.

Damian shoved me hard, and I lost my balance, crashing backward into the sharp corner of the stone fireplace.

A mouthful of blood sprayed from my lips.

The curse, jolted awake by the violent impact, began to wreak havoc. I felt something inside me ripping apart.

"Damian!" Selena cried, throwing herself into his arms. "She tried to kill me! She's gone mad! I only came to visit her, and she suddenly attacked me!"

Damian held her tightly, shielding her with his body, and looked down at me bleeding on the floor with disdain.

"You're not even worthy of touching her." His voice was icy, each word carving wounds into my heart like a blade. "Ella, this is your last warning. Stay away from her, or face the consequences."

With that, he carried Selena away without a backward glance, leaving me lying in a pool of my own blood.

The room returned to silence, broken only by my labored breathing.

Inside me, another voice rose again, dripping with mockery and pity, "Do you see it now? This is the man you claim to love so deeply. He'd rather believe an outsider than hear a single word from you. And you still want to hold on for a man like this?"

I closed my eyes, a tear slipping down my cheek.

"My pups... I will never let anything happen to you. Never."