Chapter 1

At my mate Kyle Vera's Alpha succession ceremony, my son and I stood there beside him as family.

When it was my five-year-old son's turn to say a few words, he stood up on stage and asked me innocently, "Mom, is it true you slept your way in as the other she-wolf?"

The whole pack erupted. Every reporter covering the ceremony swung their cameras straight at my face for the national broadcast.

"Luna Leora, is what your son just said true?"

"A little boy wouldn't lie about something like that! I bet she never expected her own son to expose a family scandal like this in front of everyone."

"You didn't know? Alpha Kyle used to be engaged to his childhood sweetheart. The engagement broke off out of nowhere. I'd bet anything she's the one who wedged her way in between them!"

I rushed up onto the stage in a panic and tried to explain myself.

But Kyle spoke first.

"Yes. She slept her way in as the other she-wolf."

My ears rang. I stared at him, unable to believe what I'd just heard.

Kyle lowered his voice and gripped my hand tightly. "Ilona's watching from down there. Her wolf spirit's badly damaged. Her memory's a mess. She's convinced you're the one who tore us apart and stole her mate. If you deny it now, it'll only make her worse.

"Just hold on a little longer. Once she's better, I'll clear things up with everyone. They'll know we fell in love the normal way."

I watched the three of them standing up there together like a real family, and I turned and walked away, right through a wave of jeers and curses.

It didn't matter anymore. I'd already be handing in the papers to end our mate bond to the pack council soon enough.

A mate and son who'd choose an outsider over me? I didn't want them anymore.

Chapter 1

Leora's POV

My nightmare started six months ago, the day Kyle Vera rescued Ilona Hale from a Rogue gone feral.

Her memory came back scrambled. She was convinced I was the other she-wolf who'd torn her and Kyle apart. So every time she saw me, she'd point in my face and scream at me.

Whenever Ilona decided she was Kyle's real mate, I had to give up the master bedroom so he could stay and settle her down for the night.

That wasn't all. Whenever her episodes hit, my own son turned into her son too. For three straight months, I could only sneak in to see Owen after she'd fallen asleep.

I finally reached my limit and told Kyle to get her into a proper treatment facility. He just came back with the same excuse he always used.

"Leora, sweetheart. My succession ceremony for Alpha of the Silver Vein Pack is coming up soon. Nothing can go wrong right now. If she starts spreading rumors to the rest of the pack, it'll turn into a family scandal and wreck my ceremony."

So I gave in and let Ilona stay in our house until she was better.

And now, my own son had just asked me publicly whether I was the other she-wolf.

I never was.

Kyle and Ilona had known each other since childhood. By the time I ever met him, their families had already arranged a match between them.

I'd had feelings for Kyle for years, but I never once tried to come between him and Ilona. I just kept those feelings quietly to myself and wished them well.

But nobody expected what happened the day of their Marking Ceremony.

Ilona ran off.

She left behind nothing but a letter saying she'd found her fated mate and was leaving to chase real happiness.

The heir to the Silver Vein Pack's Alpha seat, publicly dumped by his own intended right at the ceremony. He became a laughingstock overnight.

Kyle stood on that stage in total silence for a long moment before he finally spoke, his face blank.

"Who's willing to become the next Luna of the Silver Vein Pack?"

The whole crowd broke into murmurs. Plenty of she-wolves looked ready to jump at the chance, but I was the only one who actually stepped forward.

I walked up onto that stage and took the hand Kyle held out to me.

After we bonded, he was always polite and gentle, but he kept me at arm's length.

Three months into our mate bond, we went to the Silver Vein Pack's Full Moon Ceremony together, and a rival pack ambushed us out of nowhere. Their leader charged straight at him.

I threw myself in front of him without a second thought.

I was hurt badly. It took half a month of treatment before I even regained consciousness.

The day I woke up, Kyle stroked my hair and asked me, "Why would you do that?"

I smiled at him. "Because I love you. I have for a long time."

Because I loved him, I'd have given my life to protect him.

Kyle stayed by my bedside that whole night and didn't sleep a wink.

The next morning, he kissed me gently and pulled me close, his voice warm. "Leora, let's build a real family together."

From then on, Kyle actually started treating me like a real mate.

He answered every message I sent him. He got me gifts for every holiday and anniversary, and he spent them with me. He took me to parties and events, and he introduced me to everyone as his mate without a second thought.

Not long after, our son was born. Kyle named him Owen Vera.

Then, six months ago, he got a phone call from Ilona.

"Kyle... I'm dying. Please save me!"

Ilona had sobbed out her whole story to him.

She'd run off with that other wolf all those years ago to live in his pack, only to end up being used as his meal ticket.

Her wolf spirit had been damaged, her mind had unraveled, and in the end he'd cast her out of the pack without a second thought.

While she was wandering, homeless, a Rogue gone feral had zeroed in on her. She'd waited for a moment when he wasn't looking and called Kyle for help.

The second Kyle got that call, he rushed off to bring Ilona back. That day happened to be the sixth anniversary of our bond. He seemed to have forgotten it completely.

Before he left, he took my hand. "Don't worry, Leora. She's just a friend who needs looking after right now."

Back then, I still believed he was just an unusually responsible wolf.

Now, my own son was practically turning into hers.

"You filthy little tramp! You homewrecker!"

A sharp voice cut through my thoughts and yanked me back to the present.

I looked up to find Ilona had already made her way onto the stage. She was wearing a gown that matched Kyle's colors, pointing at me and screaming insults with pure venom.

"You don't deserve to be at Kyle's succession ceremony. Get out!"

Behind her stood my own son, Owen, looking at me with nothing but disgust and contempt.

"You're a bad she-wolf! I don't want a homewrecker as my mom!"

Half-eaten food and cups full of drinks started flying at me from the crowd.

I took a step back and looked at Kyle.

He only flatly said, "Please escort Ms. Thorne off the premises."

As I walked out through a storm of jeers and curses, I saw Kyle wrap his arm around Ilona's shoulders and pull her gently into his chest.

It was as if the two of them were the real couple, and I was just the extra piece.

The homewrecker no one needed.

The doors of the ceremony hall slowly swung shut behind me. I closed my eyes and forced the tears back down.

Six years of a beautiful dream, and it was finally time to wake up.

I lowered my head and sent a message to the assistant who managed my affairs.

"Draft me the papers to sever the mate bond. And make a note. I don't want custody of my son."

Chapter 2

After I left the ceremony, my whole body went rigid and shaking, and a sharp pain twisted through my stomach.

I gritted my teeth, pressed a hand against my gut, and forced myself out to the parking lot to grab my medication from the car.

But someone was already sitting in it.

Kyle sat behind the wheel, and Ilona sat in the passenger seat, while he gently buckled her seatbelt for her.

The second he saw me, every trace of that gentleness vanished from his face. He frowned at me like I was a problem he had to deal with.

"My stomach medicine's still in the car. I need to grab it," I said, pale as a sheet.

Ilona whipped her head around and demanded coldly, "Kyle, what is this? Why is that homewrecker's stuff in your car?"

Werewolves streamed past on every side, all staring at me with the same look of contempt, disgust, and hatred.

"My mate is in the car," Kyle said, his voice hard. "Watch what you say."

"Don't you dare bully my mommy! You homewrecker!" Owen rolled down the back window and screamed at me.

Mommy?

My heart shattered on the spot. Cold sweat slid down both my cheeks, mixing with tears until I could barely see straight.

A staff member came over to ask what was going on. Kyle answered flatly, "My mate's been through a shock. Please handle this."

Then, without so much as glancing at me again, he rolled up the window and drove off with Ilona and Owen.

The staff member rolled their eyes at me, clearly out of patience.

"Ma'am, you've disturbed the peace here and offended an important guest of ours. Please leave the premises immediately."

A few security wolves hauled me up by the arms and threw me out of the parking lot.

I was a wreck, in so much pain I didn't even have the strength to stand, so I curled up on the ground and let the time crawl by.

I spent the entire night out there like that.

Early the next morning, I caught a ride back to the Silver Vein Pack's territory to pick up the papers to end our mate bond.

But the second I reached the entrance, a group of wolves blocked my way.

"I'm sorry, you're not permitted inside."

Exhausted and half asleep on my feet, I frowned. "Let me through. I'm Alpha Kyle's legal mate. You can't turn me away."

The wolves exchanged a glance, then swarmed me all at once and pinned me down with rough hands. They searched me, stripped off my coat, and confiscated my phone.

Then they locked me in a small, windowless room.

"What are you planning to do to me?"

One of the wolves said flatly, "Someone's accused you of harming another wolf. You're being held in lawful custody until the tribunal convenes in two days."

The door slammed shut behind him.

The room was cold and pitch black, without so much as a chair. All I could do was sleep on the dusty floor.

No one brought me food, and there wasn't even clean water, just a cup of cloudy liquid mixed with who knows what.

My wounds had already started festering, oozing at the slightest touch. Every inch of me was bruised, black and purple, with nothing left untouched. The cramps in my stomach kept coming in waves, bad enough that I rolled on the floor in agony more than once, but no one so much as checked on me.

I was locked up for two whole days. By the time they let me out, I'd lost every drop of color in my face.

It wasn't until the third day that the she-wolf who handled my affairs finally bailed me out.

The moment I had the finished bond-severing papers in my hands, I went straight to find Kyle.

But when I got to our front door, the smart lock couldn't recognize my fingerprint anymore.

It kept blaring the same warning beep.

"Fingerprint not recognized. Possible intruder detected."

Days of anger and humiliation finally broke loose all at once.

I threw myself at the door, pounding and kicking at it like I'd lost my mind, until finally, it swung open with a heavy crack.

Kyle stood in front of me, his face dark, his voice sharp with reproach. "Leora Thorne! What's gotten into you? Ilona hasn't been doing well these past few days. I just got her to sleep. You're going to wake her up.

"You're clearly not in a stable state right now. Maybe you shouldn't come back for a while."

I smiled mockingly.

Ilona couldn't sleep well, and he was this worried. I'd been gone for days, and had he thought of me even once?

It didn't matter anymore anyway.

I looked at him, exhausted, and held out the papers I'd been gripping this whole time.

"Suit yourself. Just sign the papers."

Chapter 3

The air went still for a moment.

Kyle stared at the papers in my hand, his expression flashing with disbelief.

My chest tightened. I was trying to decide whether to say anything else when he suddenly laughed.

He snatched the papers and signed his name across them without hesitation.

"So now you've learned how to threaten me? You can't survive without this family anyway. This is nothing but a worthless piece of paper. Either way, you're moving out today."

I took back the signed papers, and a wave of relief washed over me.

"Fine. I'll move out right now."

The moment I said it, Kyle's expression flickered, irritation rolling off him in waves.

He took a deep breath and stepped closer, like he wanted to say something.

That was when Ilona's voice rang out from inside the house.

"Sweetheart! Where are you?"

Kyle spun around instantly and called back, "I'll be right there!"

He walked off without a second thought, all the way to the doorway, before he seemed to remember I was still standing there.

He glanced back and said coldly, "Leora, don't waste your energy on this. You can't survive without me."

Ever since I'd bonded with Kyle six years ago, I'd poured all my time into taking care of our home and never held a job.

It wasn't strange that he'd think that.

But hearing the contempt in his voice still hit me like a blade twisting in my chest.

I looked away from him and didn't say another word.

I shut the door behind me and walked away without looking back.

-

Over the next few days, I filed the bond-severing papers with the pack council and waited for approval.

The wolf handling my paperwork told me it would take about two weeks to finalize the release.

A huge weight lifted off my chest.

I left behind every pitying or disgusted look from the other wolves and walked away from the place I'd called home for six years without a shred of regret.

I found a motel and figured I could make do there for a week. The place wasn't much, but it was livable.

I sent out resume after resume and heard nothing back, so I picked up whatever odd jobs I could find in the meantime.

It was exhausting, working four or five jobs a day, but at least I was too busy to think about the past.

Then one day, while working a shift at a bakery, I got sent to deliver an expensive custom cake out to an island.

When I saw Kyle again, I felt strangely calm.

"Leora?" Kyle raised an eyebrow, his expression cooling. "What are you doing here?"

Ilona stepped out from behind him wrapped in a bathrobe, her face twisted with displeasure.

"Are you following us?"

Kyle let out a short laugh, a trace of mockery in his eyes. "What, now that I've signed your papers, you're following me around trying some new trick?"

The second she heard that, Ilona's eyes went red with rage, and she raised her hand to slap me across the face.

"You shameless little tramp! First you stole my home with Kyle, and now you're following us around! I'll teach you what you can and can't do!"

I caught her arm before it landed and shoved her off me.

"You've got it wrong. I'm just here to deliver your cake."

I pulled the neatly wrapped cake from behind me and set it down at their feet.

"Please just sign for it. I've got other orders to get to."

Kyle's expression flickered, and he frowned. "Wait a second,"

I didn't stick around to hear the rest. I took a step back, closed the door on them without a word, and turned to leave.

I hadn't gotten far before one of Kyle's subordinates grabbed me from behind.

"Let go of me!" I fought back with everything I had, but he clamped a hand over my mouth and dragged me the other way.

He threw me onto a yacht anchored near the island.

A crowd of guests in formal wear stood inside, all staring at me like I didn't belong.

A second later, a piece of cake with a serving knife still stuck in it slammed into my face.

The blade caught my forehead, slicing my skin open, blood trickling down toward my temple.

Ilona brushed frosting off her palm, a vicious gleam flickering in her eyes.

Kyle didn't seem to notice any of it. He grabbed my chin and tilted my face up.

"Leora, you'd better explain what this is about. If you're going to pretend you don't care, at least make it convincing. How dare you put mango in that cake?

"Ilona's allergic to mango. You could have killed her. Do you understand that?"

Chapter 4

My mind went blank. I grabbed Kyle's wrist and shouted, "I didn't do this!"

"Not you?" Ilona sneered, looking down at me. "I specifically told them not to put mango in it when I placed the order. Besides you, the delivery girl, only Kyle and I have touched this cake.

"So if it wasn't you, who was it? Kyle? Or did I do it to myself?"

Ilona's eyes gleamed with challenge, and everything clicked into place for me all at once.

The mango in that cake had almost certainly been her own doing, planted there herself to set the whole scene.

But what good did knowing the truth do me?

Kyle wasn't going to believe me. He only ever believed Ilona.

I swallowed the pain and gave Kyle a bitter smile. "Why don't you just check the security footage and find out for yourself who did this? With the power you have, finding the truth would take nothing more than a phone call.

"But I don't think you actually care about the truth. You just want an excuse to pin all of this on me."

I stared him down, my eyes flat and cold, and the whole room went tense.

Everyone was watching us. The hall had gone dead silent.

Kyle's expression froze, like he was working something through in his head, until Ilona let out a scream that shattered the standoff between us.

"Kyle! You'd rather believe her than me? Do you actually think I put mango in my own cake to try and kill myself?"

Ilona grabbed a fistful of Kyle's shirt, her eyes red and rimmed with tears, completely unraveling.

"Do you like this homewrecker that much? Is that why you're protecting her? Are you trying to help her kill me?"

Kyle panicked instantly and pulled her into his arms, murmuring soft reassurances.

"Of course not. You're my mate..."

"I don't believe you!"

Ilona pointed out at the bottomless black water beyond the deck, her eyes locked on me like she was a demon.

"Unless you throw her into the sea, I won't believe you don't care about her!"

Ilona turned and gave Kyle's subordinates a flat, emotionless order.

"Throw the homewrecker into the ocean."

My vision went white, my ears rang, and I stared at her in disbelief. "Ilona, have you lost your mind? I can't swim. I'll drown!"

Kyle hesitated for a second, but the moment he saw how worked up Ilona was getting, he turned to soothe her instead. "Ilona, calm down. Don't get upset. It's bad for your condition."

A massive wolf hauled me up and carried me toward the water.

I fought with everything I had, clawing at Kyle's shirt as they dragged me past him, my eyes red and desperate. "Kyle, please! Don't throw me in, I'll die..."

But he was too busy comforting Ilona to even glance my way.

They threw me into the sea like a sack of garbage, without an ounce of mercy.

The moment the water closed over me, it felt like it was flooding every organ in my body.

I couldn't breathe.

Then my mind sank into a darkness deeper than the ocean itself, and I lost consciousness completely.

When I opened my eyes again, I was lying on the yacht's deck. I was soaked from head to toe, coughing up seawater.

"Leora, have you lost your mind?"

A bonding certificate landed on my face.

"You knew Ilona was struggling mentally, and you still brought our bonding certificate onto this boat and slipped it into the ballroom!" Kyle roared.

"Are you trying to drive her completely insane?"

The certificate fluttered to the ground, soaked through with seawater from my clothes.

The names we'd once signed with our own hands blurred into smudges, two dark stains bleeding across the page.

I used to believe that as long as I stayed with Kyle, I'd eventually make him fall in love with me.

For a while, I'd even believed that I already had.

But only now did I finally understand that in his heart, I would always come second to Ilona.

I laughed coldly, picked up the ruined certificate, and tore it clean in half.

"It doesn't matter whether this paper exists or not. If you think it upsets Ilona so much, just tear it up and tell her it was fake."

Kyle's face went rigid.

Chapter 5

Kyle's eyes stayed locked on the torn certificate, and something in them went cold in an instant.

He probably hadn't expected me to destroy proof of our mate bond so easily.

After all, there was a time when I used to pull it out and look at it nearly every single day.

The day we got that certificate, I'd had it framed behind glass and set it on my nightstand so I could admire it.

Kyle used to tease me about it every time he caught me staring at it.

"You really love that piece of paper that much?"

"It's not just a piece of paper," I'd corrected him, dead serious.

It was proof that after loving him for over a decade, I'd finally earned my place beside him.

And now I'd torn that proof apart with my own hands.

Kyle's eyes stayed fixed on the ruined paper. He must have finally noticed something had shifted in me, because he lifted his head and looked at me, heavy with something unreadable.

"Leora, you..."

Before he could finish, Ilona lunged forward and yanked the gun straight out of his pocket.

Her eyes were bloodshot as she pressed it to her own temple.

"Kyle... so all of this was fake. You and I were never actually bonded. You bonded with this tramp six years ago. Why didn't you tell me until now?"

She laughed, hollow and broken, her eyes full of grim resolve.

"I always thought she was the other she-wolf. Turns out I was the one all along... If I'm going to be the other she-wolf, I'd rather just die."

Her finger twitched against the trigger.

Kyle's eyes went wide with terror. He grabbed her arm to wrench the gun away, but somehow ended up letting the barrel point straight at himself instead.

A deafening crack rang out. The bullet grazed his neck, leaving a wound that could have easily killed him, before burying itself deep in the hull behind him.

Kyle pulled a frantic Ilona into his arms, his voice low and urgent. "Ilona, listen to me. Let me explain.

"Leora tricked me. She only bonded with me back then so she could become Luna. She's been sleeping around this whole time. How could I ever actually want a she-wolf like that?"

Ilona's expression stayed doubtful, but she slowly lowered the gun. "Really?"

"Really," Kyle said, dead certain, motioning for one of his subordinates to hand over a folder. "See for yourself."

Ilona took the folder and dumped out a pile of photos.

Bright, garish photos scattered across the floor, and a bad feeling crept up my spine.

Every single one of them had my face on it.

I pulled out my phone immediately and logged into my social media account.

There was a flood of posts, all uploaded within the last hour—photos and videos of me in intimate poses with a string of different werewolves.

I realized instantly that every one of them had been generated by AI.

They matched the ones in Ilona's hands exactly, and no one but Kyle knew the password to my account besides me.

He'd had his subordinates generate all of it, then logged into my account himself and posted it all.

And he'd done it all for one reason that was to keep Ilona happy.

Realizing that felt like something ripping my heart apart, a pain so sharp I could barely breathe.

"Why?" I stared at Kyle, tears of pure agony spilling down my face. "Why would you fabricate something like this just to destroy me?"

Kyle's brow creased slightly. He shot me an impatient glance, like he thought I should have known better.

"Leora, this is the price you pay for your own mistake. If you hadn't shown Ilona that certificate, I wouldn't have needed to do any of this to calm her down."

I couldn't hold it in anymore and shouted, "I didn't do that! I already moved out. How could I possibly have that certificate, let alone bring it onto this boat?"

The moment the words left my mouth, a familiar shape came rushing at me, throwing punches with real venom.

"It was you! It was you! I saw it myself!" screamed the pup I had once loved enough to give up everything for, pointing straight at me.

"You're the homewrecker who stole that paper and showed it to my mommy on purpose, and now she's so upset! Why are you even still alive? You should just die!"

Owen's little fists clenched tight, his eyes flashing with genuine hatred.

He looked at me like I was his sworn enemy, nothing like the son who'd once depended on me completely and loved me without question.

He was a different pup now.

I didn't even know when he'd started hating me this much.

When Owen's fist landed on my leg, the pain made me flinch back a step without thinking.

But he suddenly threw himself to the ground and wailed like he'd been wronged. "You pushed me!"

"Dad, Mom, the homewrecker pushed me!"

Ilona rushed over and scooped him into her arms instantly.

The second she lifted her head, every trace of her earlier hysteria had vanished, replaced by something almost coldly composed.

She even shot Owen an approving wink, letting him know he'd done well.

Owen grinned, burying his face in her chest while wailing even louder for show. "Mom, chase this awful she-wolf away! She's been mean to you, and now she's hurting me too!"

Behind them, Kyle's expression had frozen.

He looked at me with disappointment and gave a slow shake of his head.

"Leora, how did you turn into this? He's your own son. How could you do that to him?"

My face went pale, not a trace of color left in my lips. "I didn't push him."

"So you're saying Owen's lying?" Kyle laughed coldly.

"He's a five-year-old pup. Why would he ever slander his own mother? Do you even hear yourself right now?"

He had a point. If I hadn't seen it happen with my own eyes, I wouldn't have believed it either.

But that was exactly what had happened.

The pup I'd once treasured more than my own life had turned into the terrifying stranger standing in front of me.

I had never felt more relieved that I'd already given up custody of him.

Worn down to nothing, I said, "Believe whatever you want."

Kyle looked at me like I was a criminal on trial. He stepped closer and said coldly, "Get on your knees and apologize to Owen and Ilona.

"If they don't forgive you, you're not leaving this boat."

Chapter 6

My face went white, and I shook my head immediately. "Absolutely not."

Kyle's expression turned impatient instantly.

He narrowed his eyes and warned me, "Leora, you don't seem to understand what you've done wrong."

The second he said it, he waved a hand, and one of his subordinates rushed forward and forced me down onto the ground.

My knees slammed into the freezing deck, and pain shot through both legs.

A flicker of hesitation crossed Kyle's eyes, but his voice came out flat regardless. "You need to atone for everything you've done. Admit what you did, or stay on your knees until you do."

That was when I noticed Ilona give Owen a small nudge.

He took off running through the cabin, shouting for everyone to hear. "Everybody, come look! The homewrecker's finally on her knees apologizing! This she-wolf wrecked my family! She's horrible!"

Everyone started drifting out from the cabin and gathering on the deck, whispering among themselves.

Every curious glance landed on me until the weight of it pressed me down, and I couldn't even lift my head.

I heard someone murmur, "I think I saw her on social media. She really gets around."

"I heard her personal life's a mess, that she's been wrecking other she-wolves' families for ages. How shameless can you get?"

Phone after phone turned to capture my humiliated face.

I tried to turn away, but Kyle's subordinates held me in place, my face lit up under a wall of camera flashes.

I don't know how long it went on before plates and gnawed bones started raining down on me, until a silver fork grazed my skin and left a thin line of blood behind.

My skin burned with sudden, sharp pain, my blood turning restless and agitated beneath it, the ache unbearable.

I finally understood that if I didn't confess, I might actually die right there.

I squeezed my eyes shut, my voice coming out hoarse, humiliation burning through me.

"I'm sorry, Ilona. I'm sorry. I was wrong. I'm the other she-wolf. I shouldn't have destroyed your family..."

Owen threw his arms up and cheered, laughing as he ran circles around the deck. "The homewrecker finally admitted it!"

The gathered guests shoved their phones even closer to my face, trying to catch every last detail.

"That's more like it," Ilona said smugly.

My vision blurred, and the last things I saw before I lost consciousness completely were a sea of gleeful faces and Kyle's back as he walked away.

When I woke up again, I was in a hospital bed.

My phone buzzed twice. I opened the unread messages.

One was from the pack council.

[Ms. Thorne, your application to end your bond has been approved. Please come collect the papers at your earliest convenience.]

The other was from Kyle.

[Leora, tomorrow night at eight. The pack council office. Since you're so determined to sulk, let's just go ahead and finalize the severing of our mate bond. Ilona's throwing a fit over this whole thing right now, so the timing works out.]

[Whenever you come to your senses and decide you're willing to accept Ilona, I'll file to bond with you again.]

I couldn't help but laugh. Kyle had no idea I had already filed the bond-severing papers.

He probably thought I was still sulking, that one text from him would send me running back to beg for forgiveness and fall in line.

But I didn't care anymore.

I calmly turned off my phone and caught a ride straight to the pack council.

After I picked up the finalized papers, I used the money I'd earned from my odd jobs to buy a plane ticket out of the country.

I didn't know where I was headed, but I knew for certain I had to leave this place behind.

Wherever I ended up, it had to be better than staying anywhere near Kyle.