Caelia’s POV
His name was Cassian.
At first glance, I almost didn’t recognize him. He stood framed in the hospital doorway, his presence pressing down on the room like a tangible force. Power clung to him effortlessly—coiled, controlled, undeniable. His dark hair fell past his shoulders, his posture straight and assured, his eyes sharp with authority. This was not the Cassian I remembered.
Once, years ago, he had been a frequent guest in my parents’ pack. My father—though never an Alpha—had been respected for his mind. He had taught strategy, negotiation, and battlefield foresight, and Cassian, despite coming from a far stronger and more influential pack, had listened to him with earnest attention. He had sat at our table, asked questions, absorbed every lesson.
Back then, Cassian had been different.
Gentler. Awkward in a charming way. Always buried in books, spectacles sliding down his nose, his frame too slender to match the title he was born into. No one would have guessed that the quiet heir would grow into a man who carried command so naturally, so decisively. Leadership had reshaped him, hardened him, turned the boy I once knew into something formidable.
“You…” My voice betrayed me the moment I spoke. “Cassian… is that really you?”
The corner of his mouth lifted, subtle but genuine. “Looks like you didn’t forget me after all.”
Forget him? Impossible. He was the same boy who used to sneak extra sweet buns from my mother’s kitchen just for me. Yet the man before me bore no trace of that innocence. He was Alpha through and through—and when he spoke again, my heart faltered.
“Want out?” he asked calmly. “I can get you away from that excuse of an Alpha.”
Those words stayed with me long after he left, echoing in my mind during the days that followed. I hadn’t agreed right away. I’d asked for time instead, my voice barely steady.
“Seven days,” I had said quietly. “Just give me a week. I need to finish things here.”
Cassian hadn’t pushed. He hadn’t argued. He’d simply nodded, unwavering. “I’ll be there when you’re ready. I’m not going anywhere.”
---
I remained in the hospital for three more days. My body recovered faster than my heart ever could. I mourned in silence—the child I never knew I carried, the marriage I thought was real, the betrayal that replayed endlessly behind my closed eyes.
When the healers finally discharged me, I returned to the packhouse feeling heavier than when I’d left.
The moment I stepped inside, I stopped short.
Laughter filled the space. The main hall was bright, the central table overflowing with food as if a celebration were underway. Sitting there together were Alpha Lucien, Beta Noel—and her.
Calista.
The laughter died instantly. Every gaze swung toward me.
“Oh,” Lucien said after a brief pause, sounding mildly inconvenienced. “You’re back already. You should’ve let me know.”
As if I needed permission to return to my own home.
I didn’t respond. My attention was fixed on Calista.
She sat close to him, composed and radiant, a delicate smile playing on her lips. Her posture was relaxed, confident—like she belonged exactly where she was.
Lucien shifted, clearing his throat. “Caelia, this is Calista. An old friend from my childhood. She’ll be staying here for a while. She’s recovering—from an incident. Some kind of sorcery attack recently.”
Sorcery. The word nearly drew a bitter laugh from me, but I swallowed it down.
“I know who she is,” I said evenly. “You two were… close. A long time ago.”
“Yes,” he replied too quickly. “That’s right. She’s been through enough already. That’s why I left the other day—she needed me. Your little trip to the border…” He waved it off. “I knew you’d survive. None of this would’ve happened if you’d just stayed away from dangerous areas.”
My breath hitched.
He was blaming me.
My wounds still ached beneath the bandages. The emptiness in my womb throbbed like a fresh wound.
“I didn’t just get hurt,” I said, my voice shaking despite my effort. “I lost something. I lost our child—”
Before I could finish, Calista gasped sharply.
Her hand flew to her chest. “Alpha—oh no—it’s happening again,” she cried weakly. “My condition—!”
She sagged dramatically, her face pale, her body trembling.
Instantly, the room revolved around her.
Lucien was at her side in seconds, gripping her shoulders. “Easy. I’m here. You’re safe.”
“No,” I whispered, stepping forward. “Please—listen—I lost our—”
But I might as well have been invisible.
His entire world narrowed to her. To her shaking hands. To her tears.
The words about our baby withered in my throat, crushed beneath his indifference.
So I turned away.
---
Upstairs, I went straight to my room—the only place that had ever felt like mine.
Or so I thought.
The door swung open to emptiness.
The furniture remained, but everything else was gone. My clothes. My books. The keepsakes I’d brought from my parents’ pack. Every trace of me erased. The room felt stripped, unfamiliar.
It hit me then.
I no longer belonged here.
I sensed her before I heard her.
“Surprised?” Calista’s voice floated behind me, sweet and smug. “Lucien said this room suited me better. More space. More comfort. More appropriate.”
She stepped closer, satisfaction shining in her eyes. “It was always supposed to be mine anyway. I left once, yes—but you took everything while I was gone. Even him.”
Her tone was venomous beneath the sweetness. In that moment, I saw through the act. She wasn’t fragile. She wasn’t a victim. She was a wolf reclaiming territory—no matter who she crushed along the way.
“So tell me,” I asked quietly, turning to face her. “This illness of yours… is it real?”
For a heartbeat, her composure cracked.
Then her face crumpled as if on command. Tears spilled freely. “How could you say that?” she cried loudly. “After everything I’ve suffered?”
Her sobs echoed down the hallway—too loud, too deliberate.
And right on cue, Lucien appeared.
His concern went straight to her. His anger went straight to me.
“What did you do to her?” he demanded.
“I didn’t—”
“She accused me!” Calista wailed, clinging to him. “She said I was pretending just to steal you from her. She hates me! She wants to destroy us!”
“That’s not true!” I yelled, panic rising—but it didn’t matter.
Lucien’s expression hardened. He grabbed my hand suddenly, his grip brutal. Pain shot through me as he yanked the ring from my finger.
The ring.
The plain silver band he’d given me three years ago. The one he promised would someday be replaced by a Luna’s crown.
He slipped it into his pocket without hesitation. “You’re no longer worthy of wearing this.”
And just like that, the last fragile thread binding me to him snapped.
I stood there empty, finally understanding the truth.
Every promise.
Every vow.
Every dream I had held onto—
All of it had been a lie.
