Felicity’s POV
I had always known my wolf core was precious. Every pup in the pack was raised to protect it, to guard it as though it were our very soul, because it was. Without it, a wolf wasn’t whole. Without it, a wolf was powerless. And yet, they wanted mine.
Alpha Cyrus said it was the only way to save Dianna. His voice had cracked like thunder when I refused.
“You’re selfish, Felicity,” he spat. “Would you rather see her die?”
My chest burned, my wolf clawing inside me in protest, but I held my ground. “No one has the right to rip out my wolf core! It’s my life, my spirit. You can’t ask me to give that up.”
But he didn’t ask. He ordered.
His warriors dragged me to the hospital, my body thrashing uselessly against their iron grips. They strapped me down, the sterile stench of silver instruments filling my nose. My wolf screamed inside me—then everything went dark as they cut into me, ripping out the very essence of who I was.
When I awoke, I was weaker than I’d ever been. My veins felt hollow, my body cold. It was like someone had scooped out the fire that made me a wolf. I wasn’t sure if I’d ever shift again.
And then she was there.
Dianna. Standing at my bedside with a bouquet of lilies and sunflowers, smiling sweetly, as though she hadn’t just been the reason my life had been shattered.
“Felicity,” she whispered, setting the flowers on my lap. “I just wanted to thank you. Truly. Without your sacrifice, I wouldn’t be here.”
The smell of the pollen hit me instantly, burning my nostrils, choking me. My throat tightened, my eyes watered. I shoved the bouquet away, coughing.
Dianna’s face twisted in shock. “What are you—?”
Alpha Cyrus stormed in just then, his eyes catching the flowers scattered on the floor, and me gasping. His gaze went cold, sharper than a blade.
“How dare you?” he growled. “She came here to thank you, and you push her away like she’s dirt? Felicity, must you always be so cruel?”
“I—” I tried to speak, but the tightening in my throat made words hard to form. “I’m allergic… pollen…”
But he didn’t listen. He never did. His arm went protectively around Dianna, pulling her to his side like she was the one wronged.
“Enough excuses,” he snapped. “You should be ashamed.”
They left me there. Alone. Weak. Empty.
That night, I cried until my body ached. The tears weren’t just for my wolf core—they were for everything I had lost. My baby. My strength. My bond with the alpha who was supposed to protect me but instead destroyed me.
As the moon climbed high, my phone buzzed. A message lit the screen.
Alpha Damien:
[Tomorrow, I’ll come for you. Tell me where you are. You don’t need to stay there another day.]
My hands trembled as I typed back. [I’m at the hospital. I’ll go with you tomorrow.]
And for the first time in months, my tears slowed. My heart found a sliver of peace.
By morning, I was ready. More than ready. They had already stripped me of everything—my wolf, my child, my dignity. There was nothing left here for me.
But before Damien could arrive, another message came.
From Cyrus.
[Let’s go on a date today. After everything, we need it.] He added the name of a restaurant, as if that could patch the wounds he had carved into me.
My first instinct was to ignore him. But something inside me, some small remnant of the foolish girl who once believed in him, wanted to say goodbye. Properly.
So I dressed myself in the dress I had worn the night we first met. Pale blue silk, now a little faded, but still beautiful. Maybe I wanted him to remember what he had once had… and thrown away.
I arrived at the restaurant and waited. An hour passed. Then two. My food grew cold, my hope even colder.
It wasn’t until my phone buzzed again that I understood. It wasn’t him. It was Dianna.
Her post was public. A picture of her and Cyrus together at another restaurant. Her face pressed against his chest, his hand on hers. The caption read: “He came with me first. I was craving Biscoff tiramisu. My Alpha always puts me first.”
My hands shook, the phone slipping from my fingers. The whole room seemed to tilt, but instead of breaking, something inside me hardened.
Enough.
I stood and approached the manager, my dress trailing behind me like the ghost of who I once was.
“Excuse me,” I said softly. “If a man comes here, tall, broad-shouldered, dark hair… and alpha… tell him this is for him.”
I handed her a small box. Inside it, the fake marriage certificate Cyrus and I had signed months ago when he swore he’d make it real. And a vial. Clear glass, sealed tight. Inside was the tiny preserved form of the child I had lost. Our child.
It was all I had left to give him: the truth of what he had destroyed. Then I walked out.
The evening air was sharp and cool, carrying the scent of freedom. My heart pounded as I pulled out my phone one last time and dialed.
“Damien?” My voice was steady, though my hands trembled. “I’m ready.”
Minutes later, a sleek black car pulled up. The door swung open, and there he was—Alpha Damien. Tall, powerful, his presence commanding the night itself. His long dark hair framed a face both fierce and beautiful. His eyes softened when they landed on me.
He stepped out, his hand extending toward me. “Ready to leave them all behind?”
I swallowed hard, my chest tightening with both fear and relief. Then I nodded.
“More than ever.”
As I slid into his car, I felt something inside me shift. Not my wolf, she was too weak, too broken, but something else. Determination. Resolve.
The hospital, the pack, Cyrus, Dianna… they blurred behind me as Damien drove us into the night.
Before we disappeared, I took out my phone one last time, stared at Cyrus’s unanswered messages, and tossed it into the nearest trash bin. No connection. No trace.
When Alpha Cyrus realized I was truly gone, he could search every forest, every city, every border. He would never find me.
Because Felicity, the broken she-wolf, had died in that hospital bed.
And whoever I was becoming now… she was never going back.
