"Diana, please don't do this," my sister-in-law pleaded as she held me tightly. "The Pack Council will judge this fairly. As long as the Howell Pack stands behind you, those men will answer for what they've done."
The wardens seemed more annoyed than remorseful.
One of them sneered from where he stood under guard.
"If you'd raised your pups properly, they would never have ended up in the Iron Fang Den."
"This is how young wolves are trained. Discipline requires pain. We never expected your daughters to be so weak."
My whole body trembled with rage.
I pointed at them, wishing I could rip them apart with my own claws.
A metallic taste filled my mouth.
Blood spilled from my lips.
Darkness swallowed me whole.
When I opened my eyes again, I was lying inside the Howell Pack's ancestral lodge.
My sister-in-law stood beside the bed, her eyes swollen from crying.
"You're awake," she whispered. "Don't worry. The Pack Council has already begun its investigation. We won't let those beasts escape justice."
I stared blankly at the carved wooden ceiling.
"Please," I murmured. "Let me leave. I have nothing left."
Deep down, I understood the truth.
Those wardens deserved punishment.
But they had only carried out the sentence.
The one who had condemned our daughters to that place was Jordon.
Their own father.
He was the one who had truly killed them.
My sister-in-law lowered her head.
After a long silence, she nodded.
"All right."
"I'll speak with Grandfather."
The moment she left, the tears I had been holding back finally broke free.
Years of grief poured out with them.
I had come to the Howell Pack when I was eight years old.
Jordon had been the same age.
Alpha Howell and my grandfather had once fought side by side in the Great Pack War.
My grandfather had saved the Alpha's life, and the two had sworn a blood oath of brotherhood.
After my parents died during a rogue attack, my grandfather became my only family.
When he later passed beyond the Moon Goddess's embrace, I was left completely alone.
Alpha Howell brought me into the Howell Pack and raised me as one of his own.
Over the years, he and my sister-in-law had shown me nothing but kindness.
They had truly treated me as family.
So during the seven years of my mating bond with Jordon, no matter how coldly he treated me, I endured everything.
I raised our daughters.
I cared for our home.
I asked for nothing in return.
I believed that even if my mate never loved me, my life still had meaning because I had my little girls.
Now...
They were gone.
Some time later, my sister-in-law returned.
"Grandfather wishes to see you."
When I entered the Alpha's chamber, the old Alpha sat quietly beside the hearth.
The sorrow in his eyes nearly broke me.
"Diana," he said gently, "you have always been a good child."
"Your sister has told me everything."
"We will return your daughter's ashes to the Moon tomorrow."
"When it is over, you may leave this pack if that is your wish."
"My grandson is unworthy of you."
"You should not waste another day of your life because of him."
I said nothing.
I simply bowed deeply before the old Alpha.
Tears struck the wooden floor beneath me.
I would always be grateful to the Howell Pack for giving an orphan a home.
But I could never forgive Jordon.
He was the one who had sent our daughter to her death.
When I returned to my chamber, Jordon was already waiting.
The moment he saw me, a mocking smile crossed his face.
"So you couldn't wait to run to Grandfather and complain?"
"Diana, do you really think winning Grandfather's sympathy or my sister's support will make me care about you?"
The instant our eyes met, every shred of grief inside me became hatred.
It crashed over me like a tidal wave.
In that moment, I wanted only one thing.
To watch the man who had murdered our daughter fall into the abyss he had created with his own hands.
