Third Person's POV
Everything in Aria and Marcus’s lives was collapsing piece by piece—like a pack left leaderless beneath a darkened moon.
Nothing that had happened over the past months felt just or right. Misfortune followed them like a shadow, each new blow heavier than the last, until even breathing felt difficult.
Yet amid all the chaos, one thing within Aria only grew stronger.
Her faith in her brother.
The longer she watched Marcus suffer beneath the pack’s judgment, the more certain she became that he was innocent.
Marcus changed with each passing day.
The cheerful young wolf who once laughed easily and spoke excitedly about the future now seemed like a fading spirit. His shoulders were always hunched, his gaze distant, as if the light inside him was slowly being swallowed by darkness.
Whispers followed him everywhere within the territory.
When he passed other wolves, their mindlinks buzzed quietly with gossip and suspicion. Some did not even bother to hide their disdain. Their cold stares struck deeper than claws.
Depression wrapped itself around Marcus like iron chains.
If Aria and Sophia had not remained beside him during those first terrible weeks—speaking to him through their soft mindlinks and refusing to leave his side—Marcus might have done something reckless simply to escape the pain.
Their family’s fortune collapsed as well.
Pack trials were not only brutal—they were costly. Appeals to the council, petitions to the elders, and the endless legal disputes drained their resources quickly.
In the end, Aria was forced to sell the mansion that had belonged to their parents.
That home had once been filled with the scent of family—the warmth of shared meals, the echo of laughter during training days, and the comforting presence of the two people who had raised them.
Now it was gone.
Sold for coin that barely kept Marcus’s case alive before the pack council.
And Aria knew exactly who stood behind the Wolfhart tearing their lives apart.
Caleb.
Her former mate.
The Alpha was using every ounce of his authority to crush them.
It was not only rage over the accusations against his stepsister that drove him.
Part of it was bitterness.
Aria had rejected him.
She had chosen her brother over their sacred mate bond.
Caleb wanted her to return.
He wanted her to bow her head and beg for forgiveness.
But that day would never come.
Aria had endured far more pain than he believed she could bear. She knew that someday Caleb would regret what he was doing.
But when that day came…
His regret would mean nothing.
Meanwhile Marcus’s spirit continued to deteriorate.
The Pack Academy, once the place where he had trained for years, expelled him soon after the scandal spread across the territory. His dreams vanished overnight—even though no judgment had yet proven him guilty.
Whispers chased him everywhere.
Cold glances.
Cruel words sharp as silver blades.
Marcus was only twenty-one.
No matter how hard he tried to stay strong for Aria and for Sophia, the weight crushing down on him grew heavier each day. Slowly, painfully, he felt himself losing everything—including the wolf he once was.
After Aria managed to secure his temporary release from the council’s holding cells, Marcus tried to help rebuild their lives.
He searched for work across the territory.
But every door closed the moment wolves recognized his name.
Harsh words greeted him everywhere.
How could people condemn someone without knowing the truth?
Being accused of a crime you never committed was a torment that slowly tore a person apart from within.
Hatred burned in Marcus’s chest.
Even that word felt too small for what he felt toward Clara… and toward Caleb.
He understood Caleb believed he was protecting his sister.
But the lengths the Alpha had gone to were destroying far more than Marcus alone.
He was destroying Aria too.
---
“Marcus… pull yourself together,” Aria whispered softly.
She wrapped her arms around him, holding him tightly as if afraid he might shatter.
“I’m still here,” she murmured gently through their faint sibling mindlink. “I’m not leaving you.”
Marcus buried his face in her shoulder as tears fell freely.
In his hand he clutched the silver ring he had once given Sophia beneath the full moon.
Only hours earlier, Sophia had ended their engagement.
Five months of hearings before the pack council and endless rumors had worn down her faith.
In the end… she could not keep believing.
“I… I think she believes them now,” Marcus choked. “She thinks maybe I really tried to hurt Clara.”
His voice broke completely.
Aria immediately shook her head and cupped his face.
“No,” she said firmly. “Listen to me, my little prince. I trust you. I know you would never do something like that.”
Her gray eyes softened.
“So stay strong… at least for me. We will prove your innocence.”
Marcus slowly pulled away, despair clouding his gaze.
“Caleb won’t stop,” he said bitterly. “He’s determined to ruin us. Why don’t you just give him what he wants?”
Aria frowned.
“He asked you to return to him,” Marcus continued quietly. “If you accept him again as your Alpha… as your mate… maybe he’ll leave me alone. I could even kneel before Clara and beg forgiveness—”
“For what?” Aria cut in sharply. “Did you touch her?”
Marcus shook his head immediately.
“Then we fight,” Aria said firmly. “We keep fighting until the truth comes out.”
She held his face gently.
“I will stand beside you until my last breath.”
Marcus’s eyes filled with tears again.
“I just want you to be happy,” he whispered.
Aria smiled faintly and hugged him again.
“I’ll be happy the day the entire pack realizes they were wrong,” she said quietly. “The day they beg for your forgiveness.”
Marcus managed a small smile through his tears.
Just then—
Knock. Knock.
The sound echoed through the small apartment.
After selling their mansion, Aria and Marcus had moved into a modest home at the edge of the territory. It was simple, but at least it gave them a place where the whispers of the pack could not reach so easily.
“I’ll see who it is,” Aria said softly. “Dry those tears.”
Marcus nodded weakly.
Aria walked to the door and opened it.
The moment she saw who stood outside—
All color drained from her face.
The man she had once loved more than anyone else in the world stood before her.
Caleb.
The Alpha.
His golden eyes gleamed faintly, and the aura of command around him filled the air like invisible pressure.
He chuckled when he saw her pale expression.
“Not even going to invite your Alpha inside?” he asked lazily.
Aria’s expression hardened.
She tried to close the door.
But Caleb pushed it open easily, forcing it aside as if her resistance meant nothing.
She stumbled backward as he stepped inside.
Two pack warriors followed behind him.
“What are you doing here?” Aria snapped. “Leave my home.”
Caleb ignored her and walked into the living room.
Marcus immediately stood up.
Caleb’s gaze landed on the silver ring resting on the wooden table.
A mocking smile curled on his lips.
“Well, well,” he drawled. “Looks like your butterfly finally flew away. I heard Sophia broke the engagement.”
He tilted his head slightly.
“Funny thing is… she’s already promised to another. Daniel Stroke—the French merchant who’s been visiting the northern territories.”
Caleb shrugged.
“A friend of mine, actually. Apparently he’s had his eyes on her for quite some time.”
He smirked.
“They’ll likely be wed before the next winter moon.”
His gaze locked onto Marcus.
“So tell me… how does that feel?”
Pain flashed across Marcus’s face.
Aria grabbed Caleb’s arm and forced him to look at her.
“Yes, Sophia ended things,” she said coldly. “But honestly, it’s better that way. Hard times reveal who truly cares.”
Her eyes burned with defiance.
“We don’t need people who abandon us when life becomes difficult.”
Marcus gave her a grateful smile.
Caleb’s jaw tightened.
“You’re playing with fire, Aria,” he warned darkly. “I told you what would happen if you refused to return to me.”
“I’d rather face consequences than return to a man like you,” she replied. “Loving you once was the greatest mistake of my life.”
Anger flashed in Caleb’s eyes.
In an instant he grabbed her waist and pulled her against him.
Aria struggled immediately, but his Alpha strength overwhelmed her.
Marcus rushed forward—
But Caleb’s warriors restrained him.
Caleb leaned close to Aria.
“I want to hate you,” he murmured quietly. “But I can’t. I still love you.”
His voice softened.
“These months without you have been torture. Even our wolves cry for each other through the broken mindlink.”
“Let me go,” Aria hissed. “Your touch disgusts me.”
His eyes darkened.
“Disgusts you?” he repeated bitterly. “This is the same touch you once begged for beneath the full moon.”
“That was before,” Aria said coldly. “Not anymore.”
Marcus shouted furiously.
“Let her go, Caleb!”
But Caleb ignored him.
“Do you know how I felt when I saw my sister bruised and crying?” he said coldly. “You deserve to feel the same pain.”
Before Aria could react, he shoved her against the wall and crushed his lips onto hers.
Tears streamed down her face as she struggled.
Her fists pounded against his chest.
But he pinned her wrists above her head.
Across the room Marcus roared in rage, trying desperately to break free.
Even Caleb’s own warriors looked away uneasily.
“Punish me instead!” Marcus shouted hoarsely. “Leave her alone! You’ll regret this, Caleb!”
Caleb finally pulled away, breathing heavily.
The moment he released her—
Aria collapsed to the floor.
For a brief moment guilt flickered across his face.
But when he saw Marcus kneeling there in tears, his expression hardened again.
“Now you know how it feels,” Caleb sneered.
“That’s how I felt when I saw my sister.”
He stepped forward and punched Marcus hard.
Aria gasped in horror.
Then—
A sharp crack echoed through the room.
Silence followed.
For the first time since everything began…
Aria had slapped the Alpha.
