Charlotte POV:
"You little brat!"
I lunged, grabbing Leo's arm. I just wanted to shake him, make him understand what he destroyed.
"That was my grandmother's!"
Leo let out an ear-piercing scream. "Daddy! Help! She's hurting me!"
The front door burst open. Aiden was there in a second. He didn't ask questions. He saw his son crying and me holding his arm.
"LET HIM GO!"
The Alpha Voice hit me like a physical blow. A command woven with dominance that forced every wolf instinct to submit. My knees buckled. I fell, gasping.
Leo scrambled to Haven, who had just entered. He buried his face in her skirt, fake sobbing.
"She hit me! I was just looking at the doll!"
I struggled against the pressure. "He... he smashed it on purpose..."
"Silence!" Aiden roared, eyes flashing gold. "You dare touch a pup? You dare touch my son?"
I forced myself to stand. My legs shook.
"Your son?" I spat out. "Yes, your bastard son. The one you're stealing my family's legacy for."
Dead silence.
Aiden's mother, the Dowager Luna, walked in. She looked at me with pure disdain.
"Watch your tongue, you barren mule," she sneered. "You are just jealous because Haven gave this pack an heir and you gave us nothing but medical bills."
"I gave you everything!" I screamed. "My land! My dignity! My..."
"Enough," Aiden said. The Alpha Voice vanished, replaced by cold indifference. "You have disrespected the hierarchy. Go to your room. Do not come out until I decide your punishment."
I looked at them. The Alpha, the mistress, the bastard, the cruel mother-in-law. A perfect, twisted family portrait.
"No," I said softly.
Aiden blinked. "What?"
"I said no." I stepped over the porcelain shards. "I am not going to my room. I am going to pack."
I walked past them. As I passed Haven, she leaned in close.
"You should have left years ago, Lottie," she whispered, venom dripping. "You're just a waste of space. A wolf who can't shift is just a dog. Time to put the dog down."
I kept walking up the stairs, back straight, while my heart bled out.
