Chapter 1

Aurora “I don’t have a single penny for you or that pathetic mother of yours!” my father—the Beta of the Ravenclaw Pack—roared. I clung desperately to his leg, tears streaming down my face. My mother had been diagnosed with heart failure. Without treatment, she had only a month to live. Five years after being cast out of the pack, I swallowed my pride and came back here, just to beg him—for her life. He was my last hope. When I was eighteen, I failed to complete my first transformation. From that day on, he changed completely. Within a week, he threw me and my mother out of the house himself. His reason? “The pack doesn’t keep useless trash.” Soon after, Stella and her mother moved in—the woman from the packaging factory who had been his mistress for years. What could I say? I couldn’t transform, and I had no strength to resist. All I could do was leave with my mother, comforting her, promising that we’d find a better life. Five years passed. Yes, we were far from the pack and that cursed factory, living in a small cottage on the outskirts. But just when I thought life had finally calmed down, fate came for her again—with a knife in hand. So here I was, back again, stripped of dignity, standing at this door once more. “Dad… please… remember all those years you spent with Mom. You two used to run together, support each other. You told her you couldn’t live without her—don’t you remember? Please! Please don’t let her die!” I sobbed. “She can rot in hell! She’s not my mate! She betrayed me! She gave birth to you—a bastard child! You useless piece of filth!” He spat right in my face. “You’re twenty-three and still can’t shift! You’re not of my blood!” “Dad, I’m your daughter!” I shook my head, desperate. “Mom has always been faithful to you! I couldn’t transform—it was an accident. But Mom never had anyone else!” I could see the love my mother had for him—deep, unwavering. She would never betray him. “Bullshit! No Beta wolf could ever sire a wolfless Omega! Your mother was a warrior wolf! You’re not my daughter! You’re a bastard! Go to your mother and find out who your real father is—some pathetic Omega, no doubt!” His eyes flared red as he shouted. “Get out before I rip your throat open with my claws!” he growled. My shoulders trembled, but I had nowhere else to go. “No! I’ll pay you back, I promise! Please, Dad!” I kept begging. I had a job—I could work harder, pay the hospital bill. “Bitch! Are you deaf?!” he bellowed, then kicked me hard in the stomach with the tip of his leather shoe. Pain exploded through me; I curled up on the floor, gasping. “It hurts…” “Dad!” my half-sister Stella suddenly appeared, wearing a short robe and thigh-high boots. “I need thirty thousand dollars for my vacation,” she said sweetly. My father’s face softened instantly. “Oh, darling, is that enough? I don’t want you to be short on anything. I’ll write you a check right now. Take the Porsche—and call me if you need more.” He said it warmly, already scribbling on the check. I stood there speechless, stunned. He handed her the check. Stella squealed with joy, threw her arms around him, then shot me a smug look before running off. I couldn’t believe it. He had just given her twice what my mother needed for treatment—for something as trivial as a vacation—yet he was willing to watch his loyal, hardworking wife die. “Dad… Mom only needs fifteen thousand… can you—” “Stella’s happiness matters more than the lives of you and that useless woman! Don’t you dare step into this house again! You’re filth, and I want nothing to do with you!” he shouted, standing up. I lunged forward, grabbing his leg. “Guards! Throw this stranger out! She’s forbidden from entering this house ever again! From today, she’s no longer a member of this family!” Two guards stormed over, seizing my arms and dragging me out. “Dad! Please—please! Save Mom!” I screamed, kicking and struggling, but they were far stronger than me. They threw me outside. Rain poured down, drenching my thin robe until it clung to my body. I shivered uncontrollably. “Please… let me… please, just let me in…” I pleaded, my voice shaking. The guards laughed. They stood under umbrellas, watching me like predators. “If you’re willing to do anything for money, I can give you a few hundred,” one of them said, hand sliding toward his crotch. The other burst out laughing. “Can’t wait to see how you taste.” I fought the urge to spit in their faces. “Get lost, you disgusting bastards!” I shouted. I knew they wouldn’t actually touch me—it would ruin my father’s reputation. The Beta couldn’t risk the Alpha finding out his guards had assaulted his daughter. Clutching my stomach, I forced myself up from the muddy ground as rain washed over me. I didn’t know who else to turn to. The image of my mother lying weak in that hospital bed burned in my mind, and tears flooded my eyes again. I’d always thought I was strong. After we were cast out that year, I’d supported us by tutoring pack children and working at a small clinic. Mom always said I was her little miracle—that I had the courage she never did. I couldn’t transform, but I learned to survive with my mind. I remembered every patient’s name, every pup’s little illnesses, every mother who cried under the moonlight. Maybe that was my only strength—in a world that didn’t want the “wolfless,” I still tried to be worth something. But now… all that worth meant nothing to him. “I know you don’t want to bother Theodore,” my wolf, Riley, murmured softly, “but he’s our only option right now…” I closed my eyes tightly and nodded. My legs carried me through the pounding rain, toward a familiar place. Theodore—my mate. In the pack, no one wanted to go near a wolfless Omega. I was always the one standing in the corner of the party—quiet, invisible, treated like a curse. But when I was eighteen, Theodore didn’t reject me. He picked me up in his arms and swore to treat me as his life. I’d never wanted to burden him with my troubles. He was an Alpha, and he had never blamed me for not being able to shift. He treated me like I was something precious. Even when I told him that my mother wished we’d make love after our marking ceremony, he accepted it with gentle patience. “I’m already lucky enough to have met you, love,” Theodore would always say, his voice soft. “I won’t ask for more. I’ll wait for you—until we can complete the ceremony together.” Just thinking of him eased my pain. I was sure—Theodore would help me.