Chapter 1 Chapter 1

I collapsed in the rain. Soaked to the bone, I curled up like a dying cat on the edge of the slums. My calming brews had worn off, and the Omega scent markers inside me were spiraling out of control. I vaguely heard a car door open. "Is she still alive?""Breathing, barely. Looks like she hasn't had any calming brews in a while.""Bring her back." The low, commanding voice cut through the storm. When I opened my eyes again, I was lying on a warm, unfamiliar bed. “You’re awake?” A deep, magnetic voice reached my ears. I turned my head and met a pair of icy blue eyes. “You…” My voice trembled, hoarse and weak. “You’re… Alpha Joe?” He didn’t deny it. “Alpha Joe Foster.” The Alpha of the Foster Pack. A legend. A pureblood Alpha born into power and ruthlessness. “You don’t remember me?” I asked, voice barely a whisper. He glanced at me for a second, then looked away. “I didn’t save you because I know you.”“Then why?” He stood, back straight and cold like a sculpture. “Your blood type is rare. A perfect match for someone I need to save.” My fingers clenched the sheets. “Who?” I already knew. “Luna Linda.” He said her name quietly, and for the first time, his tone held a trace of warmth. “She’s… everything to me.” I felt my heart shrink. “She’s relapsing. The doctors say she won’t survive two more months without a transplant.” He turned to me, eyes devoid of emotion again. “You’re the only viable donor.”“So you brought me back… for my heart?” He didn’t answer. Instead, he placed a contract on the bed. “What is this?”“A marriage agreement. Sign it, and I’ll give you a wedding and this—” he pulled out a deep blue sapphire necklace and tossed it onto the pillow, “—a Foster heirloom.” I stared at the necklace. Years ago, he once said, “When you’re grown up, I’ll give this to you.” Now, it was Luna Linda’s. “You want me to marry you… just so you can legally take my heart?” I asked. “I want no delays,” he said flatly. “Sign it, or go back to the slums and die.”“You love her?” My voice was barely audible. “She is everything,” he said simply. I nodded and picked up the pen. “Good,” he said, not even glancing at the signature. “Don’t be late to the ceremony.” The wedding was quick. I wore white. Outside, it drizzled. He stood at the altar with the elegance of a born Alpha. When Luna Linda entered the chapel, his entire expression softened. I had never seen him look at anyone like that. The priest asked, “Do you take this Omega—”“I do,” Alpha Joe said gently. Applause. Laughter. Happiness. And me, standing like a ghost among the living. After the ceremony, he approached me, clipped the necklace around my neck with cold fingers, and said, “Keep quiet. Don’t ruin the arrangement.”“I will,” I murmured. “Don’t worry—I won’t beg for anything.” He paused. “Then why are you crying?” I wiped my cheek. “Must be the wind.” The operating room was cold. I lay on the surgical bed, numb. Nurses whispered as they prepped the equipment. “Did you hear? This Omega was specially found by Alpha Joe. Her blood type is almost extinct.”“Luna Linda’s so lucky. He even married someone else just to save her.”“And gave her the heirloom necklace too. That’s love.” I wanted to laugh, but I couldn’t. My chest burned. My vision blurred. And then On the overhead screen, a live wedding broadcast played. Alpha Joe kissed Luna Linda under the stained glass window. Their scent markers intermingled like moonlight and fire. My heart stopped on the table. And in my final moment, all I could think of… was that boy from the orphanage who once knelt beside me with a needle and whispered: “Don’t be afraid. I’ll protect you.” Turns out, he wasn’t talking to me after all.

Chapter 2 Chapter 2

I knew I was dying. The rejection response spread like fire through my veins, tearing me apart from the inside out. My chest throbbed. Every heartbeat felt like a countdown. “Acute rejection onset!”“Massive internal bleeding—she’s crashing!”“calming brews aren’t working, pressure’s falling fast!” Their voices sounded distant, like I was at the bottom of a deep ocean. My limbs were ice. I could no longer lift my eyelids. I wanted to ask—where was Alpha Joe? He promised he would stay. Promised he would be there when I went into surgery. So… where was he now? On the other side of the city, a grand wedding was underway. The camera panned across white roses, crystal chandeliers, and guests dressed in finery. In the center of it all, Alpha Joe stood beside his bride, tall and regal in his black suit. His gaze was fixed on her—Luna Linda. “The ceremony begins,” the priest announced. “Do you, Alpha Joe Foster, take Luna Linda Harrison to be your bonded Luna?”“I do,” he said softly, the kind of softness he’d never once used on me. He reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a familiar object. The Foster pack’s heirloom sapphire necklace. The one he once promised to give me when I came of age. Now he clasped it gently around Luna Linda’s neck, whispering, “You’re my only Luna.” I lay dying in an ICU bed, watching him declare eternal love to someone else. The nurses beside me were whispering. “She’s so lucky. Alpha Joe even married another Omega just to get a heart for her.”“He gave her the pack heirloom too. That’s real love.” I wanted to scream. But my throat had closed up. My body no longer obeyed me. I looked at the monitor beside me. It streamed the moment Alpha Joe leaned down and kissed Luna Linda. Their scent markers intertwined like fire and starlight. It was beautiful. Perfect. And then, my heart stopped. My pupils dilated, fixating on the image of him kissing her while I died. The last thing I remembered… was the little boy from the orphanage who once said: “Don’t be afraid. I’ll protect you.” Turns out, he wasn’t talking to me after all. But then, something strange happened. I opened my eyes. Sunlight. Warm and blinding. “Miss, you’re awake. The Redcliff pack car is waiting outside.” I sat up, heart thudding—strong, steady, but foreign. I ran my fingers along my chest. No scars. No pain. I wasn’t Emily anymore. A mirror reflected a stranger’s face. Sharp cheekbones. Amber eyes. Alpha aura. “You said I’m… who?”“You are Alpha Stephen Redcliff,” the elderly butler said, bowing deeply. “The longlost Alpha heiress of the Redcliff Pack. Missing for sixteen years, now finally returned.” An Alpha. I had been reborn. No longer the poor Omega girl they used and discarded. No longer the weak one begging for affection. I was Alpha Stephen now. I stood up, smiled faintly. “Then let’s not keep the world waiting.” Somewhere in the city, bells were still ringing from Alpha Joe’s wedding. But I was no longer the girl dying in a hospital bed. I was the Alpha who had come back from the grave. And this time—I would burn everything down.

Chapter 3 Chapter 3

The council hall was lit like a coronation chamber. I walked across the red carpet, each step of my heels clicking like a countdown. "Is that... Alpha Stephen Redcliff?""The longlost Alpha heiress? She was supposed to be dead.""Looks insane to me." Let them talk. I didn’t come back to be silent. Alpha Joe sat on the high seat, dressed immaculately as always, his gaze sharp as a blade. "Miss Redcliff," he spoke, voice calm but cold. "Is your presence today political... or purely theatrical?" I smiled, pulling a bottle of wine from behind me. “A celebration, of course.” Then I uncorked it and threw the entire glass at his tailored suit. Gasps filled the room. Alpha Joe’s scent markers flared immediately—pine and blackwood, crashing down like a storm. But I didn’t flinch. I released mine—cold iron and silver fox. The scent sliced through the air like a dagger. He stumbled back. “She’s suppressing his scent markers!”“She’s a toplevel Alpha!” I stepped closer. “What’s the matter, Alpha Joe? Can’t handle a woman who doesn’t bow anymore?” A silverhaired man stepped forward, watching me with faint amusement. “Miss Redcliff,” he said in a smooth voice, “Alpha Daniel Reyes. Alpha of the Silver Pack.” He extended a hand. “Would you honor me with a dance?” I was about to answer when another presence brushed against my senses. A cool, restrained scent—cedar and snow. An Omega? He passed by me silently, but for one brief moment, our scent markers intertwined. We both stopped. He turned his head slightly. “You are?”“Omega Silas,” he said. “Omega.” For a heartbeat, we simply stared. Alpha Joe’s expression darkened from across the room. I smiled. So you can discard me like trash but get jealous when others look my way? Later, in the dressing room, I went to change—only to find a stack of old photographs inside the locker. I frowned and pulled one out. A faded picture. Children from the orphanage. There I was—Emily—curled up in the corner with messy hair and toobig clothes. On the back of the photo, a child’s handwriting circled one boy in red ink: "I will always love Alpha Joe." My throat tightened. I traced the words with my fingertip. I wasn’t Emily anymore. But the girl who once loved him with everything she had… she was still somewhere in here, quietly breaking. "You love her now," I murmured. "Then don't you dare look back." A soft knock broke the silence. I quickly wiped my face and turned. It was Omega Silas. “You again?” He leaned casually against the doorway. “You unleashed a lot of scent markers earlier. Gave me a bit of a headache. Came looking for a calming brew.” I handed him a vial from the cabinet. As he took it, his fingers brushed mine. “You were… sad,” he said softly. I froze. “Omegas are sensitive,” he added. “You can lie with words, not with scent.” I looked at him. His eyes were gentle. Steady. “You can talk to me,” he said. “…Thanks,” I whispered. He smiled, pressing his thumb lightly against my palm—a quiet promise. The door suddenly slammed open behind me. Alpha Joe. His eyes were like ice. “Am I interrupting something?” I turned, completely calm. “You’re just in time to leave.” That night, I didn’t sleep. The orphanage photo lay beside me on the pillow. You used to love him so much. But now? Now it was his turn—to break.