He turned to leave, mumbling, “I’m exhausted. Maybe you can ask someone else to fetch whatever it is you need.” The disregard in his voice, his complete lack of shame, was like salt in an open wound.
I watched him retreat, disappearing into the shadows of our mansion, leaving me standing alone in the silence. I allowed myself to feel the full weight of his betrayal. I pressed a hand to my stomach, feeling the life within, the true bond that mattered now.
“You’re my true bond,” I whispered to my unborn child. “Together, we’ll reclaim our strength.”
As dawn broke, the silvery light cast long shadows across the pack’s territory. I stood at the edge of the woods, breathing in the morning air, feeling a strange calm settle over me. I would not be his victim. I am the Alpha’s daughter, and I had a duty to my child, my pack, and myself.
Derrick may have broken our bond, but in doing so, he’d unleashed a power within me that I was only beginning to understand. I could feel it now—a strength that pulsed through my veins, an untamed power fueled by the pain he had inflicted.