Chapter 3
1196 Words
“But Rachel has already suffered enough. Back then, to break off her engagement with your brother and let your brother be with Sophia, you deliberately had someone kidnap Rachel for three days and nights, causing her to be abused. Now that she’s finally moved on and is carrying your child, it’s only right for you to take care of her…”
My mother-in-law’s voice was trembling as she continued to argue, but Alpha Zachary interrupted her sharply, his voice tinged with frustration and something darker.
“Enough, Mom!” Alpha Zachary’s tone was harsh, filled with frustration.
He stood with his arms crossed, his gaze cold and distant. “To make up for what happened, I married her even though I knew everyone would mock me for accepting a ‘tainted’ woman. I took care of her for three years, helping her heal. Isn’t that enough?”
I could hear the bitterness in his voice, like a snarl that was barely held back.
“Do you want me to spend my whole life repaying her? I’ve suffered for three years, pretending for three years. I’ve had enough!” Alpha Zachary’s eyes flickered for a moment, and I saw something primal in them, something raw and angry.
His wolf spirit seemed to be clawing at the surface, desperate to break free.
His hands clenched into fists at his sides. “Living with her every day, watching her struggle… it’s been torture. Now, heaven has given me a chance to be with Sophia again. I’m not going to throw that away.”
His words hit me like a slap, and the pain in my chest intensified.
I heard more muffled voices from inside, but I couldn’t make out the words. All I could focus on was the deafening silence that followed.
The coldness seeped into my bones, and I felt as if the very air around me had frozen.
It was as though my heart had stopped beating, and every word they spoke was a dagger that cut deeper into my soul.
I stumbled backward, my feet barely holding me up.
I turned and staggered down the hallway, not caring about the tears that fell freely down my face.
The sharp, biting cold of the night air met me as I reached my room, but it couldn’t freeze the burning pain in my chest.
I fell to my knees, gasping for breath, my body trembling uncontrollably.
It wasn’t just the cold, though. It was the realization—everything was a lie.
The man I had trusted, the man I thought loved me, had been playing me all along.
The truth hit me harder than I had imagined.
Alpha Zachary hadn’t been my salvation—he had been my tormentor all along. It wasn’t just that he had pretended to love me for three years—it was that he had orchestrated everything. The k********g. The suffering. All of it was to push me aside for Sophia.
I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t think. The reality of it all left me paralyzed, and my mind raced back to those dark days.
The k********g. The three days and nights of hell.
I had been taken because they wanted me broken. They wanted me ruined. Alpha Zachary—no, both he and Beta Ethan —had planned it all.
But why? Why hadn’t they just called off the engagement openly? Why hadn’t they simply walked away from me?
Why did they have to destroy me instead?
I collapsed onto the floor, my body wracked with sobs. Everything I had believed, everything I had fought for, had been shattered. And the worst part? I had trusted him.
I had believed in him so completely.
“I’m carrying his child…” I whispered to myself, but it felt like a cruel joke. My body was still shaking, my wolf spirit struggling to hold control. It was as though my emotions were pulling at my soul, threatening to tear me apart.
The image of Alpha Zachary’s eyes—cold, indifferent, with that familiar but hidden wolf-like hunger—flashed in my mind.
Meanwhile, Inside the Room
Alpha Zachary's back was to the door, his posture rigid as he spoke to his mother, voice laced with frustration.
"Why do you insist on this? You think I don’t know how to carry the weight of this family? My brother’s death wasn’t just a loss for me, Mom. I’ve been pretending for years that I didn’t want to be with Sophia. I’ve been living a lie. And now, you want me to keep pretending?"
His voice lowered, growing darker, raw with emotion.
"You don’t understand," he said softly, almost to himself. “She doesn’t belong with me. She never did. My wolf…" He clenched his fists, his nails biting into his palms, “She’s not my true mate.”
His mother took a step back, clearly taken aback by the rawness of his words. “But Alpha Zachary, what about Rachel? She’s already suffered enough. You can’t just—”
Alpha Zachary spun around, eyes flashing with a dangerous light, and his wolf instincts began to bleed into his voice. “I’ve done more than enough for Rachel. Do you think I owe her my life? Do you want me to spend my days pretending to care when all I can feel is the pull to be with Sophia? To return to my true mate?”
His mother remained silent, unsure of how to respond.
Back in Rachel’s Room
I lay there on the floor, my body still trembling.
Suddenly, the door creaked open, and Faron, the Tribal Doctor, stepped in.
“Rachel, you need to calm down,” Faron’s deep voice broke through the haze of my thoughts.
His presence was steadying, but I could see the concern in his eyes as he knelt beside me.
His calm demeanor was a stark contrast to the chaos in my heart.
"Faron…" I gasped, struggling to hold back tears. "Why? Why did they do this to me? Why did Alpha Zachary—why did he—"
His voice softened, and he placed a hand gently on my shoulder. “I don’t have all the answers, but I know this—your wolf spirit is fighting, Rachel. You’re not alone in this.”
“But my child…” I whispered through the tears. “I can’t lose him. I can’t lose everything I’ve been fighting for.”
Faron nodded, his expression grave but compassionate. “You won’t lose him, Rachel. You have the strength of your pack, and the strength of your wolf. Together, we can protect him. But first, you need to control your emotions. If you don’t, both you and the child could be in danger.”
“I… I’ll try.” My voice was shaky, but something inside me stirred.
It was faint, but it was there—my wolf. Lyra. Her energy was faint, but her presence was still with me.
Faron stood and placed a hand over his heart, a gesture of peace and protection. "Trust yourself, Rachel. The path ahead may be dark, but you have the power to change your fate."
- Writer
