Chapter 2

• Lyra POV
• “Lyra! Are you out of your damn mind?” he finally roared, disbelief dripping from every word.
• The master bedroom door slammed open, and Maya stormed out.
• She caught sight of the red mark on Kane’s face and let out a sharp scream.
• “Lyra! How dare you hit your Alpha!” She clutched her swollen belly, her voice shrill and cutting. “Do you even know how hard Kane works to keep this pack together?!”
• Her smug, take-over-the-room attitude made my stomach churn.
• “Who the hell asked for your opinion?” I stared coldly at her bulging belly. “Taking over Luna’s room and using your unborn kid as a bargaining chip. Maya, Shadowfen raised you to be a snake in someone else’s bed?”
• “Enough!” Kane barked.
• Maybe he still felt a flicker of guilt when I hit him earlier. But now, facing off with Maya, his patience was gone.
• He shoved me hard, and I slammed into the wall again.
• “Shut your mouth! Get the hell out!” He pointed at the door. “Get out of my place right now! Take your bad luck with you and don’t come back!”
• Bad luck.
• He said I brought bad luck.
• I spent over a thousand dark, miserable days locked in a stone cell for him. I came back battered but hopeful—and this is what I get? Called bad luck.
• Right then, Maya let out a painful moan.
• Her face went ghost white. One hand clutched her belly as her body went limp and started to collapse.
• “Kane… my stomach… it hurts so bad…”
• Her voice was weak, tears streaming down in big, heavy drops.
• I saw Kane’s expression change instantly.
• All the rage vanished, replaced by panic.
• Without hesitation, he let go of me and spun toward Maya, scooping her up in his arms.
• When he looked back at me, every last bit of warmth in his eyes was gone.
• Only a cold warning remained.
• “Lyra, listen to me very carefully.”
• He spoke each word like a hammer.
• “If anything happens to Maya or the baby in her belly…”
• He ground his teeth.
• “I won’t hesitate to use my Alpha privileges to throw you into the coldest, most desolate prison in the Northern Territories. This time, you’ll never get out.”
• With that, he didn’t even glance my way again. Holding Maya, he strode back into the master bedroom.
• The door slammed shut hard in front of me.
• My pathetic sacrifices over the past three years ended right here.
• I stood frozen, back pressed against the cold wall, listening to muffled sounds from inside.
• Kane’s deep, soothing voice. Maya’s weak sobs.
• They’re family.
• And I’m just the outsider who brought the “bad luck.”
• I suddenly remembered that night three years ago.
• Under the moonlight, he bit the back of my neck. When he finished marking me, he said, “This is your proof of waiting, Lyra. Wait for me—I swear I’ll give you a future.”
• Proof. Future.
• I lifted my hand and touched the mark on the back of my neck—the one that would never fade.
• It used to be the reason I kept going. Now, it felt like a nasty brand, reminding me how stupid I’d been.
• Footsteps came from inside.
• I instinctively stepped back, slipping into the shadows of the living room.
• Kane came out of the master bedroom and gently closed the door behind him.
• He didn’t leave right away. Instead, he stood at the doorway, his back to me, shoulders slumped just a bit.
• For a split second, I actually saw a flicker of exhaustion in him.
• But the next second, he walked over to the window, poured himself a drink, and downed it in one gulp.
• Then he turned around, eyes scanning the empty living room—passing over the shadow where I hid, as if I wasn’t even there.
• Maybe, in his eyes, I’d already ceased to exist.
• “Good riddance,” he muttered, like talking to himself. “Gone clean.”
• He poured another glass, holding it in his hand.
• “An Omega. An Omega who’s been to prison. What kind of future do you think I can give her?”
• His voice was soft, but every word hit clear and sharp.
• “Letting her stay in the pack—that’s the biggest mercy I can show.”
• Mercy.
• I covered my mouth, afraid I’d laugh out loud.
• So, three years locked up for me was just his charity—his so-called “mercy.”
• From the master bedroom came Maya’s gentle call.
• “Kane…”
• He immediately set down his glass. All the irritation vanished from his face, replaced by a softness I’d never seen before.
• “I’m here.”
• He hurried back to the master bedroom. Before pushing the door shut, he glanced back at the living room one last time.
• That look held a storm of complicated feelings.
• But the door closed.
• All the light, all the sound, got cut off behind that door.
• I stood in the shadows, the ache on my back spreading, but the pain in my heart was worse.
• I turned and walked away from that house without looking back.
• Only when I was sure I couldn’t feel Kane’s presence anymore did the tears finally come—late and bitter.
• I wiped them away hard.
• Not worth crying over some Alpha like him.
• I felt the few bills left in my pocket, dragged my still-aching body, and headed toward Greystone Haven, relying on memory.
• Hours later, when I saw the familiar walls, my legs gave out, and I nearly dropped to my knees.
• “Lyra? Is… is that you?”
• A trembling, aged voice called out.
• It was Luna Elara—the head of Greystone Haven.
• She stumbled out, trembling all over. When she saw me, her cloudy eyes instantly welled up with tears. She didn’t ask a word—just grabbed me with her thin, bony hands and pulled me inside.
• She brought over a bowl of warm water and told me to wash up.
• I was parched, gulping it down like crazy, but then I suddenly froze.
• From the shadows in the corner, a few pairs of small eyes gleamed faintly in the dim light, staring hard at the bowl in my hands. I could hear the quiet, strained swallowing.
• I looked closer, and my heart clenched tight.
• Those kids looked rough—dull hair, ribs sticking out, clothes all ragged and worn.
• A bad feeling slammed into me.
• “Elara,” my voice tightened, “Shadowfen promised money and food… didn’t they send it this month?”