Chapter 1

While my pup was fighting for his life in the ICU with a dangerously high fever, my fated Alpha mate was flirting with his Omega secretary.

On Instagram Stories, Kelly's voice was thick with suggestion. "Damon, next time I want to try a different position..."

The pain of my mate's betrayal spread through my entire body.

I simply left a calm comment underneath:

"Remember to use protection. The pack doesn't need a second Alpha heir."

A few minutes later, Damon called. His voice was furious, as if he were trying to cover something up. "What the hell do you mean? Kelly was only correcting my posture. What's wrong with that?"

I did not answer.

I only took out the divorce agreement that had already been certified by the Werewolf Court.

"Sign it. Then accept my rejection."

---

"Kaelen! My baby! Please, you have to be strong..."

My son Kaelen lay in the ICU, an oxygen mask covering his pale little face. Every breath looked as if it cost him all his strength.

The doctor said he had a severe lung infection. If I had brought him in half an hour later, the consequences would have been unthinkable.

And his biological father, Damon Blackwood, Alpha of the Blackwood Pack, had deliberately blocked the mind-link and ignored my calls.

Left with no choice, I opened Instagram and tried to contact him there. But his latest story sent my heart plummeting into an abyss.

In the video, Damon and his Omega secretary, Kelly, were in an intimate, suggestive position. His hands gripped her waist tightly, and he looked at the Omega in front of him with unmistakable tenderness.

Kelly's cheeks were flushed pink. "Master, next time I want to try a different position..."

I stared at the screen, my fingertips trembling.

Our pup, the pack's only Alpha heir, was in life-threatening danger, and Damon was playing this kind of role-playing game with a secretary who had joined the pack less than three months ago?

I took a deep breath and typed a line into the comment section:

[Remember to use protection. The Blackwood Pack doesn't need a second Alpha heir.]

The moment I sent it, I felt the wolf inside me grow restless and pained.

She reminded me that as Damon's fated mate, I had every right to tear apart any intruder who dared covet what was mine.

But I did not.

Because Kaelen needed me more.

My phone rang almost instantly.

"What the hell do you mean?!" Damon's roar burst through the receiver, so loud that even the nurse turned to look at me. "Do you have any idea what will happen if wolves from other packs see that comment? Do I need to teach you how to be a proper Luna?"

I closed my eyes, and Kaelen's weak face rose in my mind.

An Alpha who turned off his phone while betraying me. A father who ignored his own child's life. And now he wanted to talk to me about responsibility?

"Kaelen is in the ICU," I said calmly. "Come see him."

"Children get sick. Isn't that normal? Why are you making such a big deal out of it?" Damon's tone was full of impatience. "Have you prepared everything for next week's product launch? If you mess it up, you know the consequences."

"Damon..."

"Enough! I don't want to listen to your nagging. Bring the samples over and stop delaying my real work."

He hung up.

I looked at the words "Call Ended" flashing on the screen, and something in my chest seemed to crack. The pain made my whole body shake.

It was the bond between fated mates.

Once, I had believed it was indestructible.

Now, it was breaking apart piece by piece.

The doctor came out of the ICU and removed his mask. His expression was frighteningly grave.

"Luna," he said, "we need to talk."

I stood up, my legs weak.

"Kaelen's condition is dangerous," the doctor said in a low voice. "We found several old injuries on him. This pneumonia was caused by prolonged exposure to low temperatures. Forgive my bluntness, but as his mother, you should not have allowed your pup to live under such conditions."

I froze.

Low temperatures?

Then I remembered. Yesterday, Kaelen had gone to Damon's office to play. When he came back, he said he was cold. I thought it was only the weather changing.

"Damon turned on the air conditioning in his office yesterday because he was afraid Kaelen would be hot," I murmured. "The temperature was very low."

The doctor's eyes sharpened.

"Luna, I believe you need to consider whether Alpha Damon is still qualified to have custody of the pup. The pack does not tolerate harm to pups, not even from an Alpha. If Alpha Damon cannot fulfill his duty to protect his child, you have the right to apply for sole custody."

Sole custody.

The words struck like lightning, splitting open the last of my hesitation.

I was going to take my pup away.