Chapter 1

The day after his first love accused me of running her over, the pack’s warehouse roared with iron lamps and churning hot oil.

My Alpha mate and our two sons hung my younger brother above a massive vat of boiling oil, threatening to deep-fry him alive.

I rushed forward like a madwoman, only to have my arms seized by two Beta wolf guards.

“Have you realized your mistake?” Alpha William stood to the side, impeccably dressed, his brows cold and sharp. “Will you dare hurt Emily again?”

“I didn’t hit her!” I cried, struggling desperately. “William, let Ethan go! He’s only eighteen, he just got into college!”

Five-year-old Leo crossed his arms, his little face icy. “The evidence is conclusive, and you’re still arguing?”

Four-year-old Alex nodded obediently, his tone innocent yet cruel. “Mommy, if you were afraid Ethan would die, you shouldn’t have hit Emily. She’s our treasure.”

My heart clenched violently.

Emily was their treasure—then what was I? What did that make me?

I looked at William, hoping he would at least spare Ethan for the sake of our years as husband and wife.

But he only stared at me coldly, as if I were a stranger.

Suddenly, I laughed, even as tears kept crashing down.

So after all these years, he still only loved Emily.

Memories cut into my heart like knives.

The three of us grew up together from childhood. I liked William, but his eyes were always on Emily. All I could do was quietly bless him, even help him plan his confession.

But on the eve of that confession, the plane Emily was on crashed, leaving no remains behind.

After that, William drowned himself in alcohol, wasting away. I stayed with him, watched over him—when he drank himself unconscious, I cooked sobering soup; when his stomach bled, I stayed up all night to care for him.

One night, he was badly drunk, gripping my wrist and murmuring Emily’s name as he pressed me beneath him.

I could have pushed him away.

But I loved him too much—so much that I was willing to be a substitute.

The next morning, he stared at the bloodstains on the sheets for a long time before finally saying, “I’ll take responsibility.”

And so we held the bonding ceremony.

After marriage, I did everything I could for him. His stomach was weak, so I woke early every day to cook nourishing porridge; he was busy with work, so I learned to help him process documents; when he had nightmares at night, I stayed awake with him until dawn.

Gradually, the way he looked at me changed. He began to remember my favorite flavors; during my cycle, he would personally boil brown sugar water; when I fell asleep, he would gently kiss my forehead.

Later, we had Leo and Alex. The two children clung tightly to me, and William often smiled as he held me close. “My Luna, you’ve worked hard.”

Those five years were the happiest time of my life.

Until—

Emily “came back from the dead” and stood before him again.

She was sent directly from the airport to the top-floor ward of the pack hospital, part of the wolves’ controlled medical network; the elevators required special keycards, and elite Alpha guards rotated shifts.

At that moment, I saw it clearly—the light instantly returned to William’s eyes.

What crushed me even more was how quickly my two sons turned to her.

“Emily is way gentler than Mommy!”

“Emily plays games with us. Mommy only ever controls us!”

“Daddy, can we let Emily be our mom?”

Each time, he only glanced at me indifferently, then ruffled the boys’ hair and said, “Don’t say nonsense.” —yet he never refuted them.

I was like an outsider, watching helplessly as the five years of happiness I had “stolen” shattered completely the moment she returned.

And now, they were using such a cruel method to force me to admit to a crime I never committed.

“It wasn’t me!” I snapped out of my memories, my voice trembling. “William, let him go!”

His gaze was icy. “The stubborn only learn through blood.”

He raised his hand—the Alpha signaled the wolf guards, and they immediately cut the rope.

“No—!”

I watched as the rope snapped, my brother’s body falling straight into the seething oil.

I lunged forward in madness but was pinned down, able only to scream in despair, “William! You killed him! You killed him!”

The pain tore through me as I violently spat out a mouthful of blood. Leo clicked his tongue impatiently. “Enough. That wasn’t Ethan at all—just a dummy. Mom, is this really necessary?”

Alex snorted. “Exactly. Just scaring you. Serves you right for hurting Emily.”

All strength drained from my body as I collapsed heavily to the ground, as if my heart had stopped beating.

William looked down at me from above. “Remember this feeling. Emily has come back from the dead—I can’t lose her a second time.”

He paused, his tone soft, as if granting mercy. “I know what you’re worried about. Since I chose you as my mate, I’ll fulfill my duties as both mate and father. I won’t dissolve the mate bond. So stop trying to drive Emily away.”

I trembled as I looked up at him.

But I was already preparing to terminate the mate bond…

A husband and sons who favored Emily like this—I didn’t want them anymore.

Just as I was about to speak, his phone rang.

“Emily?” He answered, his voice instantly gentle. “It hurts again? Okay, I’ll be right there.”

After hanging up, he didn’t even look at me, leaving quickly with Leo and Alex.

The factory fell silent in an instant, leaving only me kneeling on the ground, tears dropping one by one into the dust.

I wiped away my tears and was about to stand when my phone suddenly vibrated.

A message from Emily popped up—

[Grace, I had someone switch out that dummy. The one frying in the oil right now is your real brother.]