Howling at Her Silent Grave

She didn’t ask if I had fought with Damien. Instead, her eyes fixed on my face with concern.

“What’s that smell? Is that… blood?”

I saw the familiar fear in her eyes. It was the same panic I’d seen in her eyes back when she was still with my abusive biological father, before she met my stepdad.

Not wanting to worry her, I forced a smile. “I just pushed myself too hard during training.”

Mom finally breathed a sigh of relief and urged me to go rest.

I grit my teeth against the pain, making my way back to my bedroom. I collapsed onto the bed, a cold sweat beading on my forehead.

I dry-swallowed a few suppressant herbs and closed my eyes, praying for sleep.

If I could just fall asleep, the pain would fade.

In my dreams, there was no heartless Damien, no ever-worrying mother.

In the haze between dream and consciousness, my mind drifted back to a purer time with Damien.

Back then, I had not yet set foot in the Alpha’s mansion. The moonlight witnessed our love.

We walked barefoot through the forest, fingers intertwined.

I never mentioned my dwindling bloodline, and he never spoke of his status as the Alpha’s son.

We were just two wolves from broken homes, finding warmth in each other.

He told me he would build himself up from nothing and make his Alpha father see him in a new light.

I told him I wished my mother could leave my abusive father.

When I said that, he, a boy of few words, looked at me, and his own eyes mirrored my pain.

He reached out to wipe a tear from my eye, then clumsily pulled me into his arms, patting my shoulder gently as he promised.

“Elara, as long as I’m here, you’ll never have to be afraid again.”

I didn’t know how to describe the feeling then, only that my heart ached so fiercely it felt like it would burst.

That day, Damien’s shirt was soaked with my tears.

I thought we would be like that forever, but then, he rejected me, suddenly and decisively.

I refused to accept it, my eyes red-rimmed as I pleaded with him through our mind-link, asking why.

He just said, “My wolf no longer recognizes you. That’s all.”

I couldn’t accept such a dismissive answer, so I kept trying to win him back.

I peeled the hardest Moonlight Fruit for him with my bare hands until my fingers bled, but I didn’t stop.

I stood in line for hours under the scorching sun just to buy his favorite Mountain Spring Brew, and I didn't mind one bit.

Soon, everyone in the pack knew me as the shameless girl who wouldn’t let go, and they all placed bets on when our bond would be severed for good.

But when I learned my mother was having a bonding ceremony with his Alpha father, I knew it was truly over between us.

That sleep would have been perfect if the pain hadn’t ripped me from it.

I clutched my side in agony, pressing so hard my knuckles turned white.

This usually eased the pain slightly, but this time, it did nothing.

My face was pale, and I desperately craved a glass of hot water.

But I never expected to find Damien still on the terrace sofa; he was supposed to have left hours ago.

The mansion lights were off, and I could barely see him in the faint moonlight.

He sat there silently, leaning back on the sofa, a cigarette between his fingers, its tip glowing like a malevolent red eye.

Hearing me, he glanced over, his expression annoyed.

“Elara, are you trying to scare me to death, wandering around like a ghost in the middle of the night?”

“I’m sorry. I just wanted some water.”

I bit my lip and turned my face away, not wanting him to see how pathetic I looked.

But he didn’t seem inclined to let me off so easily.

Damien stood up and strode toward me. “The Blackwood pack isn’t stingy. If you’re trying to play the victim to get sympathy, the only one who’ll fall for it is my father.”

He frowned, his gaze sweeping over my frail body with contempt.

"Get any thinner and your spirit won't have the strength to cross over."

I froze for a moment, then forced a weak smile.

His words were a prophecy.

I really was going to die.

“Yeah. Just getting ready.”

I held my tongue, deciding not to tell him the truth.