The papers trembled in her hands.
Not because of the weight they carried, though they carried plenty, but because of everything they symbolized. Heartache. Rejection. And finally, release.
Elena Blake sat motionless in the front seat of her car, parked just outside the Whitmore estate gates. Her knuckles whitened as she clutched the steering wheel, divorce documents spread across her lap like the ashes of a life she never really got to live.
Seven years. That's how long she had spent pretending. Pretending to be wanted. Pretending to belong. Pretending that not having a wolf didn't make her defective.
While she was lost in thoughts, the estate's towering gates creaked open, and her car crawled forward like it, too, was reluctant to approach what waited inside.
The Whitmore Ashworth's mansion was a castle carved from cold marble and colder memories. It had never felt like home. Not once. But it had been her cage.
And now she was finally walking out divorced, disgraced, and discarded. The first Luna in pack history to be officially rejected.
The security system beeped a cheerful chime, mocking her as it registered her vehicle. Still recognized. Still coded into the estate's system.
She stepped out slowly, her heels clicking against the stone path as she approached the grand doors. The rose gardens on either side were in full bloom, just like she had once dreamed of curating herself. Sebastian had forbidden it, of course. Said the roses reminded him of someone else.
The woman he truly loved.
Inside, voices floated from the kitchen, cutting through the silence like blades. She paused, and placed her hand on the doorknob. Just then, she heard it. That familiar, sweet tinny voice.
"Daddy, why can't you live with Mommy anymore?" The voice was small and heartbreakingly young, it was her little boy's, Leo.
Elena's heart shattered for the thousandth time.
Sebastian's answer came after, low and tired. "The pack needs a Luna who understands them, son. Someone who carries the wolf."
And there it was. Again. The reason. The excuse. That cuts like a knife.
Again, Leo's voice broke the silence. "But you said wolves choose their mates. "Doesn't your wolf like Mommy?"
Then came another pause.
Elena closed her eyes. She already knew the answer. She'd lived it.
Finally, Sebastian spoke. "Your mother gave me you. That's more than I could ever ask for.
Elena didn't want to hear more. She just opened the door and walked in. The click of her heels echoed through the hallway like a gunshot. The kitchen was quiet for a moment.
Sebastian noticed and turned towards her, his emerald eyes cool and unreadable. His body was coiled and rigid in that tailored black suit she had once adored on him.
"Mommy!" Leo's voice rang out, pure and joyful.
She forced a smile and crouched, wrapping him in her arms. "Hey, baby."
Sebastian's voice immediately snapped in the air. "Leo, go upstairs."
"But.."
"Now."
Leo hesitated, then dragged his little feet out of the kitchen.
Elena just stood face to face with Sebastian. She instinctively extended the envelope with trembling fingers. "I brought the final papers."
His eyes dropped to the document, then back to her. "You really want to do this?"
Elena's voice cracked. "We both know it was never real, Sebastian."
He scoffed. "You could've mailed them. Instead, you choose now to disrupt Leo's life again."
"I thought…" She faltered. What had she thought? That maybe, just maybe there was a part of him that would care?
"You never think," he said coldly. "Since the day you entered this house, all you've done is cause chaos. Because you can't accept what you are."
"Elena, laughed sarcastically, you mean what I am not?" she whispered.
Sebastian's jaw clenched. "Leave the papers. I'll drop Leo off later."
She laid them on the counter with shaking hands. Just as she turned to leave, her phone rang. She glanced down and was shocked.
It was her mother. She never called.
She quickly pressed the answer button.
Her mother's voice came through, sharp but distant. "Elena," she whispered into the phone.
Your father has just been attacked by Rogues. We're at Lennox General. He's losing too much blood. You should get here, now!"
The phone slipped from Elena's grip from shock and hit the floor with a loud clatter.
The change in Sebastian's expression didn't go unnoticed. "What happened?"
She looked at him, her entire world spinning. "My father… he's in the hospital."
"I need to go," Elena said, her voice barely above a whisper.
Sebastian stood stiffly near the kitchen island, watching her with that same unreadable expression. "Now?" he asked.
She didn't look at him. "My father was attacked by Rogues. My mom just called he's at Lennox General."
"Do you want me to watch Leo?" His tone shifted, the usual edge softening just enough to catch her off guard.
Elena nodded. "Please. I can't take him to the hospital. Not like this."
He was silent for a moment. "I'll have my mother come get him."
She hesitated at the doorway, turned back. "Tell him I love him, okay? And that I'll be back soon."
Sebastian gave a short nod. "I will."
The drive to the hospital felt like years compressed into minutes. Elena barely registered the road. Her father. Derek Blake, the man who spent his life making sure she never forgot her place in the pack, was dying. And still, she came.
Why? She muttered to herself.
Because despite everything, he was still her father. Because some broken piece of her still wanted to be wanted. Still hoped, against all odds, to be acknowledged. Just once by him.
A few minutes later she arrived at the hospital. The hospital lights glared down as she rushed through the sliding doors. The antiseptic smell hit her like a punch.
"Derek Blake," she told the receptionist. "He was brought in after a Rogue attack."
The woman's eyes widened slightly. "He's in surgery. The family waiting room is that way."
Elena followed the signs down the corridor. Her mother was sitting, paled and trembling, blood smeared across her blouse. Roman stood by the window, arms folded tightly across his chest.
He turned when he heard her. His eyes flickered in surprise, discomfort, something unspoken, but he didn't say a word.
"What happened?" she asked.
Roman didn't look her in the eye. "He was ambushed outside the Pack border. Multiple attackers. They got him badly. Alpha healing's not working, they think the claws were poisonous."
Elena's throat closed. Her mother wouldn't even glance at her. Not even now.
"He's in surgery," Roman added. "We don't know if he'll make it."
They sat in silence. Time dragged. The waiting room felt colder than any place Elena had ever been. All her life, her father made her feel like she didn't belong now. And now, even in his possible death, she still felt like an intruder.
After a while, the doors swung open. A team of nurses rushed a gurney past them. On it laid Derek Sterling Blake, paled, bloodied and unconscious.
Her mother gasped, rushing forward. "Derek! Stay with me, please!"
Roman gripped his hand. "Father, you're stronger than this, please hold on."