Tears welled up in my eyes, blurring the scene as I stood on the balcony. My grip tightened around the cold iron rail, trembling as I watched the sleek Royal Blue GTR glide into the driveway below.

My heart pounded erratically, each beat like it was trying to escape the cage of my ribs. I wanted to run, to hide, to do anything that could stop the inevitable, but I just stood there, frozen. Helpless. Weak. I hadn’t even had my first full-form transformation as a wolf. How could I ever fight back?

I didn't need to be informed about what might happen, I already knew something was about to unfold again and that only made my heart ache in pain.

The car door slowly pushed open and Damian stepped out, Damian is the Beta to the Alpha of our pack, he was still as breathtaking as always, in his corporate suit, with his muscular broad build.

Damian and I were fated mates and we were so much in love with each other but a few months into our marriage he had changed so much, I never for once fell out of love with everything I admired so much about him, but he seemed to forget everything about me, he might soon even forget I existed.

Just as these thoughts were swirling in my head, the passenger door to the car swung open and she walked out. Lilian, my half-sister, the last of my father. A sight that tore through me like a jagged blade.

Lilian moved with calculated grace, her smile sharp as she walked around the car and curled her arms around Damian's neck. She pulled him closer, making them only a breath away from each other. without warning their lips clashed they kissed deeply, their tongue exploring each other as if I—his mate—were invisible.

While Damian's hand kept moving on Lilian's butt, their lips locked for seconds and for these seconds I felt I might pass away, it was as if the oxygen coming into my lungs seized at that moment, the cup in my hands I didn't even know when I broke it hoping to make the pain stop.

I flinched, the pain of it searing through me. My vision blurred further as the cup I didn’t even realize I was holding slipped from my hand, shattering on the floor at my feet. I could hardly breathe. My lungs felt like they were collapsing, the air suffocating in its refusal to enter.

Lilian’s eyes flicked up to mine, her lips curving into a wicked smile. That smile was a challenge, a taunt. Do something, she dared me. Fight me. But I didn’t move. I couldn’t. My body was a prisoner of my own torment.

Damian’s low voice sliced through the air, loud enough for me to hear despite the distance. “I wish you were my fated mate,” he whispered into Lilian’s ear, his voice laced with tenderness I hadn’t heard in months. “Unlike the weak wolf the moon goddess burdened me with.”

The words hit like a punch to the gut, stealing the last bit of strength I had left. I bit my lip until I tasted blood, desperate to stop the sobs rising in my throat. It wasn’t just the betrayal, it was the rejection. He despised me. Hated the mate bond that tied us. I wasn’t just an inconvenience. I was a burden.

Lilian giggled, her laughter like nails on glass. “You could reject her,” she cooed, brushing her lips against his jawline. “Mark me as your new mate. I’ll never be a disappointment like she is.”

Damian’s eyes darkened with desire as he leaned down, pressing a kiss to her forehead. “You’re everything she isn’t. Perfect. Strong.”

I couldn’t take it anymore. I turned and fled inside the house, my breath hitching, my chest aching as if my heart was being ripped apart. The cold stone floor of the hallway felt like ice beneath my bare feet, but I barely noticed. Their voices echoed behind me, their laughter haunting me as I stumbled into the shadows.

I pressed my back against the wall, my knees weak, my body shaking uncontrollably. How did it come to this? Damian and I had once been inseparable, our bond the envy of the entire pack. We were fated mates—destined to be together. But now… now, I was nothing to him. Less than nothing. He paraded his infidelity in front of me as though I didn’t exist.

Why am I so weak?

I sank to the floor, hugging my knees to my chest as the tears I had tried to hold back finally fell. I don’t deserve this. My thoughts spiraled, my mind racing with the reality I was too afraid to face. I was never going to be enough for Damian. No matter what I did, no matter how hard I tried to hold onto the bond, it wasn’t going to save us.

I was doomed.

They were downstairs now, laughing, talking like lovers planning their future together. I could hear it—their voices, intimate and soft, carried through the house like a poison that seeped into every corner of my soul.

“I’ll mark you tonight,” Damian whispered, his tone laced with promise.

I closed my eyes, my nails digging into the flesh of my palms, the pain a sharp reminder that I was still alive. But I wasn’t sure how much longer I could take this.

“Damian,” Lilian’s voice purred. “What about Annabel? What will the elders say?”

“What about her?” His voice was cold, detached. “She can’t even transform. She’s useless to me.”

The words cut deeper than any physical wound ever could. I felt my body go numb as I curled further into myself, wishing I could just disappear.

I can’t do this anymore. The realization washed over me like ice water. I had held on for too long, hoping—stupidly—that Damian would come back to me. That he would love me again. But love wasn’t something you could force, and whatever bond we once had was dead. And so was I, inside.

I stood up, my legs shaking as I wiped the tears from my face. I deserve better. The thought echoed in my mind, a quiet resolve building within me. The only way to reclaim my life was to let go of the one thing that had been killing me—Damian.

It was time.

Without hesitation, I walked to Damian’s room. My heart pounded harder with each step, but this time, it wasn’t from fear. It was from the anger—the righteous, consuming anger that had been festering inside me for months.

I pushed open the door, by now Lilian was gone.. Damian stood by the window, pulling off his tie, his back to me. He didn’t even turn around when I entered. The air between us was thick with tension, and for the first time in a long while, I felt something other than helplessness.

“I need to talk to you,” I said, my voice low, but steady.

He finally turned, his expression one of mild annoyance. “What is it now, Annabel?” His voice dripped with impatience, as though even speaking to me was a chore.

For a moment, I hesitated. But then I remembered the image of him with Lilian, the cruel words he had said, the way he had made me feel worthless. And just like that, my resolve solidified.

“I want you to reject me.”

Damian froze, his brows knitting together in disbelief. He let out a short, humorless laugh. “Reject you?” He repeated, as if I had said something absurd. “You’ve got to be kidding, I'm not in the mood, just leave.”

“I’m not,” I replied, my voice stronger now. “I want you to reject me. Officially.”

His laughter stopped, and his eyes darkened as he moved toward me. He stood inches away, his presence oppressive. “Rejecting you would be too easy,” he said, his voice a low growl. “I enjoy watching you suffer, Annabel. Watching you break.”

I flinched at his words, but I didn’t back down. I was done being weak. “Let me go, Damian,” I demanded, my voice rising despite the tremor of fear beneath it. “You hate me so much? Then free me.”

His lips curled into a cruel smile. “No. I won’t. You’ll stay in this marriage, Annabel. You’ll stay here and watch me with other women. Because that’s where you belong.”

For a moment, I couldn’t breathe. The finality of his words hit me like a sledgehammer. But then something inside me snapped. The part of me that had been clinging to hope, to love—it died.

A sudden bitter smile played on my face and I wiped the tears on my face. “Wow, maybe I have been a lovebird for too long. We will see about that, Damian, If we both sleep around then I won't be the one suffering for your infidelity Damian”

I turned on my heel, storming out of the room. This wasn’t over. If he wouldn’t release me, I would find a way to take back control. No more tears. No more pain. I would take the life that was stolen from me, one way or another.

And that night, I would begin with reclaiming myself.

Am done sucking and crying my ass off on a man that cares less about me. It's time to unlock a new part of me. I concluded my mind was made up.

I took a long refreshing shower, and after that, I brought out a short red gown and slipped into it. The gown was as revealing as I wanted it, then I paired it with black heels.

I packed my hair into a messy bun, put on red lipstick, a little foundation, and a few drops of concealer which I dapped evenly on my face to cover the swollen eyes I developed over the years from crying every night and put on enough Jasmin noir Bvlgari scented perfume.

I looked at myself for the very last time in the mirror and a smirk played on my face the night is still pretty young, let's rock the night Annabel. I said like the last encouragement for what I was about to do.

I headed downstairs entered my car then drove off to one of the most elite clubs, Quillox here in the busy street of New York, as I walked into the club I could feel the stare of different male wolves staring at me, some stared like they could rip my gown just by looking at me.

It won't be hard to find nasty prey since it's the heat period, but I haven't started yet that was little to care about first I walk towards the bar

“A glass of ‘Don't Want To Sleep Tonight’ please,” I said to the bartender who only stared at me in amazement

“ok, ma'am.”