The day Alpha Thorne announced his engagement, the city blazed with fireworks. That same night, a fatal dose of Wolfsbane coursed through my veins as I knelt on a club floor, scrubbing. He held Vespera in his arms and stepped onto the back of my hand, the bones crunching under his polished shoe. “Look carefully, Elara. This is the woman I will marry.” “And you? You belong in the gutter, atoning.” I bit down, swallowing the coppery sweetness in my throat. I said nothing. He didn’t know these hands had already been ruined, digging through rubble for three days and nights to pull him out. He knew even less that the “me” he despised had just three months to live. Since atonement is what you want, I’ll repay you with this life. Will that suffice? To celebrate that woman’s return, , Thorne had booked out the entire penthouse lounge. The manager found me in the changing room, dry-swallowing a handful of painkillers. My stomach was on fire, pain wringing cold sweat from my skin. “Elara, hurry up! Thorne personally requested you to serve drinks tonight. Don’t you dare embarrass me.” The manager urged, yanking away the janitor’s uniform I’d just put on. She threw me an extremely revealing bunny girl outfit instead. “Wear this. Make Thorne unhappy tonight, and that vegetable brother of yours, Orion, will be out of his hospital bed by morning.” At the mention of Orion, the refusal I’d been about to voice died in my throat. I looked at myself in the mirror-pale, skeletal, barely human. I forced out a smile that looked worse than crying. Elara, what are you being so precious about? Your dignity was torn to shreds by Thorne’s own hands three years ago on that rainy night. The moment I pushed open the private room door, a wave of noise hit me. But I still spotted Thorne immediately, sitting in the seat of honor. He wore a black shirt with the collar slightly open. He swirled half a glass of red wine in his hand, his gaze cold and lazy. Nestled in his arms was Vespera in a white dress. When I walked in, the air in the room seemed to freeze for an instant. Then came the unrestrained laughter of those rich heirs. “Well, well, isn’t this the Alpha’s daughter from Frostwind Pack? How did she fall so low?” “You didn’t hear? Frostwind Pack collapsed ages ago. They even sold their crest for scrap metal.” “That’s karma for you! Back then, she nearly got Vespera killed just to climb the social ladder. A woman with such a venomous heart deserves this!” Thorne looked up lazily at the sound. His gaze landed on me, utterly devoid of warmth. “What are you standing there for? Come over here and pour Vespera a drink.” I moved stiffly forward. When I reached the coffee table, I knelt down and picked up the decanter with trembling hands. My stomach cramped violently. My hand shook, and a few drops of red wine splattered onto Vespera’s snow-white dress. “Ah!” Vespera cried out and shrank into Thorne’s embrace. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry…” I frantically tried to wipe it away, but Thorne kicked me hard in the chest. “Get away! Don’t touch her with your filthy hands!” The kick was brutal, showing no mercy whatsoever. I flew backward, my back slamming into the hard edge of the table. The pain made my vision go dark. The metallic taste surged up my throat. I bit down hard on my lip, terrified that if I coughed up blood, it would dirty his sight. Thorne looked down at me from above, his eyes full of disgust. “Elara, you’re revolting. You can’t even do something this simple right. You did that on purpose, didn’t you?” “Trying to get my attention with these pathetic tricks? As if you’re worthy.” I lay on the floor, taking a long time to barely prop myself up. Get his attention? Yeah. In his mind, I, Elara, was just a shameless woman who’d do anything for money. Even if I were dying right now, he’d only think I was faking illness. Vespera’s eyes reddened as she tugged at Thorne’s sleeve. “Thorne, don’t blame Elara. I’m sure she didn’t mean it… But what a shame about this dress. It was the birthday present you gave me.” Thorne patted her hand tenderly. When he turned to look at me, his expression instantly turned ice-cold. “Since you ruined Vespera’s dress, you’ll pay for it yourself.” “There are ten bottles of wine on that table. Drink them all, and I’ll forget today ever happened.” “Otherwise, crawl out of here.”
Ten bottles of wine, all filled with moongrass extract… For powerful Alphas and Betas, it was a tonic. But for someone like me in the late stages of Wolfsbane poisoning, it was lethal. The doctor had warned me long ago-drinking alcohol was equivalent to suicide. I looked up at Thorne. His expression was cold and resolute. He wasn’t joking. “Thorne, I… I can’t drink.” I begged humbly. “I’m not feeling well. Could you… give me a different punishment?” “Not feeling well?” Thorne sneered. “Elara, drop the act. When you pushed Vespera down those stairs, did you think about whether she was feeling well?” “When you took that five hundred thousand to dump me, did you think about how I felt?” Old grievances resurfaced. Every word stabbed at my heart. I opened my mouth, wanting to explain. I wanted to say that I wasn’t the one who pushed Vespera back then-she’d thrown herself down the stairs to frame me. I wanted to say that five hundred thousand was to save his life when he was in the ICU. But what was the point of explaining? For three years, I’d explained countless times. All I got in return was deeper disgust and more vicious beatings. “Won’t drink, huh?” Thorne lost patience and gestured to the security guards nearby. “Force it down her throat!” Two guards immediately stepped forward and grabbed my shoulders. Cold liquid was forced down my throat, choking me until tears streamed down my face. The burning liquid flowed down my esophagus into my stomach, instantly causing violent spasms. The pain was excruciating. I struggled desperately, but I was no match for their strength. One bottle, two bottles… By the time they’d forced down the fifth bottle, I finally couldn’t hold it in anymore. I vomited. Mixed with the vomit was a shocking amount of bright red blood. In the private room, some people looked at the blood on the floor with uncertain expressions. “Oh my God, she’s coughing up blood…” “Is it real or fake? Could she be faking it?” Thorne looked at the pool of blood, his brow furrowing slightly. A barely perceptible ripple passed through his eyes. But the next second, Vespera’s panicked voice rang out. “Oh my! Elara, did you prepare props ahead of time to trick Thorne into feeling sorry for you?” “When I was working on set before, I saw you use this trick…” With one sentence, she dispelled all of Thorne’s doubts. The wavering in his eyes vanished, replaced by even thicker mockery. “Elara, you’ve really outdone yourself. To escape punishment, you’d even resort to such filthy tricks.” “Looks like these years in prison, you didn’t learn anything useful-just got better at acting.” He stood up and walked toward me step by step. He crouched down and grabbed my chin viciously. “Since you love acting so much, I’ll give you a chance to perform to your heart’s content.” “Lick the floor clean.” I stared at him wide-eyed, unable to believe what I was hearing. The twisting pain in my stomach made my whole body tremble. Cold sweat had long since soaked through my clothes. But the pain in my heart was a hundred times worse than the physical agony. This was the man I’d loved for ten years. This was the man I’d ruined my hands to save, falling from the most promising Alpha Female to the lowest Omega. “Thorne… just kill me.” I closed my eyes in despair, tears sliding down my face. “Kill you? That would be too easy.” Thorne laughed coldly and released my face. He pulled out a wet wipe and wiped his hands with disgust. “How dare you bully Vespera? Tonight you’ll kneel here until tomorrow morning.” “Miss even one minute, and I’ll have someone turn off Orion’s respirator.” With that, he scooped Vespera into his arms and walked out of the room without looking back. That group of fair-weather friends followed him out. Before leaving, they didn’t forget to spit on me and stomp on me a few times. The private room finally fell silent. I curled up on the cold floor, coughing up blood in great mouthfuls. Bright red blood stained the white fur of the bunny girl outfit. With shaking hands, I pulled out the crumpled lab report from inside my clothes. Looking at the words “late stage,” I laughed bitterly. Thorne, you won. In this lifetime, I probably really can’t repay what I owe you. But clearly… you’re the one who owes me a life.
That night, I really did kneel in that private room all night. I lost consciousness several times and was jolted awake by the pain. Early the next morning, a cleaning lady came in to tidy up. When she saw me covered in blood, she screamed in terror. I forced myself to use my last bit of strength to crawl back to that dark, damp rental apartment. There, I kept my only spiritual anchor. It was the last album my mother had left me. I studied oil painting and was once hailed as a prodigy. Those hands were once praised by my mentor as “hands kissed by God.” But during that earthquake rescue, to dig Thorne out from under the rubble, my ten fingers suffered severe fractures and nerve damage. I could never hold a paintbrush again. And Vespera became his lifesaver simply because she handed him a bottle of water when he woke up. I fumbled to open the locked tin box. Empty. My heart sank. An ominous premonition instantly enveloped me. That was my lifeline! I frantically tore through the entire apartment. Nothing. It was nowhere to be found! Just then, my phone rang. It was a picture message. The sender was Vespera. In the photo was a burning fire pit. In the pit, that familiar album was being consumed by flames, only half of the tattered cover remaining. Then a voice message came through. Vespera’s voice was filled with undisguised malice. “Elara, I heard this was the keepsake your mom left you? I thought it was too old and moldy, so I helped you get rid of it.” “Don’t blame me. Thorne said seeing your stuff annoyed him and told me to dispose of it however I wanted.” “Oh, right. Thorne also said that a useless person like you keeping an album is an insult to art.” That was the only memento my mother left me, the source of my will to survive in desperation. Now, they’d burned it to ash. My hand trembled violently as I gripped my phone. “Vespera! I’ll kill you!” I stumbled out the door and ran toward Thorne’s family villa. In that moment, I forgot about the pain in my body, forgot about the Wolfsbane inside me. My mind held only one thought-I would take them down with me! When I burst into Thorne’s garden, Thorne was helping Vespera prune flowers. I rushed over, shoved Vespera aside, and grabbed her throat with both hands. “Why did you burn my album! Why! Give my mother back to me!” Vespera screamed and struggled desperately. “Psycho! Help! Thorne, save me!” Before I could apply pressure, a massive force struck me from behind. Thorne kicked me hard in the waist. I flew through the air and slammed heavily into the stone wall of the fountain. My waist felt like it had broken. The pain was unbearable. I lay on the ground, unable to get up for a long time. Thorne rushed forward and pulled the frightened Vespera into his arms. Then he turned his head and glared at me viciously. “Elara, you’re asking for death!” “It’s just a stupid album. So what if it’s burned? How dare you come here and assault someone!” Just a stupid album? I raised my head, face covered in tears, and looked at him. My heart turned to ash. “That was… my mom’s keepsake… the only thing I had left in this world…” Thorne looked down at me from above. “Someone like you deserves to talk about feelings?” “If your mom knew you sold your body for money and schemed to harm people to climb the ladder, she’d probably crawl out of her coffin just to die again!” “Elara, I’m warning you for the last time. If you lay another finger on Vespera, I’ll take your life!” I lay on the ground, looking at this man I’d loved for ten years. Every word he spoke was like a dull knife, cutting into my flesh. I saved him. I loved him. I gave him everything. And this was the result. “Thorne…” I called his name weakly. “If one day… you learn the truth… will you regret it?” Thorne paused, then laughed as if he’d heard the funniest joke in the world. “Regret? The biggest regret of my life was meeting a hypocrite like you!” “Guards! Throw her out! Don’t let her dirty Vespera’s eyes!” Several guards came over and dragged me like a dog. I didn’t struggle. I let my body scrape across the rough ground. But my gaze remained fixed on Vespera in the distance. She hid in Thorne’s arms, showing a victor’s smile. Just as I was being dragged out the gate, I vomited another mouthful of blood. This time, the blood stained Thorne’s family’s expensive Persian carpet. Thorne looked at the pool of blood, his brow furrowed tightly, a trace of inexplicable panic flashing in his eyes. But he quickly turned away and stopped looking at me. I was thrown on the roadside outside the villa. Rain began to fall from the sky. It was bitterly cold. I lay in the muddy water, looking up at the gray sky, and suddenly laughed. I laughed until tears mixed with the rain. Thorne, I don’t owe you anymore. In this lifetime, I’ll never owe you again.
After that incident, I lay unconscious in my rental apartment for three days. If the landlord hadn’t come to collect rent, I probably would have died on that moldy bed. When I woke up, I received a call from the hospital. Orion was failing. He needed surgery immediately. The surgery cost five hundred thousand dollars. Five hundred thousand. I couldn’t even come up with five hundred dollars right now. With no choice left, I dialed the number I’d sworn never to call again. “Speak.” It was Thorne’s voice, cold and clipped. “Thorne…I need five hundred thousand. Orion is dying…Please.” I begged, the words shaking. “Money?” A low, mocking laugh came through the line. “You can earn it. Tonight’s our engagement party. Be there to serve the drinks.” “As long as you serve every guest well, I’ll reward you with a million dollars.” “I might even consider getting the best doctors for that waste of space, Orion.” Even knowing this was humiliation, I had no choice. “Okay… I’ll be there.” The Thorne family estate. Today was Thorne and Vespera’s engagement party. All the city’s elite had come. I wore an ill-fitting maid’s uniform, carrying a tray and weaving through the crowd. Everyone who looked at me had mockery in their eyes. The once high-and-mighty daughter of Frostwind Pack had now become a servant at her ex-fiancé’s engagement party. This was undoubtedly the biggest joke of the evening. But I didn’t care. I just wanted to get the money and save Orion’s life. As long as I could endure tonight, I would take Orion and leave this place, find somewhere no one knew us, and quietly wait to die. The party reached its climax. Thorne took Vespera’s hand and walked onto the platform covered in rose petals. Under the spotlight, they looked like the perfect match. Just then, Vespera suddenly waved at me. “Elara, could you please come help me hold this bouquet? I need to exchange rings with Thorne.” All eyes turned to me. Thorne also looked over, his gaze warning me not to cause trouble. I set down my tray, lowered my head, and walked up. As I reached out to take the bouquet, Vespera suddenly leaned close to my ear. In a voice only the two of us could hear, she whispered softly: “Elara, actually, I know it was you who saved Thorne from under the rubble that year.” “And Orion’s car accident-I had someone arrange that too.” “But so what? I’m the one standing beside him now, and I’ll be the one with the Luna title in the future.” “And you? You can only watch like a dog, seething with jealousy.” “Oh, right, I forgot to tell you-I just had someone stop Orion’s medication.” “Since you’re going to die anyway, might as well let him go down to keep you company.” In that instant, all the blood in my body froze. The sounds around me became muffled. Everything before my eyes turned blood red. Orion… was dead? The only family I had left in this world, the person I’d fought desperately to protect… She’d killed him? I screamed with everything I had. Like a madwoman, I lunged at Vespera, forcing a Shift. My scarred wolf claws snatched the bouquet of roses and smashed it into her face. The thorns on the roses tore through her delicate makeup. “Vespera! I’ll kill you!” The scene erupted into chaos. Thorne reacted quickly, kicking me to the ground with one blow. Then he immediately shielded Vespera. “Elara! You’re asking for death!” He roared furiously. That kick landed squarely on my fragile chest. I shifted back to human form, a mouthful of blood spurting out. Forcing a Shift had triggered the Wolfsbane in my body. This time, the blood wouldn’t stop no matter what. I collapsed in a pool of blood, my vision beginning to blur. I watched Thorne frantically check Vespera for injuries. I watched him look at me with eyes that wished me dead. With difficulty, I pulled out the special painkiller medication from my pocket. My hand loosened, and the pill bottle rolled to Thorne’s feet. White pills scattered across the floor. I used the last shred of my strength to look at Thorne, pulling my lips into a smile of relief. “Thorne… congratulations… you’re finally… going to get me killed…” “If there’s a next life… I’d rather… have never saved you…” In the final second before darkness took me, I saw Thorne pick up the pill bottle. His pupils contracted. His whole body went rigid. He saw the label on the bottle. Treatment for Late-Stage Wolfsbane. At that exact moment, the banquet hall doors crashed open. My physician Cyrus stormed in, waving an autopsy report and a voice recorder, fury etched on his face. “Everyone stop!” “Thorne! You bastard! Look at what you’ve done!” “That fool who ruined her hands digging you out…she’s dying.”
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