With more than ten patents, I smoothly earned me my tenure. At the faculty honors ceremony, my husband Ryan suddenly turned on me in front of everyone. “Does this university have no standards? You’d give tenure to someone who abuses animals?” I had no idea what he was talking about, but Ryan pointed to the dog beside him, his voice dripping with contempt. “The vet said the dog had internal injuries, obvious signs of deliberate abuse. Do I need to throw the proof in your face?” “Stella, what kind of person beats an animal behind closed doors? A sick one.” “Now it all makes sense, you keep a dog nobody else wanted just so you have something to hurt when no one’s watching.” The room exploded. My tenure was revoked on the spot. I was suspended, reprimanded, and within the hour, I was everyone’s target. I pushed through the crowd and got in Ryan’s face. He looked back at me, unbothered. “You should’ve let Zoey have the award. Consider this a lesson.” “She’s young. You’re a grown woman. Stop being so petty.” Zoey? That talentless pretty girl? I stepped away and called my father overseas, the anger burning through my chest. “Dad. It’s time to bury his company.” — The students who used to greet me in the hallways now had fire in their eyes. “Get out of Columbia! Get out of this country!” “Sick freak! Someone punishes her!” Reporters swarmed me with cameras and microphones. Rotten eggs and garbage rained down. I was soaked, my forehead split open and bleeding. Zoey pushed through the crowd, clapped a hand on my shoulder, and put on a show. “Stella, just admit what you did. Don’t worry. I’ll put in a good word with the president.” She turned to face the crowd, all righteous and composed. “Everyone, please go home. I’ll talk some sense into Professor Stella.” The rage shot straight to my head. I wanted to rip her apart right there. “Save the crocodile tears, Zoey.” My vision blurred at the edges. My voice came out louder than I intended. “I did not do anything illegal.” “If you have actual evidence, take it to court—stop throwing accusations with zero proof.” Ryan crossed his arms, jaw tight. “Evidence? You think I’d make this up?” “Stella, marrying you is the biggest mistake of my life.” Everyone praised him for it and said he had the guts to expose his own wife, that he’d torn off my mask and saved more innocent animals from me. Seven years. And he was hell-bent on burning me down for that girl toy. All those years, when Ryan wanted to start his company, I stayed in this city under a false name, feeding him patents, technical support, everything I had, working myself into the ground for his business. The early days were tight, but back then, his whole world was me. I still remembered his arms around my waist, his voice quiet and certain. “Stella, you’re going to be the youngest tenured professor at Columbia. And when that day comes, I’ll light up the whole city for you.” I could still hear it. But that man was gone. I slipped away from the crowd and headed to the president’s office. But the situation was already out of control. People online had dug up my phone number, my home address, everything. My phone wouldn’t stop ringing the entire walk over. “You call yourself a teacher? You’re not even fit to be human.” “I swear to God, if I see you, I’ll cut you myself.” When I finally walked into the office, President Janet took one look at me and covered her nose, disgust all over her face. “You have the nerve to show up here?” Something sour rose in my throat. I kept my voice level. “President Janet, I understand the school needs to act. Suspend me—I’ll cooperate. But you cannot publish a formal disciplinary notice. That’s a false accusation.” She slammed her hand on the desk, grabbed a folder, and threw it at my face. Her finger jabbed at my nose. “False accusation? Your own husband said it. How is that false?” “Stella, either shut up and take it or get out.” “Columbia isn’t appropriate for someone like you.” I pressed my back teeth together. My hands wouldn’t stop shaking. Then the door opened. Zoey walked in on Ryan’s arm, chin up, heels clicking like she was walking into a room she already owned. President Janet’s whole face rearranged itself. She scrambled forward, voice slick. “Mr. Ryan, you didn’t have to come yourself—” “I promise, Zoey will have the tenure offer locked in within three days.” “As for Stella, she’s already suspended. Whatever happens next is entirely your call.” Ryan gave a slow, satisfied nod. “I’ll add three million on top of the original donation.” I stood there, frozen. There was nothing left to figure out. This wasn’t just a suspension, wasn’t just a disciplinary notice—they had planned the whole thing. The goal was to destroy my reputation and clear the way for Zoey. But none of Ryan’s success would exist without me. Where did he think all those patents came from? Years of my work turned into the knife they used to stab me. My chest heaved. I bit down and said it through my teeth. “Forgetting qualifications, Zoey graduated from a third-rate school, has zero patents, zero research output. She doesn’t meet a single requirement for this award.” “And this is bribery. This is a crime. You think I won’t take you to court?”

Zoey’s face crumpled into something wounded. “It’s all my fault, Ryan. I don’t deserve this honor. I’ll step down and give it back to Stella—” She wiped at tears that weren’t there. Ryan’s face flooded with concern. He turned and shot me a hard look. “Take us to court? With what?” “Even if the cops showed up, all they’d find is you smearing innocent people.” “Apologize to Zoey. Right now.” President Janet looked me up and down, voice flat with contempt. “Stella, you can’t win this one. Apologize to Mr. Ryan and maybe you’ll still have a place at Columbia. Otherwise—” I looked at all three of them. Then I laughed. “No need. I quit.” Janet ran her mouth plenty, but she got one thing right—Columbia wasn’t good enough for me. I turned and walked out through their cursing without looking back. When I got home, someone had spray-painted my door. The smell burned my eyes. The hallway was full of neighbors staring at me like I was something that crawled out of a gutter. “Living next to something like this is so disgusting.” “Anyone with pets, keep them far away from this freak.” I walked in without expression and pulled the divorce papers out of the desk drawer. When I’d given them to Ryan before all this, he’d been too busy throwing Zoey a birthday party to even look at them, just scrawled his name and handed them back. I picked up my phone and scrolled straight into Zoey’s latest Instagram post. [Grateful for Ryan’s incredible gift! As Columbia’s new tenured professor, I’ll keep working hard and won’t let anyone down!] In the photo, she was leaning against a Maybach, grinning ear to ear. The comments were a pile of praise. [Insane!! Youngest tenured professor in history!] [So talented! Professor Zoey, please look after us!] I zoomed in. It was the car I’d ordered last week. I hadn’t even picked it up yet. My blood ran hot. I typed a comment. [Stealing cars now? Do Columbia professors really make that little?] I hit post. Ryan called before the screen even dimmed, his voice sharp. “What is that comment supposed to mean?” “Do you know Zoey just got publicly announced? She can’t have any scandals right now.” “Delete it. Record a video apology. Now. Or we’re getting divorced.” I almost laughed. Why? Why did I have to hand over everything I had to that woman? I gripped my phone. “Fine. Let’s get divorced. I’ve been waiting.” “And if that car isn’t returned to me within two hours, I’m calling the police.” I hung up. In the comments, my Columbia colleagues had already picked a side. [Someone is just bitter. Can’t earn tenure yourself so you trash-talk everyone else.] [Oh she definitely earned something. The dog can confirm.] I pressed my palm flat on the table and started packing. A while later, the restaurant called to confirm my reservation. I’d booked a private room to celebrate my tenure. But Ryan had burned that. And my colleagues had scattered the moment the wind changed. I went alone, sat down in front of a full table of food, and drank. Shot after shot. The liquor went down hot, and everything from that day got sharper, not duller. From the private room next door, cheering broke through the wall. “Congratulations, Professor Zoey, Columbia’s newest tenured professor!”

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The third year Marco Ricci kept me locked away in his family’s remote estate was the year I finally learned to obey. He came to pick me up with his pregnant mistress, Sofia. I naturally took the designer handbag from Sofia’s hands and held the car door open for her. “From now on, you will take care of Sofia,” Marco’s voice was ice, completely empty of emotion. “She and our coming heir… they are your new family.” I nodded obediently. After he orchestrated the car crash that stole my father’s life, the Don of our family, he had now “graced” me with two more “family members.” Once we returned to the mansion that was once mine, I started waking up at five every morning to study old Italian recipes that were good for pregnant women. At eight, I would wake Sofia and accompany her to her private Pilates class. At ten, I’d prepare delicate pastries and fresh juice, listening as she and the other mob wives giggled on the terrace, praising me as a “well-trained dog.” … The days bled into one another, until Sofia finally gave birth to the Ricci family heir. When the new family portrait was hung on the wall, Marco stared at the three of them, so perfect and close in the photo, and his voice trembled slightly. “Aurora, why didn’t you make a scene about being in the picture?” A scene? In this mansion, the only things I had learned were how to be docile, and… how to drive a normal person insane. … Hearing Marco’s question, I just calmly wrung out the cloth in my hands. “Sir, I don’t like having my picture taken.” He frowned, his eyes burning into me, as if trying to figure out if I was lying. I quietly wiped a speck of dust from the portrait’s frame, adjusting it slightly until it was perfectly, flawlessly straight. Sofia stood on the staircase, a flash of triumph in her eyes. She pounced into Marco’s arms like a cat, standing on her toes to kiss his lips. “You’re home.” “I tried putting the baby to sleep by myself today, and guess what? He actually fell asleep.” Marco’s eyes instinctively shot to me. I immediately nodded, a sincere smile on my face as I praised her. “Yes, Madam is truly amazing. She put the young master to sleep with no trouble at all.” Marco’s brow furrowed even deeper. But I didn’t have time for his guessing games. A nourishing bone broth was simmering on the stove for Sofia. I hurried into the kitchen, put on the oven mitts, and carefully brought out the soup. Sofia sat at the dining table, her smooth legs brushing against Marco’s suit trousers. Marco smiled at her fondly, but the smile froze the moment his eyes landed on me. I carefully ladled the soup into Sofia’s bowl, waiting patiently for it to cool to the perfect temperature. Sofia gave me a gentle smile. “Aurora, you should sit and eat with us.” Marco pulled out a chair for me, his voice soft. “You’ve worked hard taking care of the baby. You should rest.” I lowered my eyes and smiled as I refused. “It’s my honor to serve Madam and the young master. I’m not tired at all.” Sofia’s lips curled in satisfaction. She wrapped her arm around Marco’s and purred. “Aurora is just so good at taking care of people. Darling, you have to remember to give her a raise.” I stood obediently by the table, remembering the last time. All Marco did was accidentally brush his hand against mine, and Sofia had declared the soup was too salty. As punishment, she made me kneel on the gravel path in the courtyard under the scorching sun until dark. My knees were scraped raw and bloody, and a layer of skin peeled off my entire body. I knew what she was doing. She was putting me in my place. Marco Ricci, this man, was no longer mine to touch. After the meal, Sofia pushed the choicest piece of meat left in the tureen towards me. I didn’t understand her meaning at first and moved to scrape the leftovers into the trash can as usual. Suddenly, Sofia shrieked. “Aurora, if you don’t want it, you could have just told me!” “I know you’ve been weak, so I saved the most nourishing piece of meat from the soup for you.” “That’s prime veal! How could you just waste it like that?” Marco, holding the baby, looked over with a slight frown. I immediately bent down in a panic, picked the piece of meat out of the filthy trash can, and shoved it into my mouth. “Thank you, Madam, for your generosity.” Marco’s eyes were wide with horror and concern. He rushed over, not even thinking about the baby in his arms, and reached to pry my mouth open. “Spit it out! Now!”

My stomach churned violently. I fought back the overwhelming urge to vomit, swallowed the piece of meat, and then looked up, smiling gratefully at Sofia. Marco’s pupils constricted, his face a mask of disbelief. After all, the old Aurora DeLuca, the Don’s only daughter, was a notorious germaphobe. I wouldn’t even use utensils that someone else had touched. So, when I discovered that Marco—the man my father had raised from nothing—was keeping a mistress, I told him to get the hell out of my life without a second thought. But he refused to let go. In just a few short weeks, he engineered an “accidental” car crash that killed both my parents, allowing him to seamlessly take over the entire DeLuca family. My parents’ funeral was a rushed affair. The very next day, Marco moved Sofia into my father’s house. I hated them. I took the old dagger from my father’s desk, ready to send that fucking pair to hell. But after I accidentally slashed Sofia’s expensive handbag, Marco brought in the family’s private doctor, who wrote me a certificate declaring me “mentally unstable.” He locked me away in this remote estate in Sicily, where he planned to grind away all my sharp edges and teach me my “place.” And he and Sofia? They shamelessly enjoyed the vast empire and connections my father had built with a lifetime of blood and wisdom. My fingers trembled uncontrollably, but I managed to steadily take the wailing baby from his arms. “Shh… shh… it’s okay, baby…” My gentle soothing worked. The baby cried himself out and fell into a deep sleep in my arms. Marco looked at me, his mouth open as if to say something, but no words came out. I avoided his gaze and carried the baby back to the nursery. A sliver of light shone from under the door. Sofia swirled a glass of red wine, contemptuously tossing a bottle of industrial-strength disinfectant at my feet. “Eating from the trash is so filthy.” “Aurora, you need to get yourself clean. Then I might feel safe enough to keep using you.” I picked up the bottle and bowed my head gratefully. “Thank you, Madam.” Sofia didn’t leave. Instead, she watched me with a smirk. I understood immediately. I went into the tiny servant’s bathroom and poured the entire bottle of disinfectant into the tub. Shamelessly, I stripped off my clothes, picked up the steel wool brush used for scrubbing floors, and started scouring my own body. My skin broke and bled, turning the water in the tub a horrifying shade of pink. The disinfectant seeped into the open wounds. I had to bite my lip until it bled to keep from screaming. My entire body felt like it was being stung by a thousand hornets, pierced by a million tiny needles. Just as I was about to pass out from the pain, Sofia finally spoke, her voice dripping with mock pity. “Once you’re clean, get dressed. I’m taking you somewhere.” I didn’t have time to tend to my bleeding wounds. I just threw on my clothes and followed her. Marco was leaning against the staircase, smoking a cigar. The moment he saw me, he instinctively stubbed it out. “Don’t eat out of the trash again.” “Aurora, if you just behave, no one will punish you.” Before I married him, Marco was just a nobody in the family, always smoking to deal with his stress. When he was trying to win me over, I told him I hated the smell. He quit in two weeks, using the money he saved to buy me bouquet after bouquet of roses. After we were married, there were always fresh roses in our bedroom. He even planted a rose garden for me himself. “If Aurora likes them, I’ll plant them all over the estate for you.” Sofia stood in the living room, dangling a set of car keys, a flicker of impatience in her eyes. “Aurora, it’s time to go.” I gave Marco a polite nod, indicating for him to move. His frown deepened as he grabbed my wrist, his grip like iron. “Aurora, you were never like this before.” Before? Did he mean when I was naive enough to fall in love with him? When I convinced my father to hand over the family’s core businesses to him, while I chose to be a doting housewife? Did he mean when I used to greet him at the door every day, take his coat, and have dinner ready for him? Or did he mean the nights I spent tangled in his arms, laughing and whispering how much I loved him? Too bad. We could never go back to that.

Sofia clicked across the floor in her high heels. Just before Marco could pull me into his arms, she linked her arm through his. “Darling, why don’t you drive us?” He nodded, and I automatically moved away from the passenger seat. The scenery outside the window blurred past, and a knot of dread tightened in my stomach. This was the road to the DeLuca family’s private cemetery. Before the car even came to a complete stop, I threw the door open and scrambled out. The neat rows of black marble tombstones were gone. In their place was a newly planted vineyard. In the distance, a few workers were watering the young vines. I stumbled towards them, my throat raw. “Excuse me, wasn’t this the DeLuca family cemetery?” “Why is it like this now? What happened to the people who were buried here?” An older worker looked at me, confused, then his face cleared with understanding. He pointed to a small hill nearby. “It used to be a cemetery, yeah. But Mr. Ricci tested the soil and found out it was perfect for growing grapes, so he’s making wine now.” A young girl weeding nearby looked up, her eyes full of envy. “It’s true. I heard Mrs. Ricci has a taste for a special kind of wine, so Mr. Ricci spent a fortune to buy this land for her.” A few yards away, Marco guiltily looked away. Sofia, however, was smiling. She reminded me sweetly, “Don’t worry, Aurora. So you wouldn’t have trouble finding your parents’ graves, I had the workers pile up all the broken pieces on top of the hill.” My mind went blank. My legs felt like they were filled with lead. I ran up the hill without looking back. At some point, the sky had opened up, and a torrential rain began to fall. The raindrops hit my skin like tiny stones. I collapsed onto my knees in the mud, completely drained of strength. The entire hillside was covered in shattered tombstones. I couldn’t make out any of the faded names. I caught a glimpse of a familiar family crest out of the corner of my eye and started clawing frantically at the sharp pieces of stone with my bare hands. A sharp pain shot through my fingers, and the wounds on my body split open again. An agonizing pain spread through me. I cried until my voice was gone and my vision was blurred. I’m sorry… I’m so sorry, Papa, Mama… It’s all my fault. I’m the one who let the wolf into our home… The rain fell harder, and a thick fog rolled in. I heard Marco’s worried voice from behind me. “Aurora, where are you?” Sofia found me first, the hatred in her eyes finally on full display. Her sharp nails dug into my wounds as she grabbed my throat and shook me. “Aurora DeLuca, why the hell did you have to come back?” “If you were dead, I’d be the real Mrs. Ricci, and Marco would only have eyes for me!” I couldn’t breathe. Sofia dragged me like a rag doll to the edge of a steep slope. Through my blurry vision, I saw Marco getting closer. Sofia whispered tauntingly in my ear. “Aurora, who do you think he’ll choose this time?” Before I could react, Sofia threw her arms around me, and we tumbled down the hillside together. She used her body to pin me down, and just before we hit the bottom, she twisted us around, using me as a human shield. A tearing pain ripped through my shoulder blade. I forced myself to look down and saw a tree branch as thick as my wrist sticking straight through my shoulder. The taste of blood filled my throat. As my consciousness faded, I saw Marco holding Sofia, his touch so gentle. He wiped the mud from her face like she was a fragile porcelain doll. It was just like that time, years ago, when a rival family launched a surprise attack. He had chosen to protect Sofia without a moment’s hesitation, leaving me buried in the rubble of an explosion. My legs were crushed by the debris that day. I almost lost them. Tears mixed with the rain on my face. My voice came out as a broken, hoarse whisper. “It hurts… it hurts so much…” Marco’s eyes finally found me. He took half a step towards me, but then Sofia went limp in his arms, her fingers hooking around his pinky as she whimpered. “Marco, my leg… it hurts…” A single, perfect tear fell onto the back of his hand. He immediately looked away from me, scooping Sofia up in his arms. “Aurora, just hold on. I’ll go get help right away.” As I watched him walk away without a backward glance, I tightened my grip on a sharp piece of a broken tombstone. Just before everything went black, I thought I saw my parents. They were stroking my hair, their touch full of love. “My Aurora, you’ve done so well.” And I cried my heart out, “Papa, Mama, I swear I’ll get revenge for you…”

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He said she was just his best friend. He said it on her birthday. On their anniversary. In the ER waiting room. He said it one too many times. So I left. While his life spiraled into regret and ruin, I already returned to the racing world and became the champion I was always meant to be. …… The seventh candle burned down to its base. Wax dripped down the stainless steel cake stand and pooled on the oak table of my small Silver Lake apartment—a small, scar‑like puddle of waxy white. In front of me sat a chocolate cake, delivered fresh that morning from Magnolia Bakery. I had cut seven slices myself. One for every hour Jude hadn’t shown up. At 1:23 a.m., an Instagram notification lit up. @JudeKane posted a carousel. I tapped it. First slide: Sunrise over Mulholland. Mia Vance wrapped in his black jacket, holding Red Roses. Second slide: She sat on the hood of his Porsche 911, laughing carelessly. Third slide: Their silhouettes. He was tucking her hair behind her ear. The caption took me three reads to believe I wasn’t seeing things: > *”Every guy needs a ride‑or‑die. Thanks for being mine. “* The comments had already passed four hundred. > **@racewithryan**: Bro, your girl will jealous? > **@miaonthegas**: Don’t say that, Cleo won’t mind~ We’re just friends I stared at the screen. My fingertip hovered above the glass for three full seconds. Then I tapped *like.* Slowly, I typed: > **@cleo.ward**: Hope you two ride forever. Send. I put the phone down and slid the ring off my finger—the one I had worn for three years. There was a faint red mark around my skin. Like a rope that had been tied too long and finally loosened. It turned out some things weren’t impossible to take off. I had just never been willing to pull hard enough. …… I looked at the seven cakes on the table and remembered a night three months ago. > *”Cleo, you’re my girlfriend. Don’t go picking fights with my best friend.”* That was the first time Jude said it. > Three months ago · Emergency Room > > My stomach hurt so badly I couldn’t stand straight. I called an Uber to hospital myself. > At 2 a.m., I curled up on a plastic chair and texted him: **“Where are you?”** > Twenty minutes later, he answered: **“Babe, Mia’s car got a flat tire. I’m driving out to pick her up. I’ll make you pancakes in the morning.”** > I stared at that message. My stomach felt like someone had clenched it and let go. > Two months ago · Beach House > > An Airbnb I’d booked a month in advance. He canceled it. > *“Too tired, babe. How about next weekend?”* > The next day, Mia posted an IG story: **“Camping guide unlocked! Thanks Jude for planning the whole thing.”** > I texted him: **“What about our weekend?”** > He replied: **“Cleo, don’t be dramatic.”** > Last month · Our third anniversary > > Dinner reservation at 7 p.m. > I waited until 9:45. The waiter came to refill my water for the third time. >He called. *”Cleo, Mia got into it with someone at the car meet, I gotta go handle it. Just eat without me, okay?”* > I had said: **Jude. Do you even know what today is?** > He had paused for one second. Then he had laughed. *”Babe. Not now.”* Every time, I had asked. Every time, a *don’t be dramatic* had pushed me back into place. I had thought I was fighting with him. It took me too long to realize — I had been talking to a wall with his name painted on it. …… I opened my phone again and scrolled to an email buried deep in my inbox. Sender: **Coach Lena Marquez**, Head of Driver Development, Formula Regional European Championship. She had invited me back for three years in a row. Every year, I gave her the same answer: *“I’m not ready.”* I hadn’t been ready to hold a steering wheel again. Not ready to go back to the kind of road that had taken my parents from me. I opened a nail salon on a quiet corner and pretended to be just a girl who did nails and didn’t race. But sitting there, with seven slices of cake going stale in front of me, I finally understood- The pain of staying with Jude had grown bigger than the crash I had been afraid of my whole life. My fingertips hovered over the keyboard. In the end, I typed two words. > **I’m ready.** Send. Right above it, Jude’s IG lit up with another comment. > **@racewithryan**: Dude, your girlfriend’s comment *“hope you two ride forever”* — that’s got teeth in it. I looked at it, powered off the phone, and threw it into the deepest drawer, next to the ring. That night, my birthday wish was simple. **Leave him.**

Jude came home at nine. He smelled like dew off the top of Mulholland. In one hand, a paper bag from the bagel place on Larchmont — my favorite everything bagel, lox and cream cheese. “Still mad?” His voice was so familiar it sounded like nothing had happened. He set breakfast on the kitchen island and crossed the room to put his arms around me from behind. I tilted my head away. His arm stalled for half a second, then he laughed it off. “Babe, there was no 5G signal up on the mountain. I really didn’t mean to ignore you. Cleo, you know how I feel about you, don’t you?” Of course I knew. Jude Kane had been tender before. I didn’t eat cilantro, and every time he ordered Sweetgreen he typed *NO CILANTRO PLEASE* three times in the notes. When my cramps got bad in the middle of the night, he would drive to the 24-hour CVS for heating pads. When my nail salon first opened and no one walked in for days, he had gone floor by floor through every office building on the block, handing out flyers until building security threw him out. He’d just rub his nose and grin. *”It’s fine. I’ll hit a different building tomorrow.”* I had thought a man who would give me his time was a man who really loved me. I didn’t realize love could fork in the road. He had drifted, slowly, into someone else’s lane. …… He opened my latte, stuck a straw in it, and slid it toward me. “Don’t be mad, babe. I made a reservation at Bestia tonight.” I was about to say something when his phone rang. Speaker. Mia’s voice spilled out. > *”Ry! You said you were taking me to that new sushi spot in WeHo today! I already confirmed our table — “* > > *”Don’t bail on me, I literally skipped breakfast waiting for you! “* Jude looked at me, palmed the receiver, and smiled. “You wanna come with?” I didn’t answer. He seemed relieved. He reached over and ruffled my hair. “See? Mia doesn’t mind eating with you at all. Cleo, stop treating her like your rival.” The voice on the phone kept calling. > *”Cleo’s coming too? Even better! I’ll order, I know exactly what Ry likes!”* Jude laughed into the phone. “Okay. I’ll tell her.” He hung up. Reached for my hand. I pulled back. “Jude.” “Yeah?” “I want to ask you something.” I looked up at him. “What am I to you?” “Cleo — ” His smile froze for a beat. “What do you mean. What I am. Girlfriend, roommate, friend. One word.” He sighed. That *here we go again* sigh. “Cleo. You’re being dramatic again.” I laughed. Not bitter. Not even sad. Just the kind of laugh that comes out when you finally figure out a question doesn’t have an answer. That was the moment I stopped asking. After Jude left, I opened the salon as usual. In the afternoon, a few regulars came in for fills. They picked colors and traded gossip the way young women always do. “Wait — you guys haven’t heard about Mia Vance? @MiaOnTheGas? Like, 180K followers, racing girl?” I didn’t look up. I kept brushing top coat across my client’s nails. “Oh yeah. She’s been thirsty lately.” “Her burner IG once posted something like, *‘Men with girlfriends treat me the best.’* So cringe.” “She’s always been like that. Remember Eli Cross? She called him *best friend,* did the whole *one of the guys* thing, had him fixing her car, and ran his girlfriend out of the scene.” “Right! Her favorite line is: *‘We’re just best friends, you’re overthinking it.’*” My gel brush paused for half a second. “She’s done this before?” One of the clients leaned in, suddenly more interested. “Oh, *honey.* The whole LA car scene knows. She targets guys with girlfriends. The angrier the girlfriend gets, the more Mia tells everyone the girlfriend is the jealous one. And the guys eat it up. They think she’s chill, understanding. not as much drama as their actual girlfriends.” The salon lights hit the gel polish, sharp and a little too cold. I kept smiling. Kept listening. Kept drawing more out of them with every coat. And suddenly Jude struck me as something pitiful — and a little ridiculous. His taste, it turned out, was nothing special. So before I walked out the door — I might as well leave him a parting gift.

The car meet had a Sunday canyon run planned. Mulholland trailhead. Jude offered to pick me up. He wore a black Aether jacket, his hair casually perfect, like a supporting actor from a GQ cover. “Let’s go, babe. Time to *properly* meet everyone.” He pulled the passenger door of the Porsche open for me and leaned in to buckle my seatbelt himself. “You always said I take Mia but not you.” He said, smiling. “So today, I’m taking you.” I knew what he was really doing. He wasn’t bringing me into his circle. He was pushing me in front of everyone so I would learn to *accept* Mia. …… At the Mulholland starting point, more than a dozen cars were already lined up. 911s, GT‑Rs, a modified RX‑7, an orange Lambo. The engines growled like restless beasts. Mia spotted me. Her eyes curled into crescents. “Cleooo! You actually came! Ry, you finally brought your *girlfriend* out to show off!” She drifted over, smiling. “Are you not gonna be scared in Ry’s passenger seat? See, I’m the opposite — the louder the brakes squeal, the more it gets me going. That’s just how I am.” The other car guys cheered. Jude frowned slightly. But Mia had already pulled open the passenger door. “Just kidding, Cleo. Don’t be nervous. I’m just worried you’re not familiar with the canyon roads. There are a lot of sharp turns. I’ll help Ry keep an eye on things will be easier.” Jude rubbed the bridge of his nose. “Mia knows the route well. Babe, you sit in the back. Safety first.” *Back seat. Canyon. Tight turns.* The three words snapped together and closed around my throat. …… > *Wet pavement* > *Screeching brakes* > *Mother’s blood‑swollen eyes* > *Tumbling sight* > *Swinging rescue lights* I had been nineteen. Mid-season in Formula Junior. A rainy night, driving home from a track day. I was at the wheel. My parents were in the back. I wasn’t the nail‑salon Cleo Ward back then. I had run a go‑kart development program. Won three consecutive West Coast championships. Coach Lena said I had guts and fast reflexes. If I kept training, **Formula 1 was a matter of time**. My father used to say it too. *”My daughter drives steadier than I do.”* But one rainy night, all those words shattered against the guardrails of Pacific Coast Highway. ……. The old dream rose up and drained the color from my face. I stood there, frozen. Jude thought I was making another scene. “Cleo, don’t embarrass me in front of everyone. It’s just a different seat. If you’re scared, I’ll drive slower. Okay?” Mia was already in the passenger seat, seatbelt fastened, waving at me. “Cleo, come on! I’ll help you watch the road!” The door closed. The city slid away behind us. Mulholland began to climb. At first, Jude really did drive slowly. He glanced at me in the rearview mirror. “You okay?” I looked out the window. “Slow down.” “Okay.” Then Mia lifted her phone and went live on Instagram. The camera swept over the mountain road ahead, then over Jude’s hands on the wheel. *“Hi guys! Ry’s taking me flying tonight! This road is absolutely insane!”* The comments rolled in fast. “Ry, you used to carve that next corner so clean. C’mon, give us one!” Jude frowned. “Mia, don’t.” “Oh, come on, driving slow is boring.” She pushed the camera closer. “Is it because Cleo’s in the car? You scared?” The in‑car radio also had people egging him on. “Ry, don’t be a wuss!” “Show your girl what you’ve got!” I stared at the pavement ahead. It had rained the night before. Water stains still lingered in the shadows. I couldn’t help speaking. “The road’s wet.” Mia’s smile cooled a little. “Cleo, relax. We’ve run this road a million times.” I repeated, “Don’t carve.” In the rearview, Jude’s eyes flicked to mine, his brow pinched with impatience. “Cleo, I know you’re not feeling well, but don’t ruin everyone’s fun. I know what I’m doing.” I gripped the seatbelt with both hands. My breath kept shrinking, getting thinner. I heard my own voice come out small. “Stop the car.” No one heard. Or no one wanted to hear. ……. The car suddenly fishtailed. Tires scraped against the wet pavement. The world tilted. > *Brakes.* > *Mom’s scream.* > *Glass.* All the memories flashed before my eyes in an instant. Mia screamed first. “RYDER—!” After Jude steadied the car, his first reaction was to reach over and hold her. “It’s okay, it’s okay, I’ve got you.” He unbuckled his own seatbelt, leaned half his body toward her, and pressed his hand to the back of her neck. I sat in the back seat, my ears ringing. I tried to open the door, but my hands wouldn’t work. A long beat passed before he remembered to turn around. “Cleo, look how scared Mia is. And you’re still making that face? We’re all out here trying to have a good time. Can you not be so tense?” In the rearview mirror, Jude kept talking. I didn’t hear most of it. With trembling hands, I pulled out my phone, found a moving company’s website, and sent them my address. 【Please come on time the day after tomorrow.】

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In the eighth year of our marriage, Cole posted a high-profile photo on Instagram with his female assistant. In the picture, their heads were touching, their smiles intimate. The caption read: [Finalizing our most important merger yet.] I liked the post. Moments later, it was deleted. Cole FaceTimed me immediately. With his friends and that assistant visible in the background, he shouted at me. “It was just a joke, Nina! Why do you have to be so sensitive? God!” Five minutes later, a new photo appeared in his assistant’s bio. It was a close-up of her face pressed against Cole’s cheek. In the past, I would have lost control. I would have rushed over there and made a huge, embarrassing scene. But this time, I truly didn’t care. … When Cole got home, I was clearing the food and cake off the table. Yesterday was his birthday. He had told me he wanted to bring a few friends home for a party. I took half the day off work and spent the entire afternoon cooking. But I waited all night, and Cole never showed up. If I hadn’t seen Chloe’s Instagram Story, I wouldn’t have known he changed his plans last minute. He rented out a VIP section at a trendy bar downtown. “Did you bake this cake yourself?” Cole swiped some frosting and smeared it on my face. When I nodded, he forced a fake smile. “No wonder it looks so… homemade.” Before, a comment like that would have made me desperately try to defend myself. But right now, I was too lazy to argue over a single word. Watching me clean up in silence, Cole’s brow furrowed slightly. “Nina, I brought you some leftover lobster bisque. You love that place.” “I saw it.” Cole was always like this. He would humiliate me, then bring home food. It was his unspoken signal for a truce. “I’ll heat it up for you.” Before I could refuse, he walked into the kitchen. Ten minutes later, the smell of burning food filled the air. Cole was on a call in the bedroom and didn’t come out, so I turned off the stove myself. As I was ladling the soup, his phone on the counter lit up. It was a text from Chloe. [Cole, thank you. I was so happy last night~] Before I could look away, a cold voice came from behind me. “Who said you could touch my phone?” “I didn’t… Ouch!” Cole squeezed past me in anger, bumping my arm. The boiling soup spilled over my left hand. Instant blisters formed on my skin. He glanced at me like I was an idiot, annoyed, and offered to drive me to Urgent Care. The pain was intense, so I didn’t argue. I got in the car with him. As soon as I sat in his Tesla, I saw a custom sticker on the passenger sun visor. [WARNING: Reserved Seat for the CEO’s Chief Navigator] Cole’s expression shifted slightly. “Chloe was just messing around. You know she likes doing silly things like that.” I replied calmly, “Oh. Creative.” The car fell into a brief silence. Cole looked at me with a strange expression. “Aren’t you going to tear it off?” I blinked. Why would I tear it off? The old me would have shredded that sticker to pieces immediately. But now, I didn’t even care about Cole himself. Why would I care about these childish territorial games? “Just drive. I have to get to work later.” Hearing my indifference, he drove faster. Just one block away from the clinic, Cole’s phone rang. It was the special ringtone he assigned to Chloe. Chloe was crying on the other end. She said she was hungover, had a splitting headache, and her claustrophobia was kicking in. She felt like the walls of her apartment were closing in on her. Cole hung up. Without looking at me, he made a U-turn and drove straight toward Chloe’s luxury apartment complex. He parked the car and grabbed the Advil and electrolytes I had prepared for him from the glove box. He spoke to me casually. “Chloe sounds bad. I’m going to run up and check on her. I’ll be right back.” Then, Cole locked the car and went upstairs alone. An hour passed in silence. I sat in the sweltering heat of the California sun. I waited until I was nearly dehydrated and fainting. Cole never came back. I used the emergency safety hammer to break the window. With pale lips, I climbed out of the car. With the help of a kind doorman, I called an Uber and went to the hospital myself. That evening, when Cole returned home, I was eating Thai food I’d ordered on Uber Eats. “Nina, why didn’t you order some for me?”

He knew my hand was injured. He knew I couldn’t cook. But why didn’t I order for him? He had texted me thirty minutes ago saying he was coming home. In our eight years of marriage, I had always replied to his texts instantly. He didn’t expect me to shrug indifferently and give a lazy excuse. “Phone was on silent. Didn’t see it.” Cole tightened his grip on the shopping bag in his hand. He pursed his lips and held the bag up to my face. “I remembered your Le Labo perfume was running out.” I looked up from my Pad Thai. I met his gaze, which looked like he was bestowing a great charity upon a beggar. I spoke politely but distantly. “You can give it to someone else. I switched brands.” Thirty minutes ago, Chloe had posted a photo shopping at a luxury store. In the corner of the photo, you could clearly see Cole’s right wrist wearing his Vacheron Constantin watch. Seeing the bandages on my hand and my calm focus on the reality show on TV, Cole frowned. He leaned in, trying to check my injury. I instinctively dodged his touch. I accidentally knocked over the shopping bag. The perfume bottle shattered on the floor. Cole let out a cold laugh. “Nina, just because I made you wait in the car a little longer? Do you really have to drag this mood out until now? Can you grow up?” “I’m not in a mood.” I was telling the truth. But all I got in return was his ruthless mockery. “You obviously are. Nina, can you stop dramatizing everything in your head? You’re hopeless.” I was three years older than Cole. Every time we fought, he would attack me for being “emotional” or “overthinking.” Then he would sit back and enjoy watching me break down. But this time, I didn’t cry. I didn’t hysterically ask if he regretted marrying me. I just said, “Think whatever you want.” I cleaned up the trash, grabbed my purse, and opened the door. In the past, whenever I threatened to leave, he never once chased after me. But today, Cole actually followed me to the elevator. “It’s late. Where are you going?” I lied effortlessly. “My mom needs me to pick up something.” Cole looked like he wanted to say more, but the elevator doors closed. Less than two hours later, I was chatting with friends at a bar. My phone buzzed with a text from Cole. It was just a question mark. [?] I ignored it completely. My best friend, Olivia, looked shocked. “Nina, did the sun rise in the west? Cole actually reached out to you? If you don’t reply, isn’t he going to blow up?” My friends knew I was terrified of upsetting Cole. But that night, I not only ignored him, I stayed out partying with them until 2:00 AM. When I got home, Cole was standing by the fridge drinking water. He didn’t ask where I had been. I didn’t acknowledge him either. I went straight to the bathroom to shower. As soon as I lay down in bed, Cole pressed up against me. He kissed me for a few seconds. I pushed him away hard. He finally lost his patience and flicked on the bedside lamp. “Nina, don’t tell me you forgot what days these are.” Cole and I were trying for a baby. So, during my fertile window every month, he would perform his “duty.” I turned my back to him. “I’m too tired today. Goodnight.” Hearing the same excuse I had heard him use countless times, Cole froze. Eventually, he stormed out of the bedroom with a dark expression. I knew he would sleep in the guest room for the next few days. Before, whenever he slept in a separate room, I would panic and suffer from insomnia all night. But that night, I slept incredibly well. The next day at work, my productivity was through the roof. When my boss jokingly asked what reward I wanted, I looked at her seriously. “That divorce lawyer you mentioned last time? Can I get her contact info?” On the ninth day of sleeping separately, Cole woke up unusually early. He made bacon and eggs—my favorite—then went back to the bedroom to sleep without saying a word. At 3:00 PM, I saw a photo in a group chat sent by Cole’s friend, Ryan. It was from Ryan’s wedding party. The photo showed Cole with Chloe holding his arm. She was smiling shyly, leaning into him.

Less than five minutes after the group photo was posted, Cole called me. He sounded hesitant. “Nina, don’t misunderstand. Ryan’s wedding was on a weekday, and I needed a plus-one…” I was genuinely confused. “What is there to misunderstand?” “You’re not mad?” “Why would I be mad?” He fell silent for a moment. “Wait for me at your office after work. I’m taking you to the reception dinner.” He hung up before I could refuse. When Cole picked me up, Chloe was sitting in the passenger seat. “Hi, Nina! What a coincidence, you’re coming too?” Facing Chloe’s fake smile, I gave a calm smile back. I opened the back door and got in without complaint. The whole ride, Cole kept trying to catch my eye in the rearview mirror. I kept my head down, scrolling on my phone. I answered him with one-word replies until I eventually stopped talking altogether. When we arrived at the private dining room, Ryan rushed over with exaggerated regret. He said it was the biggest tragedy of his life that I missed the ceremony. I knew he was covering for Cole. But I wasn’t angry at anyone. “Don’t say that. I should be the one wishing you a happy marriage.” Seeing that I held no grudge and just sat down to eat, Ryan’s jaw dropped. Over the last year, he had covered for Cole many times while Cole was vacationing with Chloe. Once, I even exposed his lie to his face. Back then, he wasn’t nearly as shocked as he was now. Halfway through dinner, the restaurant manager brought in several bottles of expensive wine. He asked Cole, “Mr. Jenkins, these are the bottles you and Miss Chloe saved last time. Should we open them now?” The atmosphere in the room froze. I decided to help him out. “Open them all. Don’t let them go to waste.” I stood up and walked out of the room. Cole chased after me immediately. He looked rarely nervous. “Nina, the company closed a big deal a while ago. The wine was bought to celebrate that.” I waved my hand dismissively and walked into the restroom. When I returned to the room, Cole was drinking Chloe’s wine for her to stop her from getting drunk. Two years ago, at a dinner just like this. I was allergic to alcohol, but his friends kept pressuring me to drink. Back then, Cole didn’t help me. He held my shoulder and said coldly, “It’s just one glass. Drink it. If it gets bad, I’ll take you to get your stomach pumped later.” That night, I started running a fever. Two days later, I was rushed to the hospital with severe abdominal pain. The doctor told me I had been one month pregnant, but I had lost the baby. When Cole heard about the miscarriage, he rushed to the hospital. He screamed at me. “I told you not to go, but you insisted! You idiot, this is the price you pay for trying to squeeze into a man’s world!” Remembering this, I walked back to my seat, grabbed my purse, and left. Cole followed me all the way home, furious. “Nina, are you sick? You just leave without saying a word? You embarrassed everyone. Are you happy now?” I remained silent. He loosened his tie and sneered. “If you’re going to be this immature, we might as well get a divorce.” This was the second time he had mentioned divorce. The last time was because he thought I looked through his phone. Back then, I had knelt at his feet with zero dignity, crying and swearing I would never upset him again. But this time, I looked him in the eye. I spoke clearly. “Okay.”

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Julian Thorne, the Silicon Valley tech titan, commissioned a diamond ring worth one hundred million dollars just for me. In an exclusive Forbes interview, he declared that this ring was made for only one person. Whoever could wear it perfectly would become his wife. In my first life, my half-sister Bianca went to a plastic surgeon. She had her finger bones shaved down by two millimeters. When she walked into the bridal suite, confident as a queen, Julian grabbed her by the hair. He smashed her face into the marble countertop until she was unrecognizable. “You are not her!” In my second life, our adopted sister, Harper, starved herself insane. She lost seventy pounds in four months. On her wedding night, Julian pushed her straight off the spiral staircase of the penthouse. She died instantly. “Still not her!” In my third life, my stepmother Victoria went to a black-market doctor. Under general anesthesia, she had the cartilage of her finger removed just to force the ring on. The moment Julian saw her, he held her head underwater in the jacuzzi until she stopped breathing. In my fourth life, the three of them were terrified. Trembling, they pushed me forward. I put on the ring. It was a perfect fit, down to the micrometer. My whole family let out a sigh of relief. But the moment Julian saw me, his eyes turned maniacal. He pulled a custom hunting knife from his suit jacket. Twenty stabs. He avoided every vital organ, letting me bleed out slowly in agonizing pain. “Why isn’t it her? Where the hell is she?!” Now, in this final life, Julian’s chief attorney brought that legendary diamond ring to the Ashford Manor. We four women spoke in unison: “The ring doesn’t fit. None of us can wear it.” The lawyer pushed up his gold-rimmed glasses, eyeing us with a creepy intensity. “Mr. Thorne is certain that the woman he is looking for is among the four of you.” He paused, his voice dropping to a freezing temperature. “She needs to reveal herself within 48 hours. Otherwise…” He didn’t finish the sentence, but the threat hung in the air like a blade.

We four women—my stepmother Victoria, my half-sister Bianca, my adopted sister Harper, and I—sat around the genuine leather sofa in the living room. We stared at the glittering diamond on the coffee table. The air was so thick it felt like we were suffocating. “Jesus,” Victoria lit a slim cigarette, smoke curling around her red lips. “We’ve all died once. Who the hell does this lunatic want to marry?” Bianca clutched her Hermes Birkin bag, her voice trembling. “Maybe we should call the police? Tell them he’s a serial killer?” “The police?” Harper laughed bitterly. “You think they’ll believe ‘we were all murdered by a billionaire and then reborn’? They’d throw us straight into the psych ward.” I stayed silent, my brain replaying the scenes from my last life on a loop. On our wedding night, Julian had walked into the bedroom wearing a dark blue silk robe. The moment he saw me, that breathtakingly handsome face twisted into a demonic snarl. “You lying bitch!” He screamed, lunging at me. “You dare try to replace her?!” When the knife pierced my body, I could hear the sound of skin tearing and muscle severing. Twenty cuts. He skillfully avoided anything that would kill me quickly, ensuring I suffered. “You’re just a distraction.” He leaned over, looking at me like I was a bug. “Did you really think you could replace her and marry me? A nobody without even a single share of the Ashford family stock?” I struggled in a pool of my own blood for three hours before I finally died. “Serena?” Victoria’s voice snapped me back to reality. “What are you thinking?” I took a deep breath. “I’m thinking… maybe we can find the woman he’s actually looking for.” “How?” Bianca challenged. “Start from the beginning.” I stood up. “Remember what the lawyer said? Julian saw us at the Met Gala and decided the mystery woman was connected to the Ashford family.” “That gala…” Harper’s eyes lit up. “They have surveillance footage!” “Exactly.” I grabbed my Chanel clutch. “We’re going to the Ritz-Carlton. Now.” Victoria stubbed out her cigarette. “Let’s go.”

Ten P.M., at the Ritz-Carlton near Central Park. Harper deserved an Oscar. A few tears were all it took to melt the heart of the hotel’s security chief. She sobbed about losing her late mother’s pearl necklace and begged to check the footage from that night. The chief was a middle-aged man with a classic “white knight” complex. He handed Harper a tissue. “Don’t cry, miss. I’ll take you to the security room.” On the monitors, the charity gala ballroom glittered with gold. Because my father—the former head of the Ashford family—had died of a heart attack three months ago, our family’s status on Wall Street had plummeted. That night, we were shoved into a corner table. Just the four of us at a table for eight. “Look,” Bianca pointed at the screen. “There’s Julian Thorne.” In the video, Julian walked down the red carpet. He wore a custom Armani suit, standing at least 6’3″. His dark brown hair was perfectly styled, and his blue eyes looked like the Pacific Ocean. Trailing behind him were at least twenty bodyguards and assistants. The entire ballroom stood up to applaud. Women looked at him with hunger; men looked at him with envy. Number seven on the Forbes list. Net worth of 85 billion dollars. Thirty-two years old. Single. The “Modern Howard Hughes” of Silicon Valley. He walked slowly through the venue, and then— He stopped right by our table. On screen, the four of us were arguing quietly, completely ignoring him. But Julian turned and looked deeply at our table. That look… “Oh my god,” Victoria gasped. “He’s smiling.” It was true. Julian Thorne, the man known as the “Iceberg” in business negotiations, was wearing a gentle, affectionate, almost obsessed smile. Like he was looking at the most precious treasure in the world. Then, he turned and whispered something to his lead attorney. “Can you zoom in?” I asked the security chief urgently. “Can we see what he’s saying?” The chief adjusted the controls, but the angle was off. We couldn’t read his lips. “Keep watching,” Bianca said. The footage showed that for the rest of the night, only the four of us sat at that table. No one left, no one else approached. Just us. “So…” Harper’s voice shook. “The woman he wants is really one of us?” I stared hard at the screen, and suddenly, I noticed a detail. “Wait.” I told the chief to pause. “Rewind thirty seconds.” The footage went back. I watched our actions closely. Victoria was on her phone. Bianca was reapplying lipstick. Harper was cutting her steak. And me… I was texting someone under the table. And I had a sweet, stupid smile on my face. “Damn it.” I ran my fingers through my hair. “I remember now.” Three pairs of eyes snapped toward me. “That night, I was texting Julian,” I whispered. “Because we were… secretly dating.”

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For five years, I was his co-pilot. For five years, I was his secret. I was perfectly happy with my underground relationship with Captain Kian Hayes. But the moment I found out he was still entangled with his ex-girlfriend, Cora Reed, I knew it was over. I put in a request to fly solo, determined to become Ascend Air’s first female captain. And I chose a new route that would never, ever cross paths with the Boeing 787 Dreamliner that Kian flew. … Seattle, Ascend Air Operations Base. “Jules, you’ve been Kian’s co-pilot for five years. With your record, you should have been flying solo ages ago. Are you really going to play second fiddle to him forever?” Director Stevens pulled a captain promotion application from his drawer and slid it across the desk to me. “You are more than qualified to be our first female captain. The entire company is behind you. Think about it—keep flying in his shadow, or seize this opportunity and command your own route?” My eyes stung at the mention of Kian’s name. I looked down at my crisp, white pilot’s uniform and reached for the form. “Thank you, Director Stevens. I’ll think about it.” That night at ten, I came home to our empty villa in Bellevue. The house felt cavernous and cold. My gaze fell on the photo on the entryway console: me and Kian in his captain’s uniform, standing proudly in front of a Boeing 787. For a moment, I felt lost. Everyone at Ascend Air, from management to the flight crews, thought Kian and I were just the dream team in the cockpit. They had no idea our chemistry in bed was just as electric. We met when I was an intern, fresh out of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. We teamed up for flight simulations, shattering one record after another. Back then, Kian pursued me relentlessly. For my birthday, he rented out all of Gas Works Park and hired a quartet from the Seattle Symphony to play for me under the stars. When I was sick, he, a man who never cooked, would stay up all night watching YouTube tutorials just to make me a bowl of chicken noodle soup from scratch. His relentless efforts planted a seed of love in my heart that I couldn’t ignore. To protect his career and our future together, I agreed to keep our relationship a secret. By day, we flew the same Boeing 787 from Seattle to San Francisco, then halfway across the world to Tokyo. By night, we shared the same bed. His kisses, from fiery to tender, explored every inch of me. We were a perfect match, body and soul. But thinking about it now, the memories felt tainted, the light in my eyes dimming. I don’t know how long I stood there, lost in thought. The click of the lock broke the silence. “You’re still up?” Kian walked in, his white uniform immaculate, the four stripes on his epaulets gleaming under the light. The faint scent of his cologne pulled me back to the present. “Flying too many night routes lately. The jet lag is hitting hard, can’t sleep.” I was on my annual leave this week, so I hadn’t been flying with him. He didn’t notice the exhaustion on my face. He just pulled a small, elegant box from his pocket and handed it to me. “A little something I picked up for you on my last trip.” My heart fluttered for a second as I opened it. Inside was the newest diamond bracelet from Cartier. Three months ago, during a flight, I’d mentioned offhandedly how much I loved this bracelet from their new collection. I couldn’t believe he remembered. He was thoughtful. Too bad I’d already seen it three days ago on Cora’s Instagram. [Kian has such great taste! The meaning behind this Cartier bracelet is ‘eternity’!] The post featured a mirror selfie of Cora in her flight attendant uniform. She looked stunning, the diamond bracelet sparkling on her wrist. A colleague had commented, “Are you and Kian back together? That bracelet looks amazing on you!” Cora replied with a simple smiley face emoji: “Don’t jump to conclusions. ;)” Now, staring at the same bracelet in the box, my stomach churned. After five years together, it was only then that I learned the lead flight attendant, Cora Reed, was Kian’s ex-girlfriend. No wonder he always insisted on driving her home after every crew dinner. And I, to avoid suspicion, always had to call myself an Uber. Now, a gift meant for me had appeared on his ex-girlfriend’s wrist first. I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. Seeing my silence, Kian spoke in a low voice. “You don’t like it? I had someone wait in line for six hours to get it on the launch day. You said you loved it on the plane.” I closed the box. “I guess… I don’t like it as much anymore.” Just like I didn’t love the man I’d adored for five years quite as much anymore. Kian frowned. “If you don’t like it, I’ll get you something else next time.” With that, he walked into the bathroom. I watched his back, a bitter taste filling my mouth. Next time he buys me something else, will Cora get to try it on first, too? Or will he just buy two of everything? My gaze drifted to the promotion application on the console, partially hidden under the jewelry box. I let out a humorless laugh. I had deliberately placed the form where he couldn’t miss it, but he had completely ignored it. This one-sided love affair was my mistake from the very beginning. I took a deep breath and picked up my phone to call my director. “Stevens, I’ll accept the transfer. I want to fly solo on a new route. But I’m requesting the SEA-ASE route to Aspen.” Director Stevens sounded surprised on the other end. “The Aspen route? That heads east, while Kian’s international route goes west. If you choose that, your flight paths will never intersect. You’ll barely see each other. Are you sure, Jules?” I clutched the phone tightly. “I’m sure.” Even if it meant never seeing him again for the rest of my life, I had to choose this route. Director Stevens sighed. “Alright, then. I’ll submit your promotion application. Get your affairs in order, and you can report for your new assignment at the end of the month. The Aspen route is yours.” A flicker of light returned to my eyes. “Understood.” After hanging up, I took out a pen and signed my full name on the promotion application: Juliana Vance.

The bathroom door opened, and Kian walked out with a towel wrapped around his waist. He glanced at me. “What are you writing?” “Release documents for the next flight,” I said, folding the application and tucking it into my bag. Kian didn’t seem to notice. He casually dried the water droplets from his abs with another towel. “If flying is getting to be too much, you could always quit. I can support you.” My heart clenched. I stared at the man I had loved for five years, swallowing the bitter words that rose in my throat. “Let’s talk about the future later.” Kian always knew what I had sacrificed for him, how much I loved flying, as much as I loved life itself. But today, he was telling me to give it all up. I took a deep, silent breath to calm myself. It’s okay. In fifteen days, I’ll be out of here, and I’ll be out of his life for good. Back in the bedroom, I had just lied down when Kian pulled me into his arms from behind. I felt the heat radiating from his body and tensed up, about to push him away. His hand was already slipping under my nightgown, his rough fingertips cool against my skin, sending a shiver through me. “Don’t,” I gasped. The thought that these same hands might have been intimate with Cora just three days ago made my skin crawl. Sensing my resistance, Kian sounded surprised. “What’s wrong?” I pushed his hand away, making up a quick excuse. “It’s that time of the month. My stomach hurts.” He didn’t question it. His thin lips brushed against my hair, and he moved his hand to my lower abdomen, his voice softening. “Let me warm you up, then.” As I felt his familiar, gentle touch, my eyes began to well up. I knew Kian cared about me, that he loved me. But I couldn’t understand why he still paid so much attention to his ex-girlfriend. Had there always been a part of his heart that he kept reserved just for her? I didn’t sleep a wink that night. The next morning, Kian was getting dressed when I woke up. His phone on the nightstand lit up, and I instinctively glanced over. It was a text from Cora. [Kian, remember number three on our college wish list? Watch the sunrise together at Green Lake. I’ll be waiting for you at the boat dock!] My heart sank. Just last week, Kian had promised to take me to see the sunrise at Green Lake once my leave started. When I saw him getting ready just now, I thought he’d remembered. Turns out, he already had plans with Cora. Watching him fix his tie in the mirror, I spoke up, my voice casual. “I hear the sunrise at Green Lake is beautiful. Let’s go see it today.” Kian’s hands paused. “I’ve got a training session with some of the new interns and senior instructors today. How about next week? I’ll take you next week.” He grabbed his phone and walked out. Watching his retreating back, I whispered to the empty room, “Next week, summer will almost be over.” It used to be that whenever I wanted to go somewhere, Kian would drop everything to take me. Even if I forgot, he would always remember and plan everything perfectly. But now, I was the one who remembered, and he was the one who forgot. I dug my nails into my palms, the sharp pain a welcome distraction. Only fourteen days left. I could just watch the sunrise somewhere else. After Kian left, I got up for breakfast. The photo wall in the living room was a punch to the gut. It was covered with pictures from the past five years—all the places we’d traveled, all the cities we’d flown to together. Five years. Thousands of photos. I had carefully selected a hundred of our best moments to display. There was one from our first time co-piloting the Boeing 787, both of us in our white uniforms, secretly treating them like matching couple’s outfits. There was another of our first kiss, a passionate embrace under the New Year’s Eve fireworks. … A hundred photos, each with a special memory, each a testament to the life we had chased together. When Kian first saw the wall, he had smiled and said, “A hundred photos for a hundred years of our love, unchanging and everlasting.” But now, his love had changed, and these photos no longer belonged on this wall. My hands trembled as I began to tear them down, one by one, ripping our “eternity” to shreds. From now on, we would go our separate ways.

A wave of exhaustion washed over me. I leaned back against the sofa and opened Instagram on my phone. The first post in my feed was from Cora. [The sunrise is beautiful, but not as beautiful as having someone who comes whenever I call.] It was a nine-photo collage of the glorious Green Lake sunrise. In the center photo, two hands—one large, one small—formed a heart against the rising sun. I knew that large, tan, bony hand. It was Kian’s. My vision blurred. I was about to close the app when a notification from Snapchat popped up. A private snap from Cora. My finger hovered for a second before I tapped it open. The photo was a close-up of a rumpled bedsheet. The caption read: “Be gentle, it hurts…” It was accompanied by the sound of a man’s heavy breathing. A jolt went through me, and I dropped my phone as if it were on fire. I couldn’t believe Cora would send me something like that. And I couldn’t believe that bastard would go from watching the sunrise with his ex to getting a hotel room with her! If Kian was going to give his time and love to Cora, then I was taking back every last drop of love I had ever given him. I flung open my closet, my eyes stinging as I looked at all the gifts I’d bought for Kian over the years. Every Christmas, I would get him a custom pair of Bose noise-canceling headphones engraved with our flight records, a way to be with him on every flight. Every Valentine’s Day, I’d hunt down a limited-edition pilot’s watch for him, a way to forever mark the time we spent together. … Whenever I gave him these gifts, he would accept them with a huge smile and kiss me reverently. “I’m the luckiest man alive to have a girlfriend like you. I’ll treasure everything you give me, baby.” But now, all the things he promised to treasure were going in the trash. I stuffed everything into garbage bags and, along with the photos, dumped them in the recycling bin downstairs. In the days that remained, I would slowly erase every memory of our love. Darkness fell. I checked the time. 9:40 PM. Kian wasn’t back yet. I had just washed up and was about to head to bed when I heard the lock turn. Kian walked in, a faint, unfamiliar perfume clinging to him. He took off his jacket and immediately noticed the bare wall. “Jules, where are the pictures?” My fingers curled into fists. “They fell down,” I said, my voice tight. “I put them away.” Without another word, I turned and went into the bedroom. Kian looked stunned for a moment, sensing my mood was off. He followed me. “Why didn’t you hang them back up?” I saw the faint lipstick marks on the inside of his collar and looked away. “The nails are loose. They won’t hang right anymore.” He didn’t catch my double meaning. He just looked relieved. “Well, when I have some time, we’ll hang them up again together.” He then disappeared into the bathroom. As the sound of the shower started, I muttered to myself. “You can rehang pictures, but you can’t fix a broken relationship.” That night, we lay side by side, worlds apart. The next morning, I went to the office with my promotion application. As I entered the building, an announcement came over the intercom. “All 787 crew members, please report to the conference hall. Our new lead flight attendant will be joining us today.” I frowned. The 787 route was getting a new lead? I quickened my pace toward the conference hall. As I neared the entrance, I could see Kian on stage in his white captain’s uniform, looking handsome and distinguished next to a few managers. Below the stage, a group of flight attendants stood in perfect formation. Then, the head manager stepped forward and called Cora up from the crowd. “Please join me in welcoming Cora Reed as the new lead flight attendant for our 787 route.” The hall erupted in applause. I stood frozen in a corner, invisible in the crowd. I never imagined the new lead would be Cora. Cora walked gracefully to Kian’s side, looped her arm through his, and smiled at the audience. “The first time Kian was promoted to captain, I was his dedicated lead flight attendant. Now, five years later, here I am again. It must be fate.”

Cora’s words were met with even louder applause. They looked at each other and smiled, looking every bit the happy couple. I quietly averted my stinging eyes and slipped out of the conference hall. It didn’t matter. In thirteen days, I would be gone. Whether they rekindled their old flame or started fresh, it had nothing to do with me. I had made my decision to let go, and I would leave without a scene. That afternoon, after submitting my promotion application to Director Stevens, I went back to my desk. Since I was transferring to a new airport, I needed to clear out all my personal belongings. As I was packing, I overheard a couple of colleagues gossiping nearby. “I remember when Cora and Kian were together, he gave her his first kiss and his first time. I can’t believe he’s still so hung up on her after all these years.” “I know, right? Cora was the one who turned him from a boy into a man. She took him to see the Northern Lights in Alaska and then broke up with him. For most people, the aurora is romantic. For them, it was a breakup.” “No wonder he could never get over his first love and never dated anyone else. Maybe I should take my boyfriend to see the Northern Lights if I want to break up with him!” Their voices faded as they walked away, but my heart felt heavier with each beat. So that’s why Kian was at her beck and call. She was his unforgettable first love. I took a deep breath and continued clearing my desk. I was about to call a car home when Liv from the cabin crew spotted me. “Jules! The entire 787 crew is throwing a welcome dinner for Cora tonight. Come with us!” Before I could refuse, Liv had already pulled me into her car. … The Waterfront Grille, an upscale seafood restaurant. As I arrived, I overheard two colleagues walking ahead of me toward the private room. “It’s amazing that Kian and Cora could reunite after all this time. I remember when the company sent Cora to Dubai for training, Kian almost gave up his pilot career to go with her. If it weren’t for the senior management desperately trying to stop him, his career would’ve been over.” “Yeah, it’s really something. Now that Cora’s back, I bet there’s nothing standing in their way!” Their words felt like a knife twisting in my gut. I felt so pathetic. For five years, I thought Kian had only done those grand romantic gestures for me. The truth was, long before me, he had already done them all for Cora. Every romantic moment in my relationship with Kian was probably just something Cora had taught him. The thought left a bitter taste in my mouth. I waited until they had entered the private room before I slowly pushed the door open. Inside, colleagues were scattered around, all gathered around Kian and Cora. Cora saw me and flashed her professional flight-attendant smile, walking over. “Hi, I’m Cora. Your senior.” Her words were a clear double entendre, and my answering smile felt forced. She had sent me those provocative private messages, yet here she was, pretending we’d never met. How ridiculous. I gave her a curt nod and found a seat in a quiet corner. I listened as everyone continued to fawn over Cora. Kian’s attention was entirely on her; he didn’t even glance my way once. I had no desire to stay. I made up a quick excuse and said I had to leave early. But just as I stepped out of the room, I heard Cora’s voice behind me. “Kian, I don’t think your co-pilot likes me very much. She left without even eating!” Kian didn’t say anything, but I heard the voices of other crew members. “Don’t worry about her. She’s been secretly in love with Kian for years, that’s why she’s been his co-pilot for five years. She’s probably just jealous seeing you two looking so good together.” A murmur of agreement went through the room before Cora stepped in. “Don’t say that. We’re all colleagues here.” Hearing their conversation, I couldn’t help but smile wryly. The entire crew thought Kian and Cora were the perfect match. And me, his actual girlfriend, was just some pathetic girl pining after a man she couldn’t have. But it didn’t matter. In a few more days, I would be gone for good. Our relationship was never public anyway. My departure would be clean. I had just left the restaurant when Kian caught up to me. He pulled me into a secluded corner, his voice low and sharp. “Jules, you shouldn’t have just left like that. Cora is a new colleague. You made things very awkward for her.” Awkward? It was a welcome party for his ex-girlfriend. Why couldn’t I leave early? I stared at him, my voice quiet but firm. “Is she just a new colleague, Kian? Or is she your ex-girlfriend?”

Seeing my silence, Kian’s frustration seemed to melt away. He pulled me into his arms, a hint of panic in his voice. “Jules, I’m sorry. Cora and I have a past, but that’s all it is—the past. That’s why I didn’t think it was important to mention. You’re my girlfriend now, and you’re the only one I want to marry.” I felt the warmth of his body and looked up into his anxious eyes. He did look like he was completely devoted to me right now. In the five years we’d been together, Kian had never mentioned Cora, nor had he ever been linked to any other woman. I knew everyone has a past. It didn’t matter that someone else used to live in Kian’s heart, as long as he had cleared it out for me now. But Cora’s Instagram told a different story. It was clear to me that his heart wasn’t clear at all. Just as the tension hung thick in the air, Cora’s voice cut through the silence from around the corner. “Kian!” At the sound of her voice, Kian’s arms around me instantly loosened, and he took a quick step back. Seeing his nervous reaction, my heart twisted. After five years, I, his current girlfriend, still couldn’t compare to his ex. I took a few steps back myself. “You should go. Don’t keep her waiting.” Without waiting for his response, I turned and walked away. The night sky was starless, and the dim streetlights stretched my shadow into a long, lonely figure. I walked aimlessly along the waterfront, my mind replaying images of Kian and Cora together. I thought I had prepared myself for this, that I should be used to it by now. But walking alone in the dark, I realized my heart still ached. I walked for over three hours, finally reaching home around one in the morning. I kicked off my heels and my bare feet hit the wooden floor. I only then noticed the blisters on my heels, some of which had broken and were bleeding. I cleaned the wounds with antiseptic and covered them with bandages before collapsing onto the sofa. I opened my phone, and another new Instagram post from Cora was at the top of my feed. “Kian is the definition of boyfriend material. So protective.” The photo was taken in a dimly lit bar. Cora, in a sexy cocktail dress, was sitting on Kian’s shoulders, a tipsy smile on her face. Love is measured by the little differences in how you’re treated. With Kian, the difference between the ex and the current girlfriend was staggering. I remembered a year ago, we were at Disneyland watching the fireworks. I saw a girl riding on her boyfriend’s shoulders, taking pictures, and I wanted to try it too. But Kian had shot me down. “Jules, we’re too old for that. It’s not very classy.” Yet here he was, indulging his ex’s “childish” whim, letting her ride on his shoulders without a second thought. Clearly, the love he gave me would always be less than the love he gave Cora. I took a shaky breath, trying to swallow the bitterness that filled my throat. Just a few more days. I was leaving Kian. There was no need for self-pity. I pushed through the pain and continued packing my things. My side of the closet was already looking bare. The only things left that we shared were a few matching sweatshirts, still with the tags on. Since we both wore uniforms for work, we never had a chance to wear them. Kian had never worn his even once. Now that Cora was back and I was leaving, there was no reason to keep them. I found a bag, stuffed the sweatshirts inside, and dropped them in the donation bin. Then, I started packing the things I would take with me. I had just zipped up my suitcase, filled with my most-worn clothes, when Kian came home. He saw the suitcase and his eyes widened. “What are you doing?” I didn’t even look at him. “Packing my flight bag.” He seemed to relax, probably remembering we had a flight together the next afternoon and I always packed ahead. He didn’t question it further. “Let me help.” He reached over and fastened the locks on the suitcase. I watched him, a storm of emotions brewing inside me. If he had just paid a little more attention, he would have seen that the suitcase wasn’t filled with my flight uniform, but with everything I owned. The air grew heavy. Kian must have sensed my low mood because he tried to explain. “Cora was the guest of honor at the dinner tonight, so I couldn’t find the right moment to tell everyone about us. But next time, I promise, I’ll let everyone know we’re together.” I didn’t respond. Kian had made countless “next time” promises. I had gotten my hopes up time and time again, only to be let down. Now, there would be no more “next times” for us. Once I was gone, it wouldn’t matter whether our relationship was public or not. Seeing my silence, Kian tried a different approach. “After we land tomorrow, how about I take you to see the Northern Lights in Alaska? I know you’ve always wanted to go.” I froze. I had asked to see the Northern Lights so many times before, but he always had an excuse. Now that Cora was back, he was suddenly offering to take me. I remembered what my colleagues had said, and a bitter smile touched my lips. When the ex comes back, the current girlfriend always loses. I looked at Kian, at the man I had loved for five whole years, and calmly nodded. “Okay. Let’s go see the Northern Lights.” The aurora had witnessed his breakup with Cora. That was fine. Soon, it would witness our breakup too.

The next morning, I put on some light makeup and headed to the airport. Today was my last international flight with Ascend Air, and Cora’s first time as the lead flight attendant on the Boeing 787. Flying with her on the same plane, I couldn’t afford to make a single mistake. In the crew briefing room, I changed into my flight uniform. As I was adjusting the three stripes on my co-pilot epaulets, Cora walked in, her heels clicking on the floor. She looked me up and down, her eyes full of meaning. “Poor Jules. You’ve been with Kian for five years, and he still won’t even acknowledge you in public. I guess in his heart, you’ll always be the girl he has to hide.” My hands paused. I couldn’t believe she knew about us. My silence only made her smile widen. “Thanks for taking care of Kian for me these past five years. Keeping him company at work during the day, and warming his bed at night.” “But you know, all those tricks he does in bed? I taught him those. We spent a whole weekend trying out every technique in Cosmo.” “A man never forgets his first love. Kian will never forget me, especially in bed. Now that I’m back, you should probably just step aside gracefully. It’ll be more dignified for all three of us.” Her words hit me like a series of punches, each one landing squarely in my gut. All those intimate moments that I had cherished now felt like a deep humiliation. I bit my lip so hard I could taste blood. “You should probably be saying this to Kian.” I didn’t need any “dignity” from her. I had already planned my exit. In ten days, I would be gone, with my dignity intact. Cora’s face fell, clearly not expecting my calm response. “Juliana, is there any point in clinging to a man who doesn’t love you? You know his heart belongs to me. You were just a fling.” “The gifts he gave you? They were my hand-me-downs. The man himself? My leftovers. He and I are the only ones who are truly compatible.” Cora was probably hoping for a breakdown, a dramatic scene. But she was going to be disappointed. Ever since I realized Kian’s heart was never fully mine, my love for him had been a wilting rose. There was nothing that could stop it from fading away. “It’s great that you two are getting back together. I wish you all the best.” I gave her one last, cool glance and walked out of the room. The sun was shining brightly outside. It was a perfect day for flying. And my future would be even brighter than this sun. After the pre-flight briefing, I did my usual walk-around inspection before boarding the plane. In the cockpit, Kian and I were ready. We contacted the tower. “Seattle Tower, this is Ascend Air 787.” A calm, steady voice came back through the radio. “Ascend 787, Seattle Tower, go ahead.” Kian’s voice was professional and cool. “Ascend 787, ready for takeoff, request clearance.” A crackle of static, and then a green light on the screen. “Ascend 787, you are cleared for takeoff. Have a safe flight. Goodbye.” After signing off, Kian placed one hand on the throttle and the other on the control yoke, his focus absolute. I couldn’t help but glance at him. This was the last time I would be his co-pilot, the last time I would sit in this right-hand seat. Soon, I would be the one with my hand on the primary controls. Guiding every flight to a safe landing. The plane climbed to 30,000 feet, and Kian switched on the autopilot. We went to do a cabin check together and ran right into Cora in the galley. “Kian,” she cooed. Just then, the plane hit a patch of severe turbulence. A hard-shell suitcase tumbled out of an overhead bin! “Look out!” Kian instinctively pulled Cora aside, shielding her with his body. I didn’t have time to react. The suitcase slammed into my shoulder, and the force of the impact sent me sprawling to the floor. A flight attendant rushed to my side. “First Officer Vance, are you okay?” I looked at Kian, still holding Cora tightly, then looked away. “I’m fine. Go reassure the passengers. This is just normal turbulence, tell them not to panic.” After the flight attendant made the announcement, I looked up at the open overhead bin. “This latch wasn’t secured. Whose responsibility was that?” Cora looked flustered. “Sorry, I was getting something out earlier. I must not have closed it all the way.” I rolled my aching shoulder, my gaze turning serious. “That’s careless. If that had hit a passenger, could you have taken responsibility for it?” Before she could answer, Kian jumped in, his brow furrowed. “Let’s not get worked up over what-ifs. Cora didn’t do it on purpose.” I was stunned. Kian, who was known for his strict adherence to protocol, was defending her. I opened my mouth to argue, but then just let out a bitter laugh and said nothing. Back in the cockpit, the silence was deafening. Kian, sensing my mood, lowered his voice to explain. “Cora was closer to me. My instinct was just to protect her. Don’t overthink it.” I looked at him, my voice flat. “It doesn’t matter. This is my last time flying this 787 with you anyway.”

Kian’s expression froze. “Are you still mad about what happened?” I just shook my head. “No.” But he clearly thought I was upset about Cora becoming the lead flight attendant. “Cora’s been away for five years, so she’s a bit rusty. You shouldn’t be so hard on her.” His words felt like a punch to the gut. Cora was the one who had been negligent. I was the one who got hurt. And yet, he was blaming me for being too harsh. What a joke. What a pathetic ending to this final flight together. I didn’t say another word. I had already decided to leave. There was no point in explaining anything to Kian. After a 13-hour flight, we landed smoothly at San Francisco International Airport. We spent the night at an airport hotel, and the next day, as promised, Kian took me to see the Northern Lights in Alaska. Except, my excitement vanished when I saw Cora and the rest of the crew were coming along too. Kian noticed my disappointment. “It’s more fun with a group,” he said softly. “And safer to stick together in a foreign country.” I pressed my lips together. “Whatever you think is best.” At the aurora viewing point in Fairbanks, the sky was a canvas of dancing, vibrant colors. As everyone gasped in awe, I heard Cora’s voice drift over to me. “Kian, the first time we saw the Northern Lights, things ended badly between us. You swore you would bring me back to see them again. Thank you for always remembering.” I turned to see Cora and Kian standing close together, their eyes filled with a shared history. “I never forget a promise I’ve made to you.” Hearing Kian’s reply to her, my heart, which I thought had turned to stone, suddenly ached with a sharp, unexpected pain. So, all along, the person he had wanted to bring here was Cora. I was just an afterthought, someone he brought along for the ride. Under the ethereal glow of the aurora, I turned and walked away. Snow began to fall, dusting my hair and clothes, but I barely felt the cold. I just kept walking, numb. I don’t know how long I walked. It felt like I was reliving the entire 1,867 days of our relationship all over again. … Two days later, we were back in Seattle. The first thing I did after we landed was go straight to the operations director’s office. I placed my employee ID card on his desk. “My final flight is complete. Awaiting further instructions, sir.” Director Stevens nodded, a look of satisfaction on his face. He took my ID, placed it in a file, and then handed me a brand new one, along with a velvet box containing a captain’s epaulets with four stripes. “From this moment on, you are no longer the co-pilot of the 787. You are the captain of the new Aspen route.” “Congratulations, Jules. You are officially Ascend Air’s first female captain, and the first captain of this new route.”

I went home from the airport. I checked the calendar on my phone. December 28th. Only three days left until I was gone for good. I placed my new captain’s uniform, epaulets, and ID card in my suitcase. A wave of relief washed over me. After a long bath, I was about to get into bed. Just then, Kian rushed home. He looked panicked, storming over to my bedside. “Jules, I just saw the flight schedule. Why isn’t your name listed as my co-pilot for tomorrow’s flight?” I gave him the excuse I had prepared. “I haven’t been feeling well lately, so I took a few days off.” I had asked Director Stevens to keep my transfer a secret, and I certainly wasn’t going to tell Kian myself. I would never again fly the route I had flown with him for five years. I would never again come back to this place. There was no need for everyone to know I was leaving. Hearing my explanation, Kian’s tense shoulders relaxed. “Oh, thank God. I thought for a second you didn’t want to be my co-pilot anymore.” He then dropped to one knee by the bed and grabbed my hand. “We promised we’d fly together for the rest of our lives. We have to keep that promise. Jules, you can’t lie to me…” I looked at the sincerity in his eyes and felt a sharp sting of pain. He told me not to lie to him, yet he had lied to me over and over again. If he loved me, why did he hide the fact that he was still involved with his ex? I didn’t understand. I didn’t understand how he could be such a good actor. I closed my eyes, my lashes trembling. “Okay.” It was the first time I had ever lied to Kian. And it would be the last. Kian finally seemed at ease. He leaned in to kiss my forehead, but I quickly turned away. His heart seemed to clench again. He realized that somewhere along the line, his Jules had stopped letting him get close. “Jules, when I get back from this flight, it’ll be New Year’s Day. How about we go to New York to celebrate?” I shook my head. “I don’t want to go.” “Then what about our cabin at Lake Tahoe? We can see the stars from there. I promise, no one will bother us this time,” Kian suggested, trying again. But I just shook my head again. For five years, to keep our relationship a secret, Kian would always take me to some faraway place for New Year’s. This year, I didn’t want to go anywhere. I just wanted to quietly wait for my new life to begin. But seeing the frown on Kian’s face, I changed my mind. “On New Year’s Eve, let’s go to Kerry Park and take some pictures.” After all, on New Year’s Day, I would be leaving this city for good. I wanted a few pictures to remember it by. Kian looked surprised. “Why there? Wouldn’t New York be a better backdrop?” I saw the reluctance in his eyes, and a lump formed in my throat. “Don’t worry, you’ll just be the photographer. I’ll be the only one in the pictures.” I had no intention of being in any photos with him. I wouldn’t be taking a single picture of him with me when I left. Kian’s expression flickered. “After the New Year, at the company’s annual awards ceremony, I’ll announce our relationship. I promise. Just wait a little longer.” I closed my eyes again, not answering. “You should go take a shower. It’s getting late.” As I listened to the water running in the bathroom, my heart felt heavy. Wait a little longer? I had been waiting for five years since we started dating. I wasn’t going to wait anymore. Kian Hayes, I will never wait for you again. … December 31st. One day left. I put on some nice makeup and changed into a red silk dress, with a red cashmere cape over it. It was a departure from my usual sharp, professional look, giving me a softer, more gentle appearance. I waited for Kian at the top of Kerry Park. I waited from morning till afternoon, from afternoon till evening, but he never showed up. I stared at my phone, which had no new messages. After a ten-second debate, I called him. The phone rang until the very last second before he picked up. His voice was low and gravelly. “Jules, I’m at the airport dealing with something urgent. I’ll come find you later…” Before he finished, the line went dead. My heart sank. I instinctively opened Instagram, and saw Cora’s new post. [Unlocking new positions with Kian. Perfect chemistry! 🔥] The picture was of her in a car, holding a glass of wine, her eyes hazy. On the seat next to her was an open box of condoms. My mind went blank for a second, and then I started to laugh. I laughed so hard I had to clutch my chest, gasping for air. Kian, you liar. How many times have you lied to me?!

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I waited three whole years for Caleb, the future Alpha of the Silver Moon Pack. I was his fated mate. Even though his wolf howled with the mating frenzy every time he came near me, he refused to complete the marking ceremony on the full moon. Then, he developed a sick obsession with my stepsister, Lila. He claimed Lila was his “True Love.” He didn’t care about Pack laws. He spread his possessive pheromones all over the territory, just to court her. This time, my wolf didn’t whimper. She didn’t try to beg through the mind link like she used to. I watched them calmly. In that moment, I actively blocked the bond. I got rid of every token that carried his scent. I took the pure white lace nightgown I had secretly sewn for our mating ceremony and threw it into the fireplace. I watched the flames swallow it whole. On the day of his first full moon shift as an adult, I severed my mental link with the Silver Moon territory and drove away. Just before I got in the car, Caleb sent a message through the Pack link: “Why aren’t you here yet? The Elders and the members are waiting for you.” I looked at the screen and smirked. I didn’t reply. I blocked him. Then I blocked every single member of the Silver Moon Pack. He didn’t know. Two weeks ago, I made a choice. I accepted the Mate Contract from the Alpha of the most powerful pack in the North—Lucas Knight of the Midnight Blood Pack. When my plane lands in the North, I will accept his mark. I will become his Luna. … “Lucas, my wolf is ready.” I stood in front of the mirror. I looked pale and thin, the result of enduring the pain of a rejected bond for so long. It turns out, turning your back on the Moon Goddess’s original arrangement isn’t that hard. “Ivy… are you sure you want to accept my mark?” On the other end of the phone, Lucas’s voice was low and husky. It carried the magnetic command of a powerful Alpha, yet he was incredibly gentle with me. My nose stung—a biological reaction to being protected by a strong male. As a tear rolled down my cheek, I whispered, “I accept.” “Ivy, did you know? Since the first time we caught each other’s scent at the Wolf Academy, my wolf has been praying for this day.” I didn’t realize I was smiling until I saw my reflection. “Give me two weeks. I’ll annul all alliance obligations with the Silver Moon Pack through the Council.” “Okay, Ivy. My wolf and I will wait for you.” The moment I hung up, my bedroom door was pushed open. “Ivy.” My father, Marcus, walked in. He was a Beta of the Silver Moon Pack. He cleared his throat awkwardly. “Lila just went through her first shift. Her body is reacting badly. She’s a weak wolf. Your master bedroom faces the moon—it’s best for absorbing energy and healing. The Elders think, for the future of the Pack, you two should swap rooms.” I remained silent. My gaze drifted to the mother and daughter behind him. My stepmother, Karen, quickly chimed in, “Marcus, we shouldn’t trouble Ivy.” Lila shrank her neck back, radiating a sickeningly fragile aura. “Yes, Daddy, I’m fine. Don’t let me ruin the harmony of the Pack.” “This is the Council’s decision,” my father said, his tone leaving no room for argument. “Ivy, you are a Pureblood. Your body is strong. You should make concessions for the good of the Pack.” I stared blankly at my father. I thought my wolf would go mad from the betrayal. I thought she would break because my father favored a mixed-blood stepdaughter over me. But I didn’t shed a single tear. My wolf just lay there, letting out a mocking snort. “Fine. I’ll switch with her.” In two weeks, I would sever all blood ties with this rotting Pack. It didn’t matter which room I slept in anymore.

Father looked pleased with my “obedience.” Challenging the Council is taboo, even for a Pureblood. Stepmother Karen smiled with satisfaction. After they left, Lila lingered. “Ivy, let me help you pack.” She stood before me, acting obedient, releasing a fake, sweet scent. But when she looked around the room, her eyes were filled with greed—the hunger of a low-ranking wolf for high-ranking resources. “I didn’t expect the Council to agree to let us switch rooms either.” Lila tilted her head back, her eyes flashing with provocation. “Ivy, does your wolf want to rip me apart right now?” “After all, I just stole your fated mate, Caleb. And now, I’ve stolen the room you’ve lived in for ten years.” I suppressed the urge to teach her a lesson and turned to grab my suitcase. Suddenly, Lila let out an exaggerated scream and threw herself onto the floor. “Ivy…” When she fell, her arm hit the corner of a table inlaid with silver filigree. Silver burns werewolves. Her skin instantly turned a bruised purple. “Ivy! What the hell are you doing?!” Caleb burst through the door, his Alpha hearing picking up the commotion instantly. His face was dark—the precursor to Alpha rage. He carefully scooped Lila up into his arms. “Caleb, I’m fine. Ivy didn’t mean to.” Lila was crying, yet she forced a pained smile. “It doesn’t hurt at all, Caleb.” “You’re burned, and you say it doesn’t hurt?” Caleb looked at the wound on her arm, his eyes full of distress. But when he looked at me, his golden pupils constricted, releasing icy hostility. “Ivy, if you have a problem, take it out on me.” “Don’t hurt Lila. She is just a newly shifted, fragile female.” “Unlike you. Born a noble Pureblood. You’ve never lacked anything.” I thought the mate bond wouldn’t affect my emotions anymore. I thought I wouldn’t shed another tear for Caleb. But in the end, I was still a female wolf with a connection that hadn’t been fully severed. I didn’t have a body of steel. I didn’t have a heart of stone. My childhood ally. The fated mate blessed by the Moon Goddess, a bond we kept for three years. In just a few days, because of some “freshness,” he fell for a young girl who had just shifted. He saw me as a vicious, stray Rogue. I didn’t want to cry. I actually wanted to laugh. But my tear ducts ached. “Caleb, is your nose broken? Can’t you smell what kind of person I am? Can’t you smell the stench of lies on her?” Caleb frowned. His gaze rested on my face—an Alpha’s scrutinizing look. His expression seemed to waver slightly.

Lila suddenly let out a whimper, like an injured pup. “Caleb, don’t fight with Ivy because of me.” “I don’t mind. Ivy has every right to be mad at me…” She cried softly, sounding as if she had suffered the world’s greatest injustice. This triggered Caleb’s excessive protective instincts. Caleb’s gaze on me turned completely cold. “You’re jealous that my wolf chose Lila.” “Jealous that I treat her well.” “Jealous that the whole Pack adores her.” “Ivy, you’ve changed.” “Your mind has been twisted by jealousy. Just like those fallen Rogues.” He finished speaking, carried Lila, and turned to leave, leaving the room filled with the scent of his angry pheromones. I watched their retreating figures and suddenly realized my tears had dried up. That’s good. I had cried so many times over this breaking bond. From now on, I truly wouldn’t shed another tear for him. That evening, our private group chat for the Pack’s younger generation, “Wolf Den,” suddenly became active. Caleb sent a message. “Suddenly feel like completing the marking ceremony. What should I do?” The group exploded. “Caleb! Are you finally going to mate with Ivy under the Moon Goddess’s gaze?” “Time to call her Luna, I guess.” People started tagging me: “@Ivy, congrats! Drinks are on you?” “Caleb, when is the ceremony for you and Ivy?” The chat was chaotic, messages scrolling fast. I was about to type a clarification. I am not your future Luna. The one Caleb wants to mark isn’t me. But Caleb beat me to it. “You guys got it wrong.” “I never said my wolf chose Ivy.” Then, he added Lila to the group. He tagged everyone: “Look clearly. This is the future Luna of the Silver Moon Pack.” The noisy group went silent, as if a high-ranking Alpha had cast a silence spell. No one spoke for a long time. Caleb: “Why the silence? Say hello to your future Luna. That’s an Alpha command.” People started awkwardly greeting Lila, forced into submission. I thought for a moment, then typed one message. “Congratulations. May the Moon Goddess bless you both.” After sending it, I left the group immediately, cutting the last link.

The moment I exited the group, Caleb called. It was an Alpha command call—impossible to ignore. “Ivy, come here immediately.” “Where?” “You know where. The Pack House.” “Why?” “Apologize to Lila.” “Why should I apologize?” “You quitting the group just now was a public provocation. Do you know what other families will think of her?” Caleb’s tone was hard, carrying the dominance typical of an Alpha. “I don’t want people slandering her.” “My wolf chose her. I need to give her status.” “She is innocent. She shouldn’t bear the label of a homewrecker just because of your recklessness.” Even though I thought I was numb to his actions, the phantom pain of rejection spread through my chest. My fingers trembled as I gripped the phone. My claws threatened to extend and pierce my palm. When I spoke, my voice shook. “Caleb, you can’t use your Alpha privilege to bully me like this.” “What gives you the right?” “You betrayed our fated bond first. I felt your rejection. I did nothing. I even congratulated you. Isn’t that enough?” I fought back the tears. I refused to show weakness. But my voice cracked. There was silence on the other end. It seemed his wolf felt uneasy for a split second. “Ivy.” “I won’t punish your disrespect this time.” “But remember, Lila is innocent.” “Don’t take your anger out on her. Don’t hurt her.” The call ended. I sat on the carpet, shaking. On the nightstand sat a photo of my mother. She was looking at me with gentle, loving eyes. She was a respected high-ranking Healer in her time. Tears burst forth. I lunged forward and hugged the frame tight. Through the cold glass, I pressed my cheek against hers. My tears fell endlessly. The mother in the photo seemed to be grieving for her daughter. I didn’t want to cry anymore. I didn’t want my mother, who had returned to the Moon Goddess’s embrace, to worry. Once the anniversary of my mother’s death passed… I would take the moonstone necklace she left me. I would leave the Silver Moon territory forever. I would be a free Rogue, or become the Luna of another Pack.

Lila moved into my master bedroom. I didn’t move into her dark, north-facing room. Instead, I found a guest room to stay in temporarily. The servants, sensing the shift in power, gave me bedding that was cold and damp. It smelled of stale dust—torture for a werewolf’s sensitive nose. I slept in my clothes. Just a few more days. Just survive this, and it’s all over. The next morning, I went downstairs. In the side hall, the memorial altar dedicated to my mother was a mess. My mother’s photo had been thrown on the floor. The frame was shattered. The picture was covered in muddy paw prints. The silver Moonflowers—flowers that meant the world to my mother—were scattered everywhere. Lila’s mixed-breed wolfhound was tearing at the petals. Lila stood nearby, clapping her hands and cheering, her eyes shining with malice. I stood there, feeling my wolf blood boil instantly, rushing to my head. All reason, all patience, vanished. I felt my claws lengthen, my fangs itch. I went feral. I grabbed a crystal candlestick and hurled it at the dog. The dog yelped and ran away with its tail between its legs. Lila screamed. A shard from the candlestick scratched her arm. “Ivy! What are you doing? How dare you!” My father’s voice boomed—the roar of a Beta Elder. Lila was already crying in his arms. “Daddy, save me! Ivy’s wolf is out of control, she’s going to kill me…” “Ivy, you’ve gone too far!” “Are you blind? She destroyed my mother’s altar! She ruined my mother’s photo!” I was shaking all over, tears streaming down my face. I felt aggrieved for my mother. But my father just glanced at the mess on the floor and frowned. “That doesn’t give you the right to attack someone! In this Pack, we have rules!” “Marcus…” “Ivy, your mother has been dead for a long time. Since when are dead people more important than the living? Besides, Lila is the one Caleb loves.” Lila spoke up, her face pale, releasing a submissive scent. “Daddy, my dog accidentally knocked it over. I wanted to apologize to Ivy, but she just released her pressure and attacked me before I could speak…” She lifted her bleeding arm, looking at my father pitifully. “Daddy, maybe Mom and I should move out of the territory…” “The beast doesn’t know better, but do you lack sense too?” My father glared at me. Suddenly, he raised his hand. A heavy slap landed. I forgot to dodge. Or rather, I didn’t care enough to dodge. Smack. The crisp sound echoed in the hall. He seemed stunned for a second. But in the end, he said nothing. He turned and took Lila to the Pack Doctor. I watched their backs. It took a long time before I felt the stinging pain on my face—shame that went deeper than flesh. I covered my swollen cheek. Tears fell, but I laughed out loud in mockery. I knew it. This Pack, this so-called Frostfang family, had no place for me anymore. That afternoon, I accidentally overheard a call between my father and the Council. “…Yes, although Lila isn’t pureblood, her bond with Caleb might bring new genetic advantages. As for Ivy… her maternal line is noble, but our alliance with the Midnight Pack is crumbling. We need a new tie.” I leaned against the wall, digging my nails into my palms. It wasn’t just emotional betrayal. It was a calculated political trade. In their eyes, I was just a bargaining chip. That night, I contacted the diplomat of the Northern Midnight Blood Pack through an encrypted channel. “Tell Lucas Knight I accept his contract. But I have one condition: I want the Silver Moon Pack to pay for their betrayal.”

In the middle of the night, screams and crying woke me. My wolf hearing picked up panicked footsteps downstairs. I sat up just as my door was kicked open. My stepmother, Karen, rushed in wailing. Before I could react, she slapped me hard across the face multiple times. “How can you be so cruel? Do you have no conscience?” “Hurting her during the day wasn’t enough? You want to kill her?” Karen collapsed into my father’s arms, sobbing. “She knows Lila is weak! She knows Lila is severely allergic to Moonflower pollen! Yet she deliberately sprinkled it all over her bed and pillow!” “She wants to kill our daughter! This is murder! Just because Lila’s dog accidentally broke a flower, she retaliates like this!” “Alright, stop crying. Luckily Lila took the antidote in time. She’s fine.” Father comforted her softly, then looked at me with disgust. “Ivy, I am so disappointed in you.” “Move out of the Manor tomorrow.” “Keeping you here will only destroy the peace of this family. I can’t let a dangerous element like you hurt the future Luna.” Karen stopped crying instantly. I looked at the man in front of me. He used to be my closest kin, an Elder of the Frostfang family. He used to love me. I was his only pureblood child, the apple of his eye. But everything changed. I was like a protagonist in a tragedy, stripped of everything. At first, I didn’t understand. I cried, I fought, I argued. But now, I finally woke up. The blood tie between father and daughter was completely severed. The day I moved out of Frostfang Manor. My father said to me, “After your mother’s death anniversary, I’ll bring you home. Reflect on your actions outside. Learn to control your wolf nature.” I didn’t answer. After they left, I took all the photos of Caleb and me, and all the photos of my father. I cut them to shreds and threw them into the fireplace. Finally, I burned that moon-white robe. It was made of the finest moon silk. I had ordered it three years ago when Caleb’s family proposed the mating. I had imagined wearing it for the marking ceremony countless times since I was a girl. Now, I burned it with my own hands, along with my last lingering attachment to this Pack.

What remained were the tokens Caleb had given me over the three years. Runes unique to the clan. Expensive gems and land deeds. I picked out the valuable ones to give to my friend for safekeeping. Once I left Silver Moon, she would anonymously return them to the Alpha family. That way, we would be even. I wanted his scent gone completely. The cheap trinkets, the ones meant just to make me smile… I threw them all in the trash without hesitation. I used to cherish even a simple crescent pendant because it carried his scent. Now, as I tossed it, my heart felt nothing. Even my wolf didn’t bother to look. Done. I carefully wrapped my mother’s photo and the moonstone necklace—pulsing with energy—and placed them in a hidden compartment of my suitcase. I walked out of the place I had lived for ten years without looking back. As I walked out of the gates, Caleb’s signature black SUV pulled up. I didn’t even glance at it. But the car stopped right beside me. The window rolled down, revealing Caleb’s handsome face. His Alpha aura washed over me. My gaze skimmed over him, indifferent. I kept walking. “Ivy.” Caleb frowned, seemingly annoyed by my coldness. “Where are you going with all that stuff?” I was dragging two huge suitcases. Walking was difficult. I had no energy for small talk. I ignored him and kept walking. Caleb got out of the car. In a few strides, he was in front of me. “Do you want a ride?” “No thanks.” I sidestepped his hand. He grabbed my wrist. His Alpha strength made it impossible to break free. “Ivy, why are you being so stubborn?” “Cry a little, like you used to. Bare your neck and show submission. Maybe I’ll go soft.” I ripped my hand away with force and looked at him with a calmness I had never possessed before. “Caleb, I don’t need that anymore.” I didn’t need to cry. I didn’t need his pity. Time and again, my wolf had grown tired. She had lost all desire for him. “Fine. Suit yourself.” Caleb scoffed, but disbelief lingered in his eyes. No wolf leaves their fated mate that easily.

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When the attacker charged into the ER with a knife, my fiancé, Caleb, didn’t hesitate. He shoved me forward, using my body as a human shield. Then he turned his back on me to wrap his arms protectively around his childhood sweetheart, Sienna. I took multiple stab wounds to my abdomen. The baby I had struggled so hard to conceive didn’t stand a chance. The only surgeon in the hospital capable of performing the delicate procedure to save the pregnancy was Caleb. But no matter how many times the nurses paged him, he didn’t answer. The morning after I lost everything, I woke up to see Sienna’s Instagram Story. “Your arms are the safest harbor in the world! ❤️” The photo showed Sienna’s delicate hand resting on Caleb’s bare chest. My hands trembled as I took a screenshot and texted it to him. “Is this the reason you pushed me into a knife?” It took him two whole days to reply. “Come on, Harper. You’re a war correspondent. A woman who runs into war zones is scared of a little knife? Sienna is different. She’s fragile.” … “Caleb, let’s break up.” My dream had always been to report from the front lines. But I got distracted. I fell for Caleb. I chased him for five years before finally becoming his fiancée. I thought my devotion would earn his love. I thought my happy ending was starting. I never imagined my bravery would become his excuse to push me toward death so he could save another woman. The doctor told me my uterus was severely damaged. The chances of me ever conceiving again were practically zero. That unborn life, the one that never even got to see the sun, was likely the only blood relative I would ever have. I begged the doctor for hours until he finally agreed to let me take the remains of my angel home. I couldn’t protect him while he was alive. Now, I just wanted to find him a quiet place to rest, hoping his soul would find a happier family next time. I placed him in a hand-carved wooden box and buried him under a large oak tree on a hill outside the city. It faced the sun. Warm in the winter, shaded in the summer. Staring at the fresh mound of dirt, I felt like I was drowning in the freezing Pacific Ocean. His arrival and departure shouldn’t be this silent. Besides me, Caleb should remember him forever. I dialed Caleb’s number. Suddenly, a familiar ringtone chimed from the top of the hill behind me. I hid behind the oak tree. I watched Caleb frown, look at his screen, and impatiently hang up on me. Then he turned, supporting Sienna with a tenderness I rarely saw. “Just tell me what you need, and I’ll handle it. Why drive all the way out here yourself?” When he was with me, Caleb’s catchphrase was, “I’m exhausted, Harper. Stop bothering me.” So, I learned to fix everything myself. I never wanted to burden him. Turns out, he just didn’t think I was worth the effort. “A psychic told me my recent bad luck is because someone buried a cursed object with my name on it,” Sienna whined. “She pinpointed this location. I have to dig it up myself to break the curse!” They walked down the hill and, naturally, they saw me. Caleb’s face instantly darkened. He glared at me with pure disgust. “What the hell are you doing here?” This was the spot where we became a couple. Where he proposed. Where we made that baby. It was perfectly normal for me to be here. But a man looking for a fight doesn’t care about logic. “Are you stalking me now?” “Harper, first the nonstop calls, now this? I’m not a criminal. Can’t you give me some damn space?” Arguing with him was like talking to a brick wall. I didn’t want to fight in front of my baby’s resting place, so I turned to leave. Sienna stepped in my path. With her back to Caleb, she smirked at me. “Harper, don’t be mad at Caleb because of me!” “That maniac at the hospital was terrifying. I’m still shaking! I was too scared to be alone, so I asked Caleb to stay. By the way… are you okay?” My abdominal wounds throbbed. The doctor said if the blade had been an inch to the left, it would have hit my liver, and I’d be dead. During the chaos, I was closest to Caleb. He’s a surgeon. His hands are his life. I had stepped forward to protect him. I imagined a million scenarios. Not once did I imagine he would push me from behind. Caught off guard, I stumbled right into the attacker’s blade. And he didn’t even look back. He just scooped Sienna up and vanished. “None of your damn business,” I spat.

“Harper! Sienna is just being nice. Watch your mouth.” Caleb stepped up, shielding Sienna like a mother hen protecting a chick. I used to fight with him over Sienna constantly, desperate to prove I was his priority. Now, it just seemed pathetic. When life and death were on the line, my delusions were shattered. I used to think screaming and crying was the ultimate sign of heartbreak. Now I know that when you’re truly broken, silence is the only response. “I appreciate her ‘kindness,’ but no thanks. I don’t need it.” “Move.” I tried to walk away, but Caleb grabbed my arm. “What were you trying to say on the phone earlier? Are you okay? You didn’t get hurt that day, did you?” The words I wanted to scream earlier died in my throat. My injuries were his fault. He ignored me for days, and now he pretends to care? Crocodile tears. “If you actually cared, why didn’t you come back to the apartment?” I kept my head down and kept walking. “I… The hospital has been crazy. I couldn’t get away.” I stopped. I turned and looked at the man I had loved for years. He lied so easily. That night, the only surgeon capable of saving my pregnancy was him. But he had taken leave. He ghosted the hospital. “Caleb, you didn’t read the text I sent you, did you?” “It doesn’t matter. I’ll say it to your face. We are done.” Caleb’s face went rigid. Shock filled his eyes. “Why?” “Just because I protected Sienna? Are you seriously breaking up over that?” “She twisted her ankle! And if she hadn’t come to the hospital to keep you company, she wouldn’t have been traumatized. She has insomnia now because of it! Have some heart, Harper.” I let out a cold laugh. I went for a prenatal checkup alone. I bumped into Sienna at the entrance. In his version of reality, she was there to support me. “Caleb, God is watching. Being the loudest one in the room doesn’t make you right.” “You know exactly why you pushed me. Deep down, you know.” Caleb frowned, looking annoyed at my “ingratitude.” “Harper, stop being dramatic!” “You’ve been to war zones in Afghanistan and Syria. You’re scared of a punk with a knife? Sienna is fragile. She needs me!” When I stayed silent, he paced anxiously and grabbed my shoulders. “Look, Harper. I messed up. I didn’t protect you first.” “Next time, I swear, I’ll stand in front of you. Okay?” I shook his hands off. I didn’t want to hear it. “I apologized. What more do you want?” I stared into his eyes, my voice dead calm. “I’m breaking up with you because I don’t love you anymore. I don’t want you.” “Who you protect, who you sleep with—it’s not my problem anymore.” Seeing I was serious, panic flashed in his eyes. He reached for my hand again. Before he could speak, Sienna’s voice cut through the air. “Caleb! I found it! I found the cursed object!”

I instinctively looked back. When I saw what they were doing, I ignored the tearing pain in my gut and sprinted up the hill. “Stop! Don’t touch that!” Sienna was directing two hired men to dig up the small mound. My wooden box was tossed out, landing in the dirt at Sienna’s feet. I was terrified she would desecrate it further. I charged, shoving her to the ground, and curled my body around the box. Don’t be scared, baby. Mommy is here. Smack! Caleb rushed over, helped Sienna up, and slapped me across the face. “It’s just a dirty box, Harper! Are you insane?” Sienna sobbed, looking up at Caleb with big, teary eyes. “Caleb, that thing she’s holding… that’s the curse the psychic talked about! It’s the reason I’m suffering!” Caleb glared at the box in my arms. I didn’t care what they thought. I just knew they wanted to hurt my child. I scrambled up and tried to run. But I was injured and weak. They caught me in seconds. The men grabbed my arms. Caleb coldly ripped the box from my hands. “Caleb, please. I’m begging you. Give it back.” “I’ll do anything. Just give him back to me!” Caleb patted my cheek, sneering. “Harper, you really missed your calling in Hollywood. One second you’re tough, the next you’re on your knees for a box of trash.” “Your attention-seeking games are disgusting. Apologize to Sienna. Now.” My child died because of her. Now she was digging up his grave. And he wanted me to apologize? I wanted her to burn in hell. “Caleb, that’s not trash! That’s your—” “Caleb, look! There are letters on the bottom! It’s my initials!” Sienna shrieked. Caleb turned the box over, ignoring me completely. He walked toward me, eyes full of contempt. “I didn’t think you’d stoop to black magic just because you were jealous, Harper.” I shook my head violently. “You used a dead animal to curse Sienna just to get my attention? That explains why she’s been getting hurt.” “This is all you, isn’t it?” Caleb, the man of science, was believing this nonsense. “No! It’s not an animal! It’s my—” Caleb laughed, a cruel, cold sound. “Do you think I’m stupid? If it’s not a hex bag for Sienna, why is ‘L.J.’ carved into it?” L.J. wasn’t Lindsay Jones (Sienna’s real name). It was Noah James. My intended name for him. But Caleb was done listening. He raised the box high in the air. “You love this box so much? Let me show you what happens when you cross me.” He threw it. Hard. I watched in slow motion as the box hit a jagged rock. It shattered. The small bundle inside rolled out, tumbling down the rocky slope. “NO!” I broke free from the men, screaming, running toward my baby. But I was too slow. Just as I reached the bottom, a wild stray dog darted out from the bushes. It snapped its jaws around the bundle and swallowed it whole. Gone. He was gone. My world went black, and I collapsed.

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After the soul-extraction mission ended, I finally woke from my vegetative state. Alpha Kael, my mate, embraced me with bloodshot eyes, “Elena, you’re finally awake.” My eight-year-old son, Leo, also cheered happily, calling me mother. Just as I celebrated the return of my life, the ward door was pushed open by a girl who looked seventy percent like me. Kael shielded her behind him, “Elena, things between Sarah and me are innocent.” Leo quickly explained, “Mom, Aunt Sarah was just kind enough to take care of me and Dad for you.” After returning to the pack house, Kael and Leo treated me with utmost care. But I could always feel that I didn’t fit in. Until I saw my mate and son making wishes with Sarah under the New Year fireworks, and the resentment in my heart finally erupted, as I smashed the entire house to pieces. Leo sensibly bandaged Sarah’s wound and muttered that I was being excessive. Kael’s face darkened, “Elena, stop being so unreasonably troublesome!” I forced back the tears in my eyes and gritted my teeth, “In this pack, it’s either me or Sarah—you choose one!” …… The entire room suddenly fell silent. Kael stepped forward, trying to pull me into his arms as he used to. His face was filled with hesitation. “Elena, Sarah has sacrificed a lot for this family. If it weren’t for her… Leo and I might not have survived.” Leo’s eyes were red as he tugged at my hem, acting spoiled. “Mom, I want to stay with Aunt Sarah, please don’t drive her away.” Looking at their deep affection for her, I felt a sharp pain in my chest. I rushed into the room and threw the divorce papers I had prepared long ago at Kael. “Since you can’t choose, then we reject the bond!” Kael retreated two steps, his voice trembling. “I won’t reject it…” He kept saying he wouldn’t reject the bond, saying he loved me, saying how much he missed me. But all the layouts in the house had already been changed. The blue-and-white curtains I liked were replaced by the deep gray ones Sarah preferred. Even our mating photos were taken down and replaced with a portrait of the three of them as a family. Sarah approached with tears, trying to grab my hand. “Elena, things between Kael and me are pure.” “I’m just a placeholder he paid for; I’ve never dared to cross the line. If you don’t like me, I can leave anytime.” I brushed her hand away with pure disgust. “Since you’re going to leave, why are you still here? Are you waiting for me to kick you out!” Sarah bit her lip hard, and her tears finally fell. Leo frantically dove into her arms. “Aunt Sarah, I don’t want you to go!” Kael pulled me aside with a grim face. “Elena, there’s a limit to being unreasonable. Don’t give Sarah a hard time during the New Year!” Looking at how they protected Sarah. I swung my hand away from Kael in despair, “If she won’t leave, I will!” Seeing me truly turning to leave, Kael panicked. He reached out to grab me. In my hurry to dodge, I accidentally pushed Sarah, who was trying to block me. My own head slammed heavily against the nearby bookshelf. Blood trickled down through my hair. In a daze, I saw Kael frantically picking up Sarah. Leo’s eyes were also full of careness. “Aunt Sarah, are you okay?” My heart went cold. I walked past them, step by step, heading outside. Seeing this, Kael hurriedly put Sarah down. “Elena, I…” Before he could explain anything, my vision went black, and I fainted. Before sinking into darkness, I summoned the system: [System, was it a mistake for me to come back?]

When I opened my eyes again, I was already lying in bed. The tears on Leo’s face hadn’t even dried yet; seeing me wake up, he immediately threw himself onto me. “Mom, you’re finally awake! I was so scared you wouldn’t want me anymore!” My heart trembled. Just as I was about to wipe his tears, Kael stepped forward and gripped my hand tightly, his voice shaking. “Is there anywhere else you feel unwell?” I tried hard to pull my hand away, but he held it tighter. “Elena, it’s New Year. Let’s not fight, okay? As long as you don’t leave me, I’ll do anything.” I curled my lips, “Fine! Make Sarah leave! This is my home; I don’t want her here!” Kael froze, hesitation and conflict flashing across his face. He turned his head away, trying to avoid the topic. Suddenly, Sarah pushed the door open and walked in. Her eyes were red, and her voice choked with emotion: “Elena, don’t fight with Kael. I was always the extra person in this house; the one who should leave is me.” She took a protection charm from her bag and stuffed it into Leo’s hand. “Little Leo, I prayed for this for you a while ago. I hope your life is smooth.” Then her gaze lingered on Kael. But fearing she would provoke me, she quickly withdrew her eyes, forcing a smile that looked more painful than crying. “Thank you for your care, Alpha Kael. We shouldn’t see each other again.” After saying that, she turned and left before we could react. Leo gasped and rushed out crying. Kael instinctively wanted to chase her, but when his gaze swept over me, he stopped himself. He held me tightly in his arms as before, gently stroking my hair: “Elena, look, Sarah is gone. Don’t overthink things anymore; you’re the only one in my heart.” I looked down at the name “Sarah” sewn onto the bedsheets and smiled bitterly. Sarah moved out, and all her things were cleared away. It was as if she had never appeared. Our mating photos were hung back on the wall. Just as I was happy that our family of three could finally be together. I discovered that Kael, who never smoked, now smelled of tobacco every day since Sarah left. Leo also locked himself in his room all day, staring dazed at that protection charm. I heard the pack servants whispering: “The Luna is so petty, actually driving Miss Sarah away.” “Does she think that by kicking her out, she can actually fit into this home again?” My face instantly turned pale. [System, was I wrong?] [This is clearly my home. Sarah occupied it for so many years; shouldn’t she leave?] The system sighed: [Host, when people spend time together, it’s hard not to develop feelings.] [It’s natural for them to miss Sarah.] I pursed my lips and said nothing more. I stubbornly thought that if I treated Kael and Leo well, they would gradually forget Sarah. I personally took care of everything for them, even waking up at five in the morning to prepare breakfast. Until one day when I had a fever, the system’s voice rang in my ear again: [The breakfast you made was thrown into the trash by them!] I gritted my teeth and walked out of the room, just in time to see Leo throwing away the buns I had steamed. He muttered: “If only Aunt Sarah were here. I don’t like buns; I want steak!” Kael, standing nearby, didn’t scold him. Instead, he smiled and took his hand. “Dad will take you to find Aunt Sarah right now!” Even though I had a fever, I felt a chill all over my body. With a pale face, I followed Kael to another nearby villa. The door was slightly ajar. Leo threw himself into Sarah’s arms, acting spoiled: “Aunt Sarah, I missed you so much!” Kael naturally took the dishes from her hands. “I’ll do such trifles like cooking; you can rest.” It turned out Sarah had never left. Kael had secretly hidden her here. I clenched my fists so hard my nails dug into my flesh before I finally regained my senses. I pushed the door open expressionlessly: “So you three really are the real family!”

The air in the villa was filled with awkwardness. Leo quickly pulled back from Sarah’s arms, a flash of panic in his eyes. “Mom, why… why are you here?” Kael’s face, which had been smiling, instantly froze, and he instinctively stepped in front of Sarah. “Elena, don’t give Sarah a hard time. Leo and I were the ones who wanted to find her.” Looking at how they avoided me like the plague while racing to protect Sarah. I felt a sudden pang of heartache. All my logic collapsed in that instant, and I screamed at them almost heart-wrenchingly: “Didn’t you say you’d never contact her again? Why did you come here! Do you want to be with her that badly!” Sarah pushed Kael aside and rushed to explain to me. “Elena, don’t misunderstand, we…” “I didn’t misunderstand!” Before Sarah could finish, I pushed her away. “You knew I was back, yet you still tried to take my place! Sarah, do you like being a homewrecker that much!” Sarah didn’t stand firm and fell to the ground. Leo hurried to help her up with heartache, his eyes filled with more resentment toward me. “Mom, why do you have to make things difficult for Aunt Sarah!” Kael frowned, looking at me with total disappointment: “Elena, when did you become so vicious? How could you say such things!” “If it wasn’t for Sarah these past three years…” Hearing Kael mention those three years, tears finally poured out uncontrollably. I raised my hand and slapped him across the face. “If it wasn’t to save you back then, how would I have been in a coma for three years?” “This is clearly what you owe me, yet from your mouth, I’ve become the sinner!” The motivation that kept me going in the other world for three years was Kael and Leo. But now, they were telling me with their actions. Just how stupid I was for wanting to come back! Kael’s expression changed instantly! Leo glared at me angrily: “It’s your fault for bullying Aunt Sarah. You must apologize to her! Otherwise, I’ll pretend I don’t have a mother!” I stood there stunned. My son’s words shattered the last bit of hope I had for this family. After a while, I laughed mockingly at myself, “Fine, then just pretend you don’t have a mother.” “Don’t you all like Sarah and want to be with her? I’ll fulfill your wish.” After saying that, I turned to leave. Kael tried to pull me, “Elena!” I shook him off mercilessly and walked out step by step. [System, I regret it.] [Take me back to the mission world tomorrow.] This home, Kael, and my son—I don’t want any of them anymore. The system was silent for a while, then finally agreed to my request. [Tomorrow I will arrange an accident to help you return to the mission world.]

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A real estate agent called to say our house had sold. He wanted to know when we could transfer the deed. I didn’t follow. We still lived there. When had we put it on the market? I called Leo. He laughed and said the agent must have dialed the wrong number. I hung up. For the first time in years, I filed for leave from the base. Then I called my father — Director Raymond Mercer of the Public Security Bureau. “Dad. Leo’s cheating. Get me a lawyer and start the divorce papers. As fast as possible.” — “Excuse me — the police residential compound. Step on it. I need to catch someone in the act.” The driver didn’t need to be told twice. He floored it. A one-hour drive. Thirty minutes door to door. I showed my ID at the gate and walked in. But at my own front door, the keypad wouldn’t take my code. My stomach dropped. Leo had changed the locks. I was still running through combinations when the neighbor came home and spotted me. “Who are you? What are you doing in front of Chief Graves’ house? How did you even get past the gate? Tell me right now or I’m calling someone.” I’d been away too long. None of the neighbors knew my face. “I’m Chief Graves’ wife,” I said, keeping my voice steady. “I work out of town. I got a few days off and came back to see our daughter.” The neighbor’s eyes narrowed. She looked me up and down twice. “His wife? I know his wife. I’ve seen her plenty of times — she’s a doctor at the city hospital. Drops their daughter Miya off at school every morning, picks her up every afternoon. So who exactly are you supposed to be?” She shook her head. “You look like a decent person. Don’t tell me you’re actually the other woman. Have some self-respect.” My hands closed into fists at my sides. Leo. I’m not even cold in the ground and you’re already replacing her mother. I was about to identify myself when the neighbor’s face lit up behind me. “Oh! Dr. Durant — leaving work early today?” I turned around. A woman stood behind me. Fine-featured. Composed. My eyes went to her wrist first — my mother’s Patek Philippe. Then to the suit she was wearing — the one I’d had custom-made for our wedding. She looked up. Her face went pale the moment she saw mine. I raised an eyebrow. Felicity Durant. I recognized her from high school. She’d been notorious back then — smoking behind the bleachers, scraping the bottom of every class ranking, never made it past community college. And now she was a doctor at the city’s top hospital? She saw me at the door and the blood left her face all at once. Her mouth opened. Closed. Then: “Scarlett.” The word came out like she’d stepped on something sharp. “You’re — why are you back?” I didn’t answer right away. I let the silence sit there. Then I crossed my arms. “Problem with that?” My voice came out flat. “It’s my house. Better question — what are you doing at my door?” Her eyes cut sideways to the neighbor, still hovering and watching. She stepped toward me. Her hand went for my arm. “Not here.” Her voice dropped, urgent. “There’s a café two blocks down — let’s just go there and I can explain everything—” I moved my arm before she made contact. “Why would we go anywhere?” “We’re standing right in front of the door.” “Unless there’s something on the other side of it you don’t want me to see.” She flinched at my words. Then she leaned in, voice dropping to almost nothing. “It’s not what you think. There was a break-in — at my place, a while back. One of the suspects got away. Leo was worried he’d come back and — he offered the spare room. Just until things settled down. Please, you have to believe me—” Every word a new hole. She thought I was going to swallow that. I kept my jaw tight. “That so.” I held her eyes. “Then why are your hands shaking. And why won’t this door open.” She hadn’t expected me to keep pushing. Her gaze slid off mine, landed nowhere. Her mouth moved and nothing came out. My patience ran out. “Open it. Or I’ll have the door blown off.” That landed. Her hands were trembling as she reached for the keypad. A beep. The lock clicked open. I walked in without looking at her.

The first thing I saw was a pair of women’s slippers in the entryway that weren’t mine. A scarf thrown over the couch. A woman’s blazer folded across the armrest. And underneath it all, something floral. Faint. A perfume I didn’t own. Leo had been bringing someone home. Felicity could see my face changing. She kept talking anyway. “Scarlett, just let me explain—” The words came out slower and slower. The sentences stopped making sense. She was filling air and she knew it. I was about to speak. A little girl exploded out of the hallway and launched herself at Felicity. “Mommy! You’re home! Cici missed you so much — can we wait for Daddy and all go out for dinner together?” She was about Miya’s age. She was wearing Miya’s dress. The limited-edition one. The one I’d hunted down specifically for Miya last spring. Everything landed at once. Leo hadn’t just cheated. She’d been handing my daughter’s things to this child. I stared at the two of them. “Where’s Miya?” My voice came out flat. Cold. Felicity’s face collapsed. Cici didn’t notice. She spun toward me, furious. “Who are you? Get out of my house! That Miya is just a little beggar—” Felicity’s hand came down over her mouth. Fast. Something dropped in my stomach. I moved. Room to room, every closet, every corner, every space big enough to hold a child. I didn’t slow down. I didn’t stop. Felicity was right behind me the whole time, pulling at my arm, begging me to stop, trying to step in front of me. I shoved her back and kept going. Nothing. No trace of Miya anywhere. Every room was clear. That left the basement. A thought crossed my mind and my vision went white at the edges. My foot was already moving toward the door. Felicity threw herself in front of it. I don’t know where she found the strength — she hit me like she meant it, both hands, full weight. I rounded on her. “Move. Or I take you down with the door.” Then a voice behind me. “What kind of lunatic puts her hands on my wife.” Leo. He was through the door before I could turn around. One kick, straight into my back. I went down hard. He didn’t look at me once. He was already at Felicity’s side, both hands on her face, checking her over. “Felicity. Mrs. Green called — said some lunatic broke in.” His voice was soft, urgent. “Did she hurt you?” Felicity leaned into her shoulder and said nothing. Her eyes had gone red around the edges. Leo’s face tightened. He pulled her closer, voice dropping to a murmur. “It’s okay. I’m here. Anyone who thinks they can walk into a cop’s house and put their hands on my wife—” He turned his head toward me. The threat died in his throat. A crowd had gathered in the doorway without either of us noticing. Neighbors, five or six of them, all talking at once. “Chief Graves — that’s the woman. She said she was your wife. Walked right in.” “Been tearing through your whole house too. Bold as anything. You’d think even a thief would know better than to pull this in a cop’s home.” Leo’s eyes moved to the crowd. Something shifted in them. He looked away from me. I stared at her and didn’t blink. “Leo. Aren’t you going to explain yourself?” A bead of sweat ran down the side of Leo’s face. Felicity caught it. Her hands flew up to cover her face, shoulders shaking at exactly the right moment. “Leo — it hurts. She just burst in and started hitting me, trying to kick me — if you hadn’t come back when you did, I — I think she might have actually killed me—” She kept talking. While she talked, she reached down and pinched the inside of her own arm. Hard. Then she pushed her sleeve up and showed the mark, a strip of red already darkening at the edges. Cici’s crying started right on cue. “Daddy I’m so scared, the crazy lady was going to hurt Momy, I don’t want to be an orphan—” Leo had been hesitating. But he saw the bruise on Felicity’s arm and he saw Cici’s tears and something in his face went vicious. He turned on me. “Scarlett Mercer. Apologize to Felicity. Right now. I don’t care what your problem is — you don’t put your hands on people.” A laugh almost came out of me. “Has your conscience completely rotted out, or are your eyes just decorative?” My voice came out hard. “She says it and you just believe it? She’s lying to your face. You want to talk about who’s making accusations — do you need me to pull out our marriage certificate—” Leo’s expression cracked. He cut me off before I could finish. “What are you talking about? What marriage certificate? I have never been married to you.” His voice went sharp and loud. “My wife is Felicity. My wife has always been Felicity. I know exactly what you are — you think I haven’t seen women like you before? Trying to leech off someone else’s life. Get out of my house.”

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