Chapter 4

“So she’s just a jealous madwoman. She even envies his godsister.”

“Someone mentally ill should be locked up. Why did she come out just to embarrass herself?”

I lowered my head and let the mockery from every direction smash into my face.

Celeste held Pearl’s hand, smiling brightly amid wave after wave of praise.

The banquet finally ended.

Damian shoved a wooden box into my hands, his tone softening.

“Evelyn, I know you’ve suffered.”

“I promise I won’t let Celeste appear in front of you again.”

“Pearl will be registered under your name. In a way, you’ll have both a son and a daughter.”

I clutched the wooden box tightly, my nails digging into the wood.

“Fine.”

The moment Damian left, I hugged the urn and ran toward the back door.

But as soon as I reached the alley, a sharp pain struck the back of my head.

Then I blacked out.

The sting on my face woke me.

In the basement of the Blackthorne Pack, Celeste withdrew her hand and sneered as she threw the urn onto the ground.

The lid burst open.

Ashes scattered all over the floor.

Celeste took out a white porcelain jar.

“Did you really think Damian would return the ashes to you?”

“Give them back!”

I lunged forward, only to be pinned hard to the ground by the wolf guards.

Celeste crouched down and seized my chin viciously.

“Damian said he only married you back then because your family was ruined and you looked pitiful, like some stray dog.”

“The daughter of a murderer like you—how could you ever deserve to be Luna?”

Carrying the white porcelain jar, Celeste walked toward the trash can in the backyard.

I crawled after her like a madwoman, dragging my crippled leg across the ground until it left a trail of blood.

“No! Celeste, I’m begging you!”

Martha happened to pass by with gardening tools.

I grabbed the hem of her pants and begged for help.

“Martha! Help me!”

Martha stopped, then stepped back coldly.

“Luna, Alpha has given his orders. From now on, everything in the Pack, big or small, is under Miss Celeste’s authority.”

“If you refuse to behave, she may deal with you however she sees fit.”

I froze in place.

A bone-deep cold pierced through my heart inch by inch.

Celeste waved her hand.

Several rogue wolves immediately surrounded me.

“Serve Luna well.”

“And record every second of her filthy little state.”

A foul stench closed in.

Several large hands suddenly tore my clothes apart.

I grabbed a pair of pruning shears from the ground and pressed them hard against my throat.

The sharp tip pierced my skin.

Blood surged out instantly.

“Get away from me! Or I’ll die right in front of you!”

The smile on Celeste’s face only deepened.

She held the porcelain urn above the trash can and loosened her fingers one by one.

“Evelyn Hawthorne, go ahead. Try dying.”

“You don’t want to see this little bastard mixed in with all this garbage, do you?”

The ashes slipped down in a soft stream, falling straight into the foul-smelling trash.

I lunged forward like a madwoman to snatch them back, but someone kicked me away viciously.

I crashed heavily to the ground.

All I could do was watch helplessly as the last piece of my daughter was swallowed completely by filth.

It felt as if my heart had been dug out alive.

The pain was so extreme that I went numb.

Just then, the backyard door was pushed open.

I turned my head numbly.

And met Damian’s face—

instantly drained of all color.