Chapter 3

Despite my anger, a part of me felt pity.

Her life had indeed been tragic.

The pain of being rejected by a fated mate is the ultimate nightmare for any werewolf.

Maybe the endless misery had broken her mind and turned her into this monster.

Trembling, I opened my arms, wanting to hug her and somehow mend our broken bond.

"Mom, everyone's body is different."

"I can ask the Healers to help treat your scars, okay?"

Linda opened her arms too.

For a second, I thought she was going to embrace me and accept my kindness.

But I was dead wrong.

In the next split second, Linda’s long, sharp nails clawed viciously into my bare stomach.

She put all her strength into it, tearing deep into my flesh.

"Bullshit! 'Different bodies' my ass! You're just secretly using the best medicine from the Healer to show off!"

"I won't let you win! I'm your mother! If I have scars, you must have them too!"

Cold sweat poured down my face as the blinding pain nearly made me black out.

I looked down to see my skin shredded, fresh blood oozing from the deep, jagged gashes.

The claw marks twisted across my stomach like hideous, bleeding snakes.

And the wounds weren't healing at all... Linda had dipped her nails in silver dust!

To force me to share her ugly scars, Linda had actually poisoned me with silver to make sure the wounds would scar permanently...

It was enough. It was more than enough.

The gashes were already deep and hideous.

But Linda wasn't satisfied. She dug her nails even deeper into my raw flesh.

Overwhelmed by despair and agony, I screamed for help.

"Ethan! Help me!"

Ethan burst through the door, freezing in sheer horror at the sight.

He rushed toward me.

I couldn't hear what they were saying. Clutching my bloody stomach, I passed out.

In our bedroom, the Healer worked frantically to treat my wounds. Ethan held my hand, still trembling with fear.

"Your mother is out of her mind. I'm looking into psychiatric facilities for her. We need to cut her off."

I nodded silently.

Once the Healer finished bandaging me, Ethan helped me out to the living room, only to find Linda sitting there.

I instantly regretted ever giving her a spare key to our house.

Seeing the thick bandages around my waist, Linda rolled her eyes in annoyance.

"When your father rejected me, I bled all over the floor and nobody cared. You just got a few scratches. Why does a Healer have to come to the house for you?"

"Ethan, you need to put her in her place. She's so dramatic!"

My already shattered heart took another devastating blow.

Suddenly, the doorbell rang. Linda jumped up excitedly to open it.

She walked back in, holding onto a young girl's arm.

The girl was young, beautiful, and wearing a highly revealing outfit.

Ethan and I exchanged a confused look, having no idea what was going on.

Linda pushed the girl toward Ethan like a prize, whispering with a sly grin,

"Ethan, this is Sierra, I hired her to help you guys out. She has a great body and she's very hard-working. Isn't she much better than your useless wife?"

Sierra lowered her eyes coyly, biting her lip with a shy smile.

I stared at them coldly, my heart turning to ice.

Linda was doing it again.

Just because her husband cheated during her pregnancy, she was hell-bent on making Ethan cheat on me too.

Before I could explode, Ethan’s face darkened, and he immediately ordered her out.

"Dressed like that? She doesn't look like she's here to do chores."

"Linda, the pack provides professional maids. Take her and leave. Now."

With that, Ethan began pushing them both toward the door.

But Linda was stubborn. She grabbed the doorframe, refusing to budge.

She flashed Ethan a scheming grin.

"Sierra is very capable! You have to give her a one-day trial. If she's really no good, I'll take her away. But you can't judge a book by its cover and rob this poor girl of a job!"

Sierra blinked her big, watery eyes, begging pitifully,

"If I don't find a job soon, my family is going to force me into sex work. Please, just give me a chance!"

My head throbbed from their relentless nagging.

Whatever. It's just one day. What could possibly happen?

If they didn't leave tomorrow, I would just call the pack guards to throw them out.