Chapter 55
Astor’s Pov
6 years Later
+25 Points
The scent of her or rather, the ghost of it still clung to me, a cruel joke played by my own memories. Loving somebody with every bone in your body is the worst kind of torture. It’s like
having your heart ripped out and then handed back, still beating, just to remind you what you’ve
lost.
The only good thing she ever did by leaving was showing me Alpha Kyle’s true intentions. He stood
there, bold as brass, after what he’d done claiming he was here for me.
I guess she didn’t tell him that she left me a letter.
Chasing him away from my pack didn’t help me as much as I wanted it to. It didn’t make the hollow space in my chest any smaller, and it sure as hell didn’t make my heart hurt any less. Especially when he’d thrown that final knife, claiming she’d thrown herself on him. A lie? Or the bitter truth? It
didn’t matter. The wound was already there.
I admit it, I wasn’t the perfect mate. God knows I treated her badly at times. My temper, my moods, my distant nature… I know I pushed her away. But for her to cheat on me? That was soul–crushing. Like the ground under my feet had simply given way, leaving me to fall into endless
dark.
I was buried in paperwork, the numbers blurring on the page, when a flash of bright pink darted
into my
office. Before I could even react, a small, warm body slammed into my legs.
“Daddy!” Isabella’s voice, a sweet song, filled the quiet room.
I looked down, and a genuine smile, one that hadn’t touched my face in what felt like forever, spread across my lips. Her bright blue eyes looked up at me, full of pure joy. I scooped her up, burying my face in her soft, strawberry–scented hair. My wolf gave a tiny, almost imperceptible purr deep inside me, a flicker of warmth in the cold.
She saved me. Faith’s leaving had turned me into a shell, a hollow echo of the man I used to be. I was just going through the motions, leading the pack, but inside, I was crumbling. Then Isabella came. Having her changed everything. Suddenly, I had somebody I loved enough to live for. Enough to fight the darkness that always threatened to swallow me whole.
“Mommy says dinner is ready!” she chirped, wiggling in my arms.
My smile faltered, a tight knot forming in my stomach. Mommy. Alice. The more the years passed,
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Chapter 55
$75 Points
the more Alice behaved like she was my wife, the Luna of the pack. She wasn’t. She was Isabella’s mother, yes, but that was it. I hated it. Every time she cooked, every time she organized something for me, it felt like a trap, another step in her slow, deliberate march to take Faith’s place. But I
tolerated it. Only for Isabella.
“Daddy, are you coming?” she asked, a pout forming on her lips.
“Go tell your mom I don’t want any food, sweetie,” I said, trying to keep my voice light. “I’m full.”
Her lower lip trembled. “Please, Daddy? Mommy made your favorite stew! And I helped!” Her big eyes widened, pleading with me. The one thing I couldn’t say no to.
A sigh escaped me. “Alright, alright,” I chuckled, setting her down. “Lead the way, my little boss.”
She practically skipped out of the office, her small hand clutching mine. When we got to the dining room, Alice was already there, setting the table with a practiced ease that made my teeth clench. She wore a soft, flowing dress, her hair perfectly styled. She looked… domestic. Too domestic. I knew what she was doing. Using Isabella, her innocence, to get to me, to push her way further into my life.
We sat down. The stew was, as always, good. Alice was a decent cook. Isabella chattered happily was a decent cook. Isabella chattered happily about her day, oblivious to the tension that hummed under the surface. It was when we were halfway through eating that Alice’s voice cut through the innocent chatter.
“Astor,” she began softly, a little too softly, “do you think… you’ll ever forget Faith completely?”
The spoon clattered against my bowl. A rush of pure, white–hot anger flared inside me. My wolf, usually quiet, stirred with a low growl. I hated talking about her. Hated the pain it brought, hated the way the question felt like a poke at an open wound.
“Alice,” I said, my voice low and tight. “Mind your own business.”
She bristled slightly, but didn’t back down. “Perhaps it’s time you let go of the woman who cheated on you, Astor. For your daughter’s sake, at least.”
That was it. I’d had enough. My chair scraped against the floor as I stood up, the anger a cold, hard knot in my gut. “Isabella,” I said, looking at my daughter, ignoring Alice completely. “I’ll come and tuck you into bed.”
I didn’t wait for an answer. I walked out, the anger a raging fire, but underneath it, a terrifying new
dread.
I went to my room, pacing like a caged animal. Every nerve was frayed, every muscle tense. But what was even more frustrating, more terrifying, was that my wolf had been dying. Not in spirit, not just from the heartbreak, but physically. He hadn’t been that vocal ever since Faith left, a dull ache
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Chapter 55
+25 Points
instead of a roaring presence. But it was tolerable. Now, though, he was completely withering away, a constant, debilitating sickness. Especially for the last couple of days, his presence had
been a weight, a burning, fading ember.
I had tried to talk to pack doctors, to healers, to anybody who might have an answer. But nobody had an explanation for what was happening to my wolf. He was my strength, my second half, my
very essence. I couldn’t afford to lose him.
And what’s worse, his sickness had been affecting me as well. I was getting weaker and weaker by the day. Headaches that pounded behind my eyes, a constant weariness that no amount of rest could fix, a dull ache in my bones. My senses, once razor–sharp, felt muted. My strength, once unquestionable, was dwindling. I had been trying to get a solution, desperate for an explanation, for a cure. But every face I saw was filled with confusion and helplessness.
I stood by my window, looking out at the pack lands. The moon, full and bright, cast long shadows. I felt like a shadow myself, fading away, and no one knew why.
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