My mate, Dominic Black, is the supreme Alpha of the Moon Shadow Pack. And I, ironically, had been kidnapped by a pack of Rogues he had once exiled. The leader of these outcasts, along with his accomplices, had strapped a high-grade liquid silver bomb around my torso. The Rogue leader stared at me with bloodshot eyes, his gaze venomous. "You're Dominic's fated mate, aren't you? Tell that arrogant bastard to get his ass over here, now!" Under the threat of imminent death, I trembled as I reached out to Dominic through our mind-link. The moment the connection formed, his explosive temper detonated in my head: "I warned you not to bother me when Sasha is having an episode! Your jealous little games are truly disgusting!" I screamed desperately in my mind: "Dominic, I've been kidnapped by Rogues! They are targeting you! Don't come—" Before I could finish, the Rogue severed my mind-link, snatched my phone, and forced a video call. Dominic's icy voice cut through the speaker. On the screen, he was cradling a frail-looking Sasha. "Elena, are you insane? Sasha's wolf spirit is fading! You'd actually fabricate a kidnapping just to trick me into coming back? You might as well have claimed a silver bullet pierced your heart!" I looked down at the liquid silver bomb strapped to my chest. On the timer, the five-minute countdown flickered like a death warrant. "Dominic, I—" "Enough! If you dare interrupt my treatment of Sasha again, I will strip you of your rank, demote you to Omega, and throw you into the dungeon to reflect on your sins! If anything happens to Sasha, you are a murderer! I will never forgive you!" Just then, Sasha's voice, sickly sweet and weak, drifted from the phone: "Dominic, you're so good to me... thanks to you, my wolf feels a little more stable." Immediately, the video call was mercilessly terminated. The Rogue roared in fury: "Damn it! Dominic doesn't give a shit about this woman! We grabbed the wrong leverage!" Cursing foully, they retreated from the abandoned silver mine. I was left alone, staring blankly at the bomb on my chest as the dam holding back my tears finally broke. Even my enemies could see that my Alpha didn't love me. It was laughable that I only admitted this cruel reality in the final moments before my soul dissipated. The "Sasha" Dominic spoke of was the daughter of the former Beta, his childhood sweetheart who had grown up alongside him. When we first mated, Dominic told me Sasha was like a sister to him, that she needed care because of her frail constitution. I believed him. I was even foolish enough to try and curry favor with her. But by the time I realized something was wrong, the mating mark had already bound Dominic and me deeply together. I could no longer extricate myself from this lethal attachment. All it took was a single moan from Sasha, and no matter what we were doing, Dominic would abandon me instantly. Even during my first heat, when I was writhing in agony, he pushed me away without hesitation just because Sasha claimed she had a nightmare and was scared. He ran to her quarters. He didn't even bother to comfort me as the heat tortured my body. He simply threw back a cold command: "Endure it." That night, I shivered alone in the cold wind, and he never came home. The next day, when I questioned him, he merely looked at me with contempt. "Elena, everyone in the pack knows Sasha is in poor health. If you don't even have that much tolerance, you aren't fit to be an Alpha's mate." I had hypnotized myself countless times, telling myself Dominic just had an overwhelming sense of responsibility. Until this moment, as the silver poison began to seep into my skin, I finally saw the truth. He had never loved me. Sasha was the cherished white moonlight of his heart. Before the bomb detonated, I sent Dominic one final text message: "Moon Goddess above, may our wolf souls never meet again."