Chapter 1 Author: CleoSmileXXX On the day of my first shift and pack betrothal ceremony with my fated mate, Leon, an unfamiliar Omega appeared, clutching a young boy who broke free and ran to Leon, calling him "Daddy." To everyone's shock, Leon embraced the child and admitted the truth: four years ago, he had a brief encounter with Mia, the boy's mother. Now exiled and vulnerable, she had nowhere else to go. Leon declared he needed to protect them-give them a name, a place-and said he would complete a bonding ceremony with Mia, "temporarily," for the child's sake. He asked me, the Alpha's daughter, to be understanding. Promised his heart still belonged to me. But as the pack watched, they stood together-him, Mia, and the boy-and performed their bonding ceremony in the very place mine was meant to be. That was the day I shifted for the first time and the day I was publicly betrayed by my own mate. - The elder recited the bonding vows with reluctance. My father stood in silence with his dark expression, watching Leon sink his teeth into Mia's neck. The mark was permanent now, an unbreakable symbol of mating bonding and loyalty. At that exact moment, a shockwave of raw Alpha energy burst from Mia's body. It filled the air with a force unmistakably tied to the Black Stone bloodline. She turned to me and her lips curled into a victorious smile. "Now you understand, don't you, Pauline?" she said. "I'm the true heir of the Black Stone Pack." "You stole eighteen years of my life. Now it's time to give it back." That strong, primal, and pure aura was identical to my father's. It moved through the air like a heartbeat reclaimed. Gasps rippled across the gathering.