Chapter 341
Third Person’s POV
Fred turned to her and asked, “Cassian is digging in his heels despite the pressure from both Ironthorn and Shadowfang. Do you think, deep down, he might actually still love you p>
Trista stared straight ahead, her eyes as hollow as a wasteland.
“It’s not love,” she said, cutting through the delusion with cold logic. “He won’t let go because of his Alpha possessiveness. He wants to keep controlling me, to break me until I’m exactly who he wants me to be p>
Fred watched her. “You’ve followed him for so many years. Are you sure you want to erase it all p>
Trista didn’t say a word; she just gave a heavy, decisive nod.
It was the look of someone pushed to the edge. “I regret loving him. I regret becoming his mate. I want to tear that bond into pieces p>
Fred sighed. “If you’re hurting, talk to me. Don’t carry it all alone. If a wolf stays bottled up too long, it goes feral p>
Trista turned toward him, her eyes so bloodshot they looked like they were bleeding.
She forced a bitter, self-deprecating smile. “Fred, since I was a kid, I knew there were scavengers and monsters in the wild. I just never thought the person who would sink his fangs into me would be the man I offered my throat to in love p>
Fred’s heart ached for her, but he knew he was powerless in this mess. He could only let out a frustrated grunt.
“I used to be obsessed with him,” she said. “I dragged my dignity through the mud just to stay in the Ironthorns. Looking back, I didn’t even get the bare minimum of respect. I was delusional enough to think an Alpha who was pining for someone else would actually be loyal to me. Isn’t that hilarious p>
Trista’s lips curled into a smirk.
“When we were together, if I got too close, he’d say my scent was too clingy. If I wanted his wolf to comfort mine, he’d say I was being dramatic. If I showed even a little emotion, he’d tell me I had a bad personality. I actually believed he was just born a cold, heartless stone p>
She continued, “Then I found out about Samantha, and I realized it wasn’t that he was a stone—he just didn’t want to be warm for me p>
“When I heard him talk about how much he regretted losing her, how much he wanted her back… my whole world collapsed. I became small. I was terrified of being exiled, terrified of losing him. If he looked even slightly annoyed, I’d take his criticism like it was a commandment from God and try to change p>
“For three years, I acted like I was fine on the surface, but I was living in total fear. I kept changing my scent just to please him until I couldn’t even recognize who I was anymore. And even after all that, it didn’t stop him from running back to that rogue p>
Fred pulled her back into a hug. Trista leaned into his shoulder and closed her eyes.
“You know what was the worst part? Every time we fought, he gave me nothing. Just the silent treatment, the cold shoulder. He punished me with distance. It felt like walking alone in the dark, with no pack to answer my call p>
“He always said I was too emotional, not logical enough. Later, I realized he didn’t just ‘not love me’-he didn’t even care that I was in pain. That’s why he could betray our bond and let me suffer, but still expect me to never show a hint of resentment.” Cóntent
“You’re only twenty-six,” Fred whispered. “You have time to start over p>
Trista stood up straight and smoothed her hair. “Fred, I’m cutting my losses p>
She realized now that the expensive
jewelry Cassian bought her was never about love; it was because she was his Luna. He needed a shiny trophy to show off to rival packs. He bought her parents a house and paid for their lifestyle just to protect his own reputation-he didn’twant a “broke” family making him look bad.
Every cent he spent on their mating was calculated.
Thinking about living with a man that cold and clinical for three years made her blood run cold.
“Nobody expected it to end like this,” Fred sighed. “The loss of that baby… that’s a wound that’s never going to heal p>
It was a debt of blood Cassian owed her, one he could never repay.
At the mention of the child, Trista’s walls finally crumbled again.
She tilted her head back, trying to stop the tears, but they soaked into her collar anyway.
When she spoke again, she was sobbing.
“Fred, do you know how much I wanted a kid p>
She turned to him, her face a mask of agony.
Her chin trembled, her voice cracking. “For three years, I begged him. I was so pathetic, I used every trick I knew just to get him to agree, and he coldly rejected me every
time. But then for Samantha?
He
was willing to risk everything for a brat she had with another man p>
Fred held her tight, rubbing her back. “Stop thinking about that trash. You want to pass on your bloodline? That’s easy. Find a top-tier Alpha and start your own pack p>
“He’ll never know how much I cried when I realized I was finally pregnant,” Trista sobbed, her breath hitching. “And he’ll never know how hopeless I felt, lying on that operating table all alone, feeling the life drain out of me p>