Chapter 2

I lingered in the living room, unable to get anyone's attention or stop watching them.

Dad usually went to bed early. Tonight he was wide awake, helping Celeste open another graduation gift. Mom scrolled through dresses on her phone, choosing clothes for Celeste's graduation trip.

"Mom, my closet's already full."Celeste cooed, playing the innocent angel.

"Then we'll put them in Mara's room. She's always so busy with her pack duties, she never buys herself anything. She won't need the space."

Celeste looked up. "What if she gets upset?"

"She's your older sister. She can do that much for you."

Blake sat beside them, shelling pistachios and dropping the kernels into Celeste's hand. I had watched him do that for her since we were children.Whenever I had asked for one, he would swat my hand away and tell me to earn my own keep.

Tears fell, leaving no trace on the hardwood floor. It turned out that even without a physical form, a severed soul could still weep.

The warmth of a family was entirely theirs; the freezing isolation was entirely mine.

"But she hasn't come back," Celeste said. "And she won't answer my messages. I can't enjoy any of this while she's mad at us."

Dad set down the wrapping paper. "Ignore her. She wants everything to revolve around her. She’s always been a selfish wolf."

"It's just an award," Mom said with a dismissive wave of her hand. "They'll give out another one in two years. Your college graduation only happens once. Why can't she understand that this family has priorities?"

"Don't be mean, Mom. She worked so hard to get them to give it to her." Celeste covered her mouth. "Oh. I shouldn't have said that."

I knew that little gesture. She had used it whenever she wanted to say something cruel and have someone else defend her for it.

My grades had always been better than hers. It made no difference to how our parents treated us, but Celeste resented them anyway. More than once, she'd fabricated proof that I had copied someone else's work or stolen her belongings.

Dad had beaten me each time, using his Alpha aura to force me to my knees. He never asked to see my work or hear my explanation, leaving me with bruises that took days to heal.

As a girl, I had told myself things would change when I found my mate. Somewhere, there would be one person who chose me first.

Then I met Adrian, my fated mate. For a while, I believed I had found him, my safe haven.

But I never imagined that within two years, his heart would drift toward Celeste, too. I could literally feel the fragile thread of our unsealed bond fraying every time he bought her gifts or rushed to her side, leaving me standing in the shadows.

I should have been heartbroken, but my soul was already too numb to feel the pain. Death had finally granted me the peace that my own pack had denied me.

The housekeeper entered with a platter of desserts. The conversation about my absence ended as Dad moved a plate closer to Celeste.

"You've worked hard, sweetheart. Have your favorites."

Celeste took a bite and began telling them about the internship she'd secured at a leading investment bank on Wall Street. Mom wanted to know when she would start. Dad asked about the position. Blake made her promise she wouldn't forget them when she became rich.

They laughed together. No one looked at a phone to check if I was safe.

At one in the morning, Mom finally glanced at the empty seat beside Blake.

She put a few slices of strawberry tart on a plate. Celeste didn't like strawberries.

"Save these for Mara," she told him. "She can have them when she's finished sulking. Then she can't say we only think about her sister."

Blake reached for the plate,rolling his eyes at the mere mention of my name.

Celeste cried out and snatched her hand away from an open gift box, knocking a crystal glass to the floor.

"Mom, it burns! There's silver in here!"