My Mom Had No Heart for Me

My mother gave away the heart I'd been waiting five years for.

Now she's throwing a lavish mating ceremony for the girl who got it—to help her recover faster, she said.

The whole Pack gathered at Pack House to witness Ivy Calloway's bond with Garrett Holt. Flowers everywhere. Candles. Music.

And my mother, Luna Seraphina Valemont, stood at the center of it all, glowing with pride.

"Luna, you're truly the heart of this Pack," one of the elders said, clasping my mother's hands. "Taking in an orphan, saving her life, and now giving her such a beautiful ceremony. Northvale is blessed to have you."

My mother smiled gracefully. "It's what any Luna would do. Our Pack has always stood for compassion."

Not "it's what any mother would do."

Luna. Always Luna first.

Ivy walked up to my mother, tears streaming down her face. She looked beautiful in her white dress—healthy, radiant, alive.

Because she had my heart beating in her chest.

"Mom," Ivy said softly, "I don't know how to thank you. You saved my life. You gave me a family. And now... this."

Mom.

She called my mother Mom.

My mother pulled Ivy into a warm embrace. "Silly girl. You're my daughter now. This is the least I could do."

I remembered three months ago. My mother told me the heart donor had complications. That I needed to wait a bit longer.

But Ivy got her surgery right on schedule.

The best healers. The finest recovery room. And now, a grand mating ceremony because "positive energy helps healing."

Meanwhile, I was told to stay away from Pack House for six months. To give Ivy space.

My chest tightened. Sharp pain shot through my heart—the defective one that couldn't let me shift. Couldn't let me feel a Mate Bond. Couldn't let me be a real wolf.

I reached for the pills in my pocket.

"Briar."

My mother's voice cut through the crowd. She walked toward me, Ivy trailing behind.

"Come. Say a few words to your sister."

"You've been standing in the corner with that face this whole time," my mother continued, smiling for the crowd. "Ivy is part of our family now. As her older sister, shouldn't you give her your blessing?"

I looked at Ivy.

"If I had that heart," I heard myself say, "I would have a wolf by now. I could feel a Mate Bond. I could be the one in a wedding dress."

The chatter around us died.

My mother's smile froze. "Briar. Not here."

"Since you have a new daughter," I said, "I'll see myself out. Congratulations on your perfect family."

I turned to leave.

My mother grabbed my arm.

"What do you think you're doing?" Her voice was low. "Do you know how many people are watching? Ivy just had surgery—do you want to ruin her recovery?"

"What about me?" I pulled free. "Oh wait. I don't get to recover. Because you gave my chance away."

"Briar!" My father appeared beside us. Caspian Valemont, Alpha of Northvale. "Your mother has done nothing wrong. Don't make a scene."

"A scene?" I laughed. The sound came out wrong. "I've been quiet for twenty-two years. Understanding. Patient. The good daughter who never complained."

My heart was pounding too fast. I should stop. Take my pills. Walk away.

But something in me had cracked open.

"When I was twelve, I collapsed during training. Mom said I was lazy." I looked at my mother. "But when Ivy gets a headache, three healers show up overnight."

"Briar, we can talk about this later—"

"When I was seventeen and got diagnosed, you said I was young. I could wait." My voice was shaking now. "But Ivy? Every checkup, you were right there. Holding her hand. While I sat alone in the healing ward wondering if anyone remembered I existed."

Pack members were staring. Some had phones out.

"That's enough!" My father grabbed my shoulder. "You're embarrassing the whole family!"

I shoved his hand away.

"I'm embarrassing YOU." I stared at him. "That's all you care about. The image. The perfect Luna. The compassionate Alpha family."

I laughed bitterly.

"Is that why you took in that little stray bitch? To boost your reputation?"

SLAP.

My mother's palm cracked across my face.

The Pack House went dead silent.

"Apologize." My mother's voice was ice. Full Luna authority. "Now."

My cheek burned. My heart was screaming. But I couldn't stop.

"Apologize for what? For telling the truth?" I met her eyes. "You gave her the best room, the best healers, the rarest heart in the territory. And you couldn't even give your own daughter a bed when I was dying."

"Briar—"

"Your colleagues offered to help me. You said no. Can't play favorites." I was gasping now, chest tight. "So why is she the favorite? Why does a stray omega who wasn't even critical get everything I begged for?"

My mother's face was white with fury. "One more word—"

"Fine." I stepped back. "You want her so badly? Keep her. I'm leaving this Pack."

I turned.

The pain exploded in my chest.

Blood flooded my mouth before I could take another step.