Chapter 1 Father''s Wedding

**Debra''s POV**

I stood in the corner, watching the fancy wedding unfold in front of me, people everywhere having a great time. But instead of feeling celebratory, all I felt was this bitter resentment eating away at me.

Today was my dad''s second wedding, and since he was the Alpha, the Silver Ridge Pack was throwing him this massive ceremony.

Even though this wasn''t his first rodeo, Dad was still going all out for this one.

The venue was decorated to the nines, and I''d heard some people saying it was even more gorgeous than his wedding with my mom. He''d invited tons of other Alphas too, which just showed how crazy he was about his new bride.

What he apparently forgot was that today was also the anniversary of my mother''s death.

The wedding was going off without a hitch, everyone looking absolutely thrilled. Meanwhile, my mom''s grave sat empty and forgotten, with nobody there to visit her.

I didn''t want to be at this ridiculous wedding.

I just wanted to be with my mother right now.

"Debra, where do you think you''re going?"

A sharp voice cut through the air nearby, interrupting my conversation with Vicky Todd, my maid.

I turned toward the voice and saw my stepmother, Marley Clarkson, walking over with her servant in tow.

Marley was way younger than my dad.

Actually, she was only four years older than me. She was the Alpha''s daughter from the Frosty River Pack and drop-dead gorgeous. Marley''s white wedding dress flowed in the breeze, her wavy blonde hair perfectly framing her face. She looked like some kind of porcelain doll come to life.

I didn''t feel like talking to her, so I looked away.

"Are you seriously planning to ditch such an important event and embarrass your father''s Luna?" Marley snapped.

"Of course not!" Vicky quickly jumped in to smooth things over. "Debra''s just tired and wants to rest for a bit, that''s all."

"Really?" Marley''s eyes narrowed as she looked at me, then suddenly she smiled. "Perfect. I need to talk to you about something."

"About what?" I asked, immediately on guard.

Marley and I had never gotten along, but for Dad''s sake, I tried to stay out of her way as much as possible.

And Marley never sought me out on her own.

Now she wanted to chat? My gut was telling me this wasn''t going to end well.

"Chill out." Marley''s grin got wider. "I just want to borrow that necklace you''re wearing. It would look amazing with my wedding dress."

"Sorry, but no." I didn''t even hesitate.

"This was my mother''s."

The necklace around my neck was the only thing my mom had left me, and I treasured it more than anything. It was my only real connection to her. Whenever I wore it, I felt like she was still close by, like she''d never really left me.

There was no way in hell I''d lend it to anyone, especially not my stepmother.

Marley seemed to read my thoughts. She softened her voice and said gently, "Why are you being so cold to me? This is our first day together as a real family."

If Marley actually thought of me as family like she claimed, she wouldn''t be trying to take away my mother''s last gift to me.

"Sorry, but I can''t lend it to you." I stared at her coldly.

"Then don''t blame me for what happens next. I need that necklace."

Marley''s sweet smile instantly turned into a sneer. She nodded to her servants.

The two servants moved fast. One grabbed my left arm, the other my right. They forced me down to my knees, and I hit the ground hard.

I winced from the pain and looked up to see Marley standing over me.

Her beautiful face was twisted with mockery. She reached out with her slender hand and ripped the necklace right off my neck.

The clasp broke and just like that, it was gone.

"What the hell are you doing?" I couldn''t believe this woman was being so shameless. "Marley, give me back my necklace!"

Even Vicky was shocked. "You can''t do this! That necklace was a gift from Debra''s mother!"

As she spoke, Vicky rushed forward to try to stop Marley from leaving.

One of the servants holding me kicked her away.

Vicky stumbled and fell hard, her forehead slamming into a stone pillar. Blood started trickling down from the wound, staining her pale face.

Vicky was my mother''s best friend. After Mom died, she stayed with the pack for me and never married. She basically raised me.

How dare Marley hurt her like this!

My wolf, Ivy, started getting agitated. I was losing my mind with rage too.

Ivy growled in my head, "Rip them apart, Debra!"

But before I could do anything stupid, Vicky struggled to get back on her feet.

Using the stone pillar for support, she managed to shout, "Debra, don''t do anything crazy!"

I knew she was right. Since Marley had just married my father, she was officially our pack''s Luna now. If I touched her, Dad and every pack member would know about it immediately.

As Vicky spoke, blood kept dripping from her eyebrow down to her chin.

Seeing her like that broke my heart. I rushed over to help her.

"Ugh, this necklace is so cheap." Marley had this playful smile as she examined my mother''s necklace more closely.

"How could your mother leave you such trashy jewelry? Pathetic!"

She was just casually playing with my necklace like it was nothing.

"Don''t worry, I''ll give it back to you. It''s just a necklace. I''ll have tons of better ones now that I''m the Luna."

*Click!*

Marley threw my necklace to the ground as hard as she could. The chain snapped instantly, and the gems scattered everywhere, hitting the ground one by one.

The only thing my mother had left me was destroyed.

For a moment, I felt like my heart was being crushed by some invisible weight.

My ears were ringing as I knelt down in a daze to pick up the scattered gems.

Suddenly, sharp pain shot through the back of my hand.

Marley had stepped on it.

She ground her high heel deep into the back of my hand.

"You''re the daughter of a noble Alpha. How dare you touch dirty garbage? Let it go, my dear stepdaughter."

I slowly raised my head to look at her, my eyes burning with hatred and rage.

"Fuck this bitch!" Ivy was so pissed she wanted to tear Marley apart. "Bitch, get your nasty foot off her!"

Of course, Marley didn''t move. After all, she had nothing to worry about now.

She smiled down at me with contempt and warned, "Debra, you better learn how to respect your new Luna."

Just then, the wedding music started playing. Marley slowly lifted her foot, straightened her dress, and walked away with an arrogant swagger, her servants trailing behind.

Ignoring the pain in my hand, I kept picking up the scattered gems from the ground.

Now I got it. I understood why Marley had wanted the necklace in the first place. She just wanted to send me a message—loud and clear.

Until now, Marley had only avoided me because she hadn''t married my father yet and wasn''t officially the Luna.

Today was her wedding day. Now that she had the power, she wanted to put her rebellious stepdaughter in her place. She wanted to show me who the real matriarch of this pack was.

"Oh, sweetie..." Vicky sighed and helped me up. "Don''t worry. I''ll fix the necklace. I promise it''ll look exactly like it did before."

"Thanks, Vicky." I forced a smile, trying my best to swallow down all my sadness.

The wedding ceremony for my father and Marley officially began.

Under the bright lights, Dad and Marley celebrated their love while the werewolves cheered and welcomed their new Luna. Nobody noticed me—the pitiful, disheveled she-wolf in the corner—and nobody remembered my dead mother.

Feeling depressed and furious, I grabbed an entire bottle of wine and chugged it, trying to numb the pain.

I was a total lightweight. It didn''t take long before my vision started getting blurry and my head began spinning.

But no matter how much I drank, I couldn''t get that fucking smile off Marley''s face out of my head. It made me want to throw up.

I couldn''t take it anymore. I had to get out of here.

Just as I turned to leave, I accidentally bumped into someone standing behind me.