3

I didn't return to the house I had shared with Liam.

All of Isla's belongings had been cremated by me along with her body. There would have been very little left of my own possessions after I bought that inhibitor, except for some clothes along with pictures of Liam and I, which I burned.

The tumor was progressing faster than expected. My balance was getting worse each day, and the headaches would come in waves so intense they left me gasping.

Just forcing my wolf Bella's power to disconnect the mate bond again made my head hurt even more now.

The reason I was so anxious to push Liam to dissolve his partnership and sign a separation agreement as soon as possible was because I needed to make sure I was no longer connected to Liam in any way - even in death.

That day, clutching Isla's urn, I returned to Stormpack territory.

My parents had always respected my decisions.

Just like when they initially disapproved of Liam - a mere omega healer from a low-ranking family - but eventually gave their blessing because I was adamant about our love.

My father Oliver, as Beta of Stormpack, had seen too many ambitious wolves try to climb ranks through mating. He had been particularly wary of Liam's exceptional healing talent and charm.

But for my happiness, they had compromised.

Now it was the same.

When they saw me stumbling at their doorstep, barely able to hold Isla's urn, my father caught me before I fell. His strong arms trembled as he lifted me, his Beta strength seeming to fail him for the first time.

"My little pup," he whispered, his voice breaking. "What has he done to you?"

My mother rushed to help, her eyes filling with tears at my gaunt appearance and unsteady gait.

They already guessed what had happened. Yet they didn't press me for answers.

They simply helped me through each day. My mother would hold me during the seizures, while my father acquired the best medications his position could access.

After a particularly bad episode that left me unable to walk, my father brought home a wheelchair.

"It's the finest artifact in the pack," he said gruffly, trying to hide his pain." The stable seat for the Beta’s best daughter."

Looking at their brave faces as they cared for me, I felt overwhelming regret.

I regretted coming back only to make them watch me die.

As if reading my thoughts, my mother knelt beside my wheelchair, finally breaking down:

"My darling girl, your father and I are grateful you came home. Being able to care for you in your final days... it gives us peace."

The tears I had been holding back finally fell.

One golden afternoon, my father insisted on taking me to the highest point in Stormpack territory. He pushed my wheelchair up the winding path to Moonhowl Hill, where generations of pack leaders had been laid to rest.

The view was breathtaking - endless forest stretching toward the mountains, painted in autumn colors.

"Remember this place? Little Wolf, you used to bring you here when you were little." My father said to me gently.

"And how do you like it here? My dear daughter." There were tears in the father's eyes.

"I remember, it's beautiful here, and I missed it when I lived in the Thornpack." I said trying to smile.

I didn't have the strength to speak anymore and just nodded.

In the warm light, I saw Isla's spirit.

She wore the white dress I had burned as an offering to the Moon Goddess. She danced around my wheelchair, smiling brightly:

"Mama! Isla can touch you now!"

I reached out to hold my daughter's ethereal hand, watching as my father surveyed the plot he had chosen - a beautiful spot overlooking the valley.

"You and Isla will rest here," he said softly. "Where I can visit you every day."

Isla blinked her clear eyes:

"Mama, Grandpa can't see us anymore..."

I stroked her head:

"But we're always in his heart, little one."

Though I didn't understand why our spirits lingered, after seeing my parents begin to find peace, I decided it was time to take Isla to see her father.

In life, Liam had been too preoccupied with Natalie and Anna in the neighboring ward to visit his own daughter.

Every day, Isla had hoped her father would come see her, but she never got to see him one last time.

Now, I would grant her final wish, letting her see her fill of the father she had longed for.

At the healing center, Liam had just finished surgery.

Isla finally saw the father she had missed so desperately. She excitedly ran circles around him.

But Liam couldn't sense her presence. He sat there resting, completely oblivious.

Another healer passed by, and Liam suddenly called out:

"Hey John, how was my daughter's recovery before she left the center?"

That healer smiled:

"Oh, the recovery was perfect! The treatment was so timely, there weren't even any complications!"

My heart filled with confusion and rage.

When Liam admitted to giving Isla's inhibitor to Anna, I think Isla was immediately transferred to the United Council of Wolves treatment center.

The new center has put us on the waiting list for the next inhibitor, but it's far from clear when the next inhibitor will arrive.

And Isla couldn't hold out any longer. She asked me to take her home. Three days later, suffering from the deformity, she died in my arms.

By the time we left Liam's treatment center, Isha was in a very bad way, how could this therapist say such a thing?

Yet Liam seemed relieved by the response, thanking the healer before returning to work.

After he left, that healer scratched his head in confusion.

"What's up with Liam? Hasn't he been personally overseeing his daughter's case?"

"The transformation on the eleventh went so well, he even gave out moon-blessed wine to the whole center. How could he forget so quickly?"

I froze in place.

Isla tugged at my ghostly form, her eyes bright:

"Mama, did Papa come see me that day?"

I couldn't speak past the lump in my throat.

The 11th was the day Isla died in my arms.

I still remember her petite, light body, cold little hands and pale face in my arms.

And Anna morphed perfectly that day after using that inhibitor for Isha.

It turns out that everyone at this retreat center thought Anna was Liam's daughter.

It turns out that on the 11th, he cheerfully distributed moonshine to everyone.

Though as a spirit, I couldn't feel the cold in my body, I began to shiver.

Liam, did it ever occur to you that while you were celebrating Anna's successful metamorphosis, your own daughter was at home closing her eyes forever?

Isla kept asking for you until her final breath!

I didn't know whether to laugh or cry at the bitter irony.

Liam, you never deserved to be a father!