Alpha's Regret: The Seventh Time was Forever

Chapter 11 – Severed Bonds

"Ravyn, what do you want again?" Humphrey asked without lifting his head from the chessboard.

The carved pieces lay scattered between him and Seraphine, the game unfinished yet already decided.

What had begun as a rare, peaceful moment had been shattered the instant Ravyn walked in, followed closely by three presences that sucked the warmth out of the room.

Humphrey’s fingers hovered over a rook, then stilled, irritation tightening his jaw.

Ravyn stood rigid near the entrance, his expression taut with indignation. "Dad, isn’t this my home too?" he demanded. "Am I not welcome here anymore?"

Humphrey did not respond immediately. He made one last move, then leaned back. Seraphine had won again but this time, there was no teasing smile, no shared amusement. The air felt rather heavy, as if poisoned.

Everything had been ruined by their arrival. "Sera, how can you be so ruthless?" a sharp voice cut through the silence.

Noelle’s judgment rang across the living room like a slap. She stood tall, chin lifted, eyes cold as they fixed on Seraphine, as though she were examining a stain that refused to wash out.

Before Seraphine could speak, Kylie rose from her seat. "Enough, Noelle," she said, her voice calm but edged with authority. "You do not raise your voice at Sera, not in my house."

The room froze. "Luna," Noelle said immediately, her head dipping in a practiced bow. Her husband had been the former beta of the Centenary pack and respect was automatic.

Across all packs, the rule was immutable. Once an Alpha or a Luna, always an Alpha or a Luna, unless the title was stripped through divorce, abdication, or crime.

Kylie may have stepped away from leadership, but the weight of her position had never left her.

slowly, her expression smoothing into something almost pleasant. "I’m only saying this because Sera has become too willful. Honestly, we

were almost

and bone

had always been neglect, dismissal, and

Noelle?" she asked nonchalantly. She did not say

Dion cleared his throat and stepped forward. "Did you just

face him. The middle-aged man had never once defended her, not when

pale in a hospital bed, blood drained from

evenly, masking the ache rising in her chest, "the last time I checked, the only daughter you recognize is Daisy. She’s the one you always believed. The

right. The moment Ravyn told

remained in that same hospital, none of them had

if that’s true?" Chuck snapped. "If you did right,

faint smile curved Seraphine’s lips, but there was nothing warm in her eyes. The coldness there was

have her way every single time," she said softly, "then yes. I would always

girl!" Chuck’s arm lifted, the motion was sudden but not fast enough. Humphrey was already on his feet. He caught

of my house,"

blocking the path. "Dad, you can’t keep supporting Seraphine blindly,"

since the day she was born," he said, his voice low and thunderous. "I judge her based on what I see, but if you’ve chosen to be blind, I can’t help you with that. Now leave, and do not

rising and falling rapidly. Whatever Seraphine had done

he warned. "If anything happens

it now," Kylie cut in sharply, descending the stairs, and her eyes flashing with annoyance. "Because Sera will never help Daisy again as long as I live. I should have sent her away from the pack when I had the chance but instead, I

Something dark passed through Ravyn’s eyes. Hearing his mother speak this way about the woman he loved twisted something ugly