Claimed by My Ex's Half-Brother

Lilith’s POV

The news about my alleged affair with Cassian trended and gradually faded away.

Sabrina called to comfort me when she saw the news, believing the public opinion was unfairly targeting me.

"Lilith, someone is orchestrating a plot against you. Please be careful, and if you have any difficulties, make sure to tell me immediately."

I was grateful for Sabrina’s trust and help. "Don’t worry, I will."

This afternoon, I went to pick up Clara as usual. The sky over Ravendale City darkened without warning. A sudden downpour erupted from the heavens.

My second-hand car was in the repair shop today. Wearing a raincoat and carrying an umbrella, I went to pick up Clara.

At the kindergarten entrance, Teacher Susan was waiting for me by the door.

"Someone’s waiting for you in Clara’s classroom," she informed me with an expression that made Thea bristle within me.

"Who is it?" I asked, though I already sensed his scent musky and minty lingering in the air. My heart clenched. If it was Brett, I would refuse to see him.

"It’s Clara’s father," Susan replied. "He wanted to take her home, but I remembered your instructions. No one takes Clara except you."

Relief and gratitude washed over me. "Thank you, Susan."

She squeezed my arm gently. "Maybe you two should talk things through. It would be good for Clara if her father acknowledged her, took some responsibility..."

I forced a tight smile, not bothering to explain the impossibility of her suggestion. How could I tell her that Clara’s father was the Alpha of the Blood Moon Pack who had rejected both me and his daughter?

I pushed open the door and entered the classroom. I saw Clara playing with building blocks, lost in thought.

Brett sat beside her, watching her.

I took off my raincoat. He had told me to stay away from him, yet who was the one repeatedly showing up?

"What brings you here, Alpha Brett?"

Brett’s eyes flickered toward me. "Let’s talk outside," he used his Alpha Voice.

He turned to Clara, his expression softening. "Clara, stay here and play. Your mother and I need to talk for a moment."

My daughter didn’t even look up. Her small hands continued stacking blocks, her silence more pointed than any refuse could be. I watched as Brett’s jaw tightened at her dismissal.

What right did he have to feel hurt?He was the one who had denied her very existence, who had blamed a child for the sins he imagined her mother committed.

Before I could move toward the door, Clara finally looked up. Her large eyes so like mine,fixed on me .

"Mommy, did you get caught in the rain?" She frowned at my damp pants and the wet strands of hair clinging to my forehead.

She pulled a small handkerchief from her backpack and approached me, tugging my arm until I crouched to her level. With tender care, she dabbed at the raindrops on my face.

"Don’t catch another cold, Mommy," she whispered,"I’ll wait here with my blocks while you talk."

I ruffled her hair gently, my heart swelling with love. "That’s my girl."

Once outside the classroom, I deliberately turned away from Brett. "Make it quick, Alpha Brett."

"Why does Clara never smile when she sees me?She seems to hate me." His question surprised me

I laughed bitterly. This man who had the audacity to wonder why his refused child didn’t welcome him with open arms.

"Are you seriously asking me that? After everything you’ve done?"

Brett’s eyebrows drew together in a scowl."This is your doing, Lilith. You’ve poisoned her against me.Used an innocent child in your schemes.You’re so manipulative and underhanded,Clara deserves better than a mother like you."

I turned fully toward him then, my fury impossible to contain. Thea snapped her jaws inside me, wanting desperately to emerge and challenge this wolf who had once been our mate. "You have no right to judge me. None."

His scent, once so comforting to me, now made me nauseous with rage and pain.

He continued as if I hadn’t spoken. "I had Cassian give you two million dollars. You’ve also received plenty from the Greystone Heights Pack. Why won’t you buy a new car to take Clara to school? Instead, you drive that broken-down car, and on rainy days, you walk to pick her up. Are you trying to make Clara sick again? Or are you waiting for her to get sick again so you can play the victim when you can’t take care of her?"

The memory of Clara’s last hospitalization burned fresh in my mind. I had been collapsing from my own illness, unable to be there for her. The doctors had given me a year to live, but my condition had deteriorated rapidly.I probably only had a few months left. But Brett didn’t know that. He never would.

"That’s none of your concern," I replied coldly.

"You think I care about someone as despicable as you?I’m concerned for the child. Take some of that money you’ve schemed out of people and spend it on her welfare. Whatever sins her parents have committed,Clara is innocent. Your neglect is inexcusable."

"You have no right to judge how I care for my daughter," I hissed, emphasizing the ’my’. "You lost that privilege the day you rejected us both."

The man standing before me had no right to question my parenting. I had once loved him more than my own life. I had dreamed of bearing his pups. Now hatred toward him burned like acid in my veins.

I forced myself to swallow it down. This conversation was pointless. Every accusation from his lips was another knife in my already bleeding heart. For Clara’s sake, I had endured. The weight crushing me wasn’t my terminal illness—it was the cruelty of this cold-hearted Alpha who had once been my everything.

"Have some dignity and stay away from us. You told me to stop harassing you. Now I’m telling you: don’t ever show your face to me again. You find me repulsive? The feeling is mutual."

My words hit their mark. I could see the muscle in his jaw tightening as he fought to control his own rage.

he sneered."Dropping the act now, Lilith?A few days ago you were begging, playing the pitiful victim. What changed? Set your sights on Cassian instead and don’t need my sympathy anymore?"

"We have nothing more to discuss," I turned to leave.His hand shot out, gripping my arm. The contact sent electricity through my body,our damaged bond reacting to his touch.

His eyes studied my face, noting the sickness and pallor that no amount of makeup could disguise.

"The news about Cassian’s marriage problems is everywhere," he growled.

"I’m giving you two choices. One: leave Ravendale City forever. Stop targeting my pack members, stop trying to get Aurora BioSciences research..."

"And option two?" I cut him off with a bitter laugh. "You’ll force me and my daughter out anyway?"

Thea howled within me.

"Lilith," Brett’s voice dropped to that dangerous Alpha tone. "Don’t force me to take action against you.""Do whatever you want," I replied weakly. "I’m not leaving Ravendale."

I had to secure Clara’s future. This city had good education and a pack that belonged to Clara, even if she wasn’t acknowledged. Besides, now I had Sabrina to help Clara.

With that said, I turned to leave.

Brett called out behind me, "Lilith, must you be at such odds with those who were once closest and dearest to you?"

My rigidly straight back slumped slightly, "...It’s you who chose to be at odds with me."

It’s you who left me no chance to survive.

When I returned to the classroom to pick up Clara, her small figure was missing from the building block table.

I quickly searched the entire classroom, but Clara was nowhere to be found.