Chapter 4

Jayden follows me out.

"Lacey, what do you mean by that? I already told you I'd give you back control of the wards after we seal our eternal mark next full moon..."

I can only laugh.

Even now, he’s trying to trap me with promises of the mark and the wards.

Before I can speak, he points a finger at me. "Whatever is going on, you had no right to hurt an innocent like Chloe... When did you become so vicious!"

I stare into his eyes.

The eyes that once held only me are now filled with calculation.

What a hypocrite.

He can’t bear to part with his mistress, but he still wants to exploit my magic to the very last drop.

I move to push him away, but a weak, desperate voice echoes through our mind link.

"Alpha..."

It's Chloe.

Our bond isn't completely severed, so I can still feel faint signals linked to Jayden.

"Help me... The Blood Moon pack has me cornered... They know I'm with you. They're going to use me to force you to give up pack territory..."

Her voice is thick with tears and terror. "I'm so scared... Alpha... They said if you don't show up tonight, they'll... they'll ruin me... I'd rather die than be a burden... Alpha, just leave me..."

Jayden's face turns grim. He looks at me, and the cold calculation in his eyes makes my blood run cold.

"Since you won't apologize for what you did to Chloe, you can reflect on your actions in the silver cells," he said, his voice flat. "I'll let you out when you finally learn what submission means."

I stare at him in shock. "You're going to lock me up?"

"You harmed a pack member and challenged your Alpha's authority," his tone leaves no room for argument. "This is your punishment."

He gestures, and several Beta guards surround me.

"Take her to the silver cells."

"Yes, Alpha."

I try to fight back, but my magic is too drained.

The guards don't dare touch me directly, but they manage to lock silver shackles on my wrists.

The silver instantly burns my skin, the agony almost bringing me to my knees.

"Jayden!" I glare at him. "You wouldn't dare!"

"I am the Alpha. This is my pack." He turns and walks away without a backward glance. "Reflect on your mistakes."

The silver cells. Deep in the dungeons of the pack house. I designed them myself.

A prison forged from pure silver, its bars carved with magic-suppressing runes.

The moment they throw me in, I feel my magic being choked to nothing.

"The Alpha wants you to have a nice, long think, Luna," one of the Beta guards sneers. "If anyone wants to... visit you while you're here, we won't stop them."

Visit?

I know what he means.

Jayden is letting others humiliate me. Torture me.

The cell door slams shut. The footsteps fade away.

I curl up on the cold silver floor, my wrists raw and bleeding from the shackles. The runes drain my magic, and every breath feels like it's tearing my soul apart.

An hour later, the first "visitors" arrive.

A few Omegas who have always hated me.

"Look at our high and mighty Luna now," one of them mocks. "Locked up like a dog."

"I heard the Alpha punished her for hurting Chloe."

"Serves her right! Chloe is so sweet. I can't believe she'd lay a hand on her."

They spit at the cell, their words like venom.

I close my eyes, swallowing my rage and shame.

The next group is a few Beta males.

Their eyes roam over my body, filled with malice.

"Need some company, Luna?" one smirks.

"The Alpha said we can do anything we want, as long as we don't kill you."

They start prodding me with long silver rods. Each touch is agony.

I bite my lip, enduring it. The fire in my heart burns hotter.

By the third hour, I feel something awaken inside me.

The Bonding Charm.

The magic I poured into it is returning to me, twisted.

The backlash I built into the spell is activating.

For every time Jayden hurts me, he suffers in return.

And now, every ounce of pain I feel is being sent back to him, tenfold.

By the fourth hour, my magic is fully restored.

Anger, humiliation, betrayal—it all fuels a pure, raw power.

I open my eyes, golden magic burning in my pupils.

"Enough."

My voice is a soft, terrifying whisper.

My magic roars back to life, and the silver shackles on my wrists melt into puddles on the floor.

The runes on the cell crack and shatter. The entire structure begins to tremble.

"What... what's happening?" a guard outside stammers in panic.

I stand up, placing my hand on the bars of the cell.

"I designed this prison," I say with a small, cold smile. "Of course I know how to break it."

Golden fire erupts from my palm, consuming the cell.

The silver bars melt. The runes are obliterated.

BOOM!

The cell explodes, the shockwave shaking the entire lower level.

I walk out of the flames, radiating an aura of terrifying power.

The Beta guards are on the floor, paralyzed with fear.

"Lu... Luna..."

"Scared now?" I look down at them. "You were so brave a moment ago."

I don't kill them.

There's no point in killing minions.

I have more important things to do.

I walk to the pack's core protective ward, placing my hands on the cold crystal focus.

This was my masterpiece, five years of my life's work.

The very foundation of the Black Moon Pack's survival.

"If you won't cherish it, then I'll destroy it."

"Identity confirmed: Lacey, Creator." My voice is cold steel. "Execute command: Reclaim all magic."

A piercing alarm blares through the entire territory.

"WARNING! WARNING! CORE WARD COMPROMISED!"

"WARD COLLAPSE IMMINENT!"

"ESTIMATED TIME REMAINING: TEN MINUTES!"

I pull my hands away, watching the chaos unfold with cold satisfaction.

In the distance, I hear Jayden’s scream of agony. The Bonding Charm is torturing him.

I shift into my wolf form and bolt from the territory.

Ten minutes later, as I sit on a flight to the neutral territories, I hear Jayden’s desperate plea in my mind. “Lacey! What did you do?! Come back! I’m begging you, come back!”

I sever the connection with a smirk.

"Enjoy the hell of your own making."