Chapter 1

I was eight months pregnant and had just gone into labor, but my Alpha mate, Damien, locked me in a silver cage in the basement to delay my labor.

When I cried out for help, he just told me to wait.

Because his late brother's mate, Victoria, was also giving birth that day.

The Pack Seer had foretold that only the firstborn pup would be blessed by the Moon Goddess and become the future Alpha.

"The title belongs to Victoria's child," he said.

"She lost Marcus. She has nothing. You already have all my love, Elena. The silver cage will make sure you deliver after her."

The contractions were torture. I begged him to take me to the clinic.

He grabbed my chin and forced me to look at him.

"Stop pretending. I should've known you never loved me. All you've ever cared about is wealth and status!"

"To force your labor early, just to steal what belongs to my nephew… You're truly wicked."

Pale and trembling, I whispered:

"The pup is coming—I can't stop it. Please, I'll make a blood oath. I don't care about the inheritance. I only love you!"

He scoffed."If you loved me, you wouldn’t have forced Victoria into that contract to give up her pup’s birthright. I'll come back for you after she delivers. After all, that's my pup in there, too."

He stood guard outside Victoria's delivery room.

Only after he saw the newborn pup in her arms did he remember me.

He ordered his Beta to release me. But the Beta's voice trembled.

"Luna… and the pup… they're dead."

And in that moment, Damien went feral.

...

I dragged myself toward the bars of the silver cage.

Just as the gate slammed shut, the silver bars slammed down on my fingers.

I heard the sickening crunch of my bones.

The new agony, on top of the contractions, ripped a scream from my throat.

But Damien, his mind already on Victoria, was deaf to my cries.

I felt a warm gush between my legs. My water had broken.

Panic seized me.

I forced myself to calm down, trying to reach out through the mind link for help.

But Damien… he'd severed my mind link to the rest of the pack.

The pup inside me kicked relentlessly, as if trying to tear its way out.

I was soaked in sweat, or maybe blood.

I could feel my wolf, my very essence, being sealed away by the silver poison.

I screamed with all my remaining strength, clinging to the last shred of hope.

Finally, I heard footsteps outside.

"Please, help me!" I cried out. "I'm locked in the silver cage! I'm about to give birth!"

I repeated it over and over, thinking I was saved.

But then I heard a voice, dripping with smug satisfaction.

"Well, well, Elena. Look at you now. Damien should have put you in your place long ago."

It was Damien's sister, Sophia.

I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to keep my voice steady. "Sophia, please, just get me out of here. The baby is coming. I can't wait."

Sophia opened the basement door and stared at me.

For a second, I thought she would help.

Next, she kicked the cage, the furious clang echoing in the small room.

Her voice was as sharp as broken glass.

"Get you out? So you can disrupt Victoria's delivery? Damien sent me to watch you because he knew you'd pull something like this."

"Just give Damien a break, Elena. He's got enough to deal with without you causing more trouble."

"The heir of this pack will be Victoria's child! Don't think your little tricks will change that!"

Another violent contraction tore a scream from me.

Tears streamed down my face as I gasped, "My child won't care about the Alpha title. I don't want any of the fortune! Just tell Damien to let me out, and I swear I'll disappear from your lives forever."

My scream seemed to annoy her.

She scowled and muttered, "Bitch. Who are you trying to call with all that screaming? You make me sick."

Then, she opened a mind link to Damien.

The silver poison and the searing pain were pulling me under.

"Yes, Damien, don't worry. I'll keep an eye on her," she said.

When I felt Damien's presence through our mate bond, a spark of hope ignited in me.

I screamed with everything I had. "Damien! The pup is coming! Now! Please, tell Sophia to take me to the clinic! Fast!"

I was howling now, unable to control it.

Sophia hesitated. I heard her whisper into the link, "Damien, I think she might actually be in labor. It doesn't sound like she's faking."

"Maybe I should take her to the clinic. She's carrying your only pup, after all. If something happened…"

Damien paused for a few seconds, as if thinking.

Then his tone softened. "Alright, take her…"

But then a delicate voice cut in from his end. "Damien, darling, I'm thirsty for some moonpetal nectar. The healer says I need the extra moon energy to have the strength to push."

"Oh, is Elena about to give birth? Don't you worry, it doesn't hurt at all! I barely feel a thing. Look, I could get up and dance for you right now. Elena has a pure bloodline; she'll be fine."

Of course, she wasn't in pain.

The pack's entire medical facility had been moved to her private, state-of-the-art birthing suite.

She was being pampered in every way possible.

Victoria's words were all it took.

Damien's voice turned hard as steel.

"What could happen? She's a master manipulator. She'd never let herself get into any real trouble."

"She's just screaming to trick you into letting her out. Don't fall for it!"

The mind link snapped shut.

Furious at being scolded by Damien, Sophia turned on me.

She pulled out a pure silver dagger and walked toward the cage.