CHAPTER 6

Maya

I feel numb. I don’t want to be anywhere near those vicious people, but I know I have to go pack my things from the house.

After resting for a day, I gather what little strength I have left and return home, the place where I built dreams with Ethan. But now, it feels foreign, like walking into someone else’s life.

The walls still smell faintly of his cologne, mixed with the lavender scent I used to spray before bed. For a brief moment, it almost feels like nothing has changed. But when I open the door, my breath catches in my throat.

She’s here.

I didn’t think he’d let her move into the house this fast. The least he could’ve done was give me the decency of taking my things out first. Her soft laughter echoes from the living room, it grates on my skin like sandpaper. At this point, I don’t even care if she’s here for shit. 

The house has been redecorated. I blink in disbelief, staring at the photo on the wall, it's her photo. My photo used to be there.

“She’s really moved in,” I whisper, the words burn as they leave my lips.

My vision blurs, but I steady myself and climb the stairs to my room, only to stop short.

Victoria Miller is standing at the door, wearing that same cruel smirk she treats like a crown.

“What are you doing here, Maya?” she asks, with mockery in her voice. “You no longer live here. Everything in this house belongs to Ethan’s Luna.”

I wonder if this woman ever has something else to do because she always seems to show up where she isn’t wanted.

My fingers tighten around the strap of my bag. “I just came to take my clothes. That’s all.”

“Your clothes?” she repeats with a sneer. “Everything you own was bought by Ethan. So, my dear, you’d do all of us a favor if you turn around and get the hell out of here.”

I shake my head furiously. “No, Victoria. They’re mine. I bought them with my own money.”

Victoria’s smile widens, it's sharp and cold. “Money you earned as Luna of this house. So technically…” She tilts her head, eyes glinting with malice. “It’s ours.”

She folds her arms and steps closer. “Now, get the hell out of here.”

Before I can answer, Chloe steps into the hallway wearing one of my silk robes. My blood boils. All I want to do is grab her by her neck, smash her against the wall, and choke the breath out of her, but I force myself to stay still and breathe.

She clings to Victoria’s arm like a scared child looking for protection. “Mrs. Miller, maybe we should let her check the suitcases, just to be sure she’s not taking anything that belongs to me or the baby,” she says in a syrupy voice.

My chest tightens until it aches. “Your baby?” I whisper, my hands shaking. “You mean the one you’re pretending to carry?”

Chloe’s face goes pale for a heartbeat, then she recovers and folds her hands as if she is innocent. “Please, Maya. I do not want trouble. Let us just check the bags.”

My fingers tremble as I unzip the first suitcase. Victoria moves like a bird of prey. She snatches my clothes and throws them onto the marble floor. Silk, cashmere, lace, everything I loved scatters and pools at our feet like rubbish.

“Thieves do not deserve fine things,” Victoria says with a cold smile.

“I am not a thief,” I say. “These are mine. I bought them. They belong to me.”

Then Chloe gasps and points at something glittering in the pile of cloth, my silver moonstone necklace.

“That’s mine!” she cries, with a high pitched frantic voice. “Ethan gave it to me as a blessing for our baby!”

My hands stop moving, every part of me goes cold “What did you just say?” I whisper.

She presses a trembling hand to her chest, fake tears pooling in her eyes. “He said it would protect me and our child. Maya must have stolen it.”

My throat tightens so much I can barely speak, but I manage. “That necklace was my eighteenth birthday gift,” I say, each word forced past my teeth. “My father gave it to me before he died. It’s one of a kind. Ethan couldn’t have bought it.”

Victoria laughs, a hard sound that slices through the room. “Do you expect anyone to believe you over Ethan’s fated Luna?” she asks, with triumph in her voice. 

“Guards.”

My chest collapses, and the room closes in. I stand there, the ruined silk still in my hand, while footsteps echo toward us and the knot in my stomach tightens until I can’t breathe.

Two guards rush in, towering over me.

“Hold her down,” Victoria commands.

I struggle against their hold, but they seize my arms and force me to my knees. My body trembles, but I lift my head and meet Victoria’s cold stare.

“You have no right,” I whisper, tears burning behind my eyes.

Victoria leans in, choking me with her perfume. “You are nobody now, Maya. Kneel properly and apologize to Chloe for stealing, or I will have you dragged out in chains.”

The words humiliate me more than any blow. Shame and fury mix in my chest until I can hardly breathe.

Before I can answer, the front door slams open with a thunderous crash.

A surge of power floods the room. Even the guards freeze where they stand.

A deep, commanding voice cuts through the air. It carries the kind of authority that makes wolves bow without thinking.

“Touch her again,” the voice growls. “And I will rip your hands off.”

The air crackles. Every hair on my arms stands up.

Victoria falters as I watch her confidence cracks for the first time.

I turn slowly toward the doorway, my heart beating so hard it hurts.

He stands there, tall and dark, radiating dominance. His gaze locks on me like I am the only thing that matters.

Lucian Hayes. My breath catches. What is he doing here?