Chapter 1

Isabella's POV

"Pack members, I, Damien Foster from the Silvercrest Pack, am officially declaring that my destined partner Vanessa will become part of our pack. I believe that in the coming days, everyone will afford the same respect to Vanessa as they will to Luna Isabella.” 

There was a momentary silence in the room and then it was filled with happy screams. 

"Congratulations, Alpha Damien! May the Silvercrest Pack thrive forever!"

"Best wishes!"

I stared dumbfounded at the two who were huddled together in the center of the hall, detachment washing over me as I overheard the pack members lambasting their congratulations truly.

My mind was a complete blank, and at that moment, I couldn't find any words with which to protest. 

On our third anniversary of marriage, my mate Damien had publicly revealed to the entire pack that he had discovered his true fated mate.

The issue was that this fated mate was a different woman.

To make matters worse, instead of recoiling from the news, they welcomed it with open arms and renewed their authorizations without a second thought.

I was overcome by shame and wild anger as my wolf Aurora snarled inside my head. 

"Isabella... what in the world is happening?!" she demanded, her fur bristling in rage, obviously prepared to shred this female wolf's neck.

"Aurora, stay calm," I urged, striving to soothe her and contain my own wrath while preventing Aurora from triggering a forced transformation amid her intense anger.

As the Luna of the Silvercrest Pack and the offspring of the Blackridge Pack's Alpha, I couldn't risk losing my poise before such a large audience, particularly during such a significant event…

"Damn controlling yourself, Isabella, what's the matter with you? I couldn't care less about opinions I want to destroy them both! Those arrogant jerks, just see them!" Aurora fumed, nearly rabid as she resisted settling.

"How could he betray us like this?! We've been married three years, and I've taken care of his duties perfectly while never neglecting my own as Luna…"

I was struggling just to maintain the illusion of calm. I was　just seething over this sudden information. 

"Don't sit there like a coward, Isabella! Confront him and demand what the hell he's up to! Do it now!" Aurora bellowed angrily in my thoughts.

My arms were numb and unresponsive as I forced my stiff fingers to collect my skirt as gracefully as I could and made my way to where Damien stood.

I had to bite down hard on my tongue to keep the furious, betrayed tears that were on the cusp of spilling from doing just that.

The many glances trailing my trail acted as a relentless reminder of what I owed them as their Luna, helping me to keep my expression as I walked with false confidence. 

I succeeded in restraining Aurora during my walk, though I'm certain her rage shone vividly in my gaze for anyone observing keenly.

When I got to him, I crouched low to the ground, forcing a strained smile as I spoke softly, I didn’t want our words to reach the ears of the assembled pack.

“Damien, what are you thinking? Are you really going to humiliate me like this on our anniversary? Couldn't you have waited?"

‘Isabella, I’m sorry, sorry!’ ‘I love you, but Vanessa… she is my predestined mate, after all… I can’t deny her…’ Damien replied weakly, looking up at me with guilt evident.

Still, he had the audacity not to let the woman go; he held her tightly, with nary a hint of softening of her hands.

He was just a despicable, cheating hypocrite. I had no delicate phrases to define the woman on his left who sat baring a triumphant smirk at me from across the table, and regretting relief in her eyes.

That had always been the biggest hurdle in our relationship.

Damien and I fell in love at 16 and promised forever.

 As 18-year-olds who had not discovered our wolves, we had prayed with all our hearts the Moon Goddess would mark us as fated mates, but sadly, that had not happened. 

Even then, Damien had assured me ardently: "Isabella, I love you. Though we're not destined mates, my pack will never approve of another; you're the sole one they'd accept as Luna! No one else will ever come between us, I promise!"

The man who had resolutely selected me back then and offered me everything now stood embracing another woman securely.

Anger and resentment filled my mind as memories of the past years blinked through my eyes, as I looked at them trembling in anger controlled, my vision was blurred by back tears despite having nothing nice to say about them. the paper when I readied my fist, trying to look away from the heartache that was breaking me as I promised not to let myself cry, not to let those disloyal tears fall for the fourth and final time. 

I refused to grant them that pleasure.

"Isabella, my dear, you understand what discovering a fated mate signifies for an Alpha. Vanessa is merely an unfortunate girl whose pack endured a recent disaster; I can't abandon her. Rejecting her would leave her homeless." Damien implored without remorse.

He noticed my prolonged silence but persisted in grasping my hand as usual, while gazing at Vanessa with compassion and fondness unabashedly.

"Of course I comprehend the meaning of a fated mate! But heed this warning, Damien: you'd best recall who your Luna truly is!" I whispered harshly in a subdued voice, audible only to us three, as I flung off his hand and locked eyes with him defiantly.

"Isabella, my dear, it's beyond my control; you know the bond's power, all those moments we yearned for it to be genuine between us, feeling that unbreakable attraction… from the moment I first saw Vanessa, my wolf has been frantic, content only with her near. You know a true Mate will only boost my Alpha prowess.

Isabella, please pardon me; I truly can't dismiss her…" Damien begged, finally releasing the girl and attempting to hug me while murmuring in my ear, "Vanessa is kind; she could assist you with pack duties."

I eyed Vanessa, with her large eyes and delicate build.

She looked at me shyly, clutching tightly to Damien's clothing, she was that vulnerable girl he made her out to be.

I snorted at them derisively, and Vanessa seemed surprised before she quickly grabbed a red wine glass from the next table and handed it to me warily.

"Hallowed Luna, allow me to stay. I don't want to mar your festivities, I promise! Damien freed me out of simple kindness, and I did not mean to sow strife between you!" Vanessa's lovely face brimmed with worry as her large, teary eyes implored me.

"Want my opinion?" I remarked, gazing down at her patronizingly.

Vanessa faltered, holding the wine glass hesitantly, unsure of her next move. Damien advanced, safeguarding her behind him before addressing me.

"Isabella, compose yourself."

"You're the one who must compose!" I snapped angrily, "Unsatisfied with your selected mate, you introduce another into our residence? Fated or otherwise, Damien, you gave your word…"

My dispute with Damien evidently alarmed Vanessa as she abruptly knelt before me, presenting the red wine glass and weeping while pleading, "I implore you, so long as I have shelter, I won't meddle in anything, Luna! I can handle washing, cooking, and attending to your routine needs! Just allow me to stay!"

"Oh, this unfortunate girl seems so wretched." A stifled voice emerged from amid the gathered pack, soon echoed by another.

"She is at least Alpha Damien's destined mate; she belongs here. Luna Isabella shouldn't be so severe with her..."

Certain whispers piercing my ears struck like daggers into my core. I glanced at Damien, only to find him regarding Vanessa with warmth and adoration. I shut my eyes, abruptly engulfed by bewilderment. This romance spanning six years from high school now felt like a mere farce.

"Damn these idiots!" Aurora snarled deliberately as she vied for dominance, eager to charge and dismantle the pair ahead.

However, I couldn't permit that.

"It's not the moment for rage yet. For now, I remain this Pack's Luna." I responded steadily, compelling her to subside.

"I completely disagree. You ought to confront this immediately, and openly!" Aurora grumbled moodily as she retreated into my subconscious.

"Once the banquet concludes, we'll resolve this appropriately. I won't handle it amid such a crowd, Aurora."

I took a deep breath and snatched Vanessa's wine glass, finishing it in a single gulp. Then I reached out my hand, took her arm in a firm grip and yanked her to her feet, forcing her vertical. With a scornful smirk, I shoved her toward Damien.

"Damien, my respect and affection for you conclude here. You've selected, and now I select. Post-banquet, we'll address matters correctly." I declared icily.

Damien parted his lips, apparently intending to add more, but I refused to hear further. Instead, I occupied the chair customarily reserved for Luna, awaiting patiently for Aurora to reemerge after her pause.

"Aurora, it's time," I enticed as I neared the forest's boundary. It was our preferred location for unwinding during high stress, where we'd spent innumerable hours dashing and discovering amid the dense, lofty trees.

But an odd occurrence unfolded.

No matter how often I summoned her, she failed to manifest.

For the first time since uniting at 18, she offered no reply whatsoever.

This deeply disturbed me, and I was on the verge of employing the pack's mental connection to consult the Pack's personal physician about the issue when abruptly, my heart appeared to rupture, excruciating pain spreading outward and through my extremities, my form twisting in torment before collapsing to the earth.

What in the world was occurring to me?

"Honored Luna, did the wine from before please you?" A rude laugh came down from afar.

I twisted on the floor, my body resisting my attempts to move as I strained to lift my head, but all I saw was the single outline of a woman with a small frame. 

"Damn, Vanessa!”