3 : Banned

Aaira

“What?! I-I can’t believe you’re doing this to me.” My voice cracked. The Ball had been my idea, and now he was banning me from attending it. “I’ve stood beside you through everything as your Luna and now you’re ashamed to have me beside you? Tell me, Ethan, when have I ever embarrassed you?”

“If you weren’t so emotional, you might actually understand.” He placed a hand on my shoulder. “This isn’t some ordinary pack event. Lycan Isadora Sterling is attending. I need a Luna who can represent me properly, someone beautiful enough to stand beside her Alpha and show everyone how powerful their bond is.”

His eyes swept over me. “Unfortunately, you’re neither beautiful nor composed. Your jealousy makes it worse. I can’t have you embarrassing me in front of someone revered like the Queen.”

I stared at him, my chest tightening.

“Embarrassing you?” I repeated. “When your pack was falling apart, you asked me to stand beside you, and I did. I helped rebuild everything you had lost. But now that things are finally going well, suddenly I’m something you need to hide?”

“I’m not hiding you. I just want you to stay out of this event. Until then, you can manage the pack kitchen since the other omegas will be busy with the Ball’s preparations.” He looked into my eyes, and for a fleeting moment, I thought I saw tenderness there. But it disappeared almost as quickly as it came. “Please, just this once, Aaira. Don’t make me regret choosing you as my Luna.”

His words made my heart sink. Choosing me. The way he said it made our entire marriage sound like a decision he was beginning to regret.

Every promise we had made, every moment I had cherished, suddenly felt like a lie. I had believed that no matter what happened, Ethan would at least see my worth.

But perhaps he looked at me the same way everyone else in the pack did. As someone who wasn't good enough.

I slowly pushed his hand away and gathered what little dignity I had left. “Fine. I won't attend the Lunar Ball.” I looked at him through tear-filled eyes. “But I hope you realize what you just threw away.”

I didn't wait for his response. I turned around and stormed out of the bedroom, tears streaming down my cheeks.

The next day, the entire pack was busy preparing for the Lunar Ball while I stayed hidden in the guest room. I couldn't bring myself to return to our bedroom. That room held too many beautiful memories, and now it was where Ethan had crushed my heart.

The Lunar Ball had been more than just another pack event to me. It was my chance to prove to my mother that her weak daughter could make the right decision.

She had always pitied me for being unable to shift into a wolf while everyone else in my family was a powerful Lycan. I had grown tired of being the child everyone thought needed protection. For once, I wanted to show her that I was strong enough to build my own life. 

But Ethan had taken that chance away from me. I lay on the bed, staring blankly at the ceiling as heartbreak and despair consumed me. 

No one came looking for me. Not even Ethan.

Now that he was a respected Alpha, I suddenly wasn't important enough to him anymore. That realization was hard to swallow when I remembered how he would stand outside my college dorm for hours in the freezing snow just to make up with me after our fight.

Ethan used to make me feel like I was the only light in his life when he was struggling to keep his crumbling pack afloat. He had once looked at me as though I was the one person he could never afford to lose. How could that same man throw everything we had away just to sleep with other women?

What hurt even more was that he and his mother seemed to believe my appearance and rank gave them the right to disrespect me.

Vanessa had even stopped the maids from bringing me proper meals, claiming that eating less would help me lose weight. Then she advised me to dress more provocatively and act seductive if I wanted to keep her son's attention.

As though he were some prize I had to earn.

Every action had wounded my pride because I was the Lycan Princess, the daughter of the very woman they were desperately trying to impress. Yet I couldn't tell them who I really was. I had promised my mother I would keep my identity hidden.

For most of my life, being Isadora's daughter had been a secret. My mother wanted to protect me from people who would either crawl toward me for my status or look down on me because I didn't have a wolf.

Ethan had been different. At least, I thought he was. He had accepted me when he believed I had nothing to offer him. He had made me believe that I was worthy of love despite being wolfless.

Maybe that was why, despite everything he had done, a foolish part of me still hoped he would realize his mistakes and come back to me.

By afternoon, I forced myself out of bed and headed to the council building beside the packhouse for the scheduled meeting with the Elders. I had no intention of helping with the Lunar Ball after Ethan banned me from attending, but I refused to spend the entire day hiding in the guest room.

The pack council was the one place where I still felt respected and valued. It was something Ethan couldn't take away from me.

Three years ago, the building had been rundown and neglected. I had worked hard to renovate it into the polished headquarters it was today, complete with modern technology, a reception desk, and a comfortable lounge area.

I stepped into the meeting room, expecting to see the Elders. Instead, I froze. 

Ethan sat at the head of the table. His familiar scent immediately reached me, making my heart skip a beat despite everything that had happened. He wore a gray suit, his black hair pushed neatly back as he looked up at me.

His expression darkened. “Aaira, why are you here?”

I stared at him in disbelief. I had attended these meetings for years.

“It's a council meeting, Ethan. Where else would I be?” I spoke formally. 

He sighed impatiently. “Seriously, Aaira? You need to stop wandering into places where you're not needed and focus on your household duties. Have you planned tonight's dinner, or am I supposed to do that too?”

A few people around the table laughed.

I felt the humiliation crawl up my neck, but I refused to look down. “I'm here because I'm a council member and my presence is needed,” I said calmly.

“Not anymore.” There was a cold glint in his eyes. “Your seat at the council has been removed.”

My face went pale. I looked toward the table and saw that my chair was gone. For three years, that chair had been mine. I stared at the empty space, unable to process what I was seeing.

“But I've been a part of this council.” My voice trembled. “You can't just take my seat away without even discussing it with me!”

Ethan's fist slammed against the table. I flinched. “Remember your place, Aaira! I'm the Alpha. I decide who stays and who leaves.” His gaze hardened. “This council doesn't need a woman's opinions, so you're not needed here. Got it?”

I swallowed the lump in my throat. I couldn't win this argument with him, so I turned toward the rest. “Elders, I've served this pack and this council. You know how hard I've worked. Do you truly believe I'm unfit to continue?”

I searched their faces, hoping someone would defend me.

Elder Cruz narrowed his eyes. “I'm glad Alpha Ethan has finally come to his senses.” My heart sank. “The Lycan Queen's arrival requires flawless preparation. We cannot afford mistakes. Just because Alpha Ethan chose you as his Luna doesn't mean a mere omega is qualified to give her opinion on these matters.”

My lips parted in disbelief. “But I've been helping this council for years.”

“And?” Elder Noah scoffed. “Having a powerful husband doesn't make you significant to this council. You are still beneath us.”

The others snickered. My hands began to tremble.

“Then what about everything I've done?” I asked. “You accepted my ideas. You used them to improve this pack. If you never considered me qualified, why did you accept my help?”

Elder Cruz's expression remained cold. “We accepted you out of pity and because Alpha Ethan asked us to.”

My heart stopped. “Out of pity?”

“Of course. Otherwise, this council has no need for a woman's opinions on how to run a pack.” His gaze swept over me with open disdain. “It has always been shameful for us to sit here and listen to an omega.”

My stomach dropped. 

Those powerful Alphas only had ties to our pack because I had pushed Ethan to earn their trust. I was also the one who had helped turn his failing businesses into profitable ventures, transforming the pack's entire economic situation.

I had worked three times as hard as Ethan to earn my place at that council table. Yet they thought it was shameful. 

I shouldn't have been surprised. They had always given Ethan the credit for my work because, to them, he was the Alpha and I was nothing more than an omega woman.

I wanted to tell them that their pack would never have reached this point without me. But I knew it wouldn't matter. They had already decided that everything I accomplished belonged to Ethan.

“You are wasting our time, Aaira,” Ethan muttered as he walked toward me and grabbed my wrist, forcefully tugging me toward the door. “Are you going to leave peacefully, or do I have to drag you out?”

The warning in his eyes was unmistakable. He didn't care that he was humiliating me in front of everyone. All he wanted was to remind me who was in control and make me feel like I didn't matter.

The pain was almost too much to bear, but I schooled my expression and straightened my back. “There's no need for that. I'll leave willingly.”

My voice barely came out, but I forced myself to walk out of the room without looking back. What had been the point of sacrificing so much for this pack?

I had spent years dedicating myself to its growth, only to discover that none of it mattered to them. They had happily used me when they needed my help, then discarded me the moment things started going well.

They didn't deserve everything I had given them and I should have realized that long ago.

As I walked back into the packhouse, I was seething with rage. If Ethan was so entitled to believe he could do better without me, then I'd grant his wish.

I packed all my bags and decided to shift to the penthouse he'd gifted me. I'd never wanted to use it, but after so much humiliation, I needed distance from the packhouse to think clearly and make a decision.

Besides, I had a few precious things stored there that I needed to retrieve, most of all a sapphire necklace called Blue Moon. I cherished it above everything because my mother had given it to me lovingly on my eighteenth birthday.

"This necklace holds special powers,  that's why other lycans have their eyes on it. You must take good care of it, as it's priceless," my mother had told me as she handed me the Blue Moon.

The apartment and the heirloom were all I had left after Ethan had taken everything from me.

I drove to the location. The penthouse was a two-storey building with a swimming pool in the backyard and a beautiful garden in the front, tucked into the suburb of the pack.

I was dragging my suitcase through the foyer when a floral scent hit my nostrils. It smelled familiar, but I couldn't place it.

Then a shrill voice from upstairs caught me off guard. "How dare you enter my house?!"

I looked up to find a slender woman on the second floor, red high heels matching her hair and my eyes widened. Rue Stanton stood at the top of the stairs, her arms crossed as she glared down at me. What was she doing in my penthouse?

I wanted to tell her this penthouse was mine so I could come and go as I pleased. But my eyes landed on the sapphire necklace she wore, and I froze. "How did you get that?" I demanded. 

Rue narrowed her eyes at me. "You mean this ugly thing?" She grabbed the pendant, tossing it carelessly in her hand, and my heart lurched. It was priceless, fragile. One wrong move could damage it. 

"Why should I tell you? It's none of your business."

"It belongs to me. Return it to me right now!" I yelled, stepping towards the staircase.

"It doesn't. I found it in this apartment, so it belongs to me now." She gave me a smug smile.

My fist clenched. "Know your place. You're just a mistress while I'm Luna. I can have you thrown into the dungeons for stealing my stuff!" I warned her.

Her smirk faltered, and she took off the necklace warily. I sighed in relief but then she dangled the chain like a carrot.

She smiled. "If you want it that badly, then catch it!" She dropped the necklace from that height.

"No!" I rushed forward to catch it, but I was too late. The fragile necklace struck the hard floor, and the half-moon pendant cracked.

I stood motionless, staring at the fragments of the pendant scattered across the floor.

My mother had valued that necklace so much. I'd promised her I would take good care of it. But it was damaged now.

Rue walked down the stairs and clicked her tongue. "My father always used to say that cheap people liked cheap things. Looks like you're the same, Luna Aaira. Cheap and worthless. Even my house servants wouldn’t wear something so lackluster." She scoffed, rubbing salt into my wound.

"Shut up!" I snapped, grabbing her by the arm, my eyes glaring daggers at her. "You have no idea what you have just ruined!"

"Aaira! Stop it!" a voice growled, and I turned around to find Ethan storming into the house.