Chapter 1

The pack’s Full Moon Festival was in full swing.

I cradled my six-month belly, joy filling my heart.

Five years. A world of dead silence. It was finally over tonight. The curse was broken. My hearing was back. Even the mind link worked again.

My mate, Alpha Damon, didn’t know. Our daughter, Lily, didn’t know either.

I couldn’t wait to see the surprise on their faces. My mind flashed back five years. He was cradling my blood-soaked body. He swore to the Moon Goddess he would never leave me.

My eyes found them across the crowd.

Damon signed to me tenderly, his eyes overflowing with love. "My love, you look beautiful tonight."

A familiar ache of love tightened my chest. Even when I was “the deaf one,” he never forgot to praise me. This was the man I loved with my whole soul.

The next second, a voice stabbed through me.

“Daddy, the cripple is still carrying my brother. When can we bring Momma Elara home?”

Lily’s childish voice came through the mind link. It was sharp, clear, and filled with a venom far beyond her years.

“I’m sick of this deaf-mute monster. She’s a total embarrassment in front of the other pups. She can't even use the mind link. How can a worthless creature like her be our Luna?”

The words hit me like stones. Cripple. Deaf-mute monster. Worthless.

Was this really my daughter?

My blood ran cold. An invisible hand gripped my throat.

“Lily…”

This was the daughter I carried for ten months. The daughter I nearly died giving birth to after my injuries.

Across the way, he stroked Lily's head, a doting smile on his face.

But the words he sent her on their mind link were pure ice.

“Patience, my little princess. You and your brother must have Elara’s pure, noble bloodline. That woman is just a container. A living womb.”

A container? A living womb?

A tsunami of pain crashed over me. I staggered, nearly falling to my knees.

What did that mean?

Damon’s voice echoed in my head. It was horrifyingly cruel.

“I used forbidden black magic. I transferred Elara’s bloodline seed into her belly. The cripple’s womb is of a low-born line, but it’s a healthy vessel. As soon as the heir is born, we’ll get rid of this burden. Then, Momma Elara will give you a complete family.”

The baby I was carrying… wasn’t mine?

A demonic seed… growing inside me?

A tearing pain ripped through my chest. For the first time in five years, I felt the Mate Bond shake. It was the agony of a soul being torn in two.

I remembered Damon, his head on my belly every night. "This is the miracle of our love," he'd say.

All lies. A complete sham.

I was a clown. Performing a one-woman show of happiness in my silent world for five years.

"Lily, watch it." He warned our daughter in my head, his eyes tracking me as I walked closer. “Don’t let her see you move your lips. The deaf one is stupid, but she’s sensitive.”

Lily’s laugh, once like silver bells, now sounded like a demon’s hiss. “Don’t worry, Daddy. The cripple is so pathetic and stupid. She’ll never find out.”

Cripple. Pathetic and stupid.

My knees gave out.

Damon walked toward me. His face instantly shifted back to that perfect, loving mask I had drowned in for five years.

He opened his arms, pulling me into his embrace like I was a priceless treasure.

“My Luna, my love. You must be tired.”

He signed words of love. His thoughts were venom in my mind.

But now, all I could hear were the sickening calculations in his heart.

I stood stiffly in his arms.

He kissed my ear. But his mind link carried his longing for another woman. “It’s almost over, Elara. Just a few more months. Then this idiot’s purpose will be fulfilled.”

Purpose.

I shoved him away. My fingers trembled uncontrollably.

I fought back the nausea. I signed, “I… I don't feel well. I want to go back.”

“Of course, baby.” He kissed my forehead. His eyes hid his impatience, but his face was a mask of perfect concern. “Get some rest. You have to be healthy. For our child.”

I turned and fled the hall. Every step was like walking on knives. Blood everywhere.

Behind me, I heard Lily’s bright laughter and Damon’s loving reply.

The silver blade that stole my hearing five years ago was nothing compared to this agony.

The Josie who loved Damon died tonight.