6

"My love, you're awake."

Marcus walked in carrying a bouquet of white roses. His eyes were swollen, his face etched with exhaustion.

"I'm going to make the Black Stone Pack pay," he said, coming to my bedside and taking my hand. "They murdered our child. I will never forgive them."

They? Who was the real murderer of the child in my womb?

I watched his flawless performance, and my stomach roiled.

"What are you going to do?" I asked, suppressing the inferno of rage inside me.

"First, I'll cut off their funding, then…" Marcus launched into a detailed account of his "revenge plan," every word another twist of the knife.

"Enough," I cut him off.

Marcus stopped, looking at me with concern.

"Elena, are you okay?"

"I don't want to hear it," I said, pressing my fingers to my temples. "Don't you have things to deal with? Isn't that major trade agreement with the Black Stone Pack supposed to be signed today?"

"None of that matters. What matters is you…"

"Marcus," I said, meeting his eyes. "I'm very tired right now. I need to rest. You should go handle your business. For our pack."

"Alright," Marcus hesitated, then gently stroked my cheek. "Call a nurse if you need anything."

The moment the door closed, I reached out to Adrin through our mind-link.

Adrin, I need to talk to you. Come to my room. Now.

Ten minutes later, Adrin rushed in.

"Luna, how are you feeling?"

"Adrin." I looked him straight in the eye. "I know."

The color drained from his face.

"You… you know what?"

"Rylan. My second child. And your deal with the Black Stone Pack." I held his gaze. "Everything."

"Don't lie to me!" My voice was sharp as a razor. "I heard your conversation. About Cecilia, about the price I had to pay, about all of it."

Adrin began to tremble.

"Tell me the truth, Adrin," I said, sitting up, the power of my own bloodline radiating from me. "Tell me exactly how Marcus killed Rylan."

"Luna, please, don't—"

"Tell me!"

Adrin collapsed to his knees, utterly broken.

"It… it was wolfsbane," he choked out. "A slow-acting dose, mixed into Rylan's milk every day. Little by little… by little…"

My blood ran cold.

"For how long?"

"Three months," Adrin whispered, his voice barely audible. "Starting on his fifth birthday."

Three months.

My pup had suffered for three months.

"And what about the Black Stone Pack?"

"The Alpha made a deal with them," Adrin said, looking up with tears in his eyes. "In exchange for your… for your humiliation, he secured a ten-year trade agreement. Luna… you have to understand—Alpha Damon is Cecilia's brother. To their pack, she's their princess."

"And you," I said, my voice dripping with contempt. "I once admired you, Adrin. Your integrity. And now you help him do this?"

"I had no choice! He is my Alpha!" Adrin cried out in despair. "But I can't sleep at night. I watched Rylan get weaker every day, I—"

Adrin closed his eyes, the full truth spilling out in a torrent of pain.

"The Alpha said that since you caused Cecilia to lose her chance at being a mother, you didn't deserve to have children either," he trembled. "He said he was making you atone."

Atonement.

I let out a hollow laugh.

Killing our children was his way of helping me atone.

"But Elena!" Adrin added, stammering. "Every time the Alpha hurts you, he's in agony himself, because of the bond."