Chapter one: the big news

Selene's pov

The silk beneath me was icy, just like the man who’d left it wrinkled and infused with another woman’s scent. I buried my face deeper into the pillow, trying to drown out the sounds coming from the bathroom Kael’s low murmur of satisfaction, her sharp, gasping whimpers. The same sounds I’d once foolishly believed were meant for me.

Fool. The word lingered on my tongue, bitter as I forced myself upright, my bare feet brushing the cold marble floor of what was supposed to be our shared bedroom. Our bedroom. A cruel joke. I was nothing more than an ornament Kael Ashborne displayed when convenient, discarded when another diversion captured his attention.

The bathroom door clicked open softly, and I didn’t lift my gaze. I already knew what I’d see Kael’s tall, commanding frame in the doorway, his dark hair tousled, those steely gray eyes dismissive and unreadable. Behind him, Liora Veyra would be smirking, her auburn hair spilling over her shoulders like molten fire, her pale skin still flushed from their encounter.

“You’re awake.” His voice held no warmth, no acknowledgment of what I’d endured. Just a statement, flat and lifeless, like reciting the weather.

I lifted my head, trying to hold onto whatever dignity remained. “Yes, Alpha.” The title tasted like ash in my mouth, but I’d learned the consequences of forgetting my place.

Liora moved beside him, her bare body pressed effortlessly against his side. She was everything I was not powerful, werewolf-born, desired. Her green eyes glittered with cruel delight, scanning my face for any hint of weakness.

“Poor little Luna,” she purred, her mockery tightening my chest. “You seem tired. Maybe you should rest while the Alpha and I handle pack matters.”

Pack matters. That’s what they called it now?

Kael’s hand found the small of Liora’s back, casual yet possessive, sending another fresh pang through my fractured heart. “Get dressed,” he ordered, his eyes never leaving mine. “The council meets in an hour.”

“Of course, Alpha.” I rose slowly, muscles stiff from the night’s uncomfortable position if it could even be called sleep. My flimsy nightgown did nothing to hide the tremor in my hands as I moved toward the walk-in closet.

“Selene.”

I paused, hand on the closet handle. Just for a moment, I allowed myself to hope he might speak acknowledge the wife he’d publicly claimed but privately broken.

“Wear the teal gown. The one with the high neckline.”

Of course. The pack must see no hint of my ruined state. The teal dress would conceal the finger-shaped marks on my throat from three nights ago, when his passion had been driven by rage instead of desire.

“Yes, Alpha.”

I retreated into the closet, my private refuge in this gilded cage. The teal gown hung neatly, pressed and waiting, like a costume for the performance I’d be forced to give in an hour. Dutiful Luna. Beloved mate. Happy wife.

All lies.

My reflection in the full-length mirror revealed the truth sunken cheeks, shadows beneath my brown eyes, skin long since lost its healthy glow. The mate bond should have made me stronger, more radiant, more complete. Instead, I was wasting away, collapsing slowly from the inside.

The sound of the bedroom door signaled their departure, likely to continue their “pack matters” in Kael’s office. I sank onto the small velvet bench, finally allowing myself to fracture.

The tears came silently, practice over years having taught me to weep without sound. Kael hated weakness; tears were the ultimate sin in his eyes. I had learned that lesson on our wedding night, when I had foolishly believed the ceremony meant anything to him.

“You mean nothing to me,” his words from that night rang in my memory. “Don’t ever expect anything. You were brought here to perform as my Luna and satisfy my desires.”

I had been young, naive. Eighteen and taken from my human village like an object, sold to the Shadowmoon Pack by my father to settle a debt. The Moon Goddess’s cruel jest making me fated to a man who saw me as nothing more than decoration.

A soft knock interrupted my spiraling thoughts. “Luna? It’s Dr. Caldwell.”

Maris. The only soul in this pack who had shown genuine kindness, though carefully hidden from the Alpha’s gaze. I wiped my face and opened the door.

Dr. Maris Caldwell was in her forties, gray hair pulled into a practical bun, warm brown eyes brimming with concern. She carried her medical bag and wore the expression of someone here for more than routine care.

“How are you feeling today?” she asked, stepping inside and closing the door behind her.

“Fine,” I lied automatically.

“Selene.” Her voice was gentle but firm. “I need to examine you. The Alpha mentioned you’ve been… unwell.”

Unwell. That’s what he called it? The morning sickness that had plagued me for weeks, the fatigue no rest could cure, the subtle changes in my scent?

“I’m fine,” I repeated, my voice cracking.

Maris softened. “Please, sit. Let me help you.”

I perched on the bed’s edge, hands clasped tightly as she opened her medical bag. Her examination was thorough, careful, professional. When she finally stepped back, her expression confirmed the truth I had been avoiding.

“Congratulations, Luna,” she said softly. “You’re pregnant.”

The words struck like a blow. Pregnant. I carried the child of a man who despised me, who made clear I was only a tool for his pleasure and pack politics. A child who would grow up watching their father treat their mother as worthless.

“How… how far along?” I whispered.

“About eight weeks, I’d estimate. The baby is healthy, strong heartbeat.” She studied me. “This should be good news, Selene. You’ll give the pack an heir.”

An heir. Not a child, not our baby. An heir for Kael Ashborne, another possession for his collection.

“Does he know?” I asked, voice barely audible.

“Not yet. That’s yours to tell.” Maris packed her instruments carefully. “But Selene, you must take care of yourself. The stress… it isn’t good for the baby.”

I wanted to laugh, hysterical. Take care of myself? Here? With him, who had made it his mission to break me? “I understand,” I said.

After Maris left, I sat in the silence of my cage, one hand resting instinctively on my still-flat stomach. A baby. My baby. The first thing in years that was truly mine.

The door opened again, and Kael entered, dressed in his tailored black suit. He looked every inch the Alpha tall, broad-shouldered, stunning in that cold, cruel way that once made my heart race. Now it made me sick.

“The council meets in twenty minutes,” he said, adjusting his cufflinks. “Don’t embarrass me.”

“I won’t,” I said, rising to finish getting ready.

He studied me with those gray eyes, and for a moment, I thought I saw something flicker concern? Impossible. More likely annoyance at my pale face.

“You look ill,” he observed. “I’m fine, Alpha.”

He stepped closer. His scent cedar and rain, with a trace of Liora’s perfume made my stomach churn. Once comforting, now nauseating.

“See that you are. The Crescent Moon Pack sends representatives today, and I won’t have them thinking my Luna is weak.”

His Luna. A word that should have thrilled me once. Now it was a chain.

“Of course not,” I said, moving to the vanity, applying makeup to hide my misery.

He watched briefly, then left. At the doorway, he paused.

“After the meeting, join me in my office. We have… matters to discuss.”

The words made my blood run cold. Whatever he intended, it wouldn’t be pleasant. It never was.

“Yes, Alpha.”

He left. I faced my reflection and the secret inside me. Concealer under my eyes, blush, lipstick a mask perfected over years.

But staring at myself, something stirred. My hand instinctively touched my stomach. This baby my baby deserved better. Better than a mother who had surrendered, better than a father who ruled through fear.

For the first time in months, despair didn’t dominate. A spark flickered defiance, hope, maternal fury, fierce and bright.

I would endure the council meeting, play the obedient Luna. But tonight, when the pack slept, I would vanish with my child. We’d survive, build a life far from Kael Ashborne’s reach.

The Luna in the mirror stared back, and for the first time in years, she seemed ready to fight.

The baby deserved a mother who survived, not succumbed. And if Kael thought he could destroy me, he was gravely mistaken.

I smoothed the teal gown, lifted my chin, and prepared for the performance of my life. Tonight, everything would change.

Tonight, I would reclaim my power and my child’s future.