CHAPTER 3: Breaking Point

ARIA’S POV

Six months.

That’s how long I’d been living in hell.

Six months of scrubbing floors until my knees bled. Six months of serving meals to Derek and Celeste while they pretended I didn’t exist. Six months of whispers and cruel laughter following me everywhere.

Six months of surviving. Barely.

I stood in the kitchen at dawn, washing dishes with raw, cracked hands. The water was freezing. My back ached. My stomach growled—I hadn’t eaten since yesterday morning.

“Faster, Omega!” Marge barked. “The Alpha and Luna want breakfast in thirty minutes!”

I scrubbed harder, biting back bitterness.

“Did you hear?” A servant named Marie whispered nearby. “Luna Celeste is three months pregnant. The pack’s throwing a celebration tonight.”

My hands stilled in the soapy water.

Three months pregnant.

“Alpha Derek is over the moon,” Marie continued. “He hopes it’s a boy—a future Alpha.”

I forced myself to keep scrubbing, breathing through the pain in my chest.

It didn’t matter. None of it mattered.

I was nothing. Nobody.

“Aria!” Marge snapped. “Take this tray up to the Alpha’s quarters. Now!”

I dried my hands and carried the breakfast tray upstairs.

Each step felt like walking to my own execution.

I knocked softly.

“Come in,” Derek called.

Derek sat at the table, already dressed. Celeste lounged on the bed in silk, one hand on her barely visible bump.

“Your breakfast, Alpha,” I said quietly, setting the tray down.

Derek didn’t acknowledge me.

But Celeste did.

“Oh, Aria. Perfect timing. I need you to clean the nursery today. Top to bottom.” She smiled. “Derek and I have been shopping for baby furniture. It’s being delivered this afternoon.”

The nursery.

Where she’d raise Derek’s child.

“Of course, Luna,” I managed.

“Make sure you do a good job,” Celeste added sweetly. “I’d hate for my baby to get sick because you’re too incompetent to clean properly.”

“You’re dismissed,” Derek said flatly.

I fled.

The nursery was beautiful—soft yellow walls, large windows, space marked for a crib and changing table.

This was where Celeste’s baby would grow up. Loved. Wanted. Cherished.

Everything I’d never been.

I spent hours scrubbing every surface until the room gleamed.

Around noon, Elena appeared with a sandwich.

“You need to eat,” she whispered.

I took it gratefully. “Thank you.”

She looked around sadly. “This must be torture.”

“I’m fine,” I lied.

By mid-afternoon, I’d finished.

I was gathering supplies when voices echoed in the hallway.

“Perfect for a boy,” Celeste was saying.

Derek and Celeste walked in with pack members carrying furniture boxes.

Celeste’s eyes landed on me. “Oh good. You can help unpack.”

For an hour, I assembled furniture while they directed like I was performing for their entertainment.

“No, not there,” Celeste said when I placed a stuffed bear wrong. “Move it.”

I moved it.

Over and over, they gave orders. I obeyed.

Finally, everything was in place.

“Perfect,” Celeste declared. “Our baby is going to love it here.”

Derek wrapped his arms around her, hands on her stomach.

“I can’t wait to meet them,” he murmured.

The tenderness in his voice broke something inside me.

That should have been me.

“You can go, Aria,” Celeste said dismissively.

I turned to leave.

“Oh, and Aria?” Celeste called.

I stopped.

“Thank you for your hard work. I’m sure you’ll make an excellent nanny when the baby arrives. After all, what else are you good for?”

Laughter followed me down the hallway.

I made it to my room before I broke, sobbing into my pillow.

Six months of this. How much more could I take?

Later, Helen knocked. “Pack-wide announcement in the main hall. All members required.”

I cleaned my face and headed downstairs.

The hall was packed. Derek stood on the platform with Celeste.

“Thank you all for coming,” Derek announced. “Celeste and I have wonderful news.”

He placed his hand on her stomach.

“We’re having a boy. A future Alpha!”

The crowd erupted in cheers.

I stood in the back, invisible, watching my former mate celebrate a life with someone else.

“Tonight, we feast!” Derek declared.

The crowd dispersed, already planning the party.

I turned to leave but froze.

“Aria!” Celeste’s voice rang out. “You’re helping with the feast tonight. Serving tables. And Aria? Wear something nice.”

Laughter rippled through the hall.

“Yes, Luna,” I whispered.

That night, I served while the pack celebrated.

I watched Derek dance with Celeste.

Watched them toast to their future son.

Watched my stepsister glow with happiness while I faded into nothing.

Around midnight, I slipped away.

I couldn’t do this anymore.

I walked to the forest border and kept walking.

Maybe if I ran far enough, I could escape this pain.

“Going somewhere, Omega?”

I spun around.

Three male warriors blocked my path.

“I was just getting air,” I stammered.

The tallest one—Marcus—stepped closer. “At midnight? Alone? That’s dangerous.”

“I’ll head back now.”

He grabbed my arm. “Not so fast. We’ve been watching you. The rejected Luna. All alone. No one to protect you.”

Fear spiked through me. “Let go.”

“Or what? You’ll tell Alpha Derek?” He pulled me closer. “No one cares about you anymore, Aria. You’re fair game now.”

The other two laughed.

My wolf surged forward, fear transforming into rage.

I wouldn’t be a victim anymore.

I drove my knee hard into Marcus’s groin. He released me with a howl.

The other two lunged but I was already running.

I ran into the forest, deeper than I’d ever gone before.

Behind me, wolves snarled and gave chase.

I ran faster, branches tearing at my clothes.

I had to escape—

The ground disappeared beneath my feet.

I was falling, tumbling down a steep embankment, hitting rocks and roots.

I landed hard at the bottom. Pain exploded through my body.

Above me, the warriors stopped at the edge.

“She fell into Lycan territory,” one said.

“Should we go after her?”

“Are you insane? That’s the Lycan King’s land. Let him deal with her.”

Their footsteps retreated.

I lay there, broken and bleeding, staring up at the night sky.

Lycan territory.

I’d crossed into Lycan King Kael Blackthorne’s territory.

Everyone knew the stories. Ruthless. Brutal. Powerful.

If he found me here, I was dead.

But as consciousness started slipping away, I realized something.

Maybe death was better than the life I’d been living.

Maybe this was the Moon Goddess finally showing mercy.

My eyes closed.

And the last thing I heard was a low, rumbling growl echoing through the trees.