Chapter 1: The Omega Luna

I scrubbed the marble floor of the packhouse on my hands and knees, my fingers raw and bleeding. The other wolves walked past me without a glance, some deliberately stepping on the section I had just cleaned. I bit my lip and started over.

This was my life. Aria Moonstone, Luna of the Silver Crest Pack, was reduced to a servant in her own home.

“You missed a spot, Omega.”

I looked up to see Beta Marcus sneering down at me. He kicked over the bucket of dirty water, sending it splashing across the floor and soaking my thin dress.

“Clean it up,” he said, then walked away laughing.

I wanted to cry, but I had no tears left. Five years of marriage to Alpha Damien had taught me that tears changed nothing. I was the weakest wolf in the pack, unable to shift properly, slow to heal, and worthless in every way that mattered to our kind.

The other omegas at least had each other. I had no one.

I gathered rags to soak up the spilt water, moving slowly because my wolf was too weak to help me heal from yesterday’s injuries. My sister Elena had “accidentally” pushed me down the stairs. Again. The bruises on my ribs made every breath hurt.

“Aria!”

My husband’s voice boomed through the packhouse. I flinched. Alpha Damien only called for me when he needed something or when I had disappointed him. Lately, it was always the latter.

I abandoned the mess and hurried toward his office, my wet dress clinging to my thin frame. I had lost so much weight this past year. Food was scarce for me, always given to the “stronger” wolves first. By the time I was allowed to eat, there were only scraps.

I knocked softly on the heavy oak door.

“Enter.”

I pushed open the door and kept my eyes down, as was expected of a weak omega. Even if that omega was technically the Luna.

“You called for me, Alpha?”

He hated it when I called him by his title instead of his name, but he had forbidden me from using his name in public months ago. Now I could not bring myself to say it even in private.

“The Bloodmoon Pack is visiting tomorrow,” Damien said, not looking up from his papers. “I need you to stay out of sight. You embarrass me in front of other Alphas.”

Each word was a knife to my heart, but I had learned to keep my face blank.

“Yes, Alpha.”

“Your sister will act as hostess. She knows how to represent this pack properly.”

Of course. Beautiful, strong, perfect Elena. Everything I was not.

“Is there anything else?” I asked quietly.

“Yes.” He finally looked at me, his handsome face twisted with disgust. “Take a bath. You smell like wet dog and failure.”

I nodded and turned to leave, but his next words stopped me.

“I do not know why the Moon Goddess bound me to something like you. You are not fit to be a Luna. You are not fit to be a wolf.”

I left before he could see my hands shaking.

The walk to my room felt endless. Wolves whispered as I passed, their words cutting deep even though I pretended not to hear.

“She is so pathetic.”

“I heard the Alpha has not touched her in over a year.”

“My cousin’s pack would have banished her by now.”

“She will probably be rejected soon. No Alpha wants a defective mate.”

I climbed the stairs to the third floor where my small room was located. It used to be a storage closet. Damien had moved me here two years ago, saying the Luna’s chambers were wasted on me.

I locked the door and finally allowed myself to collapse on the narrow bed. My whole body ached. My heart ached worse.

Tomorrow I would have to watch Elena play Luna while I hid like the shameful secret I had become. My own sister had taken everything from me except my title, and lately I wondered how long even that would last.

The mate bond thrummed weakly in my chest, connecting me to Damien. Once it had felt warm and full of promise. Now it only brought pain. I could feel his contempt through it, his disappointment, his wish that I was anyone but me.

I closed my eyes and remembered the girl I used to be. The one who believed in true love and happy endings. The one who thought being mated to an Alpha meant being cherished and protected.

That girl died slowly over five years of cruelty.

A knock on my door made me sit up.

“Aria?” It was Elena’s sweet voice. “May I come in?”

I should have said no. Every instinct screamed danger. But she was my sister, my only remaining family. Surely some part of her still cared.

“Come in.”

Elena entered, her beautiful face arranged in false concern. She wore a designer dress that showed her curves, her long blonde hair perfect, her skin glowing with health and power. We were twins, but you would never know it. Where she was everything, I was nothing.

“I wanted to check on you,” she said, sitting on my bed. “I know Damien was harsh today.”

“He is always harsh,” I said quietly.

“Yes, well.” She examined her perfect nails. “That is what happens when you are mated to someone so beneath you. He cannot help his disappointment.”

The words stung, but I said nothing.

Elena smiled, and something cold flickered in her eyes. “I came to tell you something important, sister. Something you deserve to know.”

My stomach twisted with dread.

“Damien and I are in love,” she said simply. “We have been together for two years. I am carrying his child.”

The world stopped.

My sister. My husband. Two years.

“You are lying,” I whispered.

“Am I?” She placed a hand on her flat stomach. “Ask him yourself. Or better yet, come to Luna’s chambers tonight at midnight. See the truth with your own eyes.”

She stood and walked to the door, then paused.

“You were always too weak, Aria. Too weak to be a wolf, too weak to be a Luna, too weak to keep your own mate. This pack needs strength. It needs me.”

The door closed behind her, and I shattered into a million pieces.