Chapter Twenty-Six

Luna’s Secret

The moonlight painted the pack house in silver, soft and beautiful—yet Mona knew beauty was always a mask. She moved through the corridors in silence, her golden hair gleaming like a crown, her lips curved in the smile that fooled everyone. Everyone but her mother.

Catherine had taught her that power was not only taken with claws and fangs but with secrets. And tonight, Mona held a secret sharp enough to slice through Derrick himself.

Kimberly’s father had betrayed them.

She had seen it with her own eyes—the trembling hands, the leather pouch passed into Louis’s grip. A letter for Kimberly.

She should tell Derrick. That was what any loyal Luna would do. Derrick would roar with fury, strike the traitor down, and tighten his grip on the pack. It would be the right thing. The safe thing.

But Mona had no intention of being safe.

She slipped into her chamber, closing the door behind her. The fire burned low, casting her reflection in the mirror across the room. She studied herself carefully: the perfect Luna, draped in silk, her beauty untouchable. But beneath the softness of her smile, her eyes gleamed with hunger.

Kimberly lived. Kimberly grew stronger. Kimberly had survived rejection, humiliation, and Derrick’s wrath. And though Mona told herself she hated her cousin, feared her even—part of her thrilled at it.

A weak Kimberly was a shadow. But a strong Kimberly? She was a storm. A storm Mona longed to crush.

Mona paced the room, her thoughts curling like smoke. If she told Derrick, Kimberly’s father would be executed, and the Alpha’s rage would scorch the pack. But if she kept the secret, it became a weapon in her hands. A leash.

One day soon, Derrick would grow careless. His obsession with Kimberly already consumed him. He dreamed of dragging her back, breaking her publicly. But Mona saw the doubt in his eyes when Lucien’s name was whispered. She saw the fear.

And when Derrick faltered, Mona would be ready.

The letter gave her leverage. She could use it to silence Kimberly’s father, to bind him to her service. She could use it to bait Kimberly herself, to lure her back when the time was right. She could even use it against Derrick—proof that his own house rotted from within.

The thought sent a thrill down her spine.

She sank onto the velvet chair by the fire, her fingers toying with the pendant at her neck. Catherine’s voice echoed in her memory: Control the story, Mona. If you control what others know, you control what they become.

A knock at her door startled her from her thoughts. “Enter,” she called smoothly, slipping the smile back over her lips.

Derrick entered, broad shoulders filling the doorway, his presence thick with dominance. His amber eyes swept over her, sharp and searching.

“You’re awake late,” he said.

Mona rose gracefully, moving to meet him. “I couldn’t sleep.”

He studied her, suspicion flickering in his gaze. “You saw something tonight. I can smell it on you.”

Her pulse quickened, but her smile never faltered. She tilted her head, golden hair spilling like sunlight. “I saw you, Alpha. Pacing, restless, consumed with thoughts of Kimberly.”

His jaw tightened at the name, but his gaze softened slightly at her tone. She pressed a hand against his chest, her eyes shining with devotion she didn’t feel. “You think I don’t see how it eats at you? How she gnaws at the edges of your mind? But you will crush her, Derrick. You always win.”

His pride softened him. He wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her close. “Yes. I will.”

Mona leaned against him, her smile hidden against his shoulder. She didn’t tell him about the letter. She didn’t tell him about Kimberly’s father.

Not yet.

Because sometimes silence was sharper than truth.

When Derrick finally left, she returned to the mirror, studying her reflection once more. The perfect Luna smiled back. But her eyes told the truth.

Kimberly would come. Whether by love, rage, or desperation, she would return.

And when she did, Mona would be

waiting.

To greet her.

To embrace her.

To destroy her.