NO LONGER NECESSARY

"What's wrong?" one of the Betas beside him asked casually.

Darius tilted his head slightly, eyes narrowing. "I thought I caught a familiar scent."

The other men exchanged looks. These weren’t just colleagues; they were his inner circle. Pureblood wolves, raised together in the same brutal training camp. They knew exactly who I was: the once Luna-heir of Moon Claw Pack and the woman who had once devoted everything to their Alpha.

And yet, I was always the outsider.

By human standards, I was beautiful—soft brown hair, rich brown eyes, and a quiet, graceful demeanor. But I wasn’t the bold, icy blonde he gravitated toward. I wasn’t Emma. To Darius, I had always been... convenient. Present. But never enough to let his guard down.

Even after we bonded—officially, under the full moon—he remained distant, polite, and cold. His friends barely masked their indifference, addressing me as “Luna” only out of obligation. I could’ve been invisible, and to most of them, I was.

So even if I had been standing in that hallway, breathing in the same space as him, Darius would have dismissed the scent as a mistake.

He didn’t investigate further. He turned and re-entered the private room, never once glancing back.

I didn’t realize one pair of eyes had caught me—Rocco's.

Later that night, I drove Zoe home to South City. She was completely wasted, her inner wolf drunk off her balance. As a former Luna, I instinctively reached out through our mental link to soothe her sleep.

When she finally stirred awake, bleary-eyed but safe, she launched herself into my arms like a child.

"You were my Moonlight savior last night," she murmured dramatically. "I owe you a Red Moon Feast, Rae!"

I laughed, gently pushing her away. "Go wash up. Breakfast’s waiting."

Zoe yawned and leaned her head on my hip, pouting playfully. “You still smell like a Luna. It’s unfair how comforting you are.”

I rolled my eyes, trying not to smile. “Up. Now.”

She finally obeyed, emerging later with wet hair and a hungry look. When she saw the herb omelets I made, her entire face lit up like a sunrise.

"You always fry the cheese just right," she said, sliding a piece onto my plate. “Being able to eat your food… I must’ve been a wolf saint in my past life.”

She was halfway through her meal when her smile vanished.

“Darius is back?” she asked, eyes locked on her phone screen.

I nodded without looking up.

Wordlessly, she handed me the phone.

It was Rocco's post—his social media “Alpha Moments,” the place where he paraded around like a wolf celebrity. His caption read:

[Happy 21st birthday to the blonde, blue-eyed beauty who’s stolen the Alpha’s heart.]

The photos were like knives. Half of them featured Emma and Darius together, intimately close. One photo caught my breath, he and Emma, standing side-by-side, holding the same crystal carving knife, slicing into a moon-shaped wolf cheesecake. Their energies coiled together like an ancient bond ceremony. As if fate had tied them with ribbons of inevitability.

Lyra—my daughter—wasn’t in a single frame.

I knew why. They wouldn’t dare let Darius’s grandmother see this. That old Luna, who once ruled her Pack alongside mine, had sworn never to allow Emma near Lyra. Emma’s mother had betrayed too many sacred oaths, and Darius’s grandmother had never forgiven her.

But there Emma was—in full view, golden hair shining under the lights, her blue eyes filled with warmth that didn’t belong to her.

She looked like she belonged there.

I blinked hard, looking away from the screen.

Zoe’s voice was soft. “Rae…”

“It’s okay,” I said, pushing the phone back toward her. “It doesn’t matter anymore.”

She stared at me, stunned. “Wait… you really mean it?”

“I asked Darius to sever our bond,” I said quietly.

Her eyes widened like I’d slapped her. “You asked for it?”

I nodded once, steady.

Zoe shoved aside her plate. “But… you loved him for seven years, Rae. You endured every bruise that bond gave you. You stayed for your daughter, your dignity… Why now?”

I took a breath. “It wasn’t one moment. It was thousands. Quiet disappointments stacked so high I couldn’t breathe anymore.”

My voice shook, but I didn’t stop.

“When I saw Emma wearing that bone-stone necklace—the one Lyra made herself—I realized something. There’s no place left for me in his world. Not even as the mother of his child.”

Zoe wrapped her arms around me without a word.

“It’s okay,” she whispered after a long silence. “You’re our Luna. Not his. You never needed to beg for your place.”

I nodded, even though my chest still ached like I’d torn something loose and let it bleed.

After breakfast, I headed to HQ. I hadn’t formally resigned from Darius’s research group, though I knew he avoided me like I carried a plague.

Fate had a sense of humor—because we crossed paths the moment I walked in.

He brushed past me with that signature Alpha coldness, his aura like ice brushing skin. Powerful. Distant. Always just out of reach.

I gave him a soft, professional nod. “Good morning.”

He didn’t even flinch. Just kept walking.

I didn’t care anymore.

I turned and headed to the lab, where I dove into my AI project—refining the Lunar Phase Suppressant for unstable young wolves. It was the only thing lately that gave me a sense of control.

Around noon, my phone buzzed.

Grandma.

“Rae, a snow sheep just arrived from Austin City. Come home for dinner. It’s cold out—Grandma made whole-lamb soup with silver ginger. Your favorite.”

I smiled onto the phone, warmth rising in my chest. “I’ll be there after work.”

But as I prepared to log out, David—a Beta from Darius’s side—knocked on my door. “Urgent document. Alpha said to deliver this to you personally.”

I scanned it. Routine retest paperwork. Nothing urgent about it.

I remembered the days I’d smile and agree, trying to win favor from these cold Betas—pretending that being Luna didn’t make me different. Pretending I belonged.

Not today.

Especially not after David had sat in that meeting and let them slander me without lifting a finger.

I stared him down and said coolly, “I’m not doing this. I’m going home.”

********