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Hazel’s POV

“Hazel, never expected you to be such a venomous bitch!” That was not the first thing I wanted to hear from my mate, Alpha Ulysses, after painfully giving birth to our son, Liam.

He hadn’t been there during the delivery. It was Uma, my best friend and the pack’s healer, who stayed by my side and helped me bring Liam into this world.

“The patrol found her.” He glared at me, his eyes so sharp it felt like they could cut me in half. “They found Kimberley.”

My jaw dropped, and for a moment I couldn’t hear anything except my own ragged breathing. “Kimberley?”

“Didn’t expect that, did you? My real mate. Your sister. The woman who should have been Luna from the beginning. She’s in the next room getting treated for her injuries. Minor ones, thank the Goddess.”

Uma’s eyes flicked between us, sensing the storm brewing. She rolled the crib toward the door. “I’ll take Liam to rest,” she murmured.

I nodded weakly, my chest tightening. From the moment Ulysses walked in, he hadn’t spared a single glance at our son.

I turned back to him, my throat dry. “Where…” I had to swallow hard twice before I could force the words out. “Where has she been?”

Three years since Kimberley disappeared the night before her mating ceremony to Ulysses.

Three years since I’d been dragged up the aisle as the bride, so Ulysses wouldn’t lose face in front of the other visiting Alphas.

“Being held prisoner by the rogues you paid!” Ulysses lunged forward and grabbed my throat. 

His fingers dug into my windpipe. “Don’t pretend you don’t know! She told us everything. How you hired them to kidnap her so you could steal her place!”

I grabbed at his wrists, clawing at them, trying to pull his hands away from my throat. “I would never—” I gasped. “I would never hurt Kimberley!”

“Liar!” He squeezed harder. My vision started to blur. “Yes, you got the Luna title. Yes, you gave me a child. So what? I will never love you. I can’t love a kidnapper. I can’t love someone who isn’t my mate.”

Never love me, I thought, and deep down, I knew it was true. These past three years, he had never once said he loved me. When I realized that Kimberley had felt her mate bond with Ulysses at eighteen, I felt a strange mix of sadness and relief.

I was happy for them. I had quietly carried my feelings for him for so long, watched from the sidelines, and yet how could I ever stand in the way of Kimberley’s happiness?

He released me and I sucked in air, coughing. My throat burned and I could feel the bruises forming under my skin, taste the blood filling my mouth.

“You really think I planned everything?” I looked right at him. “You think I made Kimberley disappear so I could take her place?”

“Didn’t you?” He stared back with hate in his eyes. “I always thought you were genuinely kind and easygoing, but it turns out it was all calculated.”

Calculated. I laughed, but it hurt. I remembered smiling at my sister when she announced her engagement, telling her how happy I was while my chest ached. I’d been her maid of honor. I’d helped her pick out the dress I’d end up wearing myself.

“We’ve lived together for three years. Don’t you know what kind of person I am? You’re going to believe her over me? You’re going to forget I just gave you a son?”

“Son…” He laughed, but it was ugly. Mean. “You mean after you trapped me with a child?”

The words hit me harder than his hands had, like he had reached inside and squeezed my heart.

“Trapped you?”

“Every woman tries to hold a man with a baby. You’re no different.”

I shook my head. More blood was soaking through the sheets under me. I could feel it spreading, warm and sticky. I could barely sit up.

“I never tried to trap you. I’ve always loved you, truly. This child…I wanted to share my life with you, not hold you hostage.”

“Love?” He leaned down until his face was inches from mine. I could see the hazel in his green eyes that I used to think were beautiful. “You don’t know what love is. Love is what I feel for Kimberley. What I’ve felt for her every day for three years while she suffered because of you. Every word you say now… I won’t believe a single one of them.”

I swallowed, voice barely steady. “So… why are you here? To tell me Kimberley is back?”

He hesitated, silence pressing down. Then he said, steady, unflinching, “I’m considering taking back your title as Luna.”

“Really? After I’ve given birth… you would strip me of it?”

His attention snapped elsewhere. I followed his gaze and realized he was linked to Kimberley’s mind. His tone softened immediately. “Darling, I’ll be there soon,” he said.

He glanced back at me, sharp again. “I don’t have time to argue with you now. My only concern is Kimberley’s condition. Prepare yourself… for losing the title.”

Then he left the room, the door crashing closed with a loud bang.

Six hours ago I thought I was building a family. Now my husband was in another room calling another woman darling while I bled alone.

I closed my eyes and prayed to the Moon Goddess. The same prayer I’d said every night for three years.

Please show him the truth. Please help him see that I would never hurt anyone. Please don’t let my son grow up believing his mother is evil.

But the Goddess didn’t answer. She never did. Not when Kimberley disappeared. Not when I begged her to help me be a good Luna. Not when I prayed for Ulysses to love me. Not once.

A while later,  Beta Zack walked in. His face was grim and he wouldn’t even look at me directly. He just stared at a spot on the wall behind my head.

“I’m sorry, Luna. I’m just following orders.”

My stomach clenched. I already knew this wasn’t going to be good news. “What orders?”

He pulled out a paper and read aloud from it. “Hazel, from this day forward, you are no longer Luna of Thunderstrike Pack.”

The words hit me like ice. Tears slipped down my cheeks before I could stop them.

He continued, hesitating slightly. “There are additional terms.”

“Additional terms?” My voice cracked.

Zack’s gaze dropped. “After you step down from the Luna position, Heir Liam’s custody will belong entirely to Alpha Ulysses. You will not be allowed to see him again.”