My Alpha mate Cain's childhood sweetheart Vivienne had returned from her overseas training in healing.

She'd made a bet with the other healers that she could use the deadly wolfsbane to cure patients.

Every senior healer told her it was absolutely impossible. But she ignored the warnings and injected a massive dose of wolfsbane extract straight into my mother Iris's body.

My mother fell into a deep coma after her wolf was killed.

My brother Ethan, enraged at the Moonlight Gathering, demanded a Trial by Blood from Vivienne, demanding her life.

But Cain had Ethan imprisoned in the Silver Prison before the gathering.

I was trembling with rage, wanting to tell everyone the truth at the gathering. But Cain stopped me.

“When you go up on stage, tell everyone that what happened to your mother was an accident.”

I froze, tears streaming down my face. I was his mate, after all.

A flicker of guilt crossed Cain's eyes as he gently wiped away my tears.

“Don't cry, baby,” his voice was low and gentle. “Vivian and I grew up together. She saved my life when we were little. She's a good person. She would never intentionally use Wolfsbane to harm your mother. It was an accident.”

“You just need to admit it wasn't Vivian's fault,” Cain said, “and I'll get the best healers to treat your mother.”

He paused.

“Ethan will be released immediately too.”

I closed my eyes. “Okay…”

Since Vivienne was so important to you, then I would grant your wish.

I turned and staged my death, leaving with my mother and brother.

But the powerful Alpha broke down, searching the world for me and begging me to come back.

My Alpha mate Cain's ex-girlfriend Vivienne had returned from her overseas training in healing.

She'd made a bet with the other healers in the medical wing.

She was convinced she could use the deadly wolfsbane to cure patients.

Every senior healer told her it was absolutely impossible.

She ignored the warnings and injected a massive dose of wolfsbane extract straight into my mother Iris's body.

The medical instruments screamed with alarms. The treatment was a complete failure.

Vivienne, humiliated in front of her colleagues, stormed out of the treatment room.

My mother's wolf was killed—poisoned to death by the toxin.

Her body was still breathing, but her consciousness had sunk into an unreachable sleep.

My brother Ethan nearly broke the door down when he burst into the healing center.

One look at our mother lying in that hospital bed, and his fists clenched so hard his knuckles went white.

"Trial by Blood." His voice was low and shaking. "I'm invoking Trial by Blood against Vivienne."

Trial by Blood—the oldest law of the Pack. The victim's family had the right to demand a public trial at the Moonlight Assembly, and not even the Alpha could stop it.

Ethan left immediately to file the petition.

But he never made it to the Assembly.

The night before, Cain sent the Beta with six elite warriors to raid Ethan's home.

They dragged him into the silver prison—the place reserved for traitors.

Publicly, Cain announced that Ethan had attempted to incite rebellion and threaten pack order.

When I heard the news, my legs nearly gave out beneath me.

I ran toward the Assembly square. I was going to tell every pack member the truth.

But before the Assembly could even begin, Cain appeared.

He stepped in front of me, his tall frame casting a shadow over me.

"Wren." His voice was soft. "Listen to me."

"You locked my brother in the silver prison!" My voice was trembling.

Cain sighed.

"When you go up on stage, tell everyone that the risks of your mother's treatment were known."

I froze.

"Tell them Ethan's demand for Trial by Blood against Vivienne was driven by personal grudge, not legitimate grievance."

My mind went blank.

"You... you're asking me to lie?"

Cain didn't answer.

My whole body started shaking violently.

I didn't understand.

I was his mate.

I was the one who shared a soul bond with him.

The tears fell before I could stop them.

Something like guilt flickered in Cain's eyes.

He reached out, gently trying to wipe the tears from my face.

"Don't cry, baby." His voice was low and tender. "Vivienne and I grew up together."

I went rigid.

"She saved my life when we were children." Cain's thumb traced softly over my cheekbone. "She's a good person. She would never deliberately use wolfsbane on your mother. It was just an accident."

I stared at him, my nails digging into my own palms.

"All you have to do is acknowledge that it wasn't Vivienne's fault," Cain said, "and I'll bring in the best healers to treat your mother."

He paused.

"Ethan will be released immediately too."

My phone rang.

It was the on-call healer at the healing center.

I answered with shaking hands.

"Wren!" The healer's voice was frantic on the other end. "Your mother's condition just took a sharp turn!"

My heart seized.

"We need moonlight herb to stabilize her vitals, but—" The healer sounded close to tears. "The Alpha requisitioned the pack's entire supply yesterday."

"What?"

"The Alpha said it was for Vivienne's drug research."

My hands were shaking so badly I almost dropped the phone.

Cain heard the healer's voice through the speaker.

His expression didn't change at all.

"Baby." He looked at me, his voice terrifyingly calm. "All you have to do is go up there and publicly announce that your mother's treatment failure was a normal healing risk, and that you and Ethan are waiving all rights to invoke Trial by Blood."

He paused for one second.

"The moonlight herb will be delivered to the healing center immediately."

I stared at his face.

"You wouldn't want your mother to die, would you?"

I took a disbelieving step backward.

My entire body was shaking.

The man standing before me—for the first time, he felt like a stranger.

A terrifying one.

Five years ago, Cain had been the Alpha Heir of the entire Blackwood Pack—handsome, powerful, every she-wolf's dream.

And I was just an ordinary commoner girl in the pack.

At the Moonlight Ceremony, he'd taken my hand in front of every pack member.

"She is my Fated Mate." His voice rang across the entire square.

The crowd erupted.

A commoner girl? The future Luna?

The Elders were furious.

"Give up this girl," the Chief Elder slammed his fist on the table. "You must honor the arranged mating contract with the Silvercrest Pack Alpha's daughter."

Cain didn't even glance at the contract.

He tore it to shreds right there in front of everyone.

The pieces drifted down to the Elders' feet.

The Elders, enraged, threw him into the silver cage.

His father Alaric personally ordered him exiled to the wilderness alone.

"I will never submit." Cain looked back at me as they dragged him away.

There wasn't a trace of fear in his eyes.

Three weeks of exile.

No weapons, no supplies, no word.

I didn't dare close my eyes for a single night.

In the end, he accepted the Elders' punishment trial—a full moon night, alone against thirty rogues.

Bare-handed.

That night I stood outside the trial ground, gripping the fence until my nails broke skin.

Howls, the tearing of flesh, the crack of bone—

It went on for a full hour.

He survived.

Covered in blood, his left arm nearly torn off, but he walked out of that arena on his own two feet.

Alaric finally relented.

Cain and I completed the Mate Bond.

I thought after everything we'd been through, we'd be together forever.

Until a year ago.

Vivienne came back from overseas.

Spoiled and arrogant, but Cain indulged her every whim.

When her work went wrong, Cain cleaned up the mess.

When her life needed arranging, Cain handled it.

When her treatments failed again and again and the pack members complained, Cain personally escorted her in and out of the healing center every single day.

...

The healer's frantic voice came through the phone again.

"Wren! Iris's vitals are still dropping! We can't hold on much longer!"

My knees buckled.

Cain stood in front of me, waiting for my answer.

"Last chance, Wren."

I closed my eyes.

My mother's face floated up from the darkness.

I opened my eyes and walked toward the stage.

Below, hundreds of pack members looked up at me.

I opened my mouth.

My voice was shaking. Every word felt like it was being carved out of my throat with a knife.

"My mother's treatment failure... was a normal healing risk."

Whispers rippled through the crowd.

"My brother Ethan and I... waive the right to invoke Trial by Blood against Vivienne."

The moment the words left my lips, my legs finally gave out.

Cain stepped forward and caught me.

He gently wiped the tears from my face.

"Good girl," he whispered in my ear.

Then he pulled out his phone and dialed a number.

"Have the Beta personally deliver a moonlight herb to the healing center."

I collapsed against him, gasping for air.

It was over.

My mother was going to be okay.

Then Cain's phone rang.

The name on the screen—Vivienne.

Cain answered, and Vivienne's voice came through the speaker, trembling and pitiful.

"Cain... all the moonlight herb was used for research, and there's only one left..." She sniffled. "But the old injury from when I saved you as a child is flaring up again. It hurts so much... I need the moonlight herb too..."

Cain's expression changed instantly.

All composure vanished.

"Don't be scared." His voice was urgent and worried. "Use the moonlight herb for your wound first. I'm coming right now."

My mind exploded.

"No!" I grabbed his arm. "You promised! You promised to save my mother!"

Cain glanced down at me.

He shook my hand off impatiently.

"I'll have the Beta buy one from another pack at a premium." He was already striding away without looking back. "But right now, no one is stopping me from getting to Vivienne."

"Cain!" I lunged after him.

A massive force slammed into my chest.

Alpha command.

My body was pinned by an invisible hand, my organs twisting inside me.

Blood surged up my throat.

My knees cracked against the ground.

My vision blurred.

Consciousness scattered into chaos.

One last thought surfaced—

Sever the Mate Bond.

I don't want it anymore.

When I woke up, I was alone.

Cain wasn't there.

The Beta came in carrying a velvet box.

"The Alpha asked me to relay a message to the Luna." He kept his head down, unable to meet my eyes. "The moonlight herb... has already been given to Miss Vivienne."

My fingertips went cold.

"The Alpha takes your mother's condition very seriously. He's offered fifty million dollars to purchase moonlight herb from neighboring packs. There should be news soon."

Fifty million.

He said it like a number could make up for everything.

The Beta opened the velvet box. Inside was a necklace of healing gemstones, each one glowing with a faint silver-blue light.

"This is the Alpha's compensation." He hesitated. "The Alpha also said... he asks that the Luna stop targeting Miss Vivienne."

I stared at the necklace.

The Beta had the sense to set the box on the nightstand and leave.

I sat holding that necklace for a long time.

Finally, I placed it back in the box and closed the lid.

I picked up my phone and scrolled to a number I hadn't called in years.

Cain's father, the former Alpha—Alaric.

The call connected.

"I'll agree to sever the Mate Bond and give up my position as Luna." My voice was calm. "But you need to help me stage a death."

Three seconds of silence on the other end.

"I want to leave Blackwood Pack—me, my mother, and my brother."

Over the next few days, I prepared a Mate Bond dissolution petition.

Then I went to Cain's office.

He was reviewing documents and looked up, momentarily startled to see me.

I knew I looked terrible. My face was deathly pale.

Something like concern flickered in Cain's eyes.

"Why aren't you resting at home?"

I didn't answer. I placed the document in front of him.

Cain took it and flipped through.

"What is this?"

I smiled and cut him off. "A formal agreement I signed, waiving all claims against Vivienne."

Cain's hand paused.

He looked at me. The confusion in his eyes slowly shifted to surprise, then relief.

"You've finally come around." His tone carried a note of gratitude. "That's what a real Luna does."

My heart wrenched.

But I smiled and urged him on. "Sign it quickly, before I change my mind."

Cain seemed genuinely afraid I'd take it back. He picked up a pen and signed the last page without hesitation.

He didn't read the contents carefully at all.

After signing, he looked at me with what seemed like a trace of guilt.

"Let me walk you home."

I was about to refuse when his phone rang.

Vivienne's name flashed on the screen.

He answered, and Vivienne's voice came through, soft and helpless. "Cain, the aftereffects of my old injury are acting up again. I'm scared..."

"Don't worry, I'll be right there." Cain hung up and turned to me. "Head back on your own. I've got something to take care of."

He grabbed his coat and left.

I stood in the empty office.

I laughed bitterly.

Then I took the signed document and went straight to the Alpha Council.

Mate Bond dissolution agreement—officially filed.

When I returned from the Council, I saw my belongings in the hallway.

Clothes, books, my jewelry box—all thrown on the floor.

Servants were busy carrying Vivienne's luggage into my bedroom.

Vivienne stood at the bedroom door directing them. When she saw me, a flash of satisfaction crossed her eyes.

Cain came down the stairs, his expression slightly uncomfortable.

"Someone contaminated Vivienne's herb storage with silver powder. Until we find out who, she's safer here in the main residence." He wouldn't look me in the eye.

I said nothing.

"And Vivienne's old injuries—the moonlight from the master bedroom helps with her recovery." He paused. "Just stay in the guest room for a few days. I know it's an inconvenience."

I bent down and picked up my suitcase from the floor.

No answer.

No argument.

I dragged the suitcase to the guest room at the end of the hall.

I'd be leaving soon anyway.

That evening, while I was resting in the guest room, a scream pierced the hallway.

I rushed out to find Vivienne collapsed at the kitchen door.

A raw, red burn streaked across her arm. A pot of hot soup lay overturned beside her.

When Vivienne saw me appear, something calculating flickered in her eyes.

The next second, her crying amplified tenfold.

Cain came charging downstairs, taking the steps three at a time to reach Vivienne's side.

"What happened?! Where are you hurt?!"

Vivienne sobbed. "I was just trying to heat up some soup, and when I went into the kitchen I found wolfsbane powder mixed into it... I panicked and knocked over the pot..."

She didn't name anyone.

But her gaze kept drifting toward me.

Cain's expression grew darker and darker.

A servant attending Vivienne added quietly, "The only person who went into the kitchen today was the Luna. No one else."

I whipped around to face the servant.

"I just stepped out of my room. I didn't touch anything," I said coldly.

But Cain was silent for a long time.

His voice was heavy with exhaustion and disappointment. "I thought you'd come around."

I opened my mouth to explain.

"Guards. Take the Luna to the silver prison to cool off."

He turned away to help Vivienne, and didn't look at me again.

The silver prison door slammed shut behind me.

I was an ordinary she-wolf. My tolerance for silver was nowhere near a warrior's.

In less than ten minutes, my skin erupted in burning red welts—itching and stinging at once.

The sealed space was saturated with silver toxin. Every breath felt like inhaling fire.

I pounded on the door. I screamed all night.

No one came.

My voice gave out completely.

I curled up on the one small patch of floor in the center of the cell that wasn't lined with silver.

Covered in welts, my consciousness started to slip.

I don't know how much time passed before the door opened.

Cain stood in the doorway.

When he saw the state I was in, his brow furrowed sharply.

He walked in quickly and crouched down in front of me.

I felt his hand touch my forehead. Burning hot.

"Don't do something that cruel again." His voice was soft.

My lips twitched.

A miserable smile.

I was in too much pain to even explain.

He said "cruel."

I'd been locked in a silver prison for god knows how many hours, my skin blistering and infected, nearly dead.

And I was the cruel one.

Cain had just carried me out of the silver prison.

Vivienne happened to be walking down the hallway toward us.

She was carrying a bowl of dark liquid, all smiles.

"I specially prepared a silver-detox herbal remedy for the Luna. To help her recover."

Cain looked pleased. He turned to me and said, "See? Vivienne is so good to you, and you keep misunderstanding her."

He took the bowl and brought it to my lips himself. "Drink."

I looked into Vivienne's eyes. A flash of malice, there and gone.

I tried to refuse.

Cain thought I was being difficult. His tone carried a hint of exasperation. "Stop being stubborn. It's good for you."

He held the bowl steady against my lips, his other hand cradling the back of my head. The liquid poured down my throat.

It wasn't a detox remedy at all.

It was diluted wolfsbane.

My wolf felt like it was being swallowed by fire. My entire body seized violently.

I couldn't breathe. Everything went black.

Cain panicked and grabbed me. "What's happening?! Wren!"

Vivienne covered her mouth, putting on a perfect look of shock.

"Maybe being in the silver prison too long weakened her body, causing a rejection reaction..." Her voice trembled—a convincing performance. "I'll go prepare an antidote right away!"

She turned and ran.

My consciousness shattered into pieces in the agony.

When I woke again, I was lying in a bed at the healing center.

Cain was sitting beside me.

He looked like he'd been sitting there a long time.

In his hand was a brand-new moonstone bracelet, the stones glowing with a faint silver-white light.

"This will help repair the damage the silver toxin did to your wolf." He carefully slipped the bracelet onto my wrist, his movements gentle, avoiding the welts that still hadn't faded. "I had someone buy it overnight from another pack at a premium."

I said nothing.

"I shouldn't have left you in the silver prison that long." There was unmistakable guilt in his voice. "I didn't consider your tolerance for silver."

I still said nothing.

He was quiet for a moment.

Then he changed the subject.

"Because of everything that's happened, Vivienne's reputation in the pack has hit rock bottom." He sighed. "A lot of healers are openly questioning her abilities. Some even filed a joint petition to revoke her healer credentials."

I stared at the ceiling.

"I'd like you to publicly reconcile with Vivienne at the next Pack Assembly."

My fingers slowly clenched the bedsheets.

"Not an apology," he added quickly. "Just a public display of goodwill. A handshake, a few kind words."

He looked at me, his tone suggesting this was a perfectly reasonable request. "If the pack sees that the Luna and Vivienne have no conflict, she can continue her work as a healer in peace."

I slowly turned my head to look at him.

My mother was in a permanent coma because of her.

I'd just been force-fed wolfsbane and nearly died because of her.

And now he wanted me to publicly "reconcile."

"Absolutely not."

Cain's expression darkened.

"You put wolfsbane in her food, and she was still kind enough to bring you a silver-detox remedy." His voice was tight with barely contained anger. "Can't you be even a fraction as generous as she is?"

My lips trembled violently.

I was the one who poisoned her.

I was the one who wasn't generous enough.

Cain paused, then lowered his voice.

"If you agree to reconcile, I'll release your brother from the silver prison in two weeks."

Ethan.

The silver prison, saturated with silver toxin—could Ethan's body hold up?

How long had he been in there?

Was his skin blistering like mine had? Had he screamed himself hoarse with no one coming?

I closed my eyes. "...Fine."