For our seventh anniversary, my mate, Alpha Ethan, sent my daughter and me to the Moon Goddess Altar.

He told me it was a surprise—to give our daughter her dream of watching a meteor shower from the highest peak in the territory.

But Ethan never came. The protective runes at my feet sputtered, then died. The ground beneath us began to crumble.

My daughter screamed, her small body sliding toward the abyss. I lunged, grabbing her hand just before she went over the edge.

I screamed his name through our mind-link. Ninety-nine times, he refused to answer.

On my hundredth cry, the link didn't just open—it was ripped wide.

It wasn’t his voice that answered. It was his senses, flooding mine.

I saw it all. Him. Another she-wolf. And him, buried deep inside of her.

"I knew you loved me, Ethan," her sickly-sweet voice purred. "You even sacrificed Marcus, just to save our Leo from the soul-sickness. I'll do anything for you."

Ethan’s voice was velvet and ice.

"Stop. If Sera hadn't betrayed me, you never would have had the chance to carry my heir. Once I get rid of her other pup—Jullian's bastard—we can be perfect again."

My world shattered.

My son... Rogues. I'd always believed rogues had stolen him. But it was his own father. He sacrificed him for a lie.

With my last ounce of strength, I called Julian.

"I'm breaking my bond with Ethan," I snarled into the new link. "Make me your Luna. In return, I will help you burn his pack to the ground."

The Moon Festival. Our seventh anniversary. My mate, Alpha Ethan, promised me a surprise. He sent his Beta to escort me and our daughter to the Moon Goddess Altar, perched on the highest cliff of our territory.

I thought he was finally giving our daughter, Lydia, her biggest wish—to see a meteor shower from the place closest to the Goddess herself. I was a fool. I never imagined he was sending our daughter to die.

Just minutes ago, I was carrying my daughter up the steep stone steps, following the Beta.

The height made my head spin, but a smile was plastered on my face.

I thought Ethan and I would soon be watching the stars together.

"Mommy, when is Daddy coming?" Lydia whispered, her arms tight around my neck.

"Soon, baby. Very soon."

The moment our feet hit the platform, the protective runes etched into the stone flared once, a brilliant silver.

Then, they went dark.

The altar shook violently. Lydia was thrown from my arms, sliding toward the cliff's edge.

"HELP!" I screamed in terror.

I glanced back for help, but the guards had already pulled back to a safe distance, their faces impassive. No one moved.

Below, the river churned like a hungry beast.

My wolf was screaming. Howling in terror.

I desperately reached for Ethan through our mind link. We were fated mates. Nothing was supposed to sever that connection.

I screamed for him. Again. And again. Ninety-nine times, my calls were met with a wall of silence. On the hundredth, the link didn't just open. It was torn apart.

But I didn't hear his voice. I saw through his eyes. Felt what he felt.

The touch of another woman’s skin. The cloying, sweet scent of her perfume. Her breathless moans.

It all flooded through the bond that should have been ours alone.

He was so lost in his pleasure, he forgot to block me.

"Ethan, when will you make me your Luna? I gave you a true heir. A pure-blood."

"Know your place, Lilith," his voice was a low growl. "The Luna title belongs to Seraphina. Always. As for you... you gave me a son. I suppose I can reward you for that."

"But she betrayed you! She gave you a bastard!" Lilith shrieked.

"Yes, she's tainted." A cold chuckle echoed down the bond. "But I already sacrificed Marcus for Leo's sake. Tonight, I'm getting rid of the other one. Once Jullian's bastard is gone, she'll be my clean, pure Sera again."

Sacrifice?

The word pierced my heart.

My son, Marcus. He went missing when he was three.

I always believed he was taken by rogues. I never thought he was murdered by his own father.

He thought killing my pup was his idea of a "fresh start"? With me?

He didn't just kill my son. He was trying to kill my daughter, too.

And it was all because of a ridiculous misunderstanding he never even confronted me about.

He thought I cheated on him with Jullian?!

I remember when his pack was on its knees.

Their mines had collapsed. Their so-called allies scattered like rats from a sinking ship.

It was I who went to Julian, calling on the old friendship we’d forged at the Academy.

His price was simple: I had to help him fulfill a single wish he’d held since we were students.

When I told Ethan, he didn’t utter a single word of doubt.

He just pulled me against his chest, wrapping me in his scent, a powerful Alpha calm that chased away all my fears.

“I trust you,” he had rumbled, his voice a promise against my skin. “We are fated mates. You would never betray me. And I will never betray you.”

And now?

After all that, he dares to look at my pup—our pup—and see another man’s pups?

Seven years of love. My unwavering loyalty. It was all worth nothing to him.

"Mommy!" Lydia's desperate shriek pulled me back.

She was dangling off the edge of the platform, my hand the only thing keeping her from falling.

Through the link, their grunts and laughter continued, a filthy soundtrack to my agony. I didn't cut the connection. I let it slice me apart.

When my daughter screamed again, my tears had run dry.

I closed the link to Ethan. The pain was like ripping out my own soul.

Gasping, I used my last bit of strength to make another call.

"I am severing my bond with Ethan," I choked out, my voice raw and broken. "I will be your Luna. In return, I want you to destroy him. All of him. Right now, my daughter and I are trapped on the Moon Goddess Altar..."

The other end was silent for three heartbeats.

Then, a deep, steady voice answered.

"I am seven days away. But my elite warriors will be at that altar in three minutes. Don't let go."

I burst into the penthouse, clutching a trembling Lydia.

Julian's warriors had rescued us and vanished without a trace.

But I knew this was just the beginning.

"Sweetheart, Mommy's taking you on an adventure," I whispered, forcing a smile I didn't feel. "We'll go somewhere far, far away, and see a real meteor shower."

"Is Daddy not coming?"

The word "Daddy" was a knife in my chest.

"Daddy's... busy," I said, unable to meet her innocent eyes. "We're going to leave first. Now, go pack your favorite toys."

I ran into the bedroom, grabbing our passports and all the cash I had. My fingers were shaking, but I moved fast. I had to get out before he came back.

I couldn't let my daughter be his next sacrifice.

Just as I zipped the bags, I heard footsteps outside the door.

My blood ran cold.

Ethan was back.

"Sera! Lydia! Are you okay?" He burst through the door, his face a perfect mask of frantic concern. But I could smell her on him. The cloying, cheap scent of Lilith's perfume.

"We're fine. Someone saved us."

"Thank the Goddess." He moved to hug me. "Sera, I'm so sorry. This is all my fault."

I took a step back.

The smell was too strong. It made me sick.

"What's wrong?" He frowned. "Are you avoiding me?"

"No, just... still shaken," I managed a weak smile.

"Baby, it's my fault." He reached out to touch my face. "It's our anniversary, I should have been with you. But there was an urgent pack emergency..."

He was still lying.

Just moments ago, that hand was touching another woman.

"I understand," I said through gritted teeth.

"My Luna. Always so understanding," he murmured, leaning in to kiss me. I flinched away. His smile faltered. "I promise, this will never..."

Suddenly, his face tightened. A mind-link. Lilith's voice, laced with pain, echoed in my head. She hadn't even bothered to block me.

"Ethan... it hurts... Your mate bond... it's rejecting me!" Lilith’s voice was filled with panic. "It's like... Luna's power, coming through you, burning my soul! It's her! Seraphina knows! She's using your bond to punish me!"

Ethan’s eyes snapped to mine, a flicker of something new in them.

"Seraphina," his voice dropped, turning hard as steel. "What did you do to her?"

"I didn't do anything." I fought to keep my voice steady.

"Don't you lie to me!" he snarled, unleashing his Alpha command. The force of it slammed into me, a physical blow. The air thickened, and every breath was agony.

My knees buckled, and I fell to the floor.

"I didn't..."

"Liar!" he snarled. The crushing weight of his Alpha power slammed down on me.

The air grew thick. Every breath was like inhaling shards of glass.

My knees buckled, and I was forced to the ground.

"I didn't..."

He grabbed my arm, his eyes dangerously dark. "How dare you use our bond to hurt someone else? You've already tainted it once, Seraphina! What more do you want to do?"

Just then, our daughter ran out of her room.

"Mommy, when are we leaving?" she asked innocently. "Didn't we say we were going on a trip?"

The air froze.

Ethan's gaze flickered to the suitcase behind me.

"A trip?" he sneered, his eyes flicking to the suitcase behind me. "Running to Julian?"

Ethan didn’t roar. He didn't explode. He just went still. A terrifying, predatory calm.

He even calmly adjusted his cuffs before walking slowly toward us.

"Oh, Sera. You never learn." He crouched, his cold fingers tracing my cheek. His eyes held a sick, obsessive light. "Why are you trying to run away with his stain? Once she's gone, we can finally be together. The way we were always meant to be."

"She's your daughter!" I cried out.

"Shh—" His long finger pressed against my lips. "Don't lie for Julian's whelp. It drives me mad with jealousy. Be a good girl. Watch me get rid of it, and then we'll go home."

He snatched Lydia with one hand, not like a father holding his pup, but like a man tossing out the trash. His eyes held no hatred. Only the chilling, flat relief of a problem being solved.

"This filth doesn't deserve to stand between us."

The mother wolf inside me let out a desperate roar.

"Daddy, don't scare Mommy..." Lydia cried, reaching for him with her small hands.

But Ethan shoved her away.

"Don't touch me!" he roared. "You're not my daughter!"

My daughter hit the floor. Something inside me snapped. I launched myself at him, all claws and teeth.

But he was an Alpha. He was faster. One hand shot out, pinning me to the wall by my neck. The other snatched Lydia up like a rag doll.

"Since you want to take this bastard with you so badly, I'll grant your wish!" His smile was cruel and twisted.

"Let her go!" I struggled. "Do whatever you want to me!"

"To you?" He dragged us toward the door. "Every time I look at her, I'm reminded of how you let another man touch you. I've tolerated this long enough, Sera. Now, you're going to watch me dispose of a traitor's pup. And you... you will stay by my side. Forever."

"Daddy, please..." Lydia’s sobs were heart-wrenching. "I'm scared..."

Ethan didn't even look at her. He dragged us into the car, ignoring our daughter's desperate cries.

The car tore through the night. I held my sobbing daughter in a death grip.

"Ethan, where are you taking us?" I asked.

He didn't answer, just gripped the steering wheel, his eyes dark.

Ten minutes later, the car skidded to a halt at the sacrificial grounds.

Ice flooded my veins.

"Get out," he ordered coldly.

"No!" I refused. "We're not getting out!"

"GET OUT!" His roar shook the entire car.

His Alpha command left me no choice. I stumbled out, clutching Lydia.

The crumbling ruin of the Moon Goddess Altar loomed at the edge of the cliff, a skeleton under the moonlight.

"Ethan, please, don't do this..." I begged.

But he had already pulled Lydia from my arms.

"No! Daddy, no!" she struggled, her little fists beating against his chest.

"Quiet!" He walked up the stone steps, his face a mask of stone.

I scrambled after him. "Ethan! She's your daughter!"

"My daughter?" He stopped and looked back at me, his eyes dripping with sarcasm. "Are you sure?"

He set her down on the broken edge of the platform, right where the runes had died.

"Daddy..." Lydia reached for him, trembling. "I'm scared..."

He paused, then shoved a file into my chest.

"Open your eyes, Sera," he sneered. "Stop lying for Julian's pup."

He set Lydia down on the cliff's edge.

He calmly adjusted his cuffs. "Now, answer me. Did you attack Lilith? Was it jealousy? Or were you protecting his bastard?"

"I didn't attack Lilith!" I screamed. "I swear I didn't!"

"Liar." He kicked one of the altar's support beams.

The entire platform shook violently. Lydia screamed as she slid closer to the edge.

"No!" I tried to run forward, but his guards grabbed me.

"I'll ask you one more time," Ethan’s voice was pure ice. "Did you hurt her?"

"No! I really didn't!" I sobbed. "Ethan, we're fated mates! How can you not believe me?"

"Fated mates?" he sneered. "Does a fated mate betray me? Sleep with another man? Give birth to another man's bastard?"

He kicked the beam again, harder this time.

"Ten seconds," he began to count down. "Ten... nine... eight..."

"STOP!" I shrieked, dropping to my knees. "I'll talk! It was me! I did it!"

I lied. I lied to save my daughter's life.

"I knew it." He smiled, satisfied, but the countdown didn't stop. "Seven... six... Seven..."

"I already admitted it!" I shrieked. "Let her go!"

"Admitting it changes nothing," he said, his smile a cruel slash in the darkness. "Now, tell me why."

"Because... because I was jealous..." I choked out the humiliating words.

"Jealous of what?"

"Jealous that you love her..."

"Four... three... two..."

"Please!" I crawled towards him, grabbing his pant leg. "I'll take it back! I'll undo it right now!"

"Too late," he kicked me away. "Besides, there's something else I want to know now."

His gaze turned lethal.

"Are you trying so hard to save her because she's really my daughter?"

I froze.

"Or..." he leaned in, his voice a venomous whisper, "...are you this desperate to save Julian's little bastard?"

"She IS your daughter!" I screamed hysterically. "Ethan! She's yours!"

"Mine?" He laughed, a harsh, broken sound that echoed in the night. He pointed a shaking finger at Lydia. "Then explain her eyes! Explain this!" He waved the paternity test in my face. "It says she doesn't carry a single drop of my Alpha blood!"

"That's because..." I tried to explain, but the words wouldn't come.

Because I didn't know why. But I knew, I swore on my soul, I had never betrayed him.

"See?" Ethan sneered. "You can't even come up with a decent lie. That proves it. She's Julian's spawn!"

"No!" I cried. "She's your daughter!"

"One!" he finished the countdown.

Then he kicked the altar with all his might.

"NO!" I shrieked in despair.

Ethan raised a hand, signaling the guards to restrain me.

"Drag her back," he ordered, his voice utterly devoid of emotion. "She cares so much for Julian's whelp. Let's give her a front-row seat."

The guards grabbed my arms. I fought like a wild animal.

"Ethan! She's your daughter!" I wailed. "Even if you don't love me anymore, she's innocent!"

"No, Sera. You're my fated mate. Of course I love you." He glanced back, his expression almost tender. But his eyes were chips of ice. "But a traitor's pup is never innocent."

I threw my pride, my dignity as a Luna, into the dirt at his feet. It wasn't enough. He wouldn't even look at me.

"Ethan, please... believe me," I choked out, the words drowned by sobs. "I never... I never betrayed you."

But he had already turned his back on me.