After seven years together, Jackson Cross surprised me with a silver crescent moon pendant and a bouquet of moon lilies for my birthday. The gifts were beautiful—too beautiful. His sudden thoughtfulness felt more like an obligation than genuine affection.

I had always been an outsider in the pack. A wolf born with blood that should have allowed me to shift but had never once done so. Among our kind, a wolf unable to shift was a half-formed creature, weaker, unworthy. For years, Jackson was the only one who treated me as if I were whole, who told me I was enough.

But lately, even he seemed distant, his gaze drifting elsewhere, his words clipped and sharp. I ignored the whispers from the other pack members and told myself it was the stress of leadership.

I clung to him because he was all I had.

Later that evening, as the full moon climbed higher, Jackson left without much explanation, muttering about “pack matters.”

I didn’t ask questions. I rarely did anymore. Confrontations with Jackson never ended well. He always had a way of twisting my words until I was the one apologizing. Still, a strange unease gnawed at me.

Unable to ignore the pull of the moon, I left the den, wandering into the forest. My feet carried me toward the ridge where the pack gathered for rituals. The pull in my chest felt stronger with every step.

And then I saw them.

Jackson stood with Charlie Pierce under the moonlight. She was radiant, her transformation only partially undone, with glistening claws and glowing amber eyes. Her laugh carried through the air as she leaned toward him, her hands brushing his arm.

My heart clenched. The lilies, the pendant—none of it had been for me.

Stepping out from the shadows, I let my presence be known. “This is what pack business looks like, Jackson?”

He turned to me, his expression flickering between annoyance and guilt. “Bellamy, go home. You’re out of your depth here.”

I laughed bitterly, though it took everything in me to keep my voice steady. “Go home? Are you planning to mark her too, or just give her the flowers you pretended were mine?”

Charlie smirked, her predatory confidence cutting deeper than any words. “Jackson, maybe you should explain to her. Poor thing looks like she doesn’t understand how the pack works.”

Jackson’s face darkened. “Stop being paranoid, Bellamy. This is why you’ll never fit into the pack. You’re too sensitive, too unstable to lead.”

The words hit harder than they should have, not because they were true, but because I had always feared they might be. For years, I believed Jackson when he told me I was weak, that he was the only one who could protect me.

I forced a calmness into my voice that I didn’t feel. “You’ve been lying to me,” I said, my voice trembling. “Both of you. I don’t know what this is, but I won’t be part of it anymore.”

I didn’t wait for a reply. I turned and left, the forest swallowing me in silence.

My breath came in sharp gasps as the primal energy of the moon swelled around me. A searing pain tore through my chest, and I fell to my knees. It was as though the forest itself was reaching into me, drawing something ancient to the surface.

For years, I had lived as a wolf who couldn’t shift, an outcast in my own skin. The idea that Jackson might love me despite my brokenness had been my only comfort. But now, the truth burned.

He had never loved me. He had kept me small, quiet, and blind to what I could be.

Clutching the earth, I felt something awaken—a low growl rising unbidden from my throat, my nails digging into the dirt like claws. The moonlight seared my skin, and for the first time, I felt more wolf than human.

But the pain passed before the shift could complete itself. I sat in the dirt, trembling, staring at my hands. Still human. Still broken.

When I returned to the den, Jackson was waiting. He threw the pendant onto the table, his expression sharp and cold. “Bellamy, this childish behavior has to stop. If you want to stay with me, you need to learn your place.”

I picked up the pendant, staring at the delicate crescent moon. It had once felt like a promise; now it was a mockery. I slipped it around my neck and forced a small smile. “You’re right,” I murmured. “I need to find my place.”

Jackson smirked, misreading my words as submission.

I didn’t correct him. Not yet.

Because I wasn’t leaving tonight. Or tomorrow. But I would leave. The full moon’s pull had shown me what I could become, and I wouldn’t let Jackson or the pack keep me caged any longer.

For now, I stayed quiet, letting him believe he had won. But in my heart, I was already gone.

“Bellamy, what right do you have to talk to me like this? Don’t forget—you’re living in my house, and I’m the one supporting you…” Jackson’s words rang through the room, sharp and dismissive.

I wanted to argue, to tell him that in our seven years together, we had always split expenses. That even after I left my job at his urging, I relied on my savings, not him. But before I could retort, the oven beeped, breaking the tense silence.

I slipped on gloves and pulled out the cake, the warm aroma doing nothing to calm the storm inside me.

Jackson’s gaze flickered to the cake. For a moment, his expression softened. “Is today… something important?”

I set the cake on the counter, not looking at him. “It’s the anniversary of my father’s death.”

There was a pause before Jackson finally spoke. “Oh… I didn’t realize.” His tone was casual, almost indifferent, as if it were a passing comment instead of something that had been tearing me apart all day.

I turned away, my hands trembling as I began to frost the cake.

My father’s death had always been a private agony, one Jackson never truly understood. He had been the only one who ever believed in me, even when I couldn’t shift, even when the pack whispered that I was a half-wolf. His faith in me had been unshakable.

But when he died, everything changed. The whispers grew louder. The pack ostracized me further. And in my grief, I clung to Jackson, who had promised to love me regardless of what I was or wasn’t.

Yet here I was, alone in my grief once again.

Jackson finally spoke, his voice forced into something resembling guilt. “I’ve been busy with pack matters lately. I’ll make it up to you. How about tomorrow we go and pick out something nice? Maybe a new necklace?”

I stayed silent, frosting the cake with slow, deliberate movements. He took my quiet as forgiveness and moved closer, placing candles on top. “Bellamy, don’t dwell on things. You know I care about you.”

I kept my eyes on the cake, my mind drifting to the birthday two years ago when I lost my baby. It had been the same story: Jackson nowhere to be found, his attention consumed by Charlie. That night, the pain started, and I knew something was wrong. He didn’t answer my calls. By the time he returned, hours later, it was too late.

He lit the candles, his face softening into the charming expression that had once fooled me. “Make a wish.”

I stared at the flickering flames. Every year before, my wish had been the same—to find happiness with Jackson, to belong. But this time, I wished for something else.

“I want to be free.”

I blew out the candles and looked up, but he was already gone. The door clicked shut behind him, and my heightened hearing caught faint whispers from the hall.

“Charlie fell,” a voice said. “She’s pregnant, Jackson. She needs you now.”

My chest tightened as I heard Jackson’s hurried footsteps fade.

The cake I had spent hours making now felt like an anchor, pulling me into the depths of my pain. Memories of that night two years ago flooded back—the blood, the searing loss, and the suffocating loneliness. He had promised me everything and given me nothing.

I shoved the cake to the side and stormed into the living room. My nails dug into the armrest of the sofa, carving deep grooves. I froze, staring at the marks.

This wasn’t the first time. Recently, I’d noticed other claw marks—on the bedframe, the walls. My body felt foreign, like it was no longer mine. My senses were sharper, my emotions more volatile.

Something was happening to me, and Jackson’s lies were no longer enough to suppress it.

Hours later, I found myself walking downstairs to the apartment Charlie claimed as her own. The door was ajar, and I stepped inside.

The scene was painfully familiar: Charlie lounging on the couch, surrounded by luxury, her soft voice calling for Jackson like a siren song.

When he noticed me, his expression hardened. “Bellamy, why are you here? Can’t you see Charlie’s not feeling well?”

Charlie gave me a pitying look, her hand resting protectively on her stomach. “Jackson, don’t be harsh. Bellamy’s probably just trying to help. It’s not her fault she doesn’t understand pack dynamics.”

“Enough,” Jackson snapped at me. “Clean up this place properly and then leave. I’m not mated to a jealous woman who can’t even get this right.”

I stood there, numb, as he helped Charlie to her feet and led her out.

Once they were gone, I looked around. The scent of Jackson and Charlie hung heavy in the air, mingling with the expensive perfumes that filled the room. My gaze landed on the trash bin, where two used condoms lay discarded.

The realization hit me like a blow. He had never been mine. Not truly. Not when Charlie was always waiting for him.

I returned to our den, the pressure of my humiliation and grief pressing down on me. As I sat in the empty room, my claws extended again, scratching faint marks into the floor. I stared at them, trembling, as the full moon’s light filtered through the window.

For years, I had been told I was less—an unshifting wolf, a broken woman. Jackson had been my lifeline, the only one who made me feel seen.

But now, I saw the truth. He had used my weaknesses to control me, to keep me small.

I wasn’t going to let him.

That night, I called Caleb, my childhood friend, who had left the pack years ago. After a few rings, he picked up, his voice groggy but warm. “Bellamy? Is everything okay?”

I held back my tears. “I was wrong, Caleb. I shouldn’t have stayed. I want to leave. I need to leave.”

There was a pause before he replied, “It’s about time.”

His words cut through my sorrow, offering a sliver of hope. He promised to help me, to give me a way out.

For the first time in years, I felt a spark of something I thought I’d lost—freedom.

But I wasn’t gone yet. Not yet.

For now, I stayed, waiting for the right moment to break free, as the wolf within me stirred, ready to awaken.

Jackson didn’t come home that night. After I refused to cook for Charlie, he blocked my number.

I didn’t bother trying to contact him. Instead, I decided to visit my hometown. It wasn’t out of nostalgia; there were things from my childhood I needed to retrieve.

The small county of Everfall where I grew up was far from the pack's territory, nestled deep in the mountains. The moment I stepped off the bus, I saw my mother waiting at the door of our old, worn-down cabin. She was scanning the road eagerly, her eyes bright with anticipation. But when she realized I was alone, her face darkened.

“You didn’t bring Jackson?” she asked, her tone sharp with disappointment.

“No,” I replied evenly. “We’re not together anymore.”

Her hand flew faster than I could react, slapping me hard across the face. The sting of it was nothing compared to the shame I felt, knowing I deserved it—not for leaving Jackson, but for what I couldn’t bring myself to say.

I pressed a hand to my swelling cheek, staying silent as she scolded me.

“What do you mean you’re not together? Jackson told me everything!” she shouted, her voice carrying across the quiet county of Everfall. “He said you’re jealous and stubborn, ruining the best thing that’s ever happened to you! Do you know how lucky you are to have him? Do you have any idea how much I prayed for someone like him to overlook your failures?”

The words cut deeper than her slap ever could. I opened my mouth to respond, but she grabbed a stick from the porch.

“I won’t let you ruin this!” she yelled, bringing the stick down hard across my arm, my back, my legs. The strikes rained down like a storm, and all I could do was stand there, taking it, as I had so many times before.

“You’re useless! A disgrace! You can’t even keep a man!” She punctuated each accusation with a blow.

I wanted to tell her about the miscarriage. How Jackson wasn’t there that night because he was with Charlie. How the pack doctor had told me afterward that I might never conceive again. But the words caught in my throat.

The shame was suffocating.

A cold gust of wind swept through Everfall, and the sky opened up, heavy rain soaking us both. My mother finally stopped, her breathing ragged. “Get out,” she spat. “If you’re not going to marry Jackson, don’t bother coming back here.”

She hurled my old belongings out of the house—a faded trophy, a few books, a photo frame. One of the sharp corners struck my forehead, and I felt warm blood trickling down my face, mingling with the rain.

I bent down, gathering what I could from the mud, my hands trembling. The memory of the pack doctor’s words echoed in my mind: “The damage is extensive. It’s unlikely you’ll conceive again naturally. And even if you do, it will be difficult.”

A car pulled up beside me, its headlights cutting through the downpour. I didn’t need to look up to know who it was.

Jackson stepped out of the sleek black car, holding an umbrella over his head. Without a word, he grabbed my arm and hauled me into the car, his grip firm and unrelenting.

“You’ve caused enough of a scene,” he said, his voice cold. “Do you have any idea how much I’ve done for you? And this is how you repay me?”

I didn’t respond. I couldn’t. My body was numb, my thoughts a swirling mess of anger and despair.

As we drove away, Jackson threw his coat over me. It reeked of Charlie’s perfume, the scent almost choking me.

“You’re lucky I’m still willing to take you back,” he said, his tone condescending. “No one else will ever want you, Bellamy. Be a good girl, come home, and apologize to Charlie. You’ll still be the future Luna if you behave yourself.”

I turned to look out the rain-blurred window, my fingers curling into fists.

Once, I had believed Jackson was my salvation. I had told him everything—my fears, my shame, my pain. But he had used those vulnerabilities against me, wielding them like a weapon to keep me under his control.

I was done believing his lies.

His phone buzzed, and he answered it without hesitation. “Jackson, where are you?” Charlie’s voice came through the speaker, soft and sweet. “Everyone’s waiting. They’re teasing me, saying it’s bad luck for the Luna to be here without the Alpha.”