The grand hall of the Lunar Auction Gala shimmered beneath golden chandeliers shaped like crescent moons.

When the master of ceremony took the stage,the murmurs stilled instantly.

“Ladies and gentlemen,”he announced proudly,“we begin tonight’s event with a priceless relic donated by the Hamilton Pack.”

Under the spotlight,a velvet box opened.

Gasps rippled through the crowd.

Inside lay an emerald pendant,deep green and alive—like the heart of an ancient forest after rain.Its glow caught the silver in every wolf’s eyes.

Alexander’s expression faltered.He recognized it instantly.

He had chosen those gems himself,saying they matched my eyes—eyes that once looked at him as if he were the whole world.

Now they reflected nothing but cold light under the moon.

Stephanie leaned closer to him eagerly.“It’s stunning!Who owned it,Alex?I want it.”

Before he could reply,she raised her bidding paddle,her voice dripping with entitlement.

Sold.

Next came the second relic:a diamond wristband,a limited Alpha-edition model.I had gifted it to him on his thirtieth name-moon—the first year he forgot mine.I’d smiled through the ache and clasped it on his wrist anyway.

Sold.

Then came the third.

A vintage brooch inlaid with blood-rubies—a gift from his grandmother when I became his Luna.

The only heirloom I’d ever been given.

Sold.

Each memory-laden piece,stripped and auctioned as though it were scrap.

I stood beside him—composed,silent,exactly as he’d trained me to be.

Alexander turned suddenly,ignoring the murmurs,the stares,the flashing crystals.

“Lavina…”His voice cracked with disbelief.“That necklace was your favorite—you cried when it got scratched once.How could you just give it away?Don’t you remember?It was my gift to you…on our mating night.”

His voice trembled as the pendant was clasped around Stephanie’s throat.

He had given her rarer treasures before,but this—this single token—looked wrong on her skin.

“All I did,”I said quietly,“was strengthen your public image.Kept your reputation spotless,without costing you a single coin.Isn’t that what you always wanted,Alpha Hamilton?”

I reached for a glass of red wine,lifted it high.

“To Alpha Hamilton.”

The crowd echoed the toast in polite applause.

Alexander didn’t move.His eyes stayed locked on mine—haunted,uncertain.

Then he turned away,swallowed by a tide of powerful Alphas and hollow laughter.

I drained the glass in one sharp gulp and walked out,the applause behind me echoing like distant mockery.

The corridor was dim.

And then—she appeared.

Stephanie.

Her lips curled into the same cruel smile she’d worn as a child—

the one she had when she pushed me into the pond till I nearly drowned,

when she framed me for theft before the Winslet elders.

Then came the shove.

I stumbled backward,crashing into a cold-storage chamber.The iron door slammed shut.

“Tonight was mine!”she hissed,voice dripping venom.“You stole my spotlight,sister?Then enjoy your moment—alone,in the dark—while I toast champagne with our Alpha.”

“Stephanie,you’re insane!”I shouted,pounding the door.“Let me out!”

“No one’s coming,bitch.You thought selling off those trinkets would make Alex pity you?Feel guilty?”

“I don’t care about Alexander!You can have him!”

“Oh,I will,”she purred.“But really—thank you.While I was moaning beneath silk sheets in Paris territory,you were busy playing housemaid,polishing his boots and building his empire.”

“You vile serpent!You were the mistress—nothing more!”

“Mistress?”she laughed,the sound slicing through the air.“I was his first,Lavina.His everything.When you were miscarrying,I told him I was ill.He left you bleeding in the healers’ward to hold me in his arms.”

My body went still.Tears burned behind my eyes,but none fell.

She smirked,turning away.

“Enjoy the cold,sis.”

The door clanged shut,sealing me in darkness.

Later that night,when the auction ended,Alexander seethed.

“Alex,”Stephanie said,feigning guilt,“your sister was upset.I didn’t mean to—”

“You didn’t mean to?She’s throwing a tantrum because I dismissed her.Let her!Let’s see how long she lasts without me!”

And with that,he left with her—arm around her waist.

I fumbled for my communicator—no signal.

The air grew thin.My limbs went numb.The world tilted.

Just before my vision went black,I heard a crash.

The door burst open.

“Make way!Move!”

Strong hands wrapped a cloak around me.Deep voices issued crisp orders as medics swarmed.

“Miss Winslet,stay awake!You’re safe!”

Then darkness.

When I woke again,a healer stood beside my bed,my wrist connected to an IV of shimmering moon-infused serum.

It was the same healer who had overseen my fertility treatments for years.

“Miss Lavina,”she said gently,“you’re incredibly lucky.Lord Damien was gravely ill last night,but when you didn’t answer his calls,he forced us to halt his treatment and ordered a search party.Another hour and both your lives could’ve been lost.”

My lips trembled.“Both…?”

The healer smiled softly.

“Yes.You and your pup.Congratulations,Luna—your conception ritual finally succeeded.You’re five moons along.”

After being released from the healers’ward,I took a carriage back to the Hamilton Pack Estate.

The moon was waning,its pale light spilling over the grand manor that had once felt like home.

I entered quietly,heading straight to my chamber to gather what little still belonged to me—when I heard the faint rustle of silk,followed by a soft giggle.

Stephanie.

She stood before the mirror wearing my Luna gown.

The pearl-laced dress that my grandmother had hand-stitched on her deathbed—her final blessing to me after realizing that the Winslet Pack never cared for her true-born granddaughter.

I had worked five shifts across pack borders to buy that silk.

And now?

It hung loose on Stephanie’s frame,the front torn open,her claws gripping the fabric like a predator playing with its prey.

“Oh,sister,”she beamed,twirling.“You’re alive.Pity.I was hoping you’d die.But guess what happened last night?”

My chest tightened.I already knew.

She stepped closer,the shredded hem dragging across the marble floor.

“Alexander took me to the Moonspire Suite—you know,your favorite?The one where you spent your last birthday alone?”

Her voice dripped with false sweetness.

“He said he wanted to see the same view you adored.The same balcony where you and he first marked each other.”

My stomach twisted.That had been our place—the place where he’d first whispered“mine.”

“We left the curtains open,”she smirked.“I howled his name loud enough for the staff to hear.”

I tried not to flinch.

“Alexander said I taste sweeter,”she added,tugging at the ripped neckline.Red-purple bite marks shimmered across her skin.

“When I told him I wanted to start a family,he didn’t hesitate.Who knows?Maybe I’ll bear his heir soon.”

My hands trembled,claws threatening to unsheathe.

“You’re vile,”I whispered.

She tilted her head,feigning sympathy.

“Funny.That’s not what your husband says when he’s inside me,growling my name.Maybe I’ll give him what you couldn’t.”

Something inside me snapped.

Slap.

The sound cracked like thunder.Stephanie staggered,falling backward in shock.

“You—!”

“Lavina?”

Alexander’s voice boomed from the doorway.

He stopped dead,eyes flicking between us—Stephanie half-naked in my ruined gown,me standing rigid and furious.

Stephanie’s tears came instantly.

“I’m sorry,sister!”she sobbed.“I was just trying on your gown for a modeling campaign!It ripped—I didn’t mean it!I already stole your parents’love,but please forgive me!I can’t bear this guilt—I’ll just die!”

Before I could react,she grabbed a fruit knife from the table.

“Stop,”Alexander barked,snatching it away.She twisted dramatically in his arms,then darted toward the wall as if to smash her head open.

He caught her mid-lunge,arms circling her waist.She collapsed against his chest,crying as if she were some fragile creature deserving rescue.

“Stephanie,”he murmured firmly,“I invited you here as my guest.If anyone dares harm you—they’ll answer to me.”

I stared,numb.Stephanie weeping in his arms.Alexander shielding her like a wounded pup.

A bitter smile curved my lips.

When he turned to me,his voice was colder than steel.

“Lavina,apologize to her.”

“Apologize?”I asked quietly.“Alexander,aren’t you even curious where I was last night?”

“I don’t care!”he snapped.“You don’t lay a hand on her!If you don’t apologize right now,I’ll cut off your access to pack funds and move you to the servants’quarters!”

My heart lurched.

Our pup had nearly died.

And all he cared about was her.

“That should humble you,”he sneered.“Maybe I’ve spoiled you too long.”

I said nothing.

Because I finally understood.

To him,I was never a mate—just a pet.A servant.

He thought taking away comfort would break me.

But I’d already known hunger,loneliness,and humiliation long before I met him.

He turned to the guards.

“Move her things.She’ll stay in the servants’quarters until she apologizes.”

And just like that,I became the villainess in their love story.

After Alexander and Stephanie left the manor,my communicator buzzed.

An unfamiliar number flashed on the crystal display.

“Where was he,”the voice thundered,low and furious,“while you were locked in that cold chamber,barely breathing,Miss Winslet?”

I froze.I knew that voice.

Alpha Damien Stone.

“He was…with her,”I whispered.

“I can’t stay away anymore,”he said,his tone trembling with restrained fury.

“How long?”

“One week,”he vowed.“After that,I’ll come to take you home.”

My fingers tightened around the crystal.

“Alright,”I breathed.

For days I was a prisoner inside the Alpha’s den.

No locks—just silence and walls that felt like stone around a caged wolf.

Three times a day,a servant knocked.Her voice grew smaller each time.

“Luna…”she whispered once through the door,trembling,“I know you did nothing wrong.Please eat something—your hands are turning blue.”

But the head housekeeper snapped behind her,fangs half-bared.

“You are not to defy Alpha Alexander’s orders!No meals until she apologizes.”

I never replied.

A few bruised apples found their way under my door,smuggled in secret.

I ate them without complaint—for the sake of the tiny heartbeat inside me.

I sat by the window,wrapped in the same wool cloak I had worn since that night,counting backward.

Three days gone.Four to go.

When the Council seal approved the bond-severance decree,I would leave—burn every trace of this life behind.

My communicator never stopped buzzing.

Stephanie.

Her messages dripped like venom wrapped in perfume.

[Stephanie:You never won our mothers,and you’ll never win Alex.One word from me,and he forgets you exist.]

She was right.

Alexander never returned.

Not that night.Not the next.

But she made sure I saw him.

Every hour—new vision-crystals.

Him helping her into my favorite fur robe.

Him tying her hair by the hearth in his farmhouse lodge.

Him kissing her shoulder in bed.

Others were quieter—and crueller.

Her wearing his shirt,mouthing“I love you”at the lens before flipping it off with a wink.

Or his off-screen murmur:

“Steph,if we have a daughter,we’ll name her Hope.If a son—Xavier.”

Once,I would have curled into the blankets and sobbed.

Now I only stared at my reflection in the frosted glass,calm and pale,rubbing my belly while another wave of sickness passed.

Then my communicator chimed.

[PACK ATTORNEY:Congratulations,Miss Lavina.The Council has approved your severance.Alpha Alexander Hamilton is stripped of all paternal rights.He has no claim over the pup in your womb.]

I wanted to smile—but tears came instead.

Three years of bond and blood,dissolved into dust.

Cold wind bit through my sleeves as I stepped onto the balcony.

Each breath fogged in the night air.

My body ached from hunger;my legs shook;the world tilted.

Still,I needed air—anything but the suffocating stillness of that house.

Then—

A sudden crack split the sky.

Fireworks—loud,violent—burst right above the estate.

I flinched,stumbled;my heel caught on uneven stone.

Pain tore through my abdomen.

A scream escaped my throat.

Warm liquid spread fast between my thighs.

Guards rushed forward,faces shifting from indifference to alarm.

“Get the healer—now!”

One grabbed his crystal communicator.

“Alpha!It’s the Luna—she fell from the balcony!She’s bleeding badly—please—”

Alexander’s voice cut through,cold and sharp.

“I know her tricks.She’s faking again to escape punishment.Lavina is not to leave the manor until she learns her place.”

The line went dead.

The guard stared at the device,pale with shame.

I looked up at the surveillance rune carved into the balcony pillar,tears blurring my vision.

“I apologize,”I rasped,clutching my belly.“I’m sorry—for meeting you,for loving a heartless man like you,Alpha Hamilton.”

Another firework exploded—pink,then gold,then white.

Thousands of drones shaped words across the heavens:

[HAPPY BIRTHDAY STEPHANIE]

A single tear slid down my cheek.

So today…the day I was switched at birth…was also my own birthday.

“My baby…just save my baby,”I whispered—the only gift I begged for before darkness claimed me.

“Luna!Luna?!”

“Her body’s going cold!”another voice cried.

“We didn’t know—while everyone starved her,she was already pregnant!”