As the Luna of the Crescent Moon Pack, I had been entrusted with leadership in Blaze Holloway's absence.

Blaze, the current Alpha and my mate, along with the Beta and his childhood sweetheart, had left for a gathering at a neighboring pack. They would be away for three days, leaving me in charge.

Out of nowhere, the pack was attacked, and the messenger's frantic cry of "Intruders!" shook me to my core.

It was my first time leading the pack, and the gravity of the situation weighed heavily on me. Still, I steeled myself and took charge, gathering the warriors to fend off the incoming rogues.

At my signal, the warriors leaped into the air, claws and fangs bared. Each fought with fierce determination, ripping through the rogues with ruthless precision.

As the situation worsened, I darkened my gaze, focusing on the incoming rogues. In an instant, I shifted into my white wolf form. Under the moonlight, my fur gleamed, lit up in the dark, and intimidated our enemies.

Back then, I was the female warrior of our pack. Drawing on my experience, I fought off rogues left and right, rounding up every pack member and getting them to safety.

While we were all caught up in the battle against the rogues, I was stunned to see the main Pack House go up in flames.

The pack was filled with screams of agony as I raced into the pack house with the warriors, desperately trying to save it from the flames.

Yet, Alpha Blaze was nowhere to be found. I tried mind-linking him time and again, updating him on the dire situation, but he neglected me as if he had vanished into thin air.

Inside the pack house, the smoke filled each corner, choking me to death. With no other options left, I grabbed my phone, hoping that he might just pick up the call if he hadn’t answered my mind link.

Within minutes, Alpha Blaze accepted the call, but I was caught off guard when Scarlett's Westfall's lovely voice came through the line.

Scarlett had been Alpha Blaze's childhood sweetheart, who sought refuge with us under the guise of his sister. He treated her like more than just family; he held her close to his heart, cherishing her like a mate, leaving me, his true mate, in the shadows.

“Luna Avery, what’s with the call? The gathering isn't over yet,” Scarlett responded, completely oblivious to the storm brewing on my end.

Before I could spell out the dire situation at Crescent Moon, Alpha Blaze bellowed, ordering Scarlett to ignore any calls, too preoccupied to even make an inquiry about who it was.

The line went dead, and when I tried to mind-link him again, Alpha Blaze suddenly snubbed me, refusing to lend an ear.

While his cold neglect weighed me down, a rogue lunged at me.

As I braced for the worst, expecting to hit the ground and meet my end, the lead warrior, Hunter Draven, leaped into action. With lightning speed, he shifted into his wolf form and buried his claws into the rogue's heart, saving me from the clutches of death that night.

With Hunter, the lead warrior, and all the warriors under his command, we drove the rogues back, leaving many dead or fleeing in defeat.

Three days later, I was still reeling from the near-death experience during the rogue attack when Alpha Blaze returned, completely in the dark of the ordeal.

All the pack members laid the blame at my feet for the deaths of their loved ones, accusing me of failing them as the one in charge that night.

Even Alpha Blaze pointed fingers at me without mercy when the truth came to light.

“You give nothing to this pack but destruction,” Alpha Blaze uttered with a cold glare, adding, “Even if you are my Luna and mate, you won't be in charge next time. All this destruction and loss—it’s all on your shoulders. Look at the mess you’ve left behind.”

Still, I never dared to argue. I swallowed my pride and took the fall, even though the blame rightly lay with Alpha Blaze.

If he hadn’t turned a blind eye to me and ignored all my pleas to answer my mind-link, the situation wouldn’t have spiraled out of control.

It wasn't the first time Alpha left me out in the cold. Since Scarlett was under our roof, Alpha Blaze's attention had focused solely on her and the pack, leaving me on the sidelines to fend for myself.

Suppose I had kept my position to the pack I had long forsaken. I had opted to continue being the female warrior rather than trying my fate to Alpha Blaze, only to be cast aside; things might have a different turn. Yet, it was too late for regrets.

Despite all the trauma, I held up under pressure from his neglect and the pack’s pin the blame on me, he never once apologized or acknowledged how he’d enjoyed Scarlett’s company while I fought to survive.

If Hunter wasn't shielding me that night, I might be gone from his sight. But then again, I was only his mate, a Luna bound to be forgotten.

As soon as Alpha Blaze returned, completing his duties and bolstering the pack’s security, he fixed me with a dark, penetrating gaze.

Out of the blue, I broke the silence in between as I uttered, “Alpha, let’s end our mateship.”

With those sudden words I had uttered, Alpha Blaze dared not to believe it. He laughed his ass out loud, dismissing my words as a tantrum.

“Fine, if that's what you want,” he said, already facing the door, ready to leave. “I know you'll end up regretting it.”

Perhaps Alpha Blaze expected me to chase his affection and beg for forgiveness like before. Not anymore. I realized he was never worth my devotion.

Shaking my head, I declared, “I, Luna Avery of Crescent Moon, already regret being mated to you, Alpha Blaze.”

As the days passed, I carried out all my duties as Luna despite my deep longing to end my mateship with Alpha Blaze.

Even as the pack members urged me to forsake the pack, I stood my ground. As the appointed Luna, I couldn’t just sit idly by and do nothing.

When I stepped out of the Pack Hall, I kept my head held high despite the murmurs and sidelong glances from everyone around me.

As Luna and seen as a mother figure to the pack, I nearly led us to ruin. As fate would have it, I was supposed to safeguard them as a former female warrior. Still, instead, I needed rescue from Hunter, the lead warrior.

When that unfolded, I became the center of mockery for a week, and Alpha Blaze did nothing to halt it.

Without Hunter, who put an end to their taunts until today, everyone would lay the blame on me.

Still, beneath their teasing, I sensed genuine concern. They knew I had always kept a sharp eye and responded to crises with pinpoint accuracy since becoming Luna, so it was hard to believe such a strike out from the rogues could vanquish me.

Whenever I went out for duties, Hunter would pass by, checking in on me after the rogues laid siege.

With each of his inquiries, I knew I wasn’t okay, struggling to adapt on the spot.

Consequently, I neither reassured him nor lied, as he already understood the root of the issue; Alpha and the pack members who had made my life a misery and nearly sabotaged my duties.

Crack open the silence; I inquired Hunter instead, “When will the turnover ceremony start? I'll volunteer just to exit out of this pack and be back into our pack.”

The turnover ceremony took place every year, sending some pack members to neighboring packs for alliances and work. I saw it as the perfect chance to make my escape, knowing Alpha Blaze would never let me return to my pack.

Since Hunter was in charge, slipping away would be a piece of cake.

Hunter's eyebrows raised in astonishment, asking, “Alpha has a harsh punishment over it, Luna Avery, but as long as you're willing, I can lend a hand, as always.”

I bowed my head in silence, at a loss for words, haunted by the decision I once made and now deeply regretted.

Flashback

Years ago, I was once a female warrior, mighty as an Alpha. With Black Shadow Pack's Alpha, Chase put his faith in me; I was under his command.

Alpha Chase once declared, “Launch an assault on Crescent Moon and kill their Alpha! It once belonged to our ancestors and must be reclaimed!”

As a determined warrior, I geared up for a long-anticipated battle.

As soon as I caught a glimpse of Alpha Blaze, the target of our mission, I buckled under pressure.

Though I was primed and pumped to strike an assault, my inner wolf hesitated; I wavered, recognizing him as my fated mate.

Since my wolf awakened, I had long waited to tie a bond with my mate. When the most-awaited time came, I couldn't bring myself to strike an assault. It left me aching deep within me.

When Alpha Chase knew it, he was decisive in sanctioning me for not fulfilling my duties because Alpha Blaze was my mate.

That time, Alpha Chase gave it a whirl to use a potion to shatter our bond. However, I halted him, but he questioned me in a series, “Since you don't want your bond with Alpha Blaze to end, tell me what your decisions are. Do you want to continue being Black Shadow's female warrior, or do you want to be in your mate's arms?”

It was tough to make a decision at first. Still, when my decisions were fixed on leaving Black Shadow, I uttered, “I apologize, but I will choose Alpha Blaze over being a female warrior. As a consequence, I will choose to abandon our pack.”

Following that decision, Alpha Chase set me free. My rank from Black Shadow was stripped away, and I was deemed a threat.

Before I could abandon the pack, Alpha Chase told me, “Black Shadow will always welcome exceptional warriors like you. You may return as long as your mate has forsaken you, but only if you fulfill your duty of eliminating the current Alpha of Crescent Moon.”

End of flashback

Despite all I endured, Alpha Blaze, in the end, left me high and dry, filling me with remorse for selecting him instead of my pack.

Like what Alpha Chase had warned me before, “Your mate will abandon you soon. Look out for yourself, Avery. You deserve better.”

I thought Alpha Chase was just out to tarnish Alpha Blaze’s reputation, but it turned out to be all too real.

That got me thinking about the past. During my first year at Crescent Moon, I tirelessly tried to get my mate's attention.

Through blood, sweat, and tears, it wasn't all for nothing, as I gained recognition as a dominant warrior.

At the same time, I crossed paths with Alpha Blaze, claiming me, at last, his mate.

With Alpha Blaze's neglect, Hunter came to my aid, fulfilling all the duties supposed my mate had done.

With no one in my corner except Hunter, I grew weary of staying here any longer.

Five years of mateship had led to nothing. Over those years, I endured countless hardships and tribulations, but relinquishing our mateship never crossed my mind.

When Hunter asked, "Are you certain you want to end your mateship with the Alpha? You've tried before, yet always ended up back together."

Well, not anymore.

As I reached my breaking point, I retorted, “Yes, I'm determined for Alpha Blaze and I's bond to end, whether by force or mutual decision.”

At the pack house, Alpha Blaze held a conference for all officials. When it ended, I seized the moment, declaring, “In witness to all elders, I, Luna Avery, want everyone to know that I am breaking Alpha Blaze and I's bond.”

In the end, neither Alpha Blaze nor the elders took it seriously, brushing it off as a fallout from my outburst. Despite my efforts to convince them of the truth, no one believed me, not even Alpha Blaze.

With no one believing me, I had to carry on with my duties as Luna.

Immediately after, Alpha Blaze fell silent, and it dawned on me too late that he had been off the grid for two weeks, handling alliances and disappearing without a trace. However, he still managed to post updates on social media.

Our schedules never meshed, and even after five years together, we hadn't spent time together like we used to.

As Alpha Blaze's presence was somewhere else, Hunter came to inform me, “Didn’t you know that Alpha Blaze is elsewhere only to spend them with Scarlett, not with his alliance?”

Well, I was no longer fazed. It wasn’t the first time Alpha Blaze had centered his attention on Scarlett; it had transpired time and again.

With Alpha Blaze off the radar, I seized the chance to gear up for renouncing the pack and returning to the one I had once forsaken.

Hunter clued me in on the turnover ceremony set for tomorrow and included me on the list. Alpha Blaze had ordered all the pack warriors to tighten security to keep me from slipping away; this was my last option to escape.

With the borders tightly secured to keep me from leaving, I seized the day to quietly blend in with the turnover pack members, posing as one of the Omegas.

I couldn't bear the thought of staying another two months just to see him.

Inside the pack house, the living room appeared dim and deserted, a haunting reminder of my near-death experience just days earlier.

Shrugging it off, I went straight to the room, packing all my belongings from our shared room.

My foot snagged on something as I prepared to step outside with Hunter. Looking down, I saw a ring I'd lost in the fire.

Once gleaming, it was now coated in ash. I slipped it into my pocket and, looking up, was taken aback when I sniffed a familiar scent of him, Alpha Blaze.

When I looked up, Alpha Blaze's presence dashed my plans to leave the pack.

As I took a step back, a ring rolled into view, drawing my attention. Alpha Blaze’s face darkened at the sight of it and me with my belongings. The weight of the past hung heavy in the air.

If memory serves, it was Alpha Blaze's gift to Scarlett, returned after their bond was severed.

For five years, Alpha Blaze saw it as a symbol of disgrace. Yet, each time it came into view, a glimpse of once a perfect bond ignited.

When Scarlett reappeared, Alpha Blaze was eager to rekindle their bond, even with me still by his side. It felt like he aimed to have me, his chosen mate, and Scarlett, his fated one.

Snapping back to reality, I saw Alpha Blaze eyeing the ring and my packed belongings.

His gaze pierced me as he declared, “You can’t escape this pack. I’ve told you before—you belong to Crescent Moon, and you belong to me.”

With his declaration, my hopes were dashed. Not wanting to face sanctions for defying him, I complied with all his orders and mind-link Hunter for abandoning our escape plans.

As usual, the turning-over ceremony unfolded at the pack, with neighboring Alphas present to claim all pack members to send for alliance and send them off.

With Hunter leading the ceremony, he shot me a look that said all our efforts had been in vain. He even suspected someone had tipped off Alpha Blaze, explaining his unexpected return.

After the ceremony, Alpha Blaze dined with three other Alphas and their Lunas, but I opted out.

Over the moon, Scarlett took my place and joined them as Luna.

That same night, my decision to leave him was set in stone.

As the days went by, Alpha Blaze's treatment toward me grew colder, while Scarlett slowly worked some of my duties as Luna. It was as if she was primed to seize my position as Luna.

As a result, I had to slip out of the pack mansion without Alpha Blaze knowing, staying in my newly rented apartment.

When he discovered my departure, he mind-linked me with a commanding tone, “Get back to the pack mansion, now!”

In an instant, I came, and he demanded an explanation for my move.

Evidently, he was the cause, but I was too weary to argue. I just gave him a hint that I was serious about ending our bond.

“Where were you when I needed you most, Alpha Blaze? Like I’ve said before, once you neglected me, I lost all interest in this mateship,” I confessed, calm and composed.

But then again, Alpha Blaze kept laying claim to me. In the end, I packed up and left, unwilling to face him again.

As I looked back on our past and wept, Hunter stepped in to offer comfort.

To soothe my sorrow, he said, “Luna Avery, Alpha Blaze isn’t worth your tears. He harbors many secrets you need to uncover. Once your mateship ends, everything will become clear.”

Though his words were vague, it felt like the Moon Goddess had sent Hunter to aid me.

When I asked what Hunter meant, he revealed, “Alpha Blaze has secrets. One is that he’s only using you for his gain.”