NATALIA

Lilith’s eyes met mine with a kind of measured sweetness I didn’t trust. Her lips curved upward, polite and practiced, but her gaze cut through me like a blade wrapped in silk.

“You must be Andrei’s Luna,” she said.

There it was. That slight edge, subtle but unmistakable. A smile meant to suggest peace, but the kind that pressed its boot into your throat while doing so.

I straightened my spine, clutching the handles of the grocery bag still in my hands. “Yes,” I said, voice steady. “I am.”

She tilted her head, studying me as if I were an exhibit. “It’s good to finally meet you. I’ve heard… nothing, of course. I was gone.”

Andrei’s arm hovered at her back protectively, and he cleared his throat. “Lilith went missing during a rogue ambush six years ago. We searched the entire southern ravine, but her body was never recovered.”

He glanced at me briefly—just briefly—and I saw the flicker of apology there. But it was faint. Weak.

“I thought she was dead,” he finished softly.

I knew all this of course. Everyone from Andrei’s Beta to his chef had told me about Lilith. I guessed that he was explaining to me for etiquette’s sake.

Lilith stepped closer to him, one hand grazing his arm like muscle memory. “I was captured. Tortured. Every time I tried to escape, they punished me more harshly. But I survived. I had to. I kept thinking of Andrei. Of home.”

She looked up at him, voice trembling just enough to be convincing. “It was the only thing that kept me alive.”

Something coiled inside me, tight and bitter. I couldn’t breathe around it.

Andrei wrapped an arm around her shoulders. “You’re home now,” he murmured. “You’ll stay with us. I’ll have a room prepared.”

Before I could speak, Lilith let out a soft laugh and shook her head. “A room? Why not here, in the Alpha house? It’s where I’ve always stayed.”

Her tone was light, but I could feel the dig beneath it. She didn’t need a room. She wanted her place back.

My heart thudded painfully as I looked to Andrei. I wanted him to say no. To glance my way, to remember what this house had been for the past five years. But he only nodded.

“Of course,” he said. “Natalia, can you—?”

I didn’t let my expression crack. “I’ll make sure the guest suite is prepared,” I said quietly.

Lilith smiled at me again. “Thank you. That’s very generous of you.”

I turned to go. I needed air. Space. Silence.

But as I reached the hallway, her voice floated out behind me.

“So… have you fallen for her?”

I stopped walking.

There was a beat of silence—then Andrei’s voice, low and hesitant. I didn’t stay to hear the answer. I couldn’t.

I pushed through the front doors and let the cold night air hit my face. The groceries hung forgotten at my side. My fingers had gone numb, not from the chill, but from the way the ground had just shifted beneath my feet.

I had planned to tell him tonight.

I had dinner prepared, had picked out wine, had thought about where to place the candles. I had wanted to give him hope—us hope.

Now I couldn’t even remember what I had bought.

***

The next morning, I rose early and went to the study. The air still smelled faintly of old parchment and the dried lavender I kept in a jar on the shelf. My fingers moved automatically, unlocking the drawer where I’d tucked away the marriage contract all those years ago.

The paper crackled softly as I unfolded it.

Five years.

We’d agreed that I would serve as Luna to maintain the structure of the pack. A partnership, nothing more. No promises. No marks. No expectations.

But I had broken that rule, hadn’t I? I had let myself love him.

My eyes scanned down to the clause I had avoided rereading until now.

If children are conceived, full custody shall belong to the Alpha. Offspring shall remain within pack territory.

My stomach turned.

There it was. The reminder that I was always temporary. That if I gave birth, the child would belong to him—not to us. And if we divorced, he had the right to keep them.

He doesn’t even know, I thought. And now… I don’t even know if I’ll get the chance to tell him.

A sharp knock startled me. I shoved the contract back into the drawer and forced it shut just as the door creaked open.

Lilith.

She stepped into the room like she owned it, every movement deliberate and graceful. But her eyes had lost their pretend softness.

“So this is where you keep all the important things,” she said, glancing around. “Nice of you to keep it warm while I was gone.”

“What do you want?” I asked, keeping my voice flat.

“To talk,” she said, though her smile said otherwise. “You seem like a good girl. Sweet. Obedient. But you must understand—it’s time for you to go.”

My hands clenched at my sides. “Excuse me?”

She stepped closer. “I was taken. Not dead. That means I’m still Andrei’s true mate. You were a replacement. Convenient. Temporary.”

“I’m his fated mate,” I said simply.

She smirked. “And after all these years, he still hasn’t marked you.”

“Andrei hasn’t marked me,” I said carefully. “But he hasn’t marked you either.”

She sneered. “Give him time. You think he won’t? You think he’ll keep you when he can have me again?”

I didn’t answer.

Her expression darkened. “Do you know what it’s like to be tortured for years? To survive on scraps and filth, only to come back and find some little nobody playing Luna in your home?”

I lifted my chin. “I was asked to fill that role. I never claimed to be you.”

She moved fast. One second we were speaking—the next, her hand was around my throat.

My back hit the bookshelf with a dull thud, papers fluttering loose around us.

“You should never have been part of his life,” she hissed. “If I hadn’t been forced to leave, if I hadn’t been dragged away, you never would’ve had a place here. You’d still be nothing.”

Her grip tightened. My vision blurred. My wolf stirred inside me, protective and furious—not just for me, but for the tiny life growing inside.

I didn’t think.

My claws extended, slashing across her cheek.

She screamed and stumbled back, clutching her face, blood trickling through her fingers.

The door flew open.

Andrei stood there, eyes wide. “Lilith!”

He rushed to her side instantly, pulling her into his arms.

“She attacked me,” Lilith sobbed. “I only came to speak with her—I was trying to be kind—and she told me to stay away from you, that I wasn’t welcome.”

“I didn’t—” I started, but Andrei rounded on me.

“What the hell were you thinking?” His voice was sharp, colder than I’d heard it in months. “She just came back from years in hell, and you—?”

“She grabbed me,” I said. “She threatened me—”

“You’d better hope she’s all right,” he snapped. “For your sake.”

Then he turned and led Lilith out, his arm still around her shoulders, leaving me standing alone in the wreckage.

I could still feel the ghost of her hand on my throat. Still feel the tremor in my fingers.

Still hear the sound of Andrei’s footsteps as he walked away from me.

Again.

NATALIA

The clinic smelled like lemon-scented bleach and something sharper—sterile and clean, but not comforting. I sat in the exam room, cold paper crinkling beneath me, one hand resting over the small swell that wasn’t visible yet, but that I could feel in every breath.

The doctor entered quietly, glancing down at the chart in her hands. She looked young—maybe too young to be the bearer of life-altering news—but her expression was serious.

“Luna Natalia,” she began gently, “I’ve reviewed your hormone panels and did a full internal scan. Your pregnancy is progressing well, and the fetus is strong. In fact…” She looked up. “The baby’s readings are more robust than usual—even stronger than the average Alpha heir.”

A rush of warmth flooded my chest. My baby. Strong. Thriving. I clung to the word like a lifeline.

“But,” she added, her tone softening, “your body… is not keeping pace.”

I stiffened. “What does that mean?”

“There’s strain,” she said. “Your hormone levels indicate instability, particularly around the markers tied to the mate bond. You’re already experiencing mild depletion. It’s not dangerous yet, but if it continues…” She hesitated. “A stable bond would help. Reinforce you.”

“But we’re not marked,” I said.

“No,” she confirmed. “You and Alpha Andrei share a bond, but it’s… partial. Unstable.”

Of course, I thought. Lilith was his first love. Of course our bond wouldn’t be as strong.

The doctor kept talking, unaware of the emotions fluctuating wildly through me.

“In cases where the mother is unmarked, the bond doesn’t provide the same kind of physiological protection. Your condition is manageable—for now. But fluctuations could be risky.”

I looked up at her. Worried.

“If the bond weakens,” she went on, “the baby will draw more from you, and your body may not hold up under the strain.”

I nodded slowly, absorbing her words like cold water soaking into dry earth. “What about… rejection?” I asked carefully. “Would it make things worse?”

The doctor blinked. “Rejection?” She looked at me more closely now. “In that case, the bond would break entirely. You would lose any residual connection. The fetus wouldn’t be affected by the mate bond after that… but your recovery could be more complicated, especially given your current levels.”

I thanked her and left before she could press further. I could see the concern behind her eyes, and I knew what she wanted to ask. Why would a Luna even consider rejection while pregnant?

Because she didn’t know what I knew.

Because this house—the man I lived beside—was no longer the anchor I thought he’d become. Because Lilith was back. And with her, came the unraveling of everything I’d quietly hoped for.

I walked the long corridor back to the main wing of the hospital, heels echoing faintly off the tile. Andrei hadn’t come home the night before. I didn’t ask the staff where he was. I didn’t need to.

As I rounded the corner near the south wing, I caught a glimpse of him. Tall. Broad-shouldered. Familiar in a way that still made my chest ache.

He was standing outside one of the private rooms.

Lilith’s.

I paused before he noticed me, retreating to the shadow of an alcove just beyond view.

The door was cracked.

“…we promised each other,” Lilith was saying, her voice watery with well-practiced grief. “That I would be your Luna. That I would give you an heir. And now…”

Andrei’s voice followed, low and careful. “You’re here now. Safe. That’s all that matters.”

Lilith sniffled. “But you’re married.”

“It’s a contract,” he said.

A silence. Then:

“We can fix this,” she whispered. “Give her some money. A house, if you feel guilty. Let her go. She’ll understand.”

My heart thudded violently in my chest. I couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t move.

“Unless… you don’t want to reject her,” Lilith added, her voice turning coy. “Unless you’ve grown attached.”

Andrei gave a soft exhale. “You’re overthinking it,” he said. “Natalia and you… you’re not the same.”

He didn’t say I mattered. He didn’t say he loved me. He didn’t even defend the marriage. Just a simple distinction. Two different women. No comparison. No weight.

That was all I needed to hear.

The mate bond inside me wavered. Not broken, but shaking. Like something delicate caught in a storm.

I pressed a hand to my abdomen.

No. He wouldn’t get this child. I wouldn’t let him pretend to care only when it suited him. This baby was mine. Not a pawn. Not a consolation prize. Mine.

He wasn’t getting it. He wouldn’t even know about it.

I turned and walked away.

***

That evening, the front door creaked open just as the sun dipped below the treetops. Andrei stepped into the house like he belonged there, like the air hadn’t changed between us.

I was in the parlor, going over patrol rosters. I didn’t look up.

He didn’t wait for a greeting.

“We need to talk,” he said.

“Do we?”

He scowled. “You attacked Lilith.”

I stopped cold. The word attacked echoed in my head like a slap. I turned to face him, slowly, deliberately. “She grabbed me by the throat.”

His scowl deepened. “She said you threatened her.”

“She came into my room,” I said, voice level, “told me to step aside, and said I was never meant to be here.”

“She’s grieving,” he said, like that was a good enough reason. He sighed, folding his arms across his chest. “Even if that were true, you didn’t have to draw blood.”

A bitter laugh escaped me before I could stop it. “You’re right. I should’ve let her crush my windpipe instead.”

“Don’t be dramatic, Natalia. You’re a Luna. You have responsibilities.”

The title used to mean something. Now it just felt like another leash. I looked away, swallowing hard. “No,” I said softly. “I had responsibilities. But you made it clear this morning that I was just a placeholder.”

His arms dropped to his sides, a flicker of confusion—or guilt—crossing his expression. “What are you talking about?”

I met his eyes, refusing to flinch.

“I see now,” I said, my voice quieter than before, but sharper. “You never intended to renew our contract. Not even after all these years.”

“Natalia—” He took a step toward me but I wouldn’t let him touch me. Couldn’t.

“I would’ve stayed.” The words came fast now, rising like a tide I couldn’t hold back. “I would’ve given you everything. I did give you everything. But you never saw me, did you? Not really. I was convenient. Dutiful. Temporary.”

He didn’t deny it.

That silence was louder than any answer.

“I want a divorce,” I said.

Andrei blinked. Once. Twice. Then he went very still.

“I’ll step down as Luna,” I added, each word carved out of me like stone. “Effective immediately.”

“Natalia…”

“I’m done.” I shook my head, feeling something inside me snap into place—final, firm. “I won’t stand here and be accused, scolded, or humiliated by someone who never wanted me.”

A beat of silence stretched between us, taut and full of things unsaid.

Then I turned and walked away.

And he didn’t follow.

NATALIA

I didn’t expect gratitude. But I had hoped for decency.

Andrei stood near the fireplace, his arms folded across his chest, tension rippling through every inch of him. He hadn’t even offered me a seat. The office we’d once shared for council matters felt colder now—smaller, somehow.

“You shouldn’t have made a scene,” he said without looking at me.

I kept my expression neutral as I pulled the folded contract from my bag. The thick paper was still as crisp as the day it had been printed, the creases where it had been folded sharp. I laid it gently on the table between us.

“I didn’t make a scene. I defended myself. And this—” I tapped the page “—says our marriage contract ended this week. It could have been renewed. It wasn’t. I’ll leave, as stated in the language here,” I finished, holding it up so he could see it.

He chose not to look. “So it’s divorce, then.”

“In a way,” I said, maintaining my composure.

Finally, he looked at me. His gaze dropped to the document, then flicked back up, sharp with accusation.

“Convenient,” he muttered. “You seem to have prepared everything. Almost like you were waiting for this.”

I didn’t rise to the bait. “I was hoping you’d remember it on your own. But no matter. We made a deal. It’s time to honor it.”

The silence between us tightened. Then, as if on cue, his phone buzzed. One glance at the screen and his mouth pressed into a thin line.

Lilith.

He picked up without hesitation. “What is it?”

I couldn’t hear her words, but his face shifted instantly—concern, even urgency, flooding his features.

“I’ll be right there,” he said, then ended the call.

My chest ached before he even spoke.

“You can come by tomorrow,” he said briskly. “We’ll sign the papers then.”

He didn’t even try to hide his impatience.

“She—” I began, but he was already moving toward the door.

“Lilith’s still recovering. I don’t want her upset.”

And just like that, he left.

I stood alone, staring at the contract that should have meant something. In his world, Lilith’s every whim was a storm. My divorce? A passing drizzle.

***

The next morning, I arrived precisely on time. Aiden, one of the junior omegas, looked startled to see me at the door of the Alpha’s office, but said nothing as he let me in.

Andrei sat behind his desk, lips pursed in thought. But he wasn’t alone.

Lilith lounged on the office chaise like it was her personal throne, clad in pale silk with a bandage taped across her cheek—though I was fairly sure the wound was little more than a scratch.

Her eyes lit up when she saw me. “Natalia,” she purred, tilting her head. “You’re early. You must be eager to fix things.”

I ignored her entirely. “Andrei.”

He turned to me. “Natalia,” he said smoothly. “Please sit.”

I eyed Lilith. I wasn’t about to give her the satisfaction. “I’ll stand, thank you,” I said formally.

Lilith leaned forward, placing a delicate hand on Andrei’s forearm. “She’s being dramatic.” She focused all her attention on him, her hand lingered on Andrei’s arm. “You’re overreacting, you know. I don’t need all this attention. I could’ve healed just fine on my own.”

The urge to roll my eyes was immediate and extreme. I managed to resist the impulse.

“I need to speak to him. Alone,” I said, voice colder than steel.

Lilith’s mouth twitched. “I’m sure whatever you have to say, I can—”

“Lilith,” Andrei cut in, sighing. “Wait outside.”

She blinked in surprise, her grip tightening momentarily. But then she smiled—tight, forced—and rose with exaggerated slowness.

“I’ll be just outside, darling,” she said, brushing past me. “Natalia, you look pale. Are you feeling alright?”

I said nothing.

Once the door closed, Andrei steepled his fingers. “So you didn’t come to back out of the divorce?”

I stared at him. “No.”

“You’re not here to beg?”

“Why would I?”

He’d been gone for long stretches of our marriage—wartime could keep Alpha’s away like that—and I wondered if he’d ever really knew me at all.

He leaned back, tone sharpening. “Because you finally realize what you’re giving up. I could’ve ignored your little outburst, your jealousy. But you chose to embarrass the pack. You still owe Lilith an apology.”

I laughed. A sharp, humorless sound. “I don’t owe her a damn thing.”

He looked genuinely taken aback. “You’re serious.”

“As death.”

He stared for a moment, then nodded once. “So be it.”

Silence stretched between us.

“You can stay in the pack, if you want,” he offered, surprisingly mild. “There’s no need to disrupt everything.”

But I shook my head. “I’ll be gone by the end of the week. You can have your Luna back. Make her official.”

Something flickered in his eyes, but he said nothing as I turned to leave.

When I opened the door, Lilith was still waiting. She straightened quickly, schooling her features into something saccharine.

“Oh good,” she said. “Natalia.” Like she was surprised to see me emerge from a door that she’d been so obviously eavesdropping at.

I didn’t pause, but she stepped in front of me.

“We’re having an engagement ceremony next month. Very private. But I’d love for you to come.”

I blinked at her. “You’re joking.”

“No,” she said, smiling too brightly. “You were part of his life for so long. It feels only right to honor the transition properly. Closure, you know?”

I pushed past her. “No, thank you.”

But she followed, her voice lowering slightly. “You’re not angry, are you? I mean, it was always going to be me. We both knew that.”

I didn’t answer.

Her hand caught my arm as I reached the stairs. “Come on, Natalia. It’ll mean a lot to Andrei—”

“Let go of me.”

But in the scuffle, my bag slipped off my shoulder. Its contents scattered across the floor. Keys. Pens. A folded notepad. And—

The bottle.

Small. Amber-colored. With my name and ‘PRENATAL VITAMINS’ printed clearly on the label.

Lilith’s gaze locked on it instantly. Her smile disappeared.

I snatched it up before she could read the rest. Without another word, I turned and walked away.

LILITH

Natalia was hiding something.

I watched her retreat down the stairs, that bottle clutched tightly in her hand. I’d only caught part of the label, but I knew enough.

The bitch was going to have a pup.

I waited until the hallway cleared. Then I slipped back into Andrei’s office, crossing to the desk and pulling out my phone.

He was still behind the desk, flipping through some paper like he hadn’t just let his ex-wife walk out with half her dignity shredded.

“She’s hiding something,” I said.

He glanced up. “What?”

“Your little Luna. She’s not as calm as she seems.”

He rolled his eyes. “Let it go, Lilith.”

But I was already dialing, slipping out of his office so he couldn’t hear what I was about to do.

“I need someone followed,” I said when the line picked up. “No mistakes. I want everything: where she goes, who she sees, what she buys. And if she’s pregnant—”

I paused, watching the fire flicker in the hearth.

“—I want her gone.”