I woke up to the sharp sting of cold air biting at my skin. The forest around me was eerily quiet, the smell of smoke and blood still clinging to my senses. My body ached in ways I couldn’t describe—my ribs felt shattered, my head throbbed, and my side burned where the wound refused to stop bleeding.

But none of it compared to the emptiness in my arms.

I looked down and froze.

It wasn’t Elias.

Theo.

Aria’s son, not mine. His tiny face was pale, his body fragile as he squirmed weakly in my hold, letting out soft, pitiful cries.

“No,” I whispered, shaking my head as tears blurred my vision. “No, no, no!”

Elias was gone. My sweet baby boy, ripped from me by the people I trusted most. Kael, my mate. Aria, my best friend.

I hugged Theo tightly, my chest heaving as sobs wracked my broken body. My tears soaked his blanket, but his cries only grew louder, more desperate. He was hungry.

I couldn’t stop myself. I shifted my grip, letting him latch onto my breast. The action was instinctual, automatic, and as his tiny lips worked to feed, my heart shattered all over again.

I was feeding him, comforting him, while my own son—my Elias—was out there somewhere, stolen from me.

The pain became unbearable, my sobs turning into choked gasps as I glanced down at Theo. His face was still pale, his little hands barely moving. He was sick, fragile, clinging to life just like I was.

My hand trembled as I brushed his hair back. “I’m so sorry,” I whispered, my voice cracking. “You didn’t ask for this. None of this is your fault.”

I forced myself to focus. Theo needed me. I couldn’t break down, not yet.

But my body had other plans.

Every inch of me screamed in agony as I shifted, trying to stand. The wound in my side sent a sharp, searing pain through my torso, and I crumpled back to the forest floor.

I couldn’t walk.

I bit down on a cry, clutching Theo close to my chest.

You have to move.

I dropped to my knees, dragging myself forward with one arm while holding Theo with the other. The forest seemed endless, the trees towering above me like silent witnesses to my misery.

Each inch forward felt like a mile.

My vision blurred, black spots creeping in as blood dripped steadily from my side. My breaths grew ragged, each one more painful than the last.

I tried to focus, tried to keep going, but my strength was fading.

The world tilted, and I collapsed, unable to go any further. My fingers tightened around Theo, who whimpered weakly in my arms.

I was going to die here.

And Theo—he wouldn’t survive without me.

The thought sent fresh tears streaming down my face. My lips parted, but no sound came out as I tried to scream, to cry for help.

And then I heard it.

A voice.

Low, gruff, and unfamiliar.

“She’s still alive. Barely.”

I tried to open my eyes, but darkness swallowed me whole.

---

When I woke, everything was wrong.

The air smelled of damp earth and faint ash, and the hum of voices filled the space around me. My body felt lighter, like someone had taken the weight of the world off my chest, but the dull ache in my side reminded me I was far from healed.

I opened my eyes slowly, squinting against the dim light.

I wasn’t in the forest anymore.

The walls were rough stone, the flicker of a fire casting dancing shadows across them. I was lying on a makeshift cot, soft blankets wrapped around me.

Theo.

I shot up, panic flooding my veins, but the pain in my side forced me back down with a hiss.

“Relax,” a voice said, firm but not unkind.

I turned my head and saw him.

A man stood near the fire, his broad shoulders outlined by the flickering light. His face was sharp, rugged, and partially hidden beneath a mess of dark hair. His eyes, cold and calculating, met mine as he stepped closer.

“You’re safe,” he said, his tone clipped.

“Where’s Theo?” I rasped, my throat dry and voice barely audible.

He gestured toward a small basket near the fire. Theo was there, wrapped snugly in a blanket, his soft breathing steady and calm. Relief washed over me, tears springing to my eyes.

The man didn’t say anything else, just watched me, his expression unreadable.

“Who are you?” I managed to whisper.

He didn’t answer right away. Instead, he crouched beside me, his intense gaze locked on mine.

“You’re in rogue territory now,” he said finally. “And if you want to live, you’re going to have to prove you’re worth keeping alive.”

I nodded weakly, unsure of what else to do. My body was too broken to argue, too exhausted to fight. The man straightened, his piercing gaze never leaving me.

“I know who you are,” he said, his voice calm but carrying a weight I couldn’t ignore. “You’re Luna Selene. Kael’s mate. The Scarlet Moon Pack’s Luna.”

Hearing my title, my connection to Kael, sent a sharp pain through my chest. He was my mate. My husband. The man who was supposed to protect me.

The man who betrayed me.

“And you know what else?” he added, his tone growing darker. “We’re the ones who attacked your celebration.”

His words hit me like a slap. My breath caught, and anger surged through me like wildfire.

“You what?” I hissed, forcing myself to sit up despite the stabbing pain in my side. My hands curled into fists. “You’re the reason my pack is in shambles? You killed them? You destroyed everything?”

I didn’t even think. My hand shot out, ready to slap him, but he caught my wrist with ease. His grip wasn’t tight, just firm enough to stop me.

“Before you lose yourself in anger,” he said coldly, “you might want to hear the rest of the story.”

I glared at him, my chest heaving with rage and pain.

“I saw him,” he continued, his tone unwavering. “Your Alpha. Your mate. I saw Kael put an arrow in your side.”

His words stopped me cold. My body froze, my mind racing to catch up.

“No…” I whispered, shaking my head. “You’re lying.”

“Am I?” he countered. “I saw it with my own eyes. He shot you. Then he ordered his warriors to drag you to the border and throw you out like trash. With the baby.”

The baby. Theo. Not Elias.

The image of Kael standing on that tree stump, commanding his warriors, flashed in my mind. The way he looked at me—cold, empty, like I was nothing.

Tears welled up in my eyes, spilling down my cheeks before I could stop them. “No,” I repeated, my voice cracking. “He wouldn’t. He’s my mate.”

“Your mate?” the man scoffed, letting go of my wrist. “Does a mate betray you? Leave you to die? You think I’m the monster? I lost five warriors in that ambush, but nothing—nothing—compares to the betrayal you just lived through.”

I couldn’t speak. I couldn’t move. His words crushed me, every syllable driving the knife of betrayal deeper into my heart.

Kael shot me.

He ordered me thrown out.

And Aria… my best friend… she took Elias. She took my son and left me to die.

The pain was unbearable, suffocating, like I couldn’t draw a full breath. My vision blurred with tears, and I crumpled, clutching my knees as sobs wracked my body.

“I—I trusted them,” I choked out, the words barely audible. “Kael… Aria… they were my family.”

“And they betrayed you,” the man said flatly, no sympathy in his tone. “Now, you have a choice. You can lay here and die like they wanted, or you can get up, survive, and figure out what you’re going to do about it.”

His words hung in the air, heavy with challenge. I wiped at my tears, my hands trembling.

I didn’t know who this man was, or why he’d saved me after attacking my pack. But one thing was clear: Kael and Aria had left me to die.

And somehow, I was still alive.

“I’ll survive,” I whispered, my voice shaking but resolute. “For Theo. For Elias.”

The man nodded, a flicker of approval in his eyes. “Good. Then you’d better rest. You’ll need your strength.”

That night, I couldn’t stop crying. No matter how hard I tried to hold it together for Theo, the tears kept coming, silent and endless. My heart felt like it had been torn into pieces, and every memory of Kael only made the pain worse.

I used to think he was perfect. The way he loved me… it felt like a dream. I remember how he stood up to my father—my father, the most powerful Alpha I’d ever known—just to be with me. Kael was only a low rank werewolf.

“Selene is my mate,” Kael had said, his voice firm, even as my father glared at him. “I’ll prove I’m worthy of her.”

And he did. Over and over again. My father eventually stepped down and gave Kael the title of Alpha. Kael led the Scarlet Moon Pack with strength and grace. I was so proud of him. So in love with him.

But then Aria came back.

She’d been gone for years, traveling abroad, training with different packs, and growing into her role as Beta. When she returned, I was thrilled to see my best friend again. She's like a sister to me.

But Kael… something shifted in him the moment she walked back into our lives.

I remember catching them once, late at night. I’d gone looking for Kael, expecting to find him in the study, but instead, I found him with Aria. They were standing too close, their voices hushed.

“What are you going to do about it?” Aria had whispered.

“I’ll handle it,” Kael replied, his tone tense but soft.

When they saw me, they froze. Kael quickly stepped away from her, his face unreadable.

“What’s going on?” I’d asked, my stomach twisting.

“Nothing,” Kael said, forcing a smile. “We were just talking about the patrols.”

But I wasn’t stupid. There was something else. Something they weren’t telling me.

Later, I couldn’t shake the image of the way he looked at her. His eyes… they sparkled in a way I hadn’t seen in so long.

Still, I dismissed it. I trusted him. I trusted Aria.

When I finally confronted him about it, I’d been so nervous. My hands wouldn’t stop shaking as I asked, “Kael… is there something going on between you and Aria?”

He’d looked hurt, almost offended. “Selene, no. How could you even think that? You’re my mate. My Luna. Don’t you trust me?”

“I do,” I’d said quickly, desperate to believe him. “I just… I saw the way you two were talking, and I—”

“It’s nothing,” he’d interrupted, pulling me into his arms. “I promise. Trust me. Trust us. Aria’s your best friend. She loves you, Selene.”

I wanted so badly to believe him. So I did.

Even when I overheard them talking about a pregnancy, I brushed it off. It wasn’t my place to assume. Aria was allowed her privacy. And Kael… Kael would never betray me.

But now, lying here in a strange place, with Theo snuggled against my chest, I couldn’t stop replaying all those moments in my head.

The late-night talks. The stolen glances. The lies I told myself because I loved him too much to see the truth.

Kael and Aria had been betraying me all along.

I cried harder, clutching Theo tighter, as if holding him could somehow stop the pieces of my broken heart from scattering any further.

I’d given Kael everything—my trust, my love, my whole life—and he’d thrown it all away.

And Aria… the woman I called my sister, my confidante… she’d taken it all from me. My mate. My child. My place in the pack.

I wiped at my tears, but they kept falling. It felt like the betrayal would never stop hurting.

“I trusted you,” I whispered into the darkness, my voice cracking. “I trusted both of you.”

But they hadn’t cared. They’d left me to die.

Theo stirred against me, his tiny hand gripping my shirt. His soft, fragile breaths were the only thing anchoring me to reality.

I took a shaky breath and pressed a kiss to his head. I couldn’t break. Not now. He might not be my son but he needed me.