The dining hall's grand oak table gleamed under the crystal chandelier, a silent witness to the traditions of the Black Moon Pack. I stood at the entrance, my hands smoothing the fabric of my navy dress—a nervous habit I couldn't break. This would be Hayden's first dinner with the pack, and as Luna, it was my responsibility to ensure everything was perfect. Even if Jace had stripped me of most duties, I refused to fail at this simple courtesy.

The pack members filed in, taking their customary seats with the easy familiarity of wolves who had dined together for years. I waited for Jace, watching the empty chair at the head of the table—his chair, where he would sit with me at his right as Luna. When he finally appeared, Hayden was at his side, her honey-blonde hair catching the light like spun gold.

'I've rearranged the seating,' Jace announced without looking at me, his voice carrying the unmistakable weight of Alpha command. 'Hayden will sit here.' He gestured to the place directly to his right—my place.

A hush fell over the room. I felt every pair of eyes dart between us, hungry for drama. My thumbnail pressed into my wrist, the small pain keeping my face composed as I nodded. 'Of course, Alpha.'

Jace pulled out the chair for Hayden with a gentleness I hadn't seen in twelve years. 'This is the place of honor,' he told her, his voice soft and warm. 'You deserve to be close to the action.'

Hayden's cheeks flushed with embarrassment as she glanced at me, but she didn't refuse. How could she? An Alpha's command was law.

I took the seat three places down, relegated to the position typically reserved for visiting dignitaries—outsiders. The symbolism wasn't lost on anyone present. I was Luna in name only, a stranger at my own table.

Throughout the meal, Jace's attention remained fixed on Hayden. He leaned toward her, his blue eyes warm as he asked about her life in Silverfang, her musical training, her preferences. His laugh, rich and genuine, filled the room when she described a particularly disastrous first piano recital. I hadn't heard him laugh like that since we were children.

'And what about your family?' he asked her, his voice tender. 'Do you have siblings who play?'

'No,' Hayden replied, her soft voice carrying easily in the hushed room. 'I was always the only one interested in music. My parents thought it was a waste of time, but...' She smiled shyly. 'I couldn't help it.'

Jace's eyes softened. 'Well, we're very grateful you followed your passion. Owen is already thriving under your guidance.'

Owen, seated beside Hayden, beamed at the praise. 'Miss Hayden is the best teacher I've ever had,' he declared, reaching for another roll. 'She never gets mad when I mess up the scales.'

'That's because mistakes are just part of learning,' Hayden told him, ruffling his hair with easy affection. 'Everyone stumbles on the way to greatness.'

I watched them, this tableau of warmth and connection, and felt myself fading into the woodwork. I might as well have been invisible for all the attention my mate paid me. The food on my plate grew cold as I pushed it around with my fork, each bite tasting like ash.

When dinner ended, I rose to help with the clearing, but Jace's voice stopped me. 'Leave that to the Omegas, Luna. We have more important matters to discuss.' He was already guiding Hayden toward his study, his hand resting lightly on the small of her back—a gesture of intimacy he had never once offered me.

I stood frozen in the dining hall, surrounded by pack members who suddenly found the floor fascinating. In their silence, I heard the truth they wouldn't speak aloud: I was nothing more than a placeholder Luna, a political convenience. And now, with Hayden in my rightful place, I was becoming less even than that.

I was arranging flowers in the main hall, a small attempt to bring some life into the packhouse's cold corridors, when Beta Marcus's heavy footsteps echoed across the marble floor. His face was grim, and in his hands, he carried a thick folder that made my stomach knot with dread. I'd learned to recognize trouble in this pack, and Marcus carried it like a storm cloud.

'Do you need something, Beta?' I asked, setting down the vase. My voice came out steadier than I felt.

'Luna,' he said, his tone carefully neutral, 'I need to speak with Alpha Jace immediately. It's... urgent.'

I nodded, pressing my thumbnail into my wrist—a habit I couldn't break. 'He's in his study with—'

'With Miss Knight,' Marcus finished, his eyes flickering toward the closed study doors. 'I know. But this can't wait.'

As if summoned by his name, Jace's voice cut through our conversation. 'What's the delay, Marcus?' He stood in the doorway, Hayden just visible behind him, her honey-blonde hair catching the light. For a moment, I saw something flicker across Jace's face—a softness that vanished the instant his eyes landed on me.

'Alpha,' Marcus said, stepping forward. 'I've discovered something you need to see. Immediately.'

Jace's jaw tightened. 'In my office, then.'

I turned to leave—this wasn't my business—but Marcus's next words froze me in place.

'It's about Luna's father,' he said, his voice dropping to a near whisper. 'The financial discrepancies I've been tracking... they lead straight to him.'

The world tilted beneath my feet. My father? No, that couldn't be right. He was many things—unfaithful, distant, neglectful—but he wouldn't... he couldn't...

Jace's eyes snapped to mine, cold and accusing. 'Bring the evidence,' he commanded Marcus. Then, without a word to me, he turned and walked away, leaving me standing alone in the hall.

I followed them to Jace's study on unsteady legs, my heart hammering against my ribs. The room felt suffocating as Marcus spread the documents across Jace's desk. Ledgers, bank statements, correspondence—all bearing my father's signature.

'These are records of systematic embezzlement,' Marcus explained, his voice clinical. 'He's been diverting pack funds for at least two years. But that's not the worst of it.'

My father's handwriting jumped out at me from the pages—familiar loops and curves that now felt like strangers. I stared at the numbers, trying to make sense of them, but all I could see was the betrayal laid out in black ink.

'He's been making deals with the Silver Claw Pack,' Marcus continued. 'Trading our resources, our information, to cover his debts. The same pack that's been encroaching on our northern border.'

Jace's growl filled the room, his Alpha aura flaring with barely contained rage. 'How much?'

'Nearly half a million in pack funds,' Marcus replied. 'And the information he's sold... that's priceless.'

I couldn't breathe. My father—the man who had already broken my mother's heart, who had taught me that love was conditional—had betrayed the entire pack. The pack that had given us a home, protection, a place in the world.

Jace turned to me, his eyes blazing with a fury that made me step back. 'Did you know?'

The accusation hit like a physical blow. 'No,' I whispered. 'I swear, Jace, I didn't know.'

He studied my face for a long moment, and I saw the war behind his eyes—the Alpha weighing justice against vengeance. Then his expression hardened into the cold mask I knew too well.

'Summon the pack,' he ordered Marcus. 'Everyone. To the courtyard. Now.'

Within minutes, the entire Black Moon Pack had gathered under the harsh afternoon sun. I stood beside Jace on the stone platform, my face a careful mask of Luna composure while my insides twisted with shame and dread. My father was dragged into the courtyard, his hands bound, his once-proud face now haggard and defeated.

'Pack members of Black Moon,' Jace's voice rang out, carrying to every corner of the territory. 'Today, we face a betrayal from within. Richard Taylor has stolen from us, sold our secrets, endangered our lives for his own gain.'

Murmurs rippled through the crowd. I felt their eyes on me, on my father, connecting us in their minds. Blood will tell, they would be thinking. Like father, like daughter.

'Richard Taylor,' Jace continued, his Alpha tone making the very air vibrate, 'you are hereby stripped of your rank and exiled from Black Moon territory. You have until sundown to leave. After that, you will be treated as any other rogue.'

My father's eyes found mine across the courtyard. For a moment, I saw something like apology in them—but it was too little, too late. The guards began to drag him away, and I stood frozen, unable to move, unable to speak. I couldn't call out to him, couldn't beg for mercy, couldn't do anything but watch as the last remnant of my family disappeared beyond the packhouse gates.

Jace didn't look at me once during the entire ordeal. He didn't need to. The message was clear in every line of his body: I was tainted by my father's betrayal, just as I had been tainted by Anastasia's death. There was nothing left of me worth saving.

The rain came down in sheets, turning the forest paths into rivers of mud. I stood at the edge of the packhouse grounds, my clothes already soaked through as Jace addressed the assembled warriors. His voice carried over the howling wind, each word sharp with Alpha command.

'We need every available fighter on the northern border,' he announced, his blue eyes scanning the crowd. 'The Silver Claw Pack knows about Richard Taylor's betrayal. They'll see it as an opportunity to strike while we're vulnerable.'

My stomach twisted at the mention of my father's name. Three days had passed since his exile, and the pack still treated me like I carried his treachery in my blood. I straightened my shoulders, ignoring the persistent nausea that had plagued me for weeks. I couldn't afford weakness now.

'I want to join the patrol,' I said, stepping forward before I could lose my nerve. My voice sounded stronger than I felt.

Jace's eyes flicked to me, cold and dismissive. 'You're not a fighter, Luna.'

'I'm still pack,' I countered, pressing my thumbnail into my wrist to steady myself. 'And I can hold my own.' If I could prove my loyalty in this, maybe he would see something in me worth saving.

A muscle ticked in Jace's jaw. For a moment, I thought he might refuse outright. Then he nodded curtly. 'Fine. But stay toward the middle of the formation. This isn't a game.'

The shift came easier than I expected, my wolf surging forward with a desperate need to prove herself. My white fur was instantly plastered to my skin by the relentless rain as we moved out in formation, headed for the northern border.

The forest was a nightmare of darkness and confusion. Lightning split the sky, illuminating the battlefield in harsh, ghostly flashes. The mud sucked at my paws, making each step a struggle. Through it all, I fought to keep pace with the warriors around me, ignoring the deep exhaustion that had become my constant companion.

We had barely reached the border when the first howl cut through the storm—not one of ours. The ambush came from all sides, Silver Claw wolves materializing from the shadows like ghosts. Their teeth gleamed in the darkness, their growls blending with the thunder.

'Protect the younger wolves!' someone shouted, and I responded instinctively, lunging toward a group of adolescent fighters who had been separated from the main formation.

I fought with everything I had, my teeth finding flesh, my claws tearing through fur. But I was outnumbered. Two massive Silver Claw warriors cornered me against a fallen tree, their eyes gleaming with malice. I slashed at one, catching his shoulder, but the other caught my hind leg, his teeth sinking deep into my thigh.

Pain exploded through my body as I howled, the sound barely audible over the storm. Blood mixed with rainwater, streaming down my fur. I tried to stand, but my leg buckled beneath me.

Desperation clawed at my throat. I reached for the mate bond, for that cold connection that was all I had left.

'Jace!' I screamed through our mind-link. 'I need help! Northern ridge, by the old oak!' My mental voice was raw with pain and fear.

There was a flicker of response, a momentary tension in the bond. He had heard me. Relief flooded through me—until another scream cut through the night, higher and more terrified than mine.

Across the battlefield, partially shifted and clutching a bundle of herbs, stood Hayden. A Silver Claw wolf snapped at her arm, drawing a thin line of blood. Her face was pale with terror, her honey-blonde hair dark with rain.

'Jace!' she cried out, and the sound seemed to pierce through the storm itself.

I watched in horror as Jace's massive black wolf form tore away from his position, abandoning his frontline fighters to charge toward Hayden. His Alpha power radiated like a physical force as he slammed into the Silver Claw wolf, sending it flying.

He shifted partially, his arms wrapping around Hayden's trembling form, shielding her completely with his body. Without a backward glance, he carried her away from the battle, leaving me bleeding in the mud.

The Silver Claw wolves closed in, their teeth bared in triumph. My wolf howled in despair as I realized the truth: I was alone, abandoned by my Alpha, by my mate, in the moment I needed him most.