Luna's Revenge on Alpha

I lay in my chamber, staring at the ceiling as sunlight filtered through the curtains. Three days had passed since I lost our second child. Three days since I discovered my mate comforting Victoria Sterling while I bled alone. The hollow ache in my womb was nothing compared to the void consuming my heart.

A soft knock interrupted my thoughts.

"Luna Isabella?" An omega servant's timid voice called. "May I bring you anything?"

"Some tea, please," I replied, my voice surprisingly steady. "And parchment from Alpha Nathan's study. I need to write some... thank you notes."

As the door closed, Sophia stirred within me. *Are you certain about this path?*

*More certain than I've ever been,* I answered silently.

When the omega returned with my requests, I waited until her footsteps faded before reaching for my phone. My fingers trembled as I typed a message to a number I hadn't contacted in years.

'Marcus, I need you. Silver Ridge territory. Come alone.'

Marcus Vance had been my father's most trusted Beta and my childhood friend. If anyone could infiltrate Nathan's territory undetected, it would be him.

I forced myself to eat, to drink, to appear weak but recovering. Nathan visited briefly, his touch perfunctory, his eyes never quite meeting mine. Did guilt make it difficult for him to look at me, or was he simply eager to return to Victoria?

"The pack is celebrating the new alliance with the River Creek territory tonight," he informed me, adjusting his collar. "You should rest."

"Of course, Alpha," I murmured, playing the dutiful Luna. "I wouldn't want to dampen the festivities."

He nodded, relief evident in the relaxing of his shoulders. "I'll check on you later."

A lie. We both knew it, but only I acknowledged it.

---

Night fell, and the sounds of celebration drifted through my window. Music, laughter, the clinking of glasses—life continuing while mine had stopped for the second time. I closed my eyes, reaching tentatively for the mate bond I'd been avoiding since that terrible morning.

The connection flickered like a weak flame, but it was enough. Through Nathan's eyes, I saw the pack house decorated with twinkling lights, wolves dancing and drinking. He was moving through the crowd, a glass of amber liquid in his hand, nodding at congratulations for the new alliance.

Then his gaze fixed on her. Victoria Sterling, radiant in a deep blue dress that hugged her curves, her honey-blonde hair cascading over one shoulder. The bond surged with a rush of desire that wasn't meant for me.

I watched, a silent witness, as Nathan approached her, his free hand reaching into his pocket.

"A token of appreciation," he said, his voice vibrating through our bond, "for all your... support."

He withdrew a silver bracelet—the one I'd given him on our fifth anniversary, engraved with our initials and a crescent moon. The bracelet I thought he'd lost months ago.

Victoria's eyes gleamed as he clasped it around her wrist. "It's beautiful."

"Mine again," Nathan murmured, his fingers lingering on her skin.

I severed the connection violently, bile rising in my throat. Sophia growled, her rage mirroring my own. *He gives her your gifts while your child's blood still stains the medical hall.*

A tap at my window startled me. Marcus Vance's familiar face appeared, his expression grim. I let him in silently, embracing him briefly.

"Isabella," he whispered, "what happened?"

"Everything," I replied, my voice hollow. "And I need proof."

---

The next morning, I requested an audience with Healer Elara from Moon Valley Pack. She had been summoned to heal Emma, arriving too late—or so I'd been told.

She entered my chamber hesitantly, her eyes downcast. "Luna Isabella, I didn't expect..."

"I wanted to thank you personally," I said, gesturing for her to sit. "For coming to help Emma, even though..."

"I'm so sorry," she blurted, tears welling in her eyes. "I tried to tell Alpha Nathan that I could still perform the ritual, but he said it was too late, that you'd already been informed..."

My heart stuttered. "What do you mean?"

Elara's fingers twisted nervously in her lap. "When I arrived, he redirected me to another pup. Said it was an emergency, invoked his Alpha authority..."

"The ritual amulet," I said, my voice eerily calm. "The one passed down through your family for generations. I noticed you're not wearing it."

Tears spilled down her cheeks. "It can only be used once every decade. I—I had to use it that night. Alpha's orders."

"On Victoria Sterling's pup," I finished for her.

The healer's shocked expression confirmed what I already knew. My mate had stolen our daughter's chance at life.

Sophia's howl of rage echoed in my mind as the final piece of my shattered illusion fell into place.