Kiera's POV: Helping my mate Dominic Evans secure his place as Alpha of the Crescent Pack had cost me my dignity. Every day brought fresh humiliation, and barely half a bowl of cold oatmeal was all I had to keep me going. Among the omegas who suffered alongside me, nobody thought he deserved my loyalty. "If he could send you to the Nocturne Pack and leave you living like this, he wasn't worth loving in the first place." With a shake of my head, I replied, "He isn't like that." Dawn was creeping into the sky before I finished shoveling snow that night. By the time I stumbled back to my quarters, my whole body hurt. A letter lay at my door, bearing my sister Thalia Mitchell's signature. Her false accusation that I'd poisoned her had led Dominic to banish me to the Nocturne Pack three years ago. Hearing from her again was the last thing I'd expected. Unfolding the letter, I read her message. "I've found my true love. My fiancé spoils me every chance he gets. Before I fall asleep each night, he comforts me and says he couldn't bear to live without me. I've never doubted how much he loves me. A day doesn't pass without him reminding me that he needs me. I hope you'll be happy for me." Relief mingled with the envy and bitterness that tightened my chest. Perhaps her happiness meant we could finally put the resentment between us to rest. My twentieth birthday arrived three days afterward. A messenger came from Dominic with orders for me to return to the Crescent Pack. For a moment, I doubted what I'd heard. Not once in three years had he asked me to come home until now. Surely that meant he'd missed me. After traveling all night, I reached the bedroom we'd once shared and eased the door open, full of hope. A narrow gap revealed him crouching before a woman in the late stages of pregnancy. His palm lay gently against her belly, and the tenderness in his eyes was unlike anything I'd ever seen from him. Then I recognized my sister, Thalia. Smiling down at him, she asked, "Isn't Kiera due back today? Shouldn't you have gone to meet her?" His reply came without hesitation. "I'd rather be here with you. The baby's nearly here. Don't worry about her. You've got more important things to think about." "Could our baby be the next heir to the Crescent Pack, Dominic?" she asked quietly. Only then did I understand who she'd meant in her letter. Her so-called fiancé was my mate. In my hand, I held the wedding ring he'd slipped onto my finger all those years ago. Three years of hardship had left me too thin to wear it anymore. It no longer belonged on my finger, and I no longer seemed to belong beside him. Before my eyes, Thalia reached for his hand with a smile. He brought it to her swollen belly and drew her close. Their closeness was unmistakable. There was no denying his betrayal. Moments earlier, I'd been imagining a fresh start with Dominic and wondering whether I could make peace with Thalia. Now I knew neither could happen. Turning away, I tried to get out before the tears came. This wasn't where I could let myself cry. They couldn't be allowed to watch me fall apart. "Stop right there, Kiera." From behind me came his voice, backed by the force of an Alpha's command. So he knew I was there. Weakness swept through my legs at once, but I made myself move. Within a few strides, he reached me and seized my wrist with enough force to make me fear he'd crack the bones. His grip pulled me around to face the anger in his eyes. Taking a deep breath, I struggled to contain the hurt before it overwhelmed me. "You've had three years to learn some manners, and this is how you act? Is that your idea of being a Luna? Without Thalia pleading your case, you'd have stayed there for another few years until you learned your lesson!" A laugh escaped me as I stared at him. "She pleaded my case?" I asked. "Was that so I could come home and see the lovely life you've made together? So I could stand by while she carries your child? Be honest, Dominic. You wanted me here so you could rub my face in it." A frown tightened his face. "Where are you getting this nonsense?" "Nonsense? That's what you call it?" I refused to look away. "For three years, you never once asked me to come home. Then you finally sent for me, and I came running because I thought you wanted to see me. Instead, I walked into our bedroom and found you doting on another woman!" For a moment, he looked as though he might answer, but nothing came. "Did the promises you made to me stop meaning anything to you?" By the end, I was screaming, and my voice had gone raw. His frown deepened as he stared back at me. "Nobody's taken your place," he replied impatiently. "Being away for three years doesn't change the fact that you're my Luna. Can't you stop making a fuss?" "If that's true, tell me you wanted me home because you missed me. I want to hear you say it." No answer came from him. During those three years, staying alive in the Nocturne Pack had taken everything I had. To them, I was the disgrace of the Crescent Pack, a worthless Luna whose own Alpha had thrown her away. Mud from their boots had ended up on my tongue. When they spat alcohol onto the ground, I cleaned it up on my knees. Belts had lashed my back as I crawled through snow that chilled me to the bone. What was that position worth? Nothing but a title remained, and even that had been hollow for years. Suddenly, I understood with a cold certainty. There was nothing left to fool myself about. "There's something I need from you, Dominic." Pulling my hand out of his grip, I spoke without raising my voice. "I'm home now, and I want our mate bond broken." The change in him was immediate. His pupils tightened, and anger darkened his face. He stayed silent for a long moment before leaning in until I could feel his breath. "Let me make myself clear, Kiera. Our mate bond isn't being severed. Don't pretend you've forgotten how you became Luna. Enough with the tantrum." His reprimand almost made me laugh. After betraying me for three years, he somehow thought he could make me the one at fault. My mother had paid with her life so I could have him as my mate. "Please, Dominic," Thalia pleaded softly from behind him. "Don't be angry with Kiera. After all those years on her own, can you blame her for being upset? I'm the one at fault here. None of this would've happened if I'd kept my distance..." Her hand came toward me in an apparent offer of peace, but the smugness in her eyes gave her away. That helpless act had worked three years ago, when she'd made everyone believe I'd poisoned her. This time, I knew better than to trust it. With barely a touch, I pushed her offered hand away. Somehow, that sent her stumbling backward. A shriek left her as she lost her footing and struck the floor hard. Blood spread rapidly through the white fabric between her legs, forming a red stain. For an instant, the hall went utterly quiet. Her next scream broke the silence. "Dominic, please... Save my baby..."

Kiera's POV: After a look that made me fear he might kill me, Dominic crouched beside Thalia and gathered her carefully into his arms, as though the slightest pressure could hurt her. "I'm getting you to the hospital. There's nothing to be scared of," he remarked with a gentleness he'd never shown me. "Everything's going to be okay." Against his chest, she curled into herself. Tears ran down her pale cheeks. "Please, Dominic, hurry up and take me to the hospital... I don't want to lose my baby..." "Nothing's going to happen to the baby." His lips touched her forehead. "You have my word." A sharp pain spread through my chest as I watched, unable to move. "Listen to me, Dominic." My voice sounded rough. "There was barely any contact. I didn't make her fall..." His head swung toward me before I could finish, and fury burned in his amber eyes. "Is that really the story you're going with?" The warmth vanished from his voice. "After three years in the Nocturne Pack, I expected you to understand what you'd done. Apparently, you're still the same. Nothing's ever your fault, is it?" "I didn't push her! You have to believe..." "Stop it," he blurted out, cutting me off with open disgust. "You've been jealous of Thalia because she's a warrior and you're a wolfless Omega. Your resentment drove you to poison her then, and now you've gone after her again. When is this going to end, Kiera?" Whatever I tried to say wouldn't get past my throat. He'd brought up the poisoning. Once again, that was all he could remember. Back then, he'd sent me away without asking what had happened. Three years later, he was deciding I was guilty without bothering to find out the truth. "That wasn't me. I never poisoned her," I whispered, so quietly that I might as well have been talking to myself. By then, he'd carried her through the door without once looking back. Hours passed, and I stayed up waiting for him until well after midnight. Cold settled over the Crescent Pack's territory as damp wind blew in from the lake. On the house's porch, I drew my knees close and wrapped my arms around them. My eyes stayed on the road from the hospital. There was no sign of him. Then my phone lit up. Thalia's name appeared on the screen. Opening her photo felt like having my heart squeezed in a fist. Dominic was sitting at her bedside, holding her hand and gently stroking her pregnant belly with his free hand. The soft hospital light fell across his face, and a small smile made his tenderness unmistakable. No look like that had ever been meant for me. He'd never given me one. A second message followed. "You should get some sleep, Kiera. He's staying here tonight, so there's no point waiting for him." Cold crept into my fingers while I kept reading the same words. Dominic had once promised that he would honor our bond, the one my mother had died to make possible. He'd gone back on his word. Getting up was a struggle. I could hardly feel my legs. Once inside, I went straight to the bedroom we'd shared. Nothing had changed during the three years I'd been gone. On the wall hung the photograph taken when we'd formed our mate bond. My long white dress looked lovely, but the foolish happiness on my face was hard to bear. Beside me, he looked reserved, though a slight smile lifted the corners of his mouth. At the time, I'd taken that small smile as proof that he loved me but struggled to express it. From my drawer, I took the bond-dissolution agreement I'd written long ago. It had been ready before I left the Crescent Pack three years earlier. Back then, I'd worried he wouldn't wait for me. Someone better might come along, or he might decide being bound to me was a mistake. To make those fears easier to live with, I'd called the agreement a precaution. Some part of me had always believed my worst fears would never become real. "Face it, Kiera," I whispered to myself. "You can't keep pretending." Soon, I arrived at the hospital. Up on the second floor, I found Thalia's room. When I pushed the door open, Dominic was sitting by her bed, gently offering her a slice of peeled apple. They looked so comfortable together that watching them hurt. Neither noticed me waiting in the doorway. "How about one more?" he asked gently. "You have it." She pushed his hand back toward him. "You've spent the whole night looking after me. You need a break." "I've still got plenty of energy." "Don't tell me that. You've still got pack stuff to take care of tomorrow." "That can wait," he replied. "Right now, you and your baby come first." After steadying myself with a breath, I walked into the room. Thalia noticed me before he did. Fear immediately replaced her smile. Retreating against the pillows, she pressed one hand to her chest and gripped his sleeve with the other, as though she were a startled fawn. Dominic's brow tightened when he turned my way. "What do you want?" he asked impatiently. Another breath helped me keep my tone even. "There's something you need to see." Between us, I held up the bond-dissolution agreement. "Put your signature here." For a moment, he didn't move. Then he looked down at the document, and his pupils narrowed. "We can both move on as soon as you've signed," I responded. "Let Thalia be your Luna. She'll suit you much better than I ever did." "Please, Kiera!" she shouted through gathering tears. "You don't have to end things. Dominic hasn't stopped caring about you... I'm the one who caused all this. Staying here was a mistake. I'll be gone by tomorrow..." With that, she began easing herself out of bed. "Stay where you are, Thalia. You need to lie down." Dominic's hands settled on her shoulders and guided her back before he faced me with a deeper scowl. "This isn't the time for your drama, Kiera. Once she's out of the hospital, we can discuss it." Their concern for each other left me cold, and whatever hope I'd held on to finally disappeared. "Listen, I mean every word," I sneered, raising my chin to look him in the eye. "Leaving you is the only thing I'm looking forward to." A chill entered his gaze, and his next words carried a warning. "You want this over, huh? All right. You'll get your wish. But don't come back wishing you'd made a different choice!" Holding back everything that threatened to surface, I blinked unsteadily and instructed, "Then sign the papers."

Kiera's POV: Grabbing a pen, Dominic scratched his signature onto the agreement. "There's your signature. It won't change anything unless I agree to let the mate bond be broken." The ease with which he signed made my heart tighten, then left me feeling oddly empty. After tucking the agreement away, I spoke quietly. "This isn't a bluff. I'll expect you at the altar tomorrow." Then I walked out, certain I had nothing more to say. "Shouldn't you follow her, Dominic?" Thalia asked weakly behind me. "I've never seen Kiera this upset." "Let her go," he insisted without emotion. "She's only throwing a tantrum. We both know she can't leave me." "Still, don't you think..." "Don't worry about her. An Omega who can't shift has nowhere to go outside the Crescent Pack. What's she going to do? Return to the Nocturne Pack and be a slave again?" A brief silence followed before he added confidently, "I know Kiera. She won't go through with severing our bond." Just beyond the corner, I stood in the hallway and heard him clearly. He wasn't going to stop me. As far as he was concerned, leaving him wasn't a choice I could make. With a bitter smile, I made myself walk on. Once home, I emptied a bottle of liquor and fell into bed. Drink slowed my restless thoughts and softened the pictures I couldn't get out of my head. Thalia nestled against Dominic. He offered her apple slices and gently stroked her pregnant belly. Thinking about them was more than I could stand. Morning brought me back to consciousness with an arm holding me around the waist. Suddenly wide awake, I glanced down. Dominic's muscular arm kept me firmly against him, and his broad hand lay over my lower abdomen. Heat spread from his palm through my skin. At some point during the night, he'd come back and drawn me close in his sleep. His steady breathing warmed my neck. Every muscle went rigid, and I stayed perfectly still. Without warning, memories I'd tried to put aside returned. Our first meeting had been at the Crescent Pack's altar. Blood covered him after his enemies had chased him to the border of our territory. Saving him had cost my mother her life. As she lay dying, she joined our hands and said, "Please look after my daughter, Dominic." He gave her his word. Beside her body, he knelt and kept hold of my hand. He promised, "For as long as I live, you'll have my protection, Kiera." Back then, I'd trusted every word. A whole lifetime together had seemed certain. Instead, someone else had received all the love and care I'd hoped for. A sudden vibration came from my phone on the nightstand. An email notification from an unfamiliar sender lit the screen. Reaching across, I picked it up and opened the message. Photo after photo loaded, and each hurt more than the one before. In the first, he was guiding Thalia into the obstetrics department. His hand supported her waist as he leaned down to whisper in her ear. The next showed them walking through a park together. She held his arm, and her pregnancy was already easy to see. Another captured him kneeling behind her during prenatal yoga. Both his hands were at her waist to keep her steady. There were more, tracing her pregnancy from its earliest days right up to eight months. During my three years away, he'd stayed by another woman's side through every stage of carrying their child. My tears fell before I could stop them. His hand on me had become unbearable, and I shoved him away. "Wake up! Get out of this bed!" Startled out of sleep, Dominic went from groggy to fully alert in a heartbeat. His body went rigid, ready to lash out like an animal caught off guard. Recognition stopped him almost immediately. The hostility left his face, replaced by a puzzled frown. "Was it a bad dream?" His hand came toward me to draw me close again. "Settle down. You can get some more sleep." Moving out of reach, I kept my voice steady. "Get ready. We're going to the altar and having the elders break our mate bond." Without another glance at him, I tried to get out of bed. A hand closed around my arm, and Dominic pulled me back against him. "Tell me what happened," he said quietly, searching my face. "Why are you crying?" My eyelids fluttered, and the gentleness in his tone made my heart stumble despite everything. None of it meant what I wanted it to mean. He'd always been able to make his voice sound tender one moment and cold the next. That warmth persuaded me to lower my guard, leaving me open to the hurt that followed. His fingers closed around my chin. "No more tears." Through my blurred vision, I held his gaze and stubbornly kept silent. Before I could object, his hold tightened and his mouth pressed against mine. The force of the kiss overwhelmed me, sending fresh pain through my split lip. Fear surged through me. Both my hands went to his chest, and I pushed as hard as I could. Then anger took over. How could he think he had any right to kiss me? Questions crowded my head until I couldn't separate one from another, and the confusion only made the hurt worse. There was no chance to sort through any of it. When Dominic wanted something, he was used to taking it. One of my hands was caught in his grip as I struggled, and he held me tight, pinning me in place. Despite the heartbreak, my body still reacted to his kiss-and I couldn't stop it. He knew me well enough to provoke a response without trying. With each breath, I caught his familiar scent, followed by the faint perfume of another woman. Yesterday, that same perfume had clung to Thalia. Those photos returned to me at once. Had he kissed her like this, too? Cold swept through me, and suddenly my thoughts were painfully clear. My teeth sank hard into his tongue. A hiss escaped him, and his grip slackened enough for me to pull away. Anger darkened his face. "Kiera..." "It's me, Dominic! You've got the wrong sister!" I pulled farther back as everything I'd tried to contain came spilling out. Something I couldn't read crossed his eyes. "You've misunderstood what's between Thalia and me..." His words did nothing to ease the pain eating through my chest. With tears streaming down my cheeks, I stopped caring about the consequences. My hand rose before I could think better of it. The slap landed hard against his face, and I ran out of the house.