Elise Castaneda POV: I was pregnant—with twins. That day was my second mating anniversary with Jaxon Rice. The parchment from the Healer was still clutched in my palm. Two glowing energy imprints marked the heartbeats of our unborn pups. I had meant to tell him that night. But that night, for another woman, he wanted to divorce me. The master bedroom door suddenly flew open. A blast of freezing northern wind swept in with the suffocating cedar scent of a pure-blooded Alpha. Jaxon strode up to me, and those deep gray-blue eyes held no warmth at all. "Pack your things." His first words weren't "happy anniversary." They were an order for me to leave. "What do you mean?" I slid the parchment into my sleeve and searched his rigid jawline for any hint of a joke. There was none. Jaxon turned to face me, his tall frame towering over me like a wall. "Brittany is back. She needs my care." My heart dropped. I stumbled half a step back, my lower back hitting the vanity. Brittany Serrano—the woman from his past who'd lost the use of her legs in a rogue wolf ambush at the border years ago. He had always blamed himself for that injury. "She's back, so what?" I lifted my chin, trying to hold on to the last shred of dignity I had as the Pack's Luna. My voice still shook. He stepped closer. His Alpha aura flooded my lungs until I could barely breathe. "So our contract ends tonight. I have to take responsibility for her." I bit down hard on my lower lip until I tasted blood. The Pack Healer's warning rang in my ears: twin Alpha-blood pups were fragile in the first three months. Any emotional shock could kill them. "Today is our second anniversary," I rasped. "Are you really throwing me out tonight for an outsider?" Jaxon's brows knitted in irritation. He rubbed the center of his forehead hard—a habit he always had when losing patience. "Stop making a scene, Elise. That mating contract two years ago was only a temporary arrangement to appease the Council of Elders." His words hit me like ice water. Ten years of secret, humble affection shattered to ashes in a second. My gaze fell on the faint scar beneath his left collarbone—left there ten summers ago when he saved me. Now it felt like it was mocking how stupid I was. "A temporary arrangement…" I whispered the words and pressed my cold fingers against my flat stomach. A fierce maternal instinct snapped me back to clarity: if he thought our marriage was disposable, then he absolutely could not learn about my pups. Jaxon narrowed his eyes. His keen Alpha nose twitched as he leaned down. "Why is there a strange, sweet scent on you? Are you sick?" Panic squeezed my chest. In werewolf biology, a pregnant female naturally gives off a faint milky sweetness before her energy stabilizes. I immediately channeled my weak inner energy to seal the scent back into my meridians. Cold sweat soaked the back of my dress. "It's nothing. Just a normal Omega cycle," I lied, looking away. "I lit some calming incense earlier." Believing I was just a fragile low-ranking Omega, Jaxon didn't question it further. He reached into his suit jacket and pulled out a parchment scroll stamped with the Pack's blood seal. "Sign this to dissolve our legal contract," he said, slapping the scroll onto the vanity. "Since we never completed a permanent neck mark, we can skip the formal rejection ritual until the Elders approve. I'll pay enough compensation to keep you comfortable for the rest of your life." My vision blurred with tears as I stared at the blood seal. I forced my eyes wide open to keep them from falling. "And if I refuse to sign?" I tested him, desperate to buy more time for my unborn children inside the safety of Pack territory. Jaxon's eyes darkened into a lethal storm. His large hand shot out and gripped my chin, forcing my head up. "You don't have the right to refuse. This is an Alpha's Command." The Command slammed into my soul—no lower-ranking wolf in the same Pack could physically resist an Alpha's Command. My knees buckled, and I nearly crashed to the floor. Gasping for air, I twisted my face out of his grip. The last ember in my heart died completely. "Fine. I'll sign." My voice came out eerily calm, even to me. I reached for the fountain pen on the vanity. A flash of shock crossed Jaxon's eyes—he clearly hadn't expected me to give in so easily—and his fingers loosened. I signed my name at the bottom of the scroll without pausing. "Take it and leave." I pushed the scroll back toward him and turned around, using every ounce of strength to keep my back straight. He stared at my back for a long moment before snatching the scroll and striding out of the bedroom. The heavy oak doors clicked shut, taking his suffocating cedar scent with them. My legs finally gave out, and I collapsed onto the cold carpet. I pulled the crumpled pregnancy parchment from my sleeve and pressed it against my chest, silent sobs stuck in my throat. Suddenly, a violent cramp twisted my lower abdomen. A warm liquid began trickling slowly down my inner thighs.

Elise Castaneda POV: I dragged myself off the bedroom floor, one hand clamped over my cramping stomach, and stumbled into the bathroom. The moment I locked the frosted-glass door, I saw the bright red streaks on my inner thighs. My pups. I had to protect them—and hide the proof before Jaxon noticed. I wiped the cold sweat off my fingers, folded the Healer's parchment into a tiny square, and tucked it deep into the hidden lining of my dress. Then I braced one hand against the marble sink and splashed freezing water onto my face, over and over, until the tears were gone. Heavy knuckles pounded against the door. "Elise, what are you doing in there?" Jaxon's voice cut through the glass. "Why do I smell fresh blood?" Of course he smelled it. An Alpha could pick up a single drop of blood from across a room. "My cycle started early," I called out, grabbing a towel. I made my voice weak and natural. "Bad cramps." Silence. Three seconds. Then the metal lock clicked open. He forced the door open with raw Alpha strength and strode inside, his gaze sweeping over my pale face and the running water. "Just a cycle? Your aura is as faint as a dying Omega's." He grabbed my wrist and pressed two warm fingers against my pulse. I clamped down on my inner energy, hiding the twin heartbeats, letting him feel only cold skin and exhaustion. "Let go of me, Jaxon." I yanked my hand back and retreated half a step against the tiles. "I already signed your scroll. My body is none of your business anymore." His gray-blue eyes darkened. He closed the distance in one stride, trapping me between the cold wall and his chest. "As long as you're still in my territory, you're my responsibility," he ground out, his hot breath against my neck. I turned my head away and laughed—bitter and short. "Responsibility? Your responsibility is waiting at Brittany's wheelchair, not in my bathroom." A muscle ticked in his jaw. His lips twisted into a cold sneer. "You signed that scroll without blinking and can't wait to push me away. It's because of that man, isn't it?" I whipped my head back. "What nonsense are you talking about?" "Stop acting." He gripped my chin, forcing me to look at him. "I've known since the day we mated that you've been hiding some bastard in your heart for ten years." My pupils shrank. Ten years ago, in the scorching summer of the junior training camp, during my first Shift, a cold, fierce teenage boy had shifted into a giant Dire Wolf for the first time, shielded me when I collapsed from heat exhaustion, and took a rogue's claws below his left collarbone. I had loved him for ten years—and he thought that boy was someone else? "Speak!" My silence looked like a confession. His Alpha aura exploded across the small bathroom, jealousy burning in his eyes. My chest felt crushed—yet a bitter mockery rose inside me. The high and mighty Alpha was jealous of himself. "Yes, so what if I am?" I met his glare head-on, holding on to the last bit of my pride. "I've loved him for ten whole years. Satisfied?" His breathing turned harsh and ragged. "Who is he?" He leaned down until his nose almost touched mine. "Which bastard dared to touch what's mine?" "He's not a bastard—he's a hundred times better than you!" I spat out, describing the very man standing in front of me. "He was proud, fierce, and saved my life when I was in despair." Jaxon's fist slammed into the wall beside my ear. The boom made my eardrums ring. Spiderweb cracks spread across the tiles. "Shut up!" A flicker of raw pain flashed across his eyes before it was swallowed by rage. "So stop using your fake responsibility to cage me, Jaxon," I whispered, exhausted to the bone. "Let me go." His chest heaved. He glared at me like a cornered beast—then spun around and stormed out, slamming the door hard enough to shake the walls. I slid down the cracked tiles to the floor, wrapped both arms around my stomach, and let out a long breath. His anger meant he wouldn't come looking for me tonight. My babies were safe for now. I stood up slowly, changed into clean pajamas, and stuffed the bloodstained clothes into a sealed disposal bag to burn tomorrow morning. Just as I reached for the light switch, my phone buzzed on the counter. Toby Miller, Jaxon's Beta assistant.

Elise Castaneda POV: I stepped out of the bathroom and picked up my buzzing phone from the vanity. "Toby, why are you calling so late?" "Luna, come to the training grounds—now!" Toby's voice cracked through the speaker. "The Alpha's gone mad. He's already knocked out more than a dozen senior Warriors. No one can stop him!" The image of Jaxon's back as he stormed out earlier flashed through my mind. "If he's hurt people, call the Pack Doctor. Why me?" "Because he keeps roaring about tearing some mysterious man to pieces!" Toby sounded close to tears. "Luna, if you don't calm his wolf, he's going to tear the whole training grounds apart!" I tightened my grip on the phone. He was tearing up the training grounds over a rival who didn't even exist. "I'm coming." I hung up, threw on a cashmere shawl, and took the private elevator down into the freezing northern night. The wind carried the dull thuds of bodies hitting the ground and low beast growls. At the entrance to the outdoor training arena, I stopped in the shadows. Jaxon was in the center of the grounds, stripped to the waist under the floodlights. Sweat ran down his back as he slammed a massive Gamma warrior into the reinforced wire fence. His eyes glowed blood-red—his inner Dire Wolf was close to breaking loose. The surrounding Warriors all shrank back. None dared enter the ring. My gaze dropped to the faint scar below his collarbone, and my throat tightened. Ten years ago, during my first Shift, in the agony of bones breaking and reforming, I collapsed from heat exhaustion; he shifted into a Dire Wolf for the first time and took a rogue's claws in that exact spot while shielding me. Jaxon caught my scent on the night wind. His head whipped around, blood-red eyes locking onto me. He shoved a Beta guard aside and marched over, every step radiating heat. "Why did you come?" He stopped inches away, looking down at me. His hoarse voice held a trace of something—maybe hope. "To laugh at me?" "Toby said you lost control. Until the Council of Elders finalizes the dissolution, I'm still Luna. I can't let you destroy Pack property." The light in his eyes died instantly. "Your duty?" His voice turned hostile. "Right now your head's probably full of ways to run back to that bastard." I looked up at him. One last hint—I couldn't help it. "Jaxon. Ten years ago, the northern junior training camp. A sixteen-year-old boy shifted into a Dire Wolf for the first time and saved a dying girl. He has a deep scar below his left collarbone." I stared into his eyes. "Do you think there's a second man like that in this world?" His brows knitted. For a moment, he seemed to search his memory. Then he let out a cold laugh. "Eleven years ago when I was at the camp, hundreds of pups got clawed! Don't use some cheap bedtime story to cover for the bastard who seduced you!" He had gotten the year wrong by one year—erasing me completely from his memory. A hollow laugh escaped me. The last thread snapped. "Right. It doesn't matter anymore." I turned to leave. "Keep going mad if you want. I'm going back to sleep." Before I could take a step, his hand clamped around my wrist and yanked me against his burning, sweat-slicked chest. Cedar and adrenaline flooded my senses. My heart skipped a beat. "You think you can brush me off and run to him?" He lowered his head and scraped his rough jaw hard against my cheek. A shiver ran down my spine. "Let go of me!" I pushed against his chest with both hands. His arm locked around my waist like a steel band. "Listen to me, Elise." His voice rasped against my ear, dark and full of possession. "Before the Council stamps that scroll, you belong to my territory. If any man looks at you, I'll bury him." I stopped struggling. My voice dropped to freezing point. "Do whatever you want. But remember—you threw our contract away first." Jaxon froze. A flicker of regret crossed his face, and then he slowly released my waist and stepped back. I pulled my shawl tight and walked out of the training grounds into the dark corridor, my hand slipping into my pocket to check that the wallet holding my pups' parchment was still there. When I reached the bedroom door, Toby hurried over and handed me a cold black alloy jewelry box. "Luna… the Alpha ordered me to deliver this earlier. Your anniversary gift." I opened the lid. A standard diamond necklace—bought from the Pack's corporate compensation account. No handwritten card inside. Jaxon Rice POV: I stood shirtless in the cold wind, watching Elise's slender figure disappear down the corridor. The fire in my chest burned hotter than before. Why had she mentioned the junior training camp scar with red eyes? Before I could sort out the mess in my head, my inner Dire Wolf let out a deafening, jealous roar. It wanted me to hunt down the phantom man who had stolen my mate's heart. I clenched my fists until my knuckles cracked and blood dripped onto the frost-covered concrete. But a very small voice in my head asked: Ten years ago, what exactly did I forget?