Chapter 2

The cottage walls seemed to close in around me as Amara's revelation echoed in my mind. Michael Chen—not Ryan—had saved me. For seven years, I'd lived a lie, bound to a man who had stolen another's heroism... and stolen me.

I waited until midnight, when the pack had fallen silent. My heart hammered against my ribs as I slipped out of the guest quarters where I'd hidden myself after discovering Ryan's betrayal. I couldn't bear to return to our—his—bedroom, knowing Madison had been there, knowing everything between us had been false.

"We need answers," Nova growled within me, my wolf more alert than she'd been in years. "Complete answers."

The pack archives were housed in the basement of the main pack building, protected by wards that only high-ranking pack members could pass. As Luna, I had access, but I couldn't risk being seen. Questions would be asked, and Ryan would know I was investigating.

I closed my eyes, focusing on the mind-link ability that had always been my strength. While most werewolves could only link with their mates or immediate family, I could extend my consciousness to temporarily connect with others. It was how I'd excelled at diplomatic missions—I could sense intentions, build rapport quickly.

Now, I reached out to the night guard's consciousness, gently nudging his awareness away from the archives entrance. A simple suggestion of thirst sent him toward the water cooler at the other end of the corridor.

I slipped inside, my fingers trembling as I activated the light crystal. The archives smelled of old paper and preservation spells, decades of pack history contained in these walls.

"Medical records," I whispered to myself. "Seven years ago."

The filing system was meticulous—Amara's work, no doubt. I found the section quickly, pulling out the leather-bound volume marked with the date of the attack. My breath caught as I opened it, seeing my own name on the first page.

*Patient: Victoria Hayes, age 19. Severe lacerations to right shoulder and back. Trauma-induced memory loss. Brought in by Alpha Ryan Campbell.*

I flipped the page, scanning rapidly.

*Secondary patient: Michael Chen, Alpha heir to Silvermoon Pack. Critical condition. Multiple puncture wounds to chest and abdomen. Severe blood loss. Wolf in protective dormancy to preserve life function.*

The clinical words blurred as tears filled my eyes. There it was—proof that Michael had been injured the same day I was attacked.

But I needed more. I needed to know exactly what happened.

At the back of the archives was the security crystal repository—magical recordings of major pack events. The attack on my original pack would have been significant enough to warrant documentation.

I found the crystal labeled with the date and placed it in the viewing basin. The surface shimmered, then revealed a scene that made my blood run cold.

There I was, bloodied and unconscious, being carried through the forest by a dark-haired man I recognized as Michael Chen. He looked desperately injured himself, blood soaking through his shirt, but he kept moving, kept carrying me to safety.

The recording jumped—someone had edited it—and then showed Ryan arriving at the pack borders, finding Michael collapsed with me still in his arms. The next sequence chilled me to the bone: Ryan checking to ensure no one else was around, then deliberately arranging the scene, dragging my unconscious body away from Michael before calling for help.

He had staged the entire rescue.

"Keep searching," Nova urged, her rage fueling my determination.

I pulled out another crystal, this one containing academy records from around the same time. What I saw made me physically ill.

Madison Pierce, Ryan's lover, arguing with him at the academy grounds. Her jealous screams as she noticed him watching me during training. Her storming off toward the border territories where rogues were known to gather.

The next recording showed her returning to Ryan, hysterical, admitting she'd told the rogues about a vulnerable young Alpha female from a small pack—me—hoping to scare me away from the academy. She hadn't intended the full-scale attack that followed, but her jealousy had set the tragedy in motion.

And Ryan had saved her, leaving me to face the rogues alone.

My hands shook as I replaced the crystals, careful to leave everything as I'd found it. The truth was worse than I could have imagined. Not only had Ryan stolen credit for my rescue, but his chosen mate had been the catalyst for the attack that destroyed my pack, my family, my entire life.

I slipped back out of the archives, my mind racing with this new knowledge. The betrayal cut deeper than any rogue's claws ever could.

As I made my way back to the guest quarters, a cold resolve settled over me. Ryan and Madison had taken everything from me once.

I wouldn't let them take anything more.