Chapter 2

The morning sun filtered through my window, but I couldn't feel its warmth. My body ached from a sleepless night spent crying over eight years of betrayal. I dragged myself from bed, hoping to find solace in my garden—the one thing that had always been mine alone.

I froze at the garden gate.

"No," I whispered, my fingers gripping the wooden frame until splinters pierced my skin. "No, no, no."

My medicinal herb garden—eight years of careful cultivation—lay in ruins. Lavender plants had been uprooted and tossed aside, sage and mint trampled into the mud. The rare moonflower I'd nurtured for three seasons had been ripped from its trellis.

Brooklynn stood in the center, her designer boots crushing a patch of chamomile. Four pack members flanked her, methodically destroying what remained.

"What are you doing?" My voice cracked as I rushed forward.

Brooklynn turned, her perfectly painted lips curving into a smile that never reached her eyes. "Good morning, Omega Jovie. We're clearing this... mess."

"These are healing herbs," I said, dropping to my knees to gather a broken lavender stem. "The pack needs them."

"The pack needs what I say it needs," Brooklynn replied, her new Luna authority making the air around us thicken. "And I've decided we don't need weeds."

A young Delta named Liam hesitated, his hands full of uprooted plants. "Luna, these are medicinal herbs. Jovie's been growing them for years. They help with—"

"Are you questioning me?" Brooklynn's voice dropped dangerously.

Liam immediately lowered his gaze. "No, Luna."

"Then continue."

I scrambled to save what I could, my hands trembling as I gathered broken stems. "Please, these took years to cultivate. The wolfsbane alone took three seasons to—"

"Enough!"

Darren's voice cut through the garden. He strode toward us, his Alpha aura making everyone except Brooklynn bow their heads.

"Darren," I whispered, relief flooding through me. "They're destroying the healing garden. The pack needs these herbs."

He glanced at the destruction, then at Brooklynn's triumphant expression. Something flickered in his eyes—regret? Discomfort? But it vanished as quickly as it had appeared.

"Luna's authority must be respected," he said flatly.

"But—"

"This is pack business, Jovie." His tone left no room for argument. "The Luna decides what grows on pack territory."

I watched in helpless silence as years of careful cultivation were reduced to broken stems and scattered soil.

---

That night, I returned with what little savings I had. The gardening store had closed, but I managed to find a few seedlings at a human nursery on the edge of town. I worked until my hands were raw, planting new herbs in the moonlight.

"Please grow," I whispered to the tiny seedlings. "Please."

For three nights, I worked in secret, replanting what I could afford. Each morning, I'd rush to check on my progress.

Each morning, I found destruction.

Footprints trampled my new plantings. Salt water—deadly to herb roots—had been poured over the soil. On the third morning, I found a note pinned to a dead seedling: "Know your place, Omega."

Pack members who had once sought my healing remedies now avoided my gaze in the corridors. I caught whispers as I passed.

"...can't be seen with her..."

"...Luna's orders..."

"...don't want trouble..."

---

"Everyone to the training field!" Marcus, Darren's Beta, called through the pack house. "Mandatory session. Alpha's orders."

I changed into training clothes, wrapping bandages around my wrists—a habit since I'd learned of my silver sensitivity years ago. No one else knew. It wasn't something an Alpha's chosen mate should be "weak" about.

Brooklynn waited at the equipment table, her smile widening when she saw me approach.

"Jovie," she called sweetly. "You'll be using this set today."

She handed me training gear—gloves, wrist guards, practice knives—all gleaming with an unnatural shine.

Silver. I could smell it before my skin touched it.

"I—I can't use these," I stammered. "I need different equipment."

"Oh?" Brooklynn raised an eyebrow. "Is there a problem?"

My fingers brushed against the glove's silver fastenings. Pain shot up my arm immediately, my skin beginning to blister.

"I'm allergic to silver," I whispered, trying to pull away.

Brooklynn's grip tightened on my wrist. "Nonsense. Everyone trains with standard equipment."

The burning intensified as my wolf whimpered inside me. I could feel her retreating, trying to escape the pain.

"Please," I begged, tears springing to my eyes as blisters formed on my skin.

Across the field, Brooklynn cried out dramatically. "Darren! I'm hurt!"

Darren rushed to her side, cradling her arm where a tiny scratch marked her perfect skin.

"My Luna is injured," he announced grimly. "Training is cancelled."

I collapsed to my knees as the silver continued to burn my skin, but Darren never looked back.

"My Luna needs attention," he said, carrying Brooklynn toward the pack house.

My vision blurred as pain consumed me. Through watering eyes, I watched them leave—the Alpha and his Luna, disappearing into the distance while I remained on my knees, forgotten and burning.