Chapter 1

The iron grip of the guards bit into my arms as they marched me through the Silvermoon Pack courtyard. Three years in a dungeon cell had left me gaunt, my once-proud posture now hunched beneath the weight of false accusations. The afternoon sun felt foreign against my skin after so long in darkness.

I kept my eyes fixed on the cobblestones beneath my feet, but I could feel their stares—the pack members who once bowed to me as their Luna. Now they turned away, their whispers trailing me like poison.

"The disgraced Luna returns."

"She tried to kill her own sister."

"Doesn't deserve to breathe the same air as our Alpha."

My wolf, once strong and vibrant within me, had retreated to a wounded corner of my soul. She hadn't spoken to me since the day Ryan severed our mind-link, believing Melissa's lies over my desperate pleas.

The guards steered me past the main pack house—my former home—toward the servants' quarters at the far edge of the compound. The message couldn't have been clearer: I was no longer worthy of standing beside the Alpha.

"Keep moving," the taller guard growled, shoving me forward when I hesitated.

The door to the servants' quarters swung open, and there he stood. Ryan Sterling. My mate. My betrayer.

Three years hadn't dulled the physical pain of seeing him. His dark eyes, once warm with love, now regarded me with the cold detachment one might show a stranger. His powerful frame blocked the doorway, arms crossed over his chest, his Alpha aura pulsing with barely contained contempt.

"Alpha Sterling," I whispered, the title feeling like ash in my mouth. "Where is Lucas? Please, I need to see my son."

"My son is none of your concern," he replied, his voice devoid of emotion. "You'll stay in the servants' quarters and keep your distance from the main house. You'll take meals alone and perform whatever duties Melissa assigns you."

The mention of her name sent a wave of nausea through me. "Ryan, please. I never hurt Melissa. You have to believe me—"

"Enough!" His Alpha tone slammed into me, forcing me to my knees. The guards stepped back as Ryan loomed over me. "You will address me as Alpha Sterling. You will obey pack rules. And if you disobey, if you come near my son or cause any trouble, I will strip you of your Luna title permanently. Is that understood?"

I bit my lip until I tasted blood, fighting back tears that would only please him. "Yes, Alpha Sterling."

He turned without another word, leaving me kneeling in the dirt.

---

Something woke me that night. A primal fear that clutched at my throat and sent my heart racing. I sat bolt upright on the thin mattress they'd provided, my breath coming in short gasps.

Lucas.

I couldn't explain how I knew, but my son was in danger. Our bond, though weakened, still pulsed with a mother's instinct. I threw off the threadbare blanket and ran barefoot into the night, following the pull in my chest that led me toward the sacred moon pool.

The pool lay in a secluded clearing, its waters silver under the full moon. The scene that greeted me turned my blood to ice.

Melissa stood waist-deep in the water, her hands pressing down on something—someone—beneath the surface. Lucas's small arms flailed weakly at his sides.

"No!" I screamed, throwing myself into the pool. The cold water shocked my system as I lunged at Melissa, clawing at her face, her arms, anything to make her release my son.

"Let him go!" I shrieked, finally managing to break her grip. I scooped Lucas into my arms, his small body limp and cold. I waded backward, keeping my eyes on Melissa as I lifted him to the bank.

"Lucas, baby, breathe," I begged, turning him onto his side. Water spilled from his mouth as he coughed weakly.

Melissa's face contorted with rage before transforming into a mask of terror. "Help!" she screamed. "Help! She's trying to drown him! Alpha Ryan!"

I pressed Lucas to my chest, his breathing shallow but present. "No, that's not true—"

But it was too late. Ryan burst into the clearing, flanked by guards, his eyes wild with fury as they landed on me cradling our soaking son.

"What have you done?" he roared, the force of his Alpha voice making the trees around us tremble.

"Ryan, please," I sobbed, clutching Lucas tighter. "She was drowning him. I saved him. You have to believe me."

Ryan's face hardened as Melissa ran to him, tears streaming down her cheeks. "Alpha, I came to check on Lucas and found her holding him under. I tried to stop her, but she attacked me."

"She's lying!" I screamed, desperately trying to reach Ryan through our severed mind-link. *Please, Ryan. Look at me. Know me. I would never hurt our son.*

But there was nothing. Only silence where our bond should have been.

"Take her away," Ryan ordered, his voice cold with finality. "Lock her in the north cabin. She's not to be near Lucas again."

The guards tore my son from my arms as I screamed and fought, my nails drawing blood from their skin. The last thing I saw before they dragged me away was Ryan cradling Lucas, his back turned to me as Melissa placed a comforting hand on his shoulder, her eyes meeting mine over his back—triumphant.