I stood outside the pack house with my bag hanging from one shoulder, staring at the familiar building. The guards at the entrance straightened when they saw me.
"Miss Maya?"
I smiled. "Surprised?"
One of them blinked before breaking into a grin. "Alpha Lucas said you wouldn't be back for another two weeks!"
"Well, I decided to finish early."
That wasn't entirely true. I had completed my final assessment ahead of schedule, but I had also spent the last two nights begging my instructor to let me leave.
I couldn't wait another day.
I wanted to see Lucas.
I wanted to wrap my arms around him, bury my face in his chest, and tell him how much I had missed him. I wanted to see his face when I walked into his room without warning.
Maybe he would be sleeping. Maybe he would be working.
Whatever he was doing, I knew he would be happy to see me.
At least, that was what I believed.
"Please don't tell him I'm back," I told the guards. "I want to surprise him."
They exchanged amused looks.
"Of course, Luna."
I paused.
Luna.
The word sent a warm rush through my chest.
Soon, that would be my title. Once Lucas officially claimed me before the pack, I would stand beside him as the Luna of Frost Moon.
I had worked too hard to let anything ruin that dream.
With a grin, I hurried inside.
The pack house looked the same. The polished floors shone beneath the lights, and the familiar scent of pine filled the air. A few servants passed me, but I barely noticed them.
My mind was already in Lucas's bedroom.
I climbed the stairs two at a time, clutching the strap of my bag.
Then I stopped outside his door.
It was slightly open.
A smile spread across my face.
Perfect.
I pushed it gently.
"Lucas, guess who's-"
The words died in my throat.
For a moment, I couldn't understand what I was seeing.
The room was dim, with the curtains drawn across the windows. Clothes lay scattered across the floor. One of Lucas's shirts hung from the corner of a chair.
And on the bed, beneath his sheets, were two people.
Lucas.
And my best friend, Selena.
Her head rested against his bare chest. One of his arms circled her waist, while her fingers traced lazy patterns over his skin.
They were naked.
My bag slipped from my shoulder and hit the floor.
The sound made them turn.
Lucas lifted his head.
Selena's eyes widened.
Nobody spoke.
I stared at them, waiting for one of them to move away. Waiting for Lucas to shove her aside and explain that I had misunderstood.
Waiting for Selena to cover herself and burst into tears.
Anything.
But Lucas only stared at me.
Then he sighed.
"You're back early."
I gripped the doorframe.
That was it?
Those were the first words out of his mouth?
"Lucas..."
My voice cracked.
He sat up, dragging the sheet over his waist. Selena quickly pulled it against her chest, but she didn't move away from him.
I looked at her.
My best friend.
The girl who had cried with me when I left for the academy. The same girl who had promised to look after Lucas while I was away.
She had hugged me at the gates and told me to come back strong.
Had she been laughing at me the entire time?
"How long?" I asked.
Lucas frowned. "What?"
I stepped into the room, my legs trembling beneath me.
"How long have you been sleeping with her?"
He glanced at Selena before looking back at me.
"Don't make a scene, Maya."
A bitter laugh escaped my lips.
"Don't make a scene?"
I pointed at the bed.
"You're in bed with my best friend, Lucas! What do you expect me to do? Smile and congratulate you?"
Selena lowered her eyes.
"Lucas, maybe I should leave."
He caught her wrist.
"No. Stay."
My mouth fell open.
He wanted her to stay?
I looked between them, searching their faces for some sign that this was a terrible mistake. But Lucas looked annoyed, while Selena pressed closer to his side.
Something inside my chest cracked.
"Look at me," I whispered to him. "Please, Lucas. Look at me and tell me this isn't what it looks like."
He held my gaze.
Then he shrugged.
"Fine. You want the truth? Selena and I have been together for months."
My ears started ringing.
Months.
I had spent those same months training until I could barely stand. I had taken every insult from the other students because I wanted to return home worthy of him.
While I was learning how to protect his pack, he had been sleeping with my best friend.
"Why?" The word scraped my throat. "What did I do to you?"
Lucas rubbed his forehead.
"You were always away. I have responsibilities, Maya. I'm an Alpha. I can't spend my life waiting for you to finish playing warrior at that academy."
"Playing warrior?"
I stared at him.
"That training was for you! You were the one who told me I needed to become stronger before I could stand beside you!"
"And you took it too far."
He waved a hand at me.
"You became obsessed with the academy. Every time I called, you were training. Every time I wanted to see you, you had another test to pass."
"Because you said I wasn't good enough!"
The words burst out of me.
I remembered every conversation. Every time Lucas had told me I needed to be more disciplined, more confident, more worthy of the Luna title.
I had listened because I loved him.
I had believed every word.
Now he sat in bed with Selena, looking at me as though I were the one who had betrayed him.
Selena shifted closer to him.
"Maya, please don't blame Lucas for everything."
I turned towards her so quickly that she flinched.
"Don't you dare."
Tears filled her eyes.
"I never wanted to hurt you."
"Then why are you in his bed?"
She pressed her lips together.
For a second, I thought she might tell the truth.
Instead, she reached for my hand.
"Maya, listen to me. Lucas needs someone here with him. Someone who understands his duties and can support him every day. You were always busy with your training, and I was only trying to help."
I snatched my hand away.
"By spreading your legs for my boyfriend?"
"Maya!" Lucas barked.
I barely heard him.
Selena climbed out of bed and wrapped the sheet around herself. She approached me slowly, her face twisted with pity.
That look made my stomach turn.
She was standing in front of me, wearing nothing but a sheet from the bed she had shared with my boyfriend, and she had the nerve to look at me like I was the one who needed comfort.
"Please," she whispered. "Don't hate me."
I stepped back.
"Stay away from me."
She reached for my arm again.
"I know you're hurt, but you don't have to lose everything over this. You can still stay here. I can speak to Lucas for you."
I stared at her hand.
"What are you talking about?"
Her eyes flickered towards Lucas.
Then she gave me a small, sad smile.
"If you want, you can still become my lady-in-waiting when I become Luna. I'll make sure Lucas doesn't send you away. We can still be friends."
The room went silent.
I looked at her face.
Then I looked at Lucas.
He didn't stop her.
He didn't tell her that I was his mate. He didn't remind her that I had spent three years preparing to become his Luna.
He simply watched us.
Selena squeezed my arm.
"Please, Maya. I know it's hard, but you have to accept that things have changed."
My hand moved before I could think.
SMACK!
The sound echoed through the bedroom.
Selena stumbled backwards, clutching her cheek. Her eyes widened, and she let out a sharp cry before falling to the floor.
For one brief second, I stood frozen.
I hadn't hit her that hard.
But she lay sprawled across the carpet, one hand pressed to her face and the other gripping the sheet around her body.
Then she started sobbing.
"Maya!" Lucas roared.
He threw the covers aside and jumped out of bed. He grabbed a pair of trousers from the floor and pulled them on before rushing to Selena's side.
"Baby, are you hurt?"
Baby.
The word cut deeper than the slap had ever could.
Selena shook her head, tears streaming down her cheeks.
"I'm fine. Please don't hurt her because of me."
I almost laughed.
She was the one who had slept with my boyfriend. She had mocked me to my face. Yet now she was begging him to protect me?
Lucas helped her to her feet, then turned towards me.
His eyes had changed.
The man who had once held me beneath the moonlight and promised I would never have to face the world alone now looked at me as though he wanted to tear me apart.
"How dare you touch her?"
I lifted my chin, even as my fingers trembled.
"How dare she touch me?"
"She was trying to help you!"
"Help me?" I pointed at the bed. "She offered to let me become her lady-in-waiting. In my own pack. In the place where I was supposed to become Luna!"
"Because you clearly can't handle the position!"
The words struck me so hard that I forgot to breathe.
Lucas stepped towards me.
"Look at you. You come back without warning, burst into my bedroom, and attack the woman who's been supporting me while you've been away."
I stared at him in disbelief.
"Supporting you?"
"Yes!"
He pointed towards the door.
"Selena has been here for me. She's helped me manage the pack. She's listened to me when you were too busy chasing your ridiculous dream of becoming the perfect Luna."
"My dream?" I whispered.
He laughed without humour.
"You're not fit to be my Luna, Maya."
My knees nearly gave way.
I caught the edge of the dresser and held on.
For three years, those words had been the one thing I feared hearing from him.
I had trained harder because I wanted to prove myself. I had swallowed my pride because I wanted to make him proud.
And now he had crushed every bit of it without even blinking.
"Lucas, please." My voice shook. "We can talk about this. Just tell me what you want me to do."
His face hardened.
"There's nothing left to discuss."
He wrapped an arm around Selena's shoulders.
"She's the woman I want beside me. Not you."
My wolf stirred beneath my skin, letting out a low, wounded growl.
He's choosing her.
I pressed my nails into my palms.
I can see that.
He's throwing us away.
I swallowed the lump in my throat.
I can see that too.
Lucas turned towards the door.
"Guards!"
Heavy footsteps sounded in the hallway.
Two guards appeared almost immediately. They glanced at Lucas, then at me, their expressions shifting when they noticed Selena's tear-stained face.
"Take Maya to the dungeons," Lucas ordered.
I stopped breathing.
The dungeons?
He couldn't be serious.
"Lucas, I'm your mate!"
His jaw tightened.
"You're a disgrace to this pack."
"I didn't do anything except slap the woman you cheated on me with!"
"Enough!" His Alpha command slammed into the room.
My knees buckled.
I fought to stay upright, but his power pressed against my chest, forcing the air from my lungs. My wolf snarled in protest, yet the bond between us made his command harder to resist.
Lucas had never used his Alpha voice against me before.
Never.
He watched me struggle, his expression cold.
"Take her away before I decide on a worse punishment."
The guards approached.
One reached for my arm.
I jerked away.
"Don't touch me!"
"Maya, please don't make this harder," one of them muttered.
I looked at Lucas one last time.
Some foolish part of me still waited for him to change his mind. To step forward and tell the guards he had made a mistake.
Instead, Selena leaned into his side.
He kissed her forehead.
Right in front of me.
Something inside me went quiet.
I stopped fighting the guards as they seized my arms and dragged me towards the door. My feet scraped across the floor, but I kept my eyes on Lucas until the wall finally blocked him from view.
The bedroom door slammed shut behind me.
I had returned home believing I would become Luna.
Now my own pack's guards were dragging me towards its darkest prison.
And the man I had spent three years preparing to stand beside had ordered it.
I lowered my head as we descended the stairs.
My tears fell silently onto the front of my shirt.
Lucas had taken my place beside him and given it to Selena. He had turned my love into a weakness and my loyalty into something he could punish.
But he had forgotten something.
I hadn't spent three years at the Elite Luna Academy learning how to bow my head.
I had learned how to fight.
And if Lucas wanted to treat me like an enemy, then one day, he would have to face me as one.
/1/132926/coverbig.jpg?v=ce452a632494bb3c79d5b62cdadcfb2f)
View More Comments on App
