Chapter 1After my pup Anna died, I erased every habit my Alpha mate, Charles Leonard, had ever disliked.
I stopped questioning his whereabouts. I slept fine when he stayed out all night hunting.
Even after I was caught in an explosion and the pack medic told me to call my mate, I just said, "I don't have one."
A nurse recognized me. "Luna Leonard? Alpha Leonard is right next door. Should I fetch him?"
I shook my head. "That won't be necessary."
But thirty minutes later, Charles appeared anyway.
His eyes carried their usual ruthless glow. His voice was deep, cold. "Why didn't you tell me you were hurt?"
I looked down. "Just scratches from shrapnel. Nothing serious."
My flat tone seemed to claw at something inside him.
He opened his mouth - but voices from the corridor drifted in.
"Alpha Leonard really cares about Janelle Morgan. She only twisted her ankle in training, and he called a helicopter, carried her himself. Wouldn't even let her feet touch the ground."
Charles's wolf flinched behind his ribs. He shot me a quick glance, waiting for me to snap like I used to.
I didn't even blink. I leaned back and closed my eyes.
...
The air thickened around him. He growled low, "Don't listen to them. Janelle is a key specialist. If she's hurt, operations stall. I'm doing it for the pack."
I nodded.
His temper flared. "You don't believe me?"
"I do," I said evenly. "You trained her yourself. You're her Alpha. Looking out for her is natural."
His brow furrowed - my calm unsettled him more than rage ever did.
Then a crash echoed from the hallway. Equipment clattered.
Janelle staggered into view, collapsed right outside my door.
Charles crossed in three strides, swept her up. "What are you doing here? I told you to stay in bed."
"I heard Luna Leonard was hurt." She looked at me, tears glistening. "I came to check on her."
She shrank against his chest as if I were a threat. "Luna Leonard, please... I never meant for little Anna to die."
Once, I would have grabbed Charles by the throat and demanded why he shielded his pup's killer.
Now I just stared at the ceiling.
Charles lowered his voice. "I'm taking her back. I'll be right back."
He turned and carried her away.
Midnight came. He didn't return.
Instead, my phone rang - Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. "Ms. Vieri, are you certain you want to join Welkin Shield? Top secret. Once in, you're stationed at the base for twenty years. No contact with the outside. Including your mate."
"Yes." My voice was flat.
The caller paused. "Alright... You have three days to withdraw. After all, you - "
Chapter 2
I heard the commotion at the door, ended the call, and shut my eyes - playing dead.
Charles's presence filled the room, cold and heavy.
He stopped when he saw my closed lids. Thought I'd been talking in my sleep.
His frown softened. But that only made him angrier - because even in dreams, he couldn't stand the thought of me leaving.
He shook me awake. "Lia. Were you having a nightmare?"
I kept my eyes down. "I dreamed about Anna."
The name cut him. He pulled me against his chest, voice rough. "Lia, we'll have more pups. Lots of them."
I said nothing. My wolf had gone quiet inside me. Even my tears had dried up.
Anna was gone. Did he really think another pup could fill that hole?
"Charles." My voice was flat. "It's the middle of the night. Why are you here?"
He hesitated. Almost awkward. "Jane's stomach hurts. She's craving that soup you make."
Ice flooded my veins.
I'd just survived a blast. Shrapnel still buried in my flesh. And here he was, waking his Luna in the dead of night - to cook for her.
I gave a hollow smile. "Get me a pen and paper. I'll write it down."
He signaled a guard.
When I handed him the recipe, his fingers trembled. His wolf flickered beneath his skin.
He remembered. I'd once told him, I'll give you this recipe the day we part. As long as we're together, I'll always make it for you myself.
Now I'd handed it over like it meant nothing.
"Alpha Leonard." A guard's voice from outside. "Janelle's in pain. She's asking for you."
Charles frowned and walked out. Didn't look back.
I closed my eyes. Tried to rest.
I'd barely drifted off when a brutal grip yanked me upright.
His claws bit into my chin. His eyes were arctic. "Ophelia. Jane coughed up blood after that soup. What did you put in that recipe?"
I opened my lids, met his glare flatly. "You think it's poisoned? Let the pack medics test it."
His chest heaved. His voice dropped low, almost a growl. "Lia, if you're upset, just say so. Don't shut me out. I'm your mate. Not your enemy."
I closed my eyes again. "I have nothing to say to you."
He stopped breathing for a second. "What does that mean?"
I went silent. Like he wasn't even there.
Outside, the guard's voice filtered in. "Alpha, Janelle's stomach is swelling. She's terrified. Keeps calling for you..."
"I heard." Charles's reply was clipped.
He turned, gave me one last look. "Get some rest, Lia. I'll drive you back to pack territory tomorrow."
That night stretched like an endless winter.
I barely slept.
Anna - my pup, carried for ten moons, born from my own body - would be reduced to ash tomorrow. Sealed in a cold urn. Buried in dark earth.
Next morning, Charles arrived on time. Drove me himself to the mountain compound.
I leaned on my crutch, hobbled step by step into the funeral hall. Desperate for one last glimpse of my little girl.
But the second I crossed the threshold -
Kiana Leonard, his mother, lunged at me like a feral rogue.
"You worthless bitch! You dare show your face here?"
Chapter 3
His Alpha glare swept the room. The crowd scattered.
Only then did his expression ease. He scooped me up, carried me to our den, and dug out the med kit to dress my wounds.
But my eyes stayed ice-cold. Hollow.
I stared at him. "Charles. Janelle took Anna to that observation deck. So why did Kiana say it was me?"
His hand paused over the gauze. His voice went dry. "Lia, Jane is the pack's weapons specialist. Her identity is sensitive. If anyone finds out she was indirectly responsible for Anna's death, she'd lose her place in the territory."
He swallowed. "You're different. You're my Luna. Under my protection. No one dares touch you. Take the blame this once, alright? I'll transfer thirty percent of Leonard Defense shares to you."
He watched me, unease flickering behind his wolf's glow.
He expected tears. Accusations. A meltdown.
Instead, my face stayed so calm his chest tightened in panic.
I glanced at him flatly. "Whatever. I don't care."
I'd agreed. He should've felt relieved.
But something clawed at his ribs instead.
"Lia, don't overthink. Jane's talented. That's why I look out for her. That's all."
"I understand." I dropped my gaze. "You don't need to explain."
Only someone still in love needed explanations.
I didn't love him anymore. His words meant nothing.
Charles's jaw clenched. He was about to speak -
A guard burst in. "Alpha! Bad news. Janelle went to pay respects and ran into Nellie. They're fighting."
Nellie Leonard. The true-blooded heir.
Charles's face shifted. His wolf surged under his skin.
"Lia, bandage yourself. I have to handle this."
He bolted out.
The second he left, Kiana barged in with her trusted pack enforcers.
"Ophelia." Her eyes dripped venom. "No one's here to protect you now. Anna died because of you. I'll make sure you feel what it's like to fall."
She signaled. Her enforcers dragged me to an old ventilation shaft - deep, black, icy wind howling from the bottom.
"Anna fell from that deck, thirty stories high." Kiana grabbed my hair, forced my upper body over the edge. "Do you have any idea how terrifying that drop was?"
Darkness gaped below like a wolf's open maw. She shoved me forward, yanked me back at the last second. Over and over.
"Breathe! You know how to breathe, don't you?" Her enraged snarl rang in my ears. "When Anna fell, she didn't even have time to scream!"
Each jolt tore through my ribs. Metallic blood flooded my mouth, trickling from my lips.
One of the enforcers muttered, "Her internal organs might be ruptured. If we keep this up, she'll die."
Only then did Kiana let go.
I crumpled to the ground. My wolf whimpered deep inside. Consciousness faded to black.
