Chapter 1My Alpha insisted his childhood friend witness our bonding ceremony.
Right when I was supposed to step into the sacred circle under the full moon,
he suddenly told the pack elder to wait.
Then he turned around and pulled her forward from the crowd—
Ophelia Vale, dressed in ceremonial white like she was the one being bonded.
Hand in hand, they walked to the center of the clearing.
He said, "I promised Ophelia I'd stand with her under the moon once in my life."
Ophelia's eyes filled with tears as she collapsed into Cassius's arms.
She looked straight at Morgana and the former Alpha and said,
"Luna Morgana... Alpha Gareth... even though I never got to bond into Ironclaw,
I still want to call you family—just once."
Then she kissed my Alpha.
Right there.
In front of the entire pack.
Under the Moon Goddess's light.
Gasps rippled through the wolves.
Whispers started.
Eyes turned to me, waiting for me to shift, to lunge, to fight.
Instead, I smiled.
Walked forward.
Pulled off my moonflower crown—
And gently placed it on Ophelia's head.
"You say you never got the chance?"
"Well, now you do."
"Congratulation, Ophelia... Thanks for picking up what I threw away."
---
The moment I said that, Ophelia collapsed right into Cassius's arms.
Her fingers dug into his shoulders, clinging like her life depended on it.
And without missing a beat, he scooped her up—like she was his fated mate—
and bolted out of the ceremony clearing like some tragic hero in a bad romance novel.
Before he left, he made sure to rip into me in front of the entire pack—
called me jealous, unstable, unworthy.
Said I couldn't even handle three minutes of him comforting his "childhood friend,"
and that I'd sabotaged the bonding ceremony on purpose.
We'd been together ten years.
His parents only agreed to this bond because I was carrying an Ironclaw heir.
Just ten minutes ago, I really thought once we completed the ritual,
he'd finally see me as more than just a low-born Omega with a useful womb.
That we'd finally have the bond I'd been promised.
But now?
My mother slapped the ceremonial wine from my hands,
the glass shattering at my feet as she screamed at me to go after him.
My father just glared,
ripped the moonflower corsage from his chest—the one I'd pinned there myself—
and crushed it under his boot.
Morgana Ironclaw, my future mother-in-law, who'd made it clear from day one that I wasn't good enough,
looked at me with pure venom and said,
"You've always been low-blood trash. Tonight just proved it."
She dug her nails into my forearm—hard enough that I felt them break skin—
and leaned in close enough that I could smell the disgust on her breath.
"If you want to bond into the Ironclaw Pack,
you better learn to bow your head and bleed quietly like a proper Luna.
You ruined this ceremony?
Don't expect the Moon Goddess to give you a second chance."
Looking at her twisted, snarling face,
I finally understood—
love doesn't bind a bond.
Power does.
Ten years.
I was done chasing the title of Luna Ironclaw.
Before I could even open my mouth,
she grabbed me by the wrist and shoved me out of the sacred grove.
"Unless you drag Cassius back here and beg on your knees,
don't bother coming back to Ashenwood."
The heavy grove gates slammed shut behind me.
In front of me—a sudden downpour, rain hammering the earth like the Moon Goddess herself was weeping.
Behind me—howls of laughter, music, the pack pretending nothing had happened.
I stood there in my white ceremonial dress, now soaked and clinging to my skin,
looking like a wolf the pack had just cast out to die.
Before the tears could fall, the gates creaked open again.
My parents stepped out.
The moment I saw them,
all the pain I'd been choking down came flooding up.
In a small, broken voice,
I whispered, "Mom…"
But her face turned to stone.
"I'm not your mother right now."
"I told you not to make a scene."
"Now look what you've done. Cassius is gone.
The bond's broken.
What are the other packs going to think of your father and me?"
Her voice was ice.
Every word sank deeper than claws.
"Do what Morgana told you.
Go find him. Apologize.
If he rejects you now,
what happens to that Ironclaw heir you're carrying?"
They didn't wait for my answer.
They turned and walked back through the gates.
The heavy doors slammed shut again.
I just stood there.
Finally, the tears fell.
Chapter 2
The bonding ceremony was held deep in Ironclaw territory—miles into the forest, far from human roads.
No signal.
No way to call for help.
I shifted the torn ceremonial dress over my shoulder and started walking.
The rain soaked through the thin fabric.
White silk turned gray, then black.
Mud clung to the hem, dragging behind me like the weight of ten years wasted.
I had no idea how far I walked.
My bare feet were shredded from the rocks and roots.
Blood mixed with rainwater, trailing behind me.
I looked down and let out a bitter laugh.
What a perfect bonding ceremony.
Then my phone buzzed—
finally caught a signal near the edge of the territory.
Over a dozen messages from Cassius.
"Wren Thornfield, are you seriously trying to destroy me?"
"I told you—Ophelia is just pack family! Why are you so jealous?"
Not one word asking if I was okay.
Not one apology.
Just blame.
I was about to shove the phone back in my bag when a call came through.
Unknown number.
I answered.
It was Ophelia.
"Cassius… you just left Wren out there alone?
She's carrying your heir, she must be devastated…"
Cassius's voice came next,
soft and warm—the way he used to talk to me, back when I thought the bond meant something.
"Ophelia, you're too good.
That baby's just her way into the pack.
She'll never be what you are to me."
The phone slipped from my hand.
Hit the mud with a dull thud.
Of course.
How could I ever compare?
Two months ago, I'd collapsed in the packhouse kitchen late at night.
Just wanted water.
My wolf was weak, my body struggling to carry an Alpha heir.
I hit the floor hard, felt something tear inside.
Started bleeding.
I screamed for Cassius—he was about to leave.
But he just snarled at me:
"Wren, what the hell is wrong with you?
Call the pack healer yourself.
I've got something urgent."
I passed out before anyone found me.
Almost lost the baby.
Spent an entire month in the healer's den.
Cassius never came.
Not once.
And yesterday, I finally found out—
the urgent matter?
Ophelia was scared of storms.
He had to comfort her.
My hand clenched into the soaked fabric of my dress.
One of my nails—painted silver for the ceremony—snapped off.
It stung.
But not as much as the bond breaking inside my chest.
By the time I made it to the main road,
a cab finally pulled over.
Right then, Cassius called again.
"Wren, Ophelia's having a panic attack because of you!
Get to the pack clinic and apologize. Now."
I held the phone to my ear, rain hammering down around me.
Told him I was still out in the storm.
Suddenly, hail started falling.
Huge chunks of ice crashing into the ground.
Cassius heard it.
His voice shifted—almost anxious.
"It's hailing? You're not back yet? Then I'll—"
But before he could finish,
I heard Ophelia sobbing in the background.
"I shouldn't have come back…
I should've just let the rogues kill me…"
Cassius immediately went soft again.
When he came back on the line,
his voice was ice.
"Wren, I'm giving you thirty minutes.
Get to the clinic and apologize."
That was it.
That was the moment the bond snapped completely.
"No, Cassius.
I'm not the one who needs to apologize."
"I want to sever the bond."
Silence.
Then laughter.
"You think any Alpha in this region doesn't know you're a low-blood Omega?
You're pregnant with my heir, and no pack will take you."
My umbrella gave out and flipped inside out.
I stood there in the hail and wind.
Let it beat against me.
But in my chest, something finally cleared.
I ended the call.
The cab pulled up.
I wiped the rain and tears off my face,
rested a hand on my belly,
and told the driver—
"Take me to the human hospital."
Chapter 3
The moment I laid on the clinic table, I suddenly felt it—the faint flutter of the bond forming between me and the life inside me.
Steady. Strong.
Like the pup was begging me not to give up.
I hesitated for a long time, but eventually, I dialed Cassius's number.
"Cassius, I'm at the human hospital, and you—"
He cut me off with a scoff.
"You're already there? Then hurry the hell up!"
"I'm telling you, this time you'd better get on your knees and apologize to Ophelia, or don't even think about coming back to Ironclaw."
I swallowed the words that were about to leave my lips and ended the call.
I nodded to the doctor to begin.
"You're sure about this?" the doctor asked.
"The fetus is healthy. Maybe contact the father?"
"No need. He doesn't care."
I left the hospital and went back to the packhouse to grab my things.
The place was still covered in bonding decorations.
Moonflowers hung from the beams.
The ceremonial altar was still set up in the center of the main hall.
Clearly, Cassius hadn't been back since.
Otherwise, how could he stand to look at any of this?
While I was packing, my mother called.
"Wren, did you fix things with Cassius? Has he forgiven you?"
Her voice was filled with panic—but none of it was for me.
I told her I wanted to sever the bond.
The line went silent.
Then came the usual rant—crying, blaming me for being selfish.
Telling me to swallow my pride and hold the bond together.
My tears fell on the screen, blurring everything until I ended the call.
I pulled myself together and went back to the territory office.
Filed my resignation from the pack that same day.
When I left the building, Cassius was waiting outside.
In the ten years we'd been together, that was a first.
I tried to walk past him, but he blocked my path and shoved me into his truck.
"It was just a bonding ceremony, Wren."
"Did you really have to blow everything up like this?"
"You're not some naive kid anymore."
"Stop using bond severance like it's some kind of game to get my attention."
He reached into the glove compartment and tossed me a small velvet box.
Inside were two silver rings—bonding bands.
"What is this?"
He kept his eyes on the road as he spoke, like nothing was wrong.
"Ophelia didn't like the original rings. She threw them out."
"These are new—she picked them out for you."
Then, as if he'd just done me a favor, he added,
"They're way more expensive than the last set. You should be grateful."
I laughed, tossed the rings back at him.
"Then give them to Ophelia."
"I'm not interested in her leftovers."
His face turned dark in an instant.
"Don't be ungrateful, Wren."
"If you weren't pregnant with an Ironclaw heir, do you really think you'd have ever made it into this pack?"
He wasn't wrong.
This bond was nothing more than a pity arrangement because of the baby.
So why was I still clinging to something so hollow, just to let him destroy what was left of me?
I held back the tears welling up and turned my head toward the window.
"Then take it that I am ungrateful."
"Let's get the bond severance done."
"Tell me when you're free."
He slammed on the brakes.
The tires screeched against the gravel, and the truck jerked to a stop.
"You wanna talk about ungrateful?" he snapped.
"You were the one begging at my parents' feet like a stray, begging them to let you bond into this pack."
"Who the hell are you performing for now?"
Once upon a time, his words would've gutted me.
I would've cried and apologized just to keep the bond intact.
But now?
Now I didn't even have the strength to fight.
Silence filled the truck—until Ophelia's name popped up on his screen.
"Cassius, my wolf is restless... Can you come be with me?"
I cleared my throat and said quietly,
"Let me out here."
He looked stunned.
"You're not mad?"
I shook my head.
I used to be, when I loved him.
Now?
There was nothing left to feel angry about.
He stopped the truck, but the door wouldn't open—it was still locked.
He grabbed my hand, something unreadable in his eyes.
"I'll just check on her and come right back. Wait for me here."
I smiled politely and pulled my hand free.
"No need. I can shift and run back."
He hesitated, then finally unlocked the doors.
"You're pregnant. Don't shift—I'll come back for you."
I shook my head again.
He clenched his jaw.
"Do you really have to be like this?"
I actually laughed.
To him, I was the one who betrayed him.
"Yeah."
He stared at me hard, like he was trying to memorize my face.
"Wren... you better wait and see."
