Kacie POV:

The next morning, the house was silent. But it wasn't empty.

I walked into the kitchen to find my favorite mug-a yellow ceramic one with a painted sun-in the trash can, broken.

Jayden was at the stove, wearing Cedric's oversized dress shirt. It hung off her shoulders, exposing the fake bandage on her arm. She was humming.

The scent of the house had changed. My lavender detergent, my vanilla candles-they were gone. Replaced by that cloying peach scent. She had sprayed it on the curtains, the rugs, everywhere. She was scent-marking my territory.

A wave of nausea hit me, sharp and sudden. I grabbed the counter, swallowing back bile. It wasn't just Jayden's perfume. It was my body revolting against something. Or changing.

"Good morning, Kacie," she said cheerfully, flipping a pancake. "Cedric is in the shower. He was so exhausted after last night. The chase... really worked up his appetite."

She emphasized the word appetite with a suggestive lick of her lips.

I pressed a hand to my stomach. It felt... different. Tighter. But I ignored it, blaming the stress and the Wither.

"Where are my things?" I asked.

"Oh, Cedric had the maids move them to the guest wing," she said. "He agreed that I need the master suite's energy to heal. The Feng Shui is better."

She walked over to me, her voice dropping to a whisper. "You should just give up. He doesn't want you. He never did. You're just a placeholder until I'm ready to take the Luna title."

"He can't make you Luna," I said, my voice steady despite the shaking of my hands. "Not while I'm alive."

Jayden smiled, a cold, reptilian smile. "Exactly."

Cedric walked in then, hair wet, a towel around his waist. He walked right past me, went to Jayden, and kissed her on the forehead.

"Breakfast looks good," he said.

"Cedric," I said. "We need to talk about the divorce papers."

He slammed his hand on the counter. "Stop with the drama, Kacie. There will be no divorce. Tonight is the Alpha Summit Gala. You will attend. You will stand by my side. And you will smile."

"I can't pretend anymore," I said.

"You will," he said, his voice dropping into that dangerous Alpha tone. "Or I will cut funding to that orphanage you care so much about."

My blood ran cold. The orphanage where I grew up. The only family I had.

"You wouldn't," I whispered.

"Try me."

That evening, I stood in front of the mirror in the guest room. I wore a dress of deep midnight blue velvet. It was the traditional color of the Moon Pack Luna.

I picked up a framed photo from the dresser. It was a candid shot of Cedric and me from the day we signed the marriage certificate. He wasn't smiling, but I was looking at him with so much hope.

I took the photo out of the frame. I walked to the fireplace in the corner of the room.

I struck a match.

I watched the flame curl the edges of the paper. I watched my own smiling face turn to ash, then Cedric's.

"Kacie Moon is dead," I whispered to the flames. "There is only the White Wolf now."

I didn't feel sadness anymore. I felt a cold, hard resolve.

I finished getting dressed. I didn't put on the Moon family crest brooch. Instead, I put on a simple silver locket my mother had left me.

I walked downstairs. Cedric was waiting in his tuxedo. Jayden was there too, wearing a flashy red dress that clashed with the pack colors.

"That dress," Jayden whined, pointing at my blue velvet. "Cedric, I wanted to wear blue. It brings out my eyes."

Cedric sighed. "Kacie, change. Let Jayden wear the blue."

"This is the Luna's ceremonial dress," I said calmly. "Only the Luna can wear it. Unless you plan to announce my deposition tonight?"

Cedric hesitated. He knew the pack laws.

"Fine," he muttered. "Let's go."

As we walked to the car, I trailed behind them. I watched Cedric open the door for Jayden, helping her in with gentle hands. He let the door close, leaving me to open my own.

I looked at the moon hanging low in the sky.

18 Days.

I touched the locket at my throat. Inside was a small, folded piece of paper with a list of things I wanted to do before I died.

1. Find my Mate. (Crossed out)

2. Be kissed in the rain.

3. Ride the Ferris Wheel at midnight.

"Soon," I promised myself. "Just a little longer."

Kacie POV:

The Alpha Summit Gala was a sea of silk, diamonds, and power. The air was thick with the commingled scents of a dozen different packs-pine, musk, rain, and earth. It was a display of dominance, and I felt like a prey animal walking into a lion's den.

I stood near the entrance of the ballroom, smoothing the velvet of my midnight-blue gown. It was heavy, regal, and the only armor I had left. It signaled to everyone that despite the rumors, I was still the Luna of the Blood Moon Pack.

"Oh no!" A shrill cry pierced the low hum of conversation.

I turned to see Jayden standing by the cloakroom. She was clutching the hem of her red dress. A long, jagged tear ran up the side, exposing her thigh.

"My dress!" she wailed, tears instantly welling in her eyes. "I caught it on the doorframe! I can't go in like this, Cedric. Everyone will laugh at the Moon Pack."

Cedric was at her side in an instant, his brow furrowed. "It's ruined. We don't have time to go back to the estate."

Jayden looked up at me, her eyes gleaming with a predatory light. "Kacie... your dress. It's beautiful. And it's blue. You know blue is the color that calms my heart condition."

I took a step back. "No."

"Kacie," Cedric said, his voice warning.

"This is the Luna's ceremonial gown, Cedric," I said, my voice trembling but firm. "It has the pack crest embroidered on the lining. She cannot wear it. It is against the law."

"I am the Alpha!" Cedric snapped, the power in his voice making the nearby attendants flinch. "I am the law. Jayden represents the Moon family's honor. She cannot be seen in rags. You, however, are just..."

He didn't finish the sentence. He didn't have to. Just a placeholder.

"Take it off," he ordered.

"Cedric, please," I whispered. "Don't strip me of my dignity here."

"Give her the dress."

The Alpha Command slammed into me like a physical blow to the stomach. My hands moved on their own, reaching for the zipper at my back. Tears burned my eyes as I was forced to undress in the semi-private cloakroom, handing the warm, heavy velvet to the woman who was stealing my life.

Minutes later, Jayden stood before the mirror, twirling in my gown. It fit her loosely, but she looked triumphant. I was left shivering in a spare, plain grey dress the attendant had found in the lost-and-found. It was tight in the wrong places and smelled of stale lavender.

"You look beautiful, Jay," Cedric said, his voice soft.

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a velvet box. My heart gave a painful thud. I recognized that box. It was the anniversary gift I had seen the receipt for on his desk weeks ago.

He opened it to reveal a necklace. A large, teardrop-shaped Bloodstone set in silver.

Bloodstones were rare. In our world, they weren't just jewelry. They were protective talismans, capable of deflecting minor hexes and physical blows. They were given by Alphas to their Mates to protect them when the Alpha couldn't be there.

"For me?" Jayden gasped.

"It has protective properties," Cedric said, fastening it around her neck. "With your weak health, you need it more than anyone."

He didn't even look at me. He didn't remember that he had bought it for me, for the wife he constantly put in danger.

Jayden fingered the red stone, smirking at me over Cedric's shoulder. "It matches the red in my eyes, don't you think, Kacie?"

I looked away, clutching the cheap fabric of my grey dress. My wolf, Serenity, didn't even growl. she was too weak, curled up in the dark recess of my mind, fading away.

"Let's go," Cedric said, offering his arm to Jayden.

They walked into the ballroom, the golden couple. I followed three steps behind, invisible, unwanted, and unprotected.

17 Days.

Kacie POV:

The gala was suffocating. I hid in the shadows near the catering tables, trying to make myself as small as possible. Watching Cedric dance with Jayden was like having my chest cavity scooped out with a spoon.

"Well, well. Look what the cat dragged in."

I looked up. A man stood before me. He smelled of rot and old whiskey. His eyes were bloodshot, and his clothes were expensive but unkempt. A Rogue who had managed to sneak in, or perhaps a guest who had fallen from grace.

"Excuse me," I said, trying to step around him.

He blocked my path. He inhaled deeply, a disgusting, wet sound. "You smell... interesting. Like rot, but underneath that... milk. And new blood."

My hand flew to my stomach. The nausea from this morning. The tightness. No. It couldn't be.

"Let me pass," I said, channeling what little authority I had left.

"Your shoes are dirty," the Rogue sneered. He pointed at his muddy boots. "Clean them. Maybe if you show you're good at serving, the Alpha will keep you as a maid."

"No," I said.

The Rogue grabbed my hair. Pain shot through my scalp. "I said, clean them!"

He forced me down. My knees hit the hard marble floor. The humiliation was a hot brand on my skin. People were watching. Whispering. No one stepped in. To them, an unmarked female without her Alpha's protection was fair game.

I reached for a napkin, my hands shaking. I wiped the mud from his boot. I had no pride left. I just wanted to survive the night.

Thud!

The Rogue went flying across the room, crashing into a table of champagne flutes.

Cedric stood over me, his chest heaving, his fists clenched. His eyes were glowing gold.

"Get up," he hissed at me, grabbing my arm and hauling me to my feet.

He didn't ask if I was okay. He dragged me toward the exit, his grip bruising.

We got into the elevator. The doors closed, sealing us in.

"You are a disgrace," Cedric spat. "Kneeling for a Rogue? Have you no pride? You are wearing the Moon Pack name!"

"I have no pride because you took it all!" I screamed back, the dam finally breaking. "You gave my dress to your mistress! You gave my protection stone to her! You leave me defenseless and then blame me when I get attacked?"

"She is not my mistress! She is family!"

"She is a snake, Cedric! And you are blind!"

Suddenly, the elevator lurched to a halt. The lights flickered and died. An emergency alarm blared.

Mind-Link: Cedric! Help! They have me! The roof!

It was Jayden's voice, screaming in my head because the connection to the Alpha was open.

Cedric pried the elevator doors open with his bare hands. We were on the top floor. He sprinted toward the roof access, and I ran after him, my heart pounding.

On the windy rooftop, chaos reigned.

The Rogue from the ballroom-the one Cedric had hit-was there. But he wasn't alone. Three other men surrounded Jayden, holding her near the edge of the building.

"Back off, Alpha!" the leader shouted. He held a silver knife to Jayden's throat.

"Let her go," Cedric growled, his voice vibrating with the Alpha Command.

"Not a chance. We know about the Bloodstone," the Rogue laughed. "We can't hurt her easily with that rock around her neck. It repels the blade. But we need a hostage to get out of the city."

The Rogue looked at me. Then he looked at Cedric.

"A trade," the Rogue grinned. "The girl with the magic stone is too much trouble. Give us the wife. She's pregnant, isn't she? I can smell the pup on her. Double the prize."

The world stopped.

I froze. Pregnant?

I looked down at my flat stomach. The morning sickness. The scent changes I thought were just Jayden's perfume. A tiny, flickering spark of life, nestled deep within my womb. A pup. A miracle given my weak condition.

Cedric froze too. He looked at me, his eyes widening. He inhaled deeply, testing the air. He smelled it too. The subtle change in my scent.

"No," Cedric whispered.

"Choose, Alpha!" the Rogue shouted, pushing Jayden closer to the ledge. "The protected one, or the breeder? We take one, you get the other."

Jayden let out a sob. "Cedric! He's going to drop me! My heart... I can't breathe!"

Cedric looked at Jayden, panic flaring in his eyes. He looked at the Bloodstone around her neck. It offered protection, yes, but not from a fall.

Then he looked at me. At his pregnant wife.

"Kacie has the White Wolf blood," he muttered to himself, a frantic rationalization. "She heals faster. She's strong. Jayden is dying."

He made his choice.

"Take Kacie," Cedric said. His voice was cracked, broken, but clear.

"Cedric!" I screamed, stepping back. "I am carrying your child!"

"I will come for you," he said, avoiding my eyes. "I promise. Just... go with them. I have to save Jayden."

He grabbed my shoulder and shoved me toward the Rogues.

I stumbled forward. The Rogue grabbed me, his rough hands bruising my arms. He shoved Jayden toward Cedric.

Cedric caught Jayden, wrapping his arms around her, burying his face in her neck to comfort her.

The Rogue laughed. "Pleasure doing business."

Then, a gunshot rang out. A police sniper from the adjacent building.

The Rogue jerked. In his death spasm, he didn't hold onto me. He shoved me.

Hard.

I flew backward. Over the edge of the parapet.

"Cedric!" I screamed.

I saw him turn. I saw his hand reach out. But he didn't let go of Jayden to catch me.

The wind roared in my ears. The city lights blurred into streaks of neon. I fell into the darkness, my hands cradling my stomach, apologizing to the life that had barely begun.