The Moon Goddess Festival transformed our territory into a surreal wonderland of silver lights and flowing white fabrics. Pack members gathered near the high cliffs, their excited chatter filling the night air with anticipation. I stood at the edge of the celebration, my damaged hip throbbing as I watched Jacob take his place at the center of the clearing.

"Attention, Moonstone Pack," he called, his Alpha voice carrying effortlessly across the gathered crowd. "Tonight, we honor the Moon Goddess and seek her blessing for our future."

My fingers instinctively moved to my stomach, still flat but harboring a secret that grew stronger each day. Two months. My tiny pup had survived two months of my body's morning sickness and Jacob's casual cruelty.

"Rose." Beta Marcus appeared at my side, his expression unreadable. "You should stand with the Omegas."

I nodded, understanding the unspoken command. Jacob had made it clear where I belonged tonight—as far from him and Milani as possible.

The ceremonial Alpha dance began, Jacob's powerful frame moving with surprising grace as Milani twirled in his arms. Her white dress shimmered under the moonlight, making her look ethereal—like Sophia must have looked in Jacob's memories.

"The Alpha pair looks perfect together, don't they?" an Omega woman whispered beside me, her voice tinged with envy.

I watched Jacob's hands settle possessively on Milani's waist, his eyes fixed on her face with an intensity he'd never shown me. Not even on that one night when alcohol and grief had driven him to my bed.

"They do," I replied softly, my hand still pressed against my abdomen.

My pup would never know this life. Would never watch their father look at another woman with such devotion. Would never stand at the edges of celebrations, unwanted and unloved.

The dance ended with thunderous applause. Jacob pulled Milani close, his lips brushing her ear in a gesture so intimate I had to look away.

"Rose!" A young voice called from behind me.

I turned to see Tommy, one of the pack's youngest pups, racing toward me with excitement shining in his eyes.

"Dr. Elena needs you," he panted, tugging at my sleeve. "At the medical tent by the cliffs. She said it's important."

My heart skipped a beat. Dr. Elena had been my only ally in this pack, the only one who knew about my condition.

"Thank you, Tommy," I said, forcing a smile. "Did she say what she needed?"

He shrugged, already turning to run back to his friends. "Something about medicine. She said to hurry."

I glanced back at the celebration. Jacob and Milani were now sharing a private conversation near the ceremonial fire, completely absorbed in each other. No one would notice if I slipped away briefly.

The path to the cliffside medical tent was lit by smaller torches, casting long shadows across the rocky ground. My damaged leg made the walk painful, but I pushed forward, eager to speak with Dr. Elena about my growing pup.

"Dr. Elena?" I called as I approached the tent. "I got your message."

The tent flap opened, but instead of the healer's kind face, Milani stepped out. Her usual sweet smile was gone, replaced by something cold and calculating.

"Hello, Rose," she said softly. "Or should I say, hello to you and your little bastard?"

My blood froze. "What are you talking about?"

Milani laughed, the sound sharp as breaking glass. "Oh, please. Did you think I wouldn't figure it out? The herbs you carry? The morning sickness? The way you touch your stomach when you think no one's watching?"

She circled me slowly, like a predator sizing up wounded prey. "Jacob may be stupid enough to miss the signs, but I'm not."

"You don't understand," I whispered, backing away. "This pup is innocent."

"Innocent?" Milani's eyes flashed with anger. "Do you know what Sophia and I used to do when Jacob wasn't around? We'd laugh at him. Laugh at how pathetically he worshipped her. How easily manipulated he was."

She stepped closer, her voice dropping to a venomous whisper. "And now you think you can give him a pup? A child that would threaten everything I've worked for?"

I backed away, my injured leg threatening to give out beneath me. "Please, Milani. Let me go. I won't tell anyone."

"Tell anyone what?" She smiled, her perfect teeth gleaming in the moonlight. "That I killed Jacob's bastard before it could draw breath? That I protected our future from your pathetic attempt to trap him?"

My back hit the cliff edge. Rocks crumbled beneath my feet, tumbling into the darkness below.

"Don't," I pleaded, one hand protectively covering my stomach. "Don't do this."

Milani's smile widened as she lunged forward, her hands connecting with my chest in a violent shove.

For one suspended moment, I felt nothing but air beneath me. Then gravity claimed me, and I was falling, screaming as the jagged rocks rushed up to meet me.

Pain greeted me before consciousness fully returned. A deep, gnawing ache that seemed to consume my entire body. I tried to move, but my left leg screamed in protest, sending fresh waves of agony through me.

"Easy, Rose. Don't try to move yet."

Dr. Elena's voice broke through the haze of pain. I forced my eyes open, blinking against the harsh fluorescent lights of the pack hospital. The sterile white ceiling swam into focus above me.

"Dr. Elena," I whispered, my throat raw and parched. "What happened?"

Tears streaked down her face as she adjusted the IV drip connected to my arm. "You fell from the cliff during the festival. Three days ago."

Memories crashed back—Milani's face twisted with hatred, her hands against my chest, the sickening sensation of falling through empty air.

"My baby," I gasped, instinctively reaching for my stomach.

Dr. Elena's hand caught mine, her grip gentle but firm. "I'm so sorry, Rose. The fall was too severe."

The words didn't make sense at first. Then understanding hit me like a physical blow, and a keening sound filled the room—my own voice, raw with grief.

"No," I moaned, trying to curl forward despite the pain. "No, please, no."

"The trauma caused a miscarriage," Dr. Elena continued, her voice breaking. "There was nothing I could do."

I turned my face to the wall, tears streaming silently down my cheeks. The tiny life I'd protected for two months—gone. The future I'd imagined for my pup—shattered.

"And your leg," Dr. Elena said softly, her hand moving to the cast that encased my lower left limb. "The damage is... extensive. The fall caused multiple fractures that went through the joint."

I looked down at the bulky cast, understanding dawning slowly through my grief.

"The pack healers tried," she continued, wiping her eyes. "But the injury is beyond magical repair. You'll... you'll always have a limp, Rose."

A broken leg. A broken womb. A broken future.

"I'm sorry," Dr. Elena whispered, genuine anguish in her eyes. "If I could have saved your pup, I would have."

I closed my eyes, unable to bear the pity in her gaze. "How long will I be here?"

"A few more days, at least. Your body needs time to heal what it can."

Before I could respond, the hospital room door burst open with such force that it slammed against the wall. Jacob stood in the doorway, his massive frame vibrating with barely contained rage. His eyes were golden—his wolf close to the surface.

"Alpha," Dr. Elena acknowledged, rising quickly. "She just woke up. She needs rest—"

"Leave us," he commanded, his Alpha tone brooking no argument.

Dr. Elena hesitated, looking between us with concern.

"Now!" Jacob roared.

She fled, throwing one last sympathetic glance my way before disappearing through the door.

Jacob stalked toward my bed, each step deliberate and threatening. "How could you be so clumsy?" he snarled, looming over me. "So weak?"

I stared at him in disbelief. "Clumsy?"

"Milani told me everything," he continued, his voice cold as ice. "How you've been acting strange lately. How you threw yourself off that cliff to spite me."

"What?" I whispered, shock rendering me nearly speechless.

His hand shot out, gripping my jaw with bruising force. "Did you think I wouldn't figure it out? That I wouldn't realize what you were trying to do?"

"I didn't—"

"You killed my heir," he hissed, his face inches from mine. "My pup. Our pup."

The accusation hit me like a physical blow. "You didn't even know," I whispered.

"I know now," he snarled. "Milani told me everything. How you got pregnant to trap me. How you decided to kill our child rather than let me have any part of it."

His words were so absurd, so twisted by Milani's lies, that I could barely comprehend them. "Jacob, please—"

"Guards!" he shouted, not taking his eyes off me.

Two Delta wolves appeared instantly at the door.

"Lock her in," Jacob ordered, finally releasing my jaw. "She doesn't leave this room until I decide what to do with her."

"Alpha," one guard began hesitantly, "Dr. Elena says she needs fresh air for recovery—"

"She needs to learn her place," Jacob cut him off. "Post a guard at her door. No one enters without my permission."

As he turned to leave, I found my voice one last time. "Jacob, please believe me. I would never hurt our pup."

He paused at the doorway, his broad shoulders tense. For one heartbreaking moment, I thought he might listen.

Instead, he spoke without turning around. "You're not useful to me anymore, Rose. Not as a Luna. Not as a mate. Not as anything."

The door closed behind him with finality, leaving me alone with my shattered body and broken heart.

Outside my window, the moon rose over the Moonstone territory—the same moon that had witnessed my fall, my loss, and now my imprisonment.