Scarlett POV

I don't know how long I was out. I woke up to a pounding pain in my skull.

Everything was pitch-black. The air smelled of blood and damp mold. My body shivered. Am I dead?

I tried to move my hands. My wrists were still tied tight behind my back, burning. That's when I realized I was probably still alive.

Once my eyes adjusted to the dark, I could make out the room. The three kidnappers were gone. So was Liliana.

What the hell was going on?

Right as I was trying to figure it out, a bright flashlight beam hit me straight in the face.

"Luna's here!"

Whose voice was that?

Had Jaxen come to rescue me?

A rush of joy hit me. I struggled to stand up, but my hands and feet were still tied. My legs gave out, and I collapsed awkwardly onto the ground.

The person with the flashlight ran over, helped me up, and carefully peeled the tape off my mouth.

"Luna, are you okay?"

"My head hurts so bad..." I didn't know this person, but he called me Luna and was untying me, so he had to be one of ours. "Are you one of Jaxen's guys? Did he come? Where is he?"

"I'm Alpha's new bodyguard. He's here, he's... outside..." The bodyguard sounded hesitant. A bad feeling rose in my chest.

"What's wrong? Did he get hurt fighting the kidnappers?" I asked urgently.

"Uh... Alpha's outside. Let me help you out."

He was clearly hiding something. I frowned, but let him support me as we left the warehouse.

Outside was an open field full of cars. The most obvious one was the black Bugatti with the plate 'JL00001,' Jaxen's favorite ride.

"Is Jaxen in the car?"

Before I had even finished the sentence, I saw them.

Jaxen and Liliana.

She had her face buried deep in his broad chest, arms wrapped tightly around his waist as if she were scared he'd disappear. Jaxen stood straight, lips moving as he whispered to her. The night wind blew past, and for once his usual stony face looked gentle, as if he were comforting his scared lover.

People surrounded them: cops, doctors, Ashford family members-everyone looking worried and concerned.

At that moment, it felt like a wolf's claw ripped my chest open. The last bit of hope I had left got crushed into dust.

Five years. He had never held me like that. The way he was holding Liliana, the look in his eyes... it felt like my blood was on fire and someone was pressing a red-hot brand against my heart.

I'd actually been dumb enough to think he came to save me... that he cared about me at least a little.

Turns out I was just an afterthought.

He only came for Liliana. From beginning to end, I was simply the Luna in name only in the Iron Claw Pack. I had no actual place in his heart.

It was painfully obvious who he loved.

Tears slipped down my cheeks before I could stop them. I bit my lip hard so I wouldn't make a sound, but my fingers unconsciously gripped the bodyguard's arm tighter.

The bodyguard noticed how stiff and shaky I was. He sighed quietly but said nothing, just gently tried to distract me. "Luna, wait here. I'll get the doctor to check on you."

I could barely hear anything around me. My mind was stuck on that painful scene.

We were both kidnapped. Why did Liliana get everyone's care and protection while I... what the hell was I?

Just the annoying side chick who got in their way?

Jaxen didn't love me. His white moonlight was back. He was now the alpha of the Iron Claw Pack, fully controlling the family business, and he'd multiplied the value of Hale's Group several times. The Ashfords couldn't find a better son-in-law. He probably couldn't wait to divorce me so he could be with Liliana again.

Warrick, standing near them, finally noticed me. He glanced at Liliana, still sobbing and clinging to Jaxen, then quietly said, "Alpha, we found Luna."

Liliana glanced over. When she saw me standing there like a statue, staring at them, the corner of her mouth curved up in a tiny, almost invisible smirk. She hugged Jaxen even tighter, her voice teary and sweet: "Jaxen, you don't know how scary those three kidnappers were... They brought me here, but you came just in time..."

Before she could finish, her body suddenly swayed.

By the time I blinked, Jaxen had nuzzled her. He quickly took off his suit jacket and tossed it to his assistant, Warrick. "Throw this away."

Warrick walked past me with the jacket. Now nothing was blocking my view. Jaxen finally looked at me.

"Are you okay?" He walked over, tone casual, like he was asking a random stranger.

I let out a bitter laugh, my voice hoarse. "Not dead yet."

Jaxen looked me up and down, then glanced at the pack of doctors checking on Liliana nearby. He said lightly, "Wait until they finish with Liliana, then they can check on you. You don't look badly hurt, anyway." The corner of his mouth even twitched up a little.

That was it. All the hurt, anger, and pain inside me exploded.

I said each word slowly, my voice quiet but crystal clear:

"Jaxen, let's get a divorce."

Everything that happened today was like the sharpest knife, constantly reminding me: stop holding onto stupid, empty fantasies.

I'd secretly crushed on him since high school for five years, spent two years becoming his wife, and struggled through three years of marriage... Ten whole years. I tried everything to make him love me, but to him, I was still just a stranger who didn't matter.

There was no future for Jaxen and me.

Instead of waiting every day in fear for him to ask for a divorce first, I'd end this one-sided marriage myself.

Scarlett POV

The second I said it, I got that familiar frown from Jaxen. He looked at me as if I were a kid throwing a tantrum, not his Luna.

"Divorce? What are you thinking? What kind of game are you playing now?"

"Just because the kidnapper called me first, and I didn't believe his bullshit?"

His tone was light and mocking, as if I were telling one of his least favorite obscene jokes again.

"I'm not playing games!" My voice rose, even though my throat was dry and tight from just waking up. "I want a divorce!"

"Stop messing around." Jaxen rubbed his forehead, annoyed. "If your head is clear, go give your statement to the police. The kidnappers haven't all been caught yet."

I looked at the man in front of me and felt a deep wave of sadness.

Did he really think I was the person who would joke about divorce? In his eyes, I was probably still that vain, clingy girl who schemed her way into becoming Luna, his aunt's adopted daughter,r who desperately wanted to be the lead of Iron Claw Pack. There was no reason for me to want a divorce. He most likely just thought I was still shaken from the kidnapping and throwing a fit.

"Jaxen, you..."

Sadness and anger mixed, making my voice louder. But the next second, everything went black, and my legs gave out. I fell forward.

Jaxen moved fast and caught me. His arms were muscular, carrying that familiar pine and Alpha scent, but with zero warmth. "Where does it hurt?"

****

When I woke up again, I was in the Iron Claw Pack's private hospital. The only sound in the room was the low hum of medical machines. I pulled the oxygen tube out from under my nose and sat up with effort. In my daze, I thought I saw Jaxen sitting by the bed, his eyes unusually soft, his voice surprised and happy: "Honey, you're finally awake."

Too bad it was just a hallucination.

I wished so badly that when I woke up, he'd be there, even a bit of care would've been enough.

But the room was empty. He wasn't there.

Where did he go? Was he with Liliana again?

Just thinking about it felt like knives tearing my chest open. I couldn't breathe. I hugged my knees, buried my face between them, and cried silently.

"Hey, Scarlett. You're finally awake."

Delaney's familiar voice came as she walked over and patted my shoulder gently.

I sniffled, wiped my tears, and looked up. "Delaney..."

She saw my swollen eyes and shaky voice, got startled for a second, then sighed with care. "Most people who are kidnapped and stay unconscious for days would be a mess when they wake up. You not having PTSD yet is already impressive."

She patted my back, trying to sound gentle. "It's all over now. You're safe. The kidnappers are mostly caught. No one can hurt you anymore, my Scarlett."

"Yeah... no one can hurt me anymore," I repeated her words weakly, but my voice was full of bitterness.

Delaney pulled up a chair and handed me a washed apple. "Warrick said Jaxen stayed by your side all night, but you didn't wake up. He had to go back to the company. I'm taking care of you now. Eat this."

I couldn't believe my ears.

Delaney nodded. "The news about you and Liliana getting kidnapped has blown up on social media. Everyone's talking about how you were rescued and how much ransom the kidnappers got."

My fingers unconsciously gripped the bedsheet.

Delaney noticed but kept going. "I just didn't expect Jaxen to... He wouldn't pay your ransom, but he dropped a billion for Liliana and even worked with the police to set up a gigantic net to catch the kidnappers."

A billion.

Only for Liliana.

It felt like a hammer smashed into my chest. We were kidnapped together, but he only cared about her. Tears started falling again. I bit my lip hard, so I wouldn't make a noise.

Delaney knew how much I loved Jaxen, so she held back from cursing. She just sighed. "You were out for three days. We were terrified you wouldn't wake up."

I gave a bitter smile, "Maybe it would've been better if I hadn't."

"Don't say that!" Delaney glared at me. "Have you thought about how I'd feel?"

I looked at her, eyes stinging again. We were like sisters. She was my only support in this cold pack.

I took a deep breath, wiped my tears, and looked at her seriously. "Delaney, I need a favor."

"Your body's still recovering. Why are you asking for favors instead of resting?" She looked confused.

"Help me draft divorce papers."

Delaney shot up from her chair, staring down at me with wide eyes. "I'm a lawyer, yeah, but why are you asking me to do that?"

"I'm divorcing Jaxen," I said, each word clearly, my voice still a little shaky but firmer than ever.

"What?!"

Jaxen POV

After Warrick left with the police, the nurse adjusted the machines and left. It was just her and me in the hospital room. The room smelled of strong disinfectant and her faint breathing.

I stood by the bed, looking down at her pale face. Scarlett's eyelashes cast soft shadows under the light. There was an IV in the back of her hand and bandages around her thin wrists.

I reached out and touched her cheek.

I told myself it was just to make sure she was stable; she was still my responsibility.

Then her scent blindsided me. Clean, fragile, with a hint of sweet grass after rain. It was the same scent I caught when I first saw her at seventeen. All my walls, all my masks fell away while she was unconscious, leaving only the raw, real her.

My wolf surged up from the base of my spine as if it had been struck by lightning. This wasn't some family "responsibility." This wasn't political marriage bullshit. It was the oldest call in my blood roaring.

She's mine.

I leaned down, one hand on the bed. My lips brushed her forehead, then I pressed my forehead into the crook of her neck and breathed her in deep. My lips touched her warm skin. In that moment, the bond cracked wide open like a wound.

I felt every weak beat of her heart, like thousands of threads tying us together. Her pain, her fear, and her loneliness all poured into my chest. I almost couldn't stand it. I used every ounce of control I had to pull myself away, stumbling back until I hit the wall and slid down to the floor. I stared at her unconscious form, my eyes burning.

A crack opened in my chest. My wolf whimpered inside, using a gentleness I'd never heard before, repeating over and over:

She's ours.

I slowly stood up, turned, and rushed out of the room. I leaned against the icy wall at the end of the hallway, gasping for air. My fingers were still shaking. I clenched them into fists.

I couldn't get close to her again.