The mind-link hit me like a physical blow while I was organizing medical supplies in the pack clinic.

*Kiana! Northern border—under attack—need you—*

Christopher's voice crackled with what sounded like panic, then cut off abruptly. My wolf, Luna, surged forward instantly, her golden eyes flashing in my mind.

*Our mate needs us!*

I didn't think. I just ran.

The northern border was a fifteen-minute drive, but I made it in eight, my hands white-knuckled on the steering wheel. My heart hammered against my ribs as I scanned the tree line for signs of battle—broken branches, disturbed earth, the metallic tang of blood.

Nothing.

The abandoned cabin came into view, its windows dark except for a faint glow from inside. Christopher's SUV sat parked behind it, perfectly intact. No signs of struggle. No Rogue scents marking the perimeter.

Something cold settled in my stomach.

I pushed open the cabin door, and the world tilted.

Christopher had Adelynn pressed against the wall, his hands tangled in her blonde hair, their bodies molded together in a way that made my wolf howl in agony. His scent—pine and earth, the scent that had comforted me since childhood—was wrapped so thickly around her that I could barely smell her underlying human odor.

But there was something else. Something sickly sweet and wrong, like flowers left too long in a vase.

"Christopher?"

He jerked away from her, but not with guilt. With irritation. His eyes, when they met mine, were glazed and unfocused, pupils slightly dilated.

"What are you doing here?" His voice carried that edge I'd been hearing more and more lately—the one that made me feel like an intruder in my own life.

"You said you were under attack. You mind-linked—"

"I said I needed you to stay away." He stepped in front of Adelynn, shielding her with his body. "This is a private strategy session. Adelynn's been receiving threats from Rogues, and her safety is paramount to the pack's stability."

Adelynn peered around his shoulder, her lips swollen, her expression a perfect mask of innocent concern. "I'm so sorry, Kiana. I didn't mean to worry you. Christopher was just... protecting me."

The way she said my name—like I was a child who'd misunderstood something obvious—made my hands curl into fists.

"Strategy session." The words tasted like ash. "Is that what we're calling it now?"

Christopher's jaw clenched. "Don't start with your jealousy, Kiana. It's beneath you."

Luna whimpered in my mind, confused and hurt. *Why doesn't he want us? Why does he smell wrong?*

I didn't have an answer for her.

The drive to the Alpha gathering the next evening was suffocating. Christopher's hands gripped the steering wheel so tightly his knuckles went white, and the silence between us felt like broken glass—sharp and dangerous.

"You embarrassed me yesterday," he finally said, his voice flat. "Barging in like that, making accusations."

"You sent me a distress call."

"I did no such thing." He didn't even look at me. "You're so consumed with jealousy toward your sister that you're imagining things now."

My sister. The words hit like a slap.

"She's not—"

"She's family, Kiana. Your father's daughter. And she needs protection that you're too selfish to provide." His voice rose, taking on that Alpha edge that made my wolf want to submit. "Do you have any idea what it's like for her? A human living among wolves, vulnerable, defenseless?"

"She's not as defenseless as you think."

"That's exactly what I'm talking about." He slammed his palm against the steering wheel. "This petty vindictiveness. Your complete lack of empathy."

I stared at him, this man I'd known since we were children, and barely recognized him.

"I'm proposing a new pack law at the council meeting," he continued, his tone shifting to something almost clinical. "Alphas should be permitted to take a second mate—human mates—for political alliances. It would strengthen our ties to the human world, provide protection for vulnerable individuals like Adelynn."

Luna's howl of betrayal echoed through my skull, so loud I thought Christopher must hear it.

"You can't be serious."

"I'm completely serious. And as my mate, you'll support—"

The impact came from nowhere.

Metal screamed. Glass shattered. The SUV spun, and my head cracked against the window. Through the ringing in my ears, I heard snarls—Rogue wolves, their scents wild and unwashed.

And underneath it all, that same sickly sweet floral scent from the cabin.

Adelynn's perfume.

Christopher slumped unconscious against the deployed airbag. I tried to shift, calling for Luna, feeling her surge forward despite my injuries. We had to protect our mate. We had to—

Rough hands grabbed me, yanking me through the shattered window. Three Rogues, their eyes feral, their movements coordinated. Not random. Planned.

They walked right past Christopher's unconscious form.

They only wanted me.

"No—" I struggled, but one of them jammed a needle into my neck. Liquid fire poured through my veins. Wolfsbane. Concentrated.

Luna screamed and retreated deep inside me, whimpering.

Through blurring vision, I saw Christopher stir. His eyes opened, found mine. For one moment, I thought he'd shift, thought he'd fight.

Instead, he crawled toward his phone, his fingers fumbling across the screen.

"Adelynn," I heard him rasp. "Baby, are you safe? Stay in the pack house. Lock the doors. I'm coming—"

The Rogue threw me into the back of a van, and the last thing I saw before darkness claimed me was my mate, my fated bond, choosing her.

Cold woke me first. Then pain.

Silver chains bit into my wrists, burning through skin that should have healed hours ago. The cellar reeked of mold and old blood, the kind of smell that settles into your bones. I tried to call for Luna, but she was barely a whisper in my mind, cowering from the wolfsbane still coursing through my system.

Footsteps echoed on stone stairs. A man emerged from the shadows—tall, scarred, with eyes that had seen too much violence. Rogue. The wildness in his scent confirmed it.

"Awake. Good." He crouched in front of me, studying me like I was merchandise. "Name's Silas. Your sister sends her regards."

My sister. The words twisted something in my chest.

"Adelynn doesn't have the money to hire Rogues."

"No, but she's got debts. Gambling debts. To some very unpleasant people." He smiled, showing too many teeth. "They were willing to forgive everything in exchange for one thing. The Blood Moon Luna."

The room spun. Adelynn had sold me. Actually sold me to clear her debts.

Silas stood, walking to a speaker mounted on the wall. "Let's see if your mate cares enough to pay for you back."

He flipped a switch, and static filled the cellar. Then Christopher's voice, clear and commanding, using the pack's emergency frequency.

"Blood Moon Pack, this is your Alpha speaking." His tone was pure authority, the kind that made wolves bare their throats in submission. "There have been rumors about my mate bond with Kiana Bennett. I'm here to clarify. Our mating was a strategic alliance, nothing more. The bond makes us vulnerable to external threats, and I will not allow sentiment to compromise pack security."

The words hit harder than any physical blow.

"My focus must be on internal threats and protecting those truly vulnerable within our borders. The mate bond is a weakness I can no longer afford."

Silas laughed, low and cruel. "Guess that's a no on the ransom."

He crossed to a table I hadn't noticed, picking up something that made my blood freeze. A whip, its leather strands glistening with liquid that smelled like concentrated wolfsbane.

"Nothing personal, Luna. But I don't work for free, and if your Alpha won't pay, someone else will. They're paying by the hour to watch this."

He gestured to a camera mounted in the corner, its red light blinking.

The first lash tore a scream from my throat before I could stop it. Fire spread across my back, the wolfsbane sinking into torn flesh, preventing any healing. Luna howled in agony, retreating deeper into my mind.

Two. Three. Four.

I lost count somewhere around ten, my voice going hoarse from screaming. The silver chains kept me upright when my legs gave out, burning my wrists as I sagged against them.

Then Christopher's voice filled my head, cold and distorted through the mind-link.

*Endure it.*

I couldn't believe what I was hearing.

*Christopher—*

*If I acknowledge you as my true mate, they'll target Adelynn next. She's human, Kiana. Defenseless. This is a strategic sacrifice. You're strong enough to survive this.*

Another lash fell. I screamed again, tasting blood.

*Please—*

*I'm protecting what matters. Endure it.*

The mind-link went silent.

Silas continued his work methodically, professionally. Twenty lashes. My back was shredded, my wolf barely conscious. Blood pooled beneath me, mixing with the dirt floor.

"That's enough for today," Silas finally said, coiling the whip. "Don't want you dying too fast. Bad for business."

He left me hanging there, silver burning, wolfsbane spreading, my mate's words echoing in my skull.

Strategic sacrifice.

Three days blurred together. Silas came twice more with his whip. Christopher never responded to my mind-links. Luna stopped answering when I called.

Then, on the third night, chaos erupted upstairs. Snarls. Fighting. The cellar door crashed open, and Christopher stood there in his Alpha glory, eyes blazing, covered in blood that wasn't his.

For one moment, I thought he'd come to save me.

He crossed the cellar in three strides, grabbing Silas by the throat. The Rogue tried to speak, tried to say something about Adelynn, but Christopher's claws tore out his throat before any words could form.

Silas dropped, dead before he hit the ground.

Christopher turned to me, and I saw something flicker in his eyes. Regret? Guilt? It vanished too quickly to tell.

He broke the silver chains, catching me as I collapsed. His touch burned against my ruined back, but I was too weak to pull away.

"I've got you," he murmured, carrying me up the stairs.

I thought he was taking me to the pack hospital. To Elena, our healer. To safety.

Instead, he brought me to the pack house dungeons.

The cell had been furnished—a bed, clean sheets, medical supplies. It looked like a recovery room. But the door was reinforced steel, and I heard the lock click behind us.

"You're tainted with Rogue scent," Christopher said, laying me on the bed. His voice was gentle, almost loving. "The pack can't see you like this. You're not stable, Kiana. You need time to recover, away from everyone."

"This is a cell."

"This is protection." He brushed hair from my face, and I flinched. "I'm keeping you safe."

He left, and the lock engaged with a final, damning click.

I was a prisoner in my own pack, held captive by my own mate, and no one was coming to save me.

The tablet was old, its screen cracked in three places, but it worked. A guard—young, with eyes that couldn't quite meet mine—had left it on the meal tray two days ago. An accident, maybe. Or mercy.

I didn't care which.

My fingers shook as I navigated through the pack's security system. The password was embarrassingly simple: Christopher's birthday. The same code he'd used for everything since we were teenagers.

The cameras loaded one by one. Kitchen. Training grounds. Main hall.

Then the balcony.

Christopher stood there in full Alpha regalia, the afternoon sun turning his dark hair bronze. The entire pack gathered below, their faces upturned, expectant. I recognized the formation—this was a formal announcement.

My heart started hammering before my brain caught up.

Adelynn stepped into frame, wearing a dress I'd never seen before. Cream silk that caught the light, making her look ethereal. Untouchable. She moved to Christopher's side, and he smiled at her with something that looked almost like tenderness.

He reached into his pocket.

No.

The Luna's collar gleamed in his hands—white gold etched with moon phases, sapphires the color of midnight. My mother's collar. The one she'd worn until the day she died. The one that should have passed to me.

Christopher's voice carried through the tablet's tinny speaker. "Blood Moon Pack, I present to you my Chosen Mate. Adelynn has stood by me through crisis, shown unwavering loyalty when others faltered. She is human, yes, but her heart is stronger than any wolf's."

He fastened the collar around her neck.

The pack erupted in cheers.

I watched Adelynn's hand rise to touch the sapphires—my mother's sapphires—and something inside me cracked so deeply I thought I'd shatter.

Luna didn't even whimper. She'd gone silent days ago.

I turned off the tablet and lay back on the narrow bed, staring at the ceiling until the stone blurred.

Weeks crawled by. The wolfsbane worked its way out of my system slowly, leaving my healing fractured and incomplete. The scars on my back pulled tight whenever I moved, a constant reminder.

Then Christopher came for me.

He unlocked the cell without knocking, holding a garment bag. "Get dressed. It's my birthday celebration tonight. You're attending."

I didn't move. "No."

"That wasn't a request." His Alpha tone pressed against my skull, making Luna whimper. "You're still my mate, Kiana. Officially. Your absence would raise questions I don't feel like answering."

"Tell them the truth, then."

His jaw clenched. "Get. Dressed."

The dress was beautiful—deep emerald silk that complemented my dark hair. It had long sleeves and a high back, carefully designed to hide every scar. But the neckline plunged low, exposing my unmarked neck for everyone to see.

No claiming bite. No collar. Nothing.

Christopher led me into the main hall, and conversation died. Every eye tracked us as we walked, and I felt their judgment like physical weight. The Alpha's mate, but not his Luna. Present but not honored.

He seated me at a table near the kitchen. The Omega table.

I sat, spine straight, and watched him return to the head table where Adelynn waited, radiant in silver and sapphires.

Dinner was torture. I pushed food around my plate while laughter and music swirled around me. Adelynn kept touching Christopher's arm, leaning close to whisper things that made him smile. The collar—my mother's collar—caught the candlelight with every movement.

Then she stood, glass in hand, and the room quieted.

"I want to thank you all for welcoming me into this pack," she said, her voice sweet and clear. "I know I'm not what you expected in a Luna. But I promise to serve you with everything I have."

The pack applauded. Christopher pulled her down for a kiss that lasted too long, and I tasted bile.

When the speeches ended, Adelynn made her way through the crowd, stopping at tables, accepting congratulations. She was heading toward me. I knew it before she changed direction.

She slid into the seat beside me, close enough that I could smell her perfume. That sickly sweet scent that had haunted the cabin.

"You look lovely tonight," she said, loud enough for nearby tables to hear. Then she leaned in, her voice dropping to a whisper. "I sold you to those Rogues for fifty thousand dollars. Paid off my gambling debts and had enough left over for this dress."

I couldn't breathe.

"Christopher knows," she continued, her smile never wavering. "I told him everything. He said you were a necessary sacrifice. That's the exact word he used—necessary." She touched the collar at her throat. "He loves me, Kiana. Really loves me. You were just... convenient."

She stood, patting my shoulder like I was a child, and walked away.

I sat frozen, her words echoing in my skull, while the party continued around me.

The morning run was tradition—the pack shifting together to celebrate the Alpha's birthday under the full moon's fading light. I didn't want to go. My body wasn't ready. But Christopher's Beta, Marcus, came to collect me with orders I couldn't refuse.

I shifted painfully, feeling every scar pull and tear. Luna emerged weak and small, her golden eyes dim. We fell to the back of the pack immediately, struggling to keep pace.

Adelynn insisted on joining in a jeep, claiming she wanted to "experience the tradition." Christopher agreed, of course.

I watched the vehicle bounce along the trail ahead, Adelynn at the wheel, laughing.

Then she swerved.

The jeep tilted, sliding into a drainage ditch with a crunch of metal. Not fast enough to be truly dangerous. Just enough.

Christopher's massive black wolf skidded to a stop, then bolted toward the wreckage. The entire pack followed, abandoning the run.

I kept moving, one paw in front of the other, until my back leg caught on a root.

I went down hard. Something tore—old wounds ripping open. Blood soaked into my fur, hot and sticky.

I shifted back to human, gasping, pressing my hand against my side. The world tilted.

By the time I stumbled into the pack infirmary, Christopher was already there, cradling Adelynn like she was made of glass. She had a small bruise forming on her wrist. That was it.

I collapsed against the doorframe, blood dripping onto the clean tile.

The Head Healer, Dr. Morrison, looked up, his eyes widening. "Luna Kiana—"

"Tend to Adelynn first," Christopher cut him off, his voice sharp. "The Luna's comfort comes first."

Dr. Morrison hesitated, his gaze darting between us. "Alpha, she's bleeding—"

"I gave you an order."

The healer's shoulders slumped. He turned back to Adelynn, gently examining her wrist while I bled onto his floor.

Christopher didn't even look at me.

I slid down the wall, my vision graying at the edges, and wondered if this was how it would end. Bleeding out in a pack infirmary while my mate chose someone else.

Again.