I drifted into a hazy dream, returning to the year I turned eighteen. Back then, I was the perfect good girl, the pride of my parents, the Blue Moon Pack’s respected elders, and the pack’s young wolves. I was the future Luna, groomed to lead with grace and strength. Meanwhile, Amazon Morrison was a promising warrior but reckless and often at odds with the pack’s rules. Our lives seemed destined to run parallel without crossing—until fate thought otherwise.

That summer, I stumbled upon Amazon in the woods near our territory after a training session. He was caught up in a fight with rogues, his muscular frame battered and bloodied. He sat against a tree, his white T-shirt stained crimson around his abdomen. Hearing my footsteps, he looked up at me, his striking features barely visible beneath the bruises. I offered to help him up, but he growled at me, his alpha tone sharp and commanding, telling me tersely to leave him alone. Ignoring his words, his pale face from the blood loss compelled me. Determined, I helped him to his feet, supporting his towering, muscular frame step by step to the pack’s healing center.

I watched as the healer tended to his wounds, my presence lingering even after the worst of it was over. Sitting on the edge of the healer’s cot, he watched me with those piercing eyes, a tear-shaped mole at the corner shimmering slightly. He introduced himself slowly, his voice rough but steady, "Amazon Morrison."

I nodded, acknowledging him. As I turned to leave, his impatient voice stopped me. "What’s your name, Luna?"

"Mikayla Morrison," I replied, though the title felt strange coming from him. It was the first time he’d addressed me as Luna, but it wouldn’t be the last.

That was our first encounter.

Later, on a day when rogues cornered me in the woods after a training session, Amazon came to my rescue. His wolf form was massive, towering over the rogues with an aura that made them cower. With a relaxed air, he shifted back to human form and returned the favor I’d done for him, his deep voice carrying a hint of gratitude. For the next few days, he lingered near the training grounds, his presence a silent but unmistakable shield. He made sure the rogues—and everyone else—remembered that I was under his protection, untouchable by anyone else.

From then on, we gradually became closer. I’d occasionally bring him food during his patrols, like sandwiches and spiced honey cake, and he’d often walk me back to the pack house. When my parents, the elders of the pack, found out, they insisted I stop spending time with him. They warned me that Amazon’s recklessness and his bond with Vienna, a Delta in the pack, would only bring trouble. But for Amazon, I disobeyed them for the first time—like I would countless times afterward.

Even then, I could feel the tension between us and the pack’s expectations. Amazon’s closeness to Vienna was already a whispered topic among the pack, but I ignored it, just as I ignored the way my wolf stirred uneasily whenever she was near. I was too young, too naive, to see the cracks forming in the life I thought I was building.

On the day of the pack gathering, I arrived late, my body still weak from the healing center where I had undergone another round of treatments for my illness. The scent of antiseptic clung to me, and my face was pale, almost ghostly, as I entered the grand hall where my fellow pack members had already gathered. They were deep into a game of Truth or Dare, their laughter echoing off the stone walls. Vienna, a Delta of the Blue Moon Pack, was participating, her golden hair catching the light as she chose "truth."

"Is there someone in this room you have feelings for?" someone asked, their voice carrying a teasing lilt.

Vienna’s cheeks flushed, and she bit her lower lip, her eyes darting toward Amazon before she nodded slowly. Her intentions were unmistakable, and the room buzzed with murmurs. My stomach twisted, not just from the lingering effects of the treatment but from the way Amazon simply chuckled, his deep voice warm and indulgent.

"Vienna, don’t be silly," he said, his tone gentle, as if he were speaking to a pup rather than a grown she-wolf. His gaze lingered on her, tender and unguarded, and I felt my heart clench. He knew how she felt about him. He couldn’t bring himself to hurt her, yet he seemed perfectly willing to hurt me over and over for her sake.

When it was my turn, I chose "truth," my voice barely above a whisper.

"Do you regret being in love with Beta Amazon?" someone asked, their tone careless, as if they hadn’t noticed the tension in the room.

Amazon’s smile vanished, and he shot a sharp glare at the speaker, his alpha tone cutting through the air. "Watch your words," he growled, his aura flaring with authority.

Someone tried to lighten the mood, "What kind of question is that? She ran away with Beta Amazon, didn’t she? Isn’t it obvious?"

Another added, "Exactly, stop being ridiculous."

I forced a smile, though my hands trembled. "If that’s the question, then I choose dare."

The room fell silent, all eyes on me and Amazon. He watched me intently, his dark eyes searching for something I couldn’t name, but I refused to meet his gaze.

"So what’s the dare? Ten shots of whiskey, right?" I asked, my voice steady despite the ache in my chest.

No one answered. I poured the drinks myself, one after another, the sharp scent of alcohol filling my nostrils. By the fifth glass, the whiskey burned my throat, making it hard to breathe.

Amazon’s hand shot out, gripping my wrist tightly. "Stop, Luna Mikayla," he said, his voice low and commanding.

I shook off his hand, the bitterness in my mouth nothing compared to the bitterness in my heart. I met his gaze head-on, my voice clear despite the pain. "Beta Amazon, I, Mikayla Morrison, will face the consequences."

Back then, I had gambled on his love and become his mate. Later, I had taken another gamble, running away with him to a foreign territory to start anew. Now, watching him with Vienna, I knew I had lost the bet. Between her and me, he clearly cared more about her.

But that was okay. I would face the consequences.

Tears welled in my eyes, my stomach churning with both physical and emotional agony. Countless nights I had woken up, weeping after dreaming of my parents’ lifeless faces. I had never regretted my choices until now.

But now, I did.

That day, when I had my ninth drink, **Beta** Amazon decided it was enough. He carried me back to our den, just as he used to when I was unwell, his strong arms cradling me effortlessly. He prepared a pot of hangover soup, the scent of rosemary and thyme filling the air, and fed it to me spoonful by spoonful. It was a gesture that felt achingly familiar, yet distant now, as if he were going through the motions of a role he no longer fully inhabited.

As the moon rose high and sleep began to claim me, Amazon’s voice cut through the silence. “Mikayla, why didn’t you answer my question earlier?”

His words jolted me awake. I turned to look at him, but he was facing away, his broad shoulders tense even in the dim light of the den. We lay on the same bed, close enough to touch, yet the space between us felt like an unbridgeable chasm. His aura, once so comforting to me, now felt cold and detached.

Softly, I asked, “Amazon, do you really want to know the answer?”

He was silent for a long time, the quiet stretching between us like a taut thread. “It’s late. You should rest,” he finally said, his voice low but devoid of the warmth it once held.

Tears slipped silently down my cheeks as I turned away. My wolf stirred in the back of my mind, a faint whimper echoing my pain. I thought of the day he first arrived in the Blue Moon Pack territory, his eyes so full of promise, as if I were the center of his world. “Mikayla, I vow to give you a life worthy of a Luna,” he had said then, his voice steady and his gaze unwavering. Back then, his love felt as vast and unshakable as the moon itself.

Nineteen-year-old Mikayla was brimming with love, her heart overflowing with the intensity of a mate bond that felt destined and unbreakable. I was vibrant, full of hope, and ready to stand beside him as his Luna. But now, at twenty-six, I was alone. My parents, **Elder Hunt** and **Healer Hunt**, were gone, their deaths a shadow I couldn’t escape. And now, the rare illness that had claimed my mother’s life was coursing through me, a cruel reminder of the life I was losing piece by piece.

Amazon, is this the life you promised me? I thought bitterly, my chest tightening as I watched his sleeping form. Even in rest, he looked commanding, his strong jaw and muscular frame a testament to his role as Beta. But the man who once looked at me with adoration now seemed a stranger.

You loved me so fiercely once. How can you bear to make me feel so invisible now?

The tears continued to fall as I lay there, the weight of our fractured bond pressing down on me. My wolf whimpered again, a faint echo of the pain we both felt. I closed my eyes, trying to shut out the memories of a time when his love felt like the only thing that mattered. But the truth was undeniable—the life we had built together was crumbling, and I was left to pick up the pieces alone.