The day Zaiden and I officially became mates, he suddenly proposed a promise.

He held my hand tightly, his voice low but intense. "Jolene, no matter what I do in the future, give me one chance to make it right. Please."

I didn’t understand why he would say such a thing, but I agreed.

Eight years later, his chosen mate, Scarlett, knelt outside our packhouse, her swollen belly a glaring symbol of betrayal.

The man who had vowed to never take another mate now cradled her fragile form, his voice laced with anger. "Jolene, you’ve been unable to give me a pup for eight years. Are you trying to kill the heir Scarlett carries?"

My eyes welled with tears, my fingers brushing against the rejection letter I’d hidden beneath my pillow.

In the next moment, a flash of white light filled my vision, and there stood Zaiden, the eighteen-year-old version of him. "Jolene," he said, his voice trembling. "You promised me one chance, didn’t you?"

---

I clutched the rejection letter, tears spilling down my cheeks.

Seeing me like this, Zaiden’s expression faltered. He hesitated, his hand reaching out as if to touch me.

"Jolene, I didn’t mean it like that… In my heart, you’ve always been the one I love. Taking Scarlett as my chosen mate was just to satisfy the pack’s expectations."

But then Scarlett let out a soft cough, and Zaiden immediately withdrew his hand, his attention shifting to her.

"Alpha," she murmured, her voice weak. "The pup… it hurts."

Zaiden panicked, scooping her up and rushing out the door.

Over his shoulder, he tossed a careless command. "Tomorrow is Scarlett’s official mark ceremony. She has no family, so you’ll handle her arrangements. Make sure she’s treated with respect."

The pain in my chest was like a thousand needles piercing my heart.

"Did you see that?" I whispered, my tear-filled eyes locking onto the ghostly figure of the young Zaiden.

He stood frozen, his familiar combat uniform hanging on his broad frame, the scent mark I’d woven for him still tied to his belt.

His hands trembled as he tried to reach for me, his eyes bloodshot.

"Jolene, this can’t be true! How could I love anyone but you?"

His hand passed through me, leaving only a faint trail of light.

I laughed bitterly, pulling up my sleeve to reveal the deep scars on my arm.

Zaiden and I had grown up together. I became his Luna the moment I came of age.

My mother was an Omega, and to marry me, Zaiden had knelt at the gates of the Lycan King’s territory for a day and night, his knees bleeding.

Back then, his eyes had been full of love. "Jolene, I promise you. Whatever I say, I’ll make it happen."

And he did. He gave me a grand mark ceremony, treating me like a treasure.

But by the fifth year, he’d already taken Scarlett as his chosen mate.

The day my packmate told me she’d seen Zaiden carrying a woman out of a rogue den, I was pregnant with his pup.

Heartbroken, I’d rushed to confront him, only to be attacked by rogues on the way. I lost the pup that night.

Zaiden had knelt before me, slapping himself in a frenzy. "Jolene, it’s my fault. It’s all my fault. But you can’t leave me. Without you, I won’t survive."

I’d softened, tearing up the rejection letter.

He’d sworn to me then, "No one else. Never again."

And yet, here we were, three years later, his promise shattered.

After I finished speaking, Zaiden stood frozen for a long time.

His eyes were red, and without hesitation, he punched himself in the face.

Blood streamed down, but he seemed numb to the pain, his teeth clenched in fury. "Jolene, why? How could he hurt you like this? Did he forget how long he dreamed of you, how much he wanted you?"

"He got you—how could he not cherish you?"

Seeing Zaiden cry so desperately, a part of my heart caved in.

I let out a bitter laugh, but before I could respond, the door swung open.

A pack member hurried in, breathless. "Luna, Alpha Zaiden requests that you send the dress from your marking ceremony to the Waterfall Pavilion!"

My eyes flickered, but I calmly wiped my tears and walked toward the chest at the foot of the bed.

Zaiden rushed to stop me. "Jolene, that dress was made just for you. How can you let someone else wear it?"

I ran my fingers over the intricate gold embroidery of the dress, tears welling up again.

But they weren’t for the Zaiden standing before me—they were for the young man who once adored me with all his heart.

This dress, one of the Lycan Queen’s own, was priceless.

I had casually mentioned liking it once, and Zaiden had gone to the battlefield, risking his life to earn the rank of Alpha and secure it for me.

He returned covered in wounds, barely alive.

"Jolene," he had said softly, wiping my tears back then, "I want you to be the most radiant Luna this pack has ever seen. From now on, no one will ever make you feel less than you are."

The memory faded as I held the dress and walked toward the Waterfall Pavilion.

Along the way, Zaiden tried to block my path. "Jolene, I don’t understand what’s happening. How could I ever hurt you? I’ve loved you with everything I have."

"Jolene, please, don’t leave like this… He’ll regret it—he has to!"

At that moment, the door to the pavilion swung open.

A bowl of scalding medicine was hurled out, and I couldn’t dodge it in time. The back of my hand turned red and burned instantly.

Scarlett stood behind Zaiden, tears streaming down her face. "Luna, I never meant to compete with you, but even if you hate me, you shouldn’t harm my pup!"

"If I lose my pup, what’s the point of living?"

She turned and ran toward the wall, but Zaiden caught her, pulling her into his arms. His voice was frantic, a tone I’d never heard from him before.

"Scarlett!"

He soothed her for a long time before finally turning to me.

His eyes were icy, devoid of any warmth.

"Jolene, have you had enough? Just because you can’t carry a pup, does that mean you want to destroy every expectant mother in the pack?"

My knees buckled, a metallic tang rising in my throat.

"Zaiden," I choked out, my voice trembling, "I’ve lost a pup too. How could you believe I’d harm hers?"

The day I miscarried, I had been brutalized by rogues for hours. When Zaiden finally arrived, I was barely conscious, lying in a pool of my own blood. I cradled the tiny, lifeless form in my arms, whispering through tears, "My sweet pup, why won’t you answer me?" I clung to the cold, silent bundle, shivering uncontrollably. Zaiden’s claws retracted, his face pale as he stared at the scene before him.

After three days of unconsciousness, the Healer delivered the devastating news: my injuries were too severe. I would never carry another pup.

Zaiden flinched under my gaze, his expression flickering with something akin to guilt. His hand, reaching out to steady Scarlett, froze mid-air.

"Scarlett is pregnant," he said after a long pause, his voice strained. "How could she harm her own pup?"

I let out a bitter laugh. "When you’re determined to accuse me, what does the truth matter?"

At that moment, Scarlett let out a sharp cry, clutching her stomach as a faint stain of blood appeared on her dress. She wailed, her voice piercing the air, "Luna, I was wrong! I shouldn’t have been so attached to the necklace Zaiden gave me! I won’t complain anymore, just please, don’t hurt my pup!"

Zaiden’s face darkened instantly. Two burly pack warriors stepped forward, pinning me down with ease. They quickly produced a pair of silver necklaces from my person, holding them up as damning evidence.

"Jolene," Zaiden roared, his Alpha tone cutting through the room like a whip, "with witnesses and evidence against you, what else do you have to say? Take her out and make her kneel. No one is to approach her without my command."

Zaiden swept Scarlett into his arms, his concern for her overriding all else, and rushed out of the room.

I was forced to the ground, my back exposed as Rosalie, Scarlett’s loyal Omega servant, raised a whip. The first strike landed with a sickening crack, leaving a searing trail of pain across my skin.

"You were once the daughter of a prominent pack, weren’t you?" Rosalie sneered, her voice dripping with mockery. "If it weren’t for those rogues ruining your reputation all those years ago, you might’ve found a decent mate somewhere else."

She yanked my hair, forcing me to look up at her. Her smile was cruel, her words deliberate.

"Tell me, Jolene," she whispered, her tone venomous, "why do you think Alpha Zaiden took two hours to come to your aid that day? He knew. He always knew."

The words hit me like a physical blow, and I clenched my teeth against the pain, both from the lashes and the betrayal that cut deeper than any whip could.