Caesar's POV

I had returned from Europe that morning after three weeks of alliance negotiations, threats, and enough political flattery to make my wolf want to bite someone.

Jackson said I needed a drink.

Marcus said I needed sleep.

Daniel said I needed to stop terrifying foreign Alphas into signing trade agreements before lunch.

They were all wrong.

What I needed was to stop looking for Viya Wilde in every crowded room.

Then I saw her at Moonlight Bar.

At first, I thought exhaustion had conjured her. Viya did not belong in that place, not in a crimson dress, not with whiskey in her hand, not with the broken, dangerous calm of a woman who had finally lost something she was tired of protecting.

Marcus followed my gaze. "Alpha?"

"Nothing."

But it was not nothing.

Viya had been my responsibility once. More than that, though I had been too much of a coward to name it. I had raised her under Blackwood protection after her parents' deaths. I had watched a frightened girl grow into a gentle, brilliant wolf doctor. I had also watched her look at me with feelings I had no right to accept.

Then three years ago, after her adult transformation ceremony, everything changed.

Her scent had called to me like fate.

Not strongly enough. Not clearly enough. The bond between us had flickered but not roared, and fear had done what enemies never could. It made me retreat.

I convinced myself I was protecting her. If I was not her destined mate, if the weak bond was only confusion, then claiming her would have been selfish.

So I let Lucius Wilde marry her.

Worst decision of my life.

Now she sat ten meters away, wearing a mask and looking as if one more polite word might shatter her.

When Sophia left her alone, several men began watching.

My wolf, Olsen, snarled.

I stood.

Jackson lifted a brow. "You said this wasn't our concern."

"I changed my mind."

I took a black mask from the bar and sat beside her, intending only to keep her safe. No touching. No questions. No reopening wounds.

Then she turned to me and smiled.

"Well, fancy meeting you here, stranger."

She did not recognize me. Or she wanted me to think she did not.

Either way, it nearly destroyed my restraint.

"You're drunk," I said.

"Not enough."

Her voice slid under my skin. The crimson dress beneath her coat made her look like temptation wrapped in heartbreak.

"You should call your husband," I forced out.

Her smile sharpened. "My husband is busy."

"With what?"

"Someone else."

Every instinct in me went silent.

"What did he do?"

She leaned closer. "You don't get to ask that."

"I do if you are in danger."

"You didn't care about danger when you sent me to marry him."

The accusation hit hard because it was true.

"I did not send you."

"No. You only stepped aside and let everyone else do it." Her eyes glittered behind the mask. "That was cleaner, wasn't it? You didn't have to reject me. You just let me become another Alpha's problem."

"Viya."

"Don't use that voice."

"What voice?"

"The one that sounds like you care when you've spent three years proving you don't."

I deserved that. Every word.

Then her hand touched my thigh, and all rational thought became a battlefield.

She was drunk. Married. Hurt. "Mine," Olsen insisted, but not mine to take.

"Little wolf," I warned.

Her breath caught. For half a second, recognition flared in her eyes. Then pride buried it.

"Don't you want to play?"

My control snapped.

The kiss detonated through my system like an explosion. Her taste-whiskey and something uniquely her-sent fire racing through my veins. I devoured her mouth with years of pent-up hunger, my tongue sweeping past her lips to claim every inch of her.

She moaned against my mouth, her hands fisting in my jacket as she kissed me back with equal desperation. The sound went straight to my cock, making it strain painfully against my pants.

My free hand gripped her waist, pulling her half off her stool and against my body. I needed her closer. Needed to feel every soft curve pressed against me.

The evidence of my desire pressed shamelessly against her hip, and I didn't give a damn who might be watching.

I ached to claim her at once, mark her, and proclaim to the whole world that she was my Luna. Yet reason reminded me she was merely flirting with a stranger from the bar, and I was nothing more than her emotional outlet.

Jealousy seared through my sanity, yet I still pushed her away.

"Look at me," I growled. "Look carefully at who you are touching."

She stared at me, cheeks flushed, eyes bright with unshed tears.

Then I removed my mask.

"Alpha Caesar," she said with false surprise. "How embarrassing."

"Do not."

"Do not what?"

"Pretend that kiss meant nothing."

She laughed once, sharp and wounded. "You taught me how to pretend."

I stood too quickly. "You should go home."

"I don't have a home."

The words froze the air between us.

"What does that mean?"

She slid off the stool, swaying. "It means you're late, Caesar. As usual."

I reached for her arm. "Let me help you."

She jerked away. "No. You don't get to save me when it's convenient for your conscience."

"Viya-"

"Go back to your table, Alpha Blackwood. I'm sure you're very good at watching from a distance."

Then she walked away.

I let her.

Again.

Olsen's voice was a low, furious growl in my mind. "Something is wrong with Serena."

Only then did I realize what my wolf had been trying to tell me all night.

The bond was damaged.

Not weak. Not fading naturally.

Damaged.

Poisoned.

I turned to Marcus, my voice deadly calm. "Find out everything about Viya Wilde's marriage. Medical records. Pack reports. Household staff. Every rumor. Every purchase. Every healer."

Marcus straightened. "Alpha?"

"Someone has been harming her wolf."

His face changed.

"And Marcus?"

"Yes, Alpha?"

"If Lucius Wilde is responsible, he will learn why people fear my name."

Viya's POV

I woke in Sophia's guest room with a headache, a dry throat, and the humiliating memory of kissing Caesar Blackwood in public.

I pulled the pillow over my face.

Sophia walked in with coffee. "Good morning, disaster."

"I hate you."

"You threw yourself at North America's most terrifying Alpha and lived. That deserves breakfast."

I groaned. "Tell me I didn't say anything too terrible."

Sophia sat on the edge of the bed. "You told him he was late."

I lowered the pillow.

Her teasing faded. "Were you talking about Lucius or Caesar?"

"Yes."

She handed me the coffee and a folder.

"Divorce papers," she said. "Asset separation, clinic independence, provisional evidence packet. I drafted the first version years ago."

"Years?"

"Viya, I'm a lawyer. I prepare for disasters. Your marriage had disaster written in calligraphy."

Despite everything, I laughed softly.

Then I opened the folder.

Seeing my name beside Lucius's in legal language made something inside me ache. Not because I still wanted him. Because once, I had wanted the name Luna Wilde to mean chosen.

"When can I have him sign?" I asked.

"As soon as possible. Before he knows you know."

An hour later, I drove back to the Wilde mansion.

Miranda's car sat in my parking spot.

My books, coats, medical journals, and framed photos were scattered across the front lawn like trash.

For a moment, I simply stared.

Then the front door opened.

Miranda stepped out wearing my silk robe.

"Viya," she said sweetly. "You didn't come home last night. Lucius was worried."

"No," I said, walking past her. "He wasn't."

Her smile stiffened.

Inside, the house smelled of roses. Her scent. Her claim.

"You threw out my things," I said.

"I reorganized."

"You put my medical journals in wet grass."

Miranda tilted her head. "They looked old."

I turned to face her fully. "Be careful. Stupidity can be forgiven. Malice is harder to explain."

Her mask slipped.

"Don't act superior," she hissed. "Everyone knows why Lucius married you. You were useful. That's all."

"Useful enough to be Luna. Useful enough that you had to sneak around like a thief."

Her eyes flashed. "He loves me."

"Then why are you wearing my robe in my house, waiting for me to notice?"

She stepped closer. "Because soon this will be my house."

"Say it louder."

"What?"

I smiled. "Say you want my husband, my title, my bedroom, and my life. Say it like a woman brave enough to own her choices."

Miranda's lips parted, but no words came.

Of course not. Women like her needed shadows. Tears. Plausible grief.

"You're pathetic," I said quietly. "Not because you love him. Because you need me humiliated to feel chosen."

Her hand flew toward my face.

I caught her wrist before it landed.

Her eyes widened.

"Touch me again," I said, voice soft, "and I will make sure every wolf in this pack hears how the grieving widow tried to slap the Luna she stole from."

"You think they'll believe you?"

"No." I leaned closer. "But they'll wonder. And that will ruin you faster than truth."

The front door opened.

Lucius stepped in.

Miranda instantly collapsed into tears.

"Lucius!" she cried. "I only tried to help organize the house, but Viya threatened me."

Lucius looked first at Miranda's trembling form, then at me.

That hesitation told me everything.

"Did you threaten her?" he asked.

I laughed.

The sound startled him.

"My belongings are on the lawn, your brother's widow is wearing my robe, and you're asking whether I hurt her feelings?"

His jaw tightened. "Viya, don't twist this."

"I don't have to twist anything. Look around."

Miranda sniffed. "I didn't realize she would be so possessive. I only thought, since Lucius asked me to stay-"

I looked at him. "You asked her to stay?"

Lucius rubbed his brow. "She's grieving."

"She's pregnant with your child."

The room went silent.

Miranda's face went white.

Lucius's eyes widened. "What?"

I held his gaze. "Relax. I'm not asking you to explain. Not today."

From my purse, I pulled out the divorce papers folded beneath a clinic grant cover sheet.

"In fact, I need your signature."

He frowned. "For what?"

"A clinic document. Time-sensitive. As my husband, you're required to sign."

Miranda stepped forward. "Lucius, maybe you should read-"

I turned to her. "Are you worried about my clinic now?"

Lucius, irritated by the tension, took the pen. "Enough. I trust Viya with medical paperwork."

The irony nearly made me smile.

He signed without reading.

I accepted the papers with steady hands.

"Thank you," I said. "That's all I needed."

For the first time since marrying him, I walked away from Lucius Wilde with something he had given me willingly.

My freedom.

Before I went upstairs, Lucius followed me into the corridor.

"Viya, wait."

I stopped but did not turn around.

"What did you mean about Miranda being pregnant with my child?"

There it was-the panic beneath his Alpha voice. Not guilt. Not concern for me. Fear that his hidden world had leaked into mine.

I looked back over my shoulder. "Ask her."

"I am asking you."

"No, Lucius. You are asking whether I know enough to become dangerous. Those are different questions."

His face tightened. "Don't speak to me like I'm your enemy."

"Then stop standing on the other side."

For a moment, he looked as if he wanted to reach for me. Miranda's muffled sob came from the sitting room, and his hand fell back to his side.

I smiled faintly. "Go comfort her. You always do."

"Viya-"

"Don't worry. I won't make a scene. I know how much you hate when I inconvenience your lies."

Viya's POV

The next morning, the mansion sounded like it was being dismantled piece by piece.

I opened my bedroom door to find workers carrying out paintings, books, cushions, and several pieces of furniture I had chosen when I still believed this house might become a home.

Martha hurried toward me, wringing her hands.

"Luna Viya, I'm so sorry. Mrs. Miranda said Alpha approved the changes."

"Did he?"

"I don't know." Her eyes lowered. "Alpha left before dawn for border patrol."

Of course he had.

Lucius always disappeared before Miranda's cruelty required consequences.

I walked downstairs slowly. My favorite reading chair was gone. The wall where my landscape paintings had hung was now covered with dramatic rose-themed art pieces. The living room smelled like Miranda's perfume.

Then she appeared at the staircase in a red dress, smiling as if she owned every brick.

"Oh, good. You're awake. I was afraid the noise might disturb you."

"It did."

"How unfortunate."

I looked around. "You redecorated my house."

"Our house soon."

"You're confident."

"I'm realistic." Miranda walked closer, letting her hand trail along the banister. "Lucius wants comfort. Warmth. A family. You gave him rules and medical books."

"And you gave him betrayal wrapped in grief."

Her smile vanished. "Careful."

"No, Miranda. You be careful. You've been acting like Luna in borrowed rooms, borrowed robes, and borrowed affection. But borrowed things are always returned."

She laughed, too sharp. "Returned to whom? You? Lucius barely looks at you unless he feels guilty."

"He looked at me long enough to sign what mattered."

Suspicion flickered in her eyes. "What does that mean?"

"It means you should enjoy the curtains."

Her lips pressed together.

I turned away, then paused as if remembering something. "By the way, don't touch the tea room set."

Miranda's eyes narrowed. "Why?"

"It's valuable. Sentimental." I let the hesitation linger. "Never mind. I'm sure even you wouldn't be that petty."

Her expression changed exactly as I expected.

"What tea set?"

"The ivory bone china. Blue crest. Grandma,former Luna Beth's gift."

"Your favorite?"

I lowered my gaze, hiding my smile. "Forget I said anything."

I went back upstairs.

Three hours later, porcelain shattered.

I descended unhurriedly.

In the tea room, Miranda stood over broken pieces, her face flushed. A maid trembled nearby. Martha looked close to tears.

"What happened?" I asked.

Miranda snapped, "It was an accident."

Martha rushed to explain. "Luna Viya, Mrs. Miranda insisted on seeing the tea set. I warned her not to touch it, but she-"

"Enough!" Miranda barked.

I looked down at the broken cup. "That was Former Luna Beth's royal bone china."

Miranda froze.

"You said it was yours."

"No. I said it was valuable. I said not to touch it."

Her eyes flashed with hatred. "You set me up."

"I warned you."

"You wanted this to happen!"

"I wanted you to show who you are."

She stepped toward me. "When Lucius returns, I'll tell him everything."

"Please do. Tell him you destroyed his grandmother's gift because you were jealous of a tea cup."

Martha gasped softly.

Miranda's face turned red. "You smug little-"

"Choose your next word wisely," I said. "There are witnesses."

For once, Miranda had no tears ready.

Within an hour, two Gamma warriors arrived with Thompson, the main estate's butler.

He bowed to me first. "Luna Viya."

Then he turned to Miranda. "Mrs. Miranda, Former Luna Beth requests your presence at the main house."

Miranda swallowed. "For what?"

"For instruction."

Her confidence cracked. "I am Alexander's widow."

"And the rules apply to widows as well." Thompson's tone remained perfectly polite. "Anyone who damages a Pack Elder's possession must kneel in the courtyard for three hours."

Miranda looked at me with pure venom.

I smiled faintly.

"What?" I asked softly. "No tears this time?"

She was escorted out protesting, her voice rising all the way to the driveway.

Martha watched anxiously. "Luna, will Alpha Lucius be angry?"

"Probably."

"Are you worried?"

I looked at the broken porcelain on the floor.

The real tea set, of course, was safely locked in my clinic office. This one was an expensive replica.

"No," I said. "I'm curious which lie he'll choose to believe first."

When Thompson arrived, Miranda attempted one last performance. She clutched the doorway and looked at me with trembling lips.

"Viya, please. Tell them it was a misunderstanding. You know Lucius will be upset if I'm humiliated."

"I'm sure he will be."

"Then help me."

"Why?"

The single word stunned her.

I walked down the last step and faced her in front of the servants. "When my belongings were on the lawn, did you help me? When you wore my robe and called this your future home, did you worry about humiliating me? When Lucius forgot our anniversary because he was with you, did you ask him to go back to his wife?"

Miranda's eyes filled with furious tears. "You're cruel."

"No. I'm learning. You should be proud. You've been an excellent teacher."

Thompson lowered his eyes, but I caught the faintest twitch at the corner of his mouth.