Kira POV:

I returned to the house I shared with Dorian, the cold and luxurious mansion known throughout the Pack as the "Alpha House."

Aiden's room was just down the hall. The door remained closed. I stood there for a long time, but my hand never touched the handle.

I turned away and walked into the master bedroom.

Dorian's scent still filled the room, a mix of ice and winter mint. It used to be the scent I searched for when I needed comfort. Now it only made the room feel colder.

I removed my clothes, still carrying the smell of antiseptic and death, and stepped into the shower. The water poured over me, almost painfully hot, but I barely reacted.

When I looked up, my reflection in the mirror looked unfamiliar. My face was pale, my green eyes dull from exhaustion. The mate mark on my neck, the mark Dorian left when he claimed me, burned against my skin like a reminder of everything I had lost.

According to Pack law, the mate bond allowed partners to sense each other's strongest emotions. My grief was impossible to hide.

Dorian had felt it. He had simply chosen not to care.

He returned after midnight. The moment the door opened, the smell of whiskey and gardenias filled the room.

Genevieve's scent.

Dorian stumbled inside, his eyes landing on me. There was no concern in his expression, only irritation. "What are you still doing awake? Who are you trying to frighten with that face?"

"Aiden is dead." My voice was flat.

Dorian gave a cold laugh as he loosened his tie and threw it aside. "I know he's dead. But the Pack still needs to function. I need a Luna who can handle her responsibilities, not someone who spends all day crying."

I stared at him. "So you will fulfill those responsibilities with Genevieve?"

His expression darkened.

He stepped closer, and his Alpha pressure filled the room, forcing my body to tense. "Genevieve is better than you in every way. She knows how to support me instead of creating more problems."

His hand closed around my chin, forcing me to look at him.

His blue eyes were cold. "Remember your place, Kira. You are an Omega. I made you Luna. I can give you everything, and I can take everything away."

I only looked at the man standing before me. The man I once loved. Now he was nothing but a stranger wearing a familiar face.

My silence seemed to anger him even more. He pushed me away.

I stumbled backward, my hip crashing into the corner of the vanity. Pain shot through my body.

A picture frame fell from the table and shattered on the floor. Inside was Aiden's photo, taken last summer by the lake, his face bright with the smile I would never see again.

The memory came rushing back.

Aiden laughing as he played in the shallow water. Leo, one year older, sneaking behind him and forcing his head underwater.

I had screamed and pulled my terrified son from the lake.

Genevieve had only stood there with that gentle smile. "Boys will be boys."

Dorian believed her. He blamed me for overreacting and frightening Leo.

I knew it then.

Genevieve and her son were not innocent. And Dorian had chosen to protect them.

A voice suddenly entered my mind through the private mind-link. It was Zoe, my best friend and the only person in the Pack who still stood by me.

"Kira, are you okay? I heard..."

I immediately closed the connection. I didn't want Zoe to see this, or anyone to see me like this.

Dorian was already lying on the bed with his back toward me. Within minutes, his breathing became slow and steady.

On the night our son died, he slept peacefully.

I slowly knelt down and picked up the broken frame. Carefully, I removed the photograph from the shattered glass and brushed my thumb over Aiden's smiling face. A sharp shard sliced my finger, and a drop of blood fell onto the photo, staining his smile red.

I didn't react.

That pain was nothing compared to losing him.

I pressed the photo against my chest, feeling the cold locket containing Aiden's ashes resting against my skin.

Dorian Sinclair. Genevieve Wallace.

I would make them pay for what they had done.

I stood by the window, staring into the dark sky outside. Dawn was coming.

Kira POV:

The dawn outside the window was a dull gray. I hadn't slept all night, and I changed into a simple black dress, the only thing in my closet that felt right for the day.

Dorian was already gone. The other side of the bed was cold. He had left for a Pack council meeting, and afterward, he would attend Leo's celebration banquet.

I didn't go to the funeral grounds. I knew Dorian's orders. Aiden's funeral would be handled quickly and quietly, like an unpleasant duty that only needed to be completed.

Instead, I went to the Elder's Court. I needed to see Elder Alistair Sinclair, Dorian's grandfather. He was the only person in the Pack who still valued tradition and justice above power.

He was my last hope.

The Elder's Court was an ancient stone building in the center of the Pack lands. I found Alistair sitting beside the fireplace, one hand resting on his white ash staff.

When he saw me, his sharp gray eyes flashed with surprise before turning heavy with sorrow. "Kira," he said in a deep voice. "I know why you're here. Sit down."

I fell to my knees before him. The tears I had forced myself to hold back finally fell. "Elder... Aiden... something happened to him. There was no protective ward. Dorian won't listen to me..."

Alistair listened without interrupting, but the anger on his face grew with every word. When I finished, he slammed his staff against the stone floor, the sound echoing through the hall.

"Impossible! Taking a cub's life force without a protective ward is not an accident. It is murder!"

Before I could respond, Dorian's assistant, Jessica Price, entered the room.

The young Beta lowered her head respectfully. "Luna, Alpha asked me to inform you that Aiden's funeral will begin in half an hour. He also expects you to attend Leo's celebration dinner tonight."

My fingers froze. He wanted me to attend a celebration for the child who benefited from my son's death.

Alistair's expression changed instantly.

He pointed his staff toward Jessica, his voice shaking with fury. "Leave. Go back and tell Dorian that if he still sees me as his grandfather, he will cancel that ridiculous party immediately. A Sinclair heir has died, yet he celebrates another child? He is bringing shame to this Pack."

Jessica's face turned pale. She quickly bowed and left.

The moment the door closed, Alistair's breathing turned uneven. He pressed a hand against his chest, his face tightening as pain crossed his features. His old condition had flared up again.

"Elder." I rushed forward, helped him sit properly, and found his medicine.

After taking it, he slowly recovered. His hand held mine tightly.

"Child, don't worry. I will investigate this matter to the end." His voice remained firm. "Now go. Go and say your final goodbye to Aiden. The Sinclair family owes him that much."

Aiden's funeral was held in the Pack's sacred grove. It was a small ceremony, attended only by me, Elder Alistair, and a few elderly Pack members who came with quiet sympathy. Dorian never appeared.

I lowered Aiden's small urn into the earth with my own hands. The Moon Goddess would guide him home.

But I knew what Genevieve and Dorian were capable of. If they wanted to hide the truth about Aiden's death and cover up what really happened during Leo's healing ritual, they would find a way to destroy any evidence.

My fingers touched the locket against my chest. I would protect the last thing I had left of my son.

After the funeral, dizziness suddenly overwhelmed me. Alistair arranged for someone to escort me back to the Alpha House to rest. As I walked through the grand hall, I saw the celebration still in full swing.

The celebration was still going on. Dorian had ignored his grandfather's order, and the grand hall remained filled with bright lights, music, and laughter.

I walked past without stopping. I only wanted to return to my room, hold Aiden's ashes, and be alone, so I took the path through the back garden. That was when I saw them - a scene I would never forget.

Under the shadow of a large oak tree, Dorian had Genevieve pressed against the trunk, kissing her without hesitation. It was not a gentle or hidden kiss, but one filled with desire. Her arms were wrapped around his neck, and her soft sounds mixed with the music drifting from the banquet hall.

Aiden's funeral had ended only a few hours ago, and my husband was already with another woman. The last trace of hope I had for our mate bond disappeared. I just stood in the darkness and watched them.

Then Dorian sensed me. He pulled away from Genevieve and turned his head. Our eyes met across the garden. His expression remained cold, showing only irritation at being interrupted and a silent warning for me to walk away.

I slowly curved my lips into a smile. A smile with no warmth left in it. Then I turned around and walked away.

Dorian Sinclair.

From this moment on, there was nothing left between us.