Lyra

The stone floor was so cold. I hugged my body as I was trying to calm myself, trying to stop from trembling. I still can't get over the events that happened last night. I couldn't even sleep, not even an ounce of wink.

Even the slightest movement made me gasp-the pain was so sharp that even breathing hurt. My entire body ached, heavy and sore from being tossed around last night. Remembering his forceful way of entering me made me tremble at such a thought.

Chains clinked softly whenever I moved, their presence made me realize that I was inside the cell, currently awaiting my death. No matter how many times I tried to defend myself, they won't believe me.

They were already certain that I was the one who killed Kyle's fiancée. A slut who climbed onto the bed of the Alpha because she couldn't accept that she wasn't chosen.

I didn't know how long I had been inside this cell. I couldn't even tell if it's daylight or nighttime. I was the only one here, locked in the damp cell, and I haven't eaten since last night.

I curled tighter, clutching my arms.

I swear... I really didn't kill her...

But... it was because of me that she died. If...if I didn't visit the Alpha last night, she would have successfully become his Luna.

Because of me...

The heavy sound of boots echoed down the corridor. I lifted my head, thinking that it's the guards this time who would come and get me for my execution when the metallic door opened-and there he was.

Alpha Kyle.

His gaze coldly fell on me. When I look into his eyes, I know that he is already back to his normal state. His golden eyes were filled with disgust as he looked at me in disgust. Although I know that he won't remember what happened last night...that he might think the same way as they do... I still felt disappointed.

Before I could open my mouth, his hand shot forward and grabbed my wrist. He had commanded one of the guards to unlock the chains before he dragged me out of the cell.

"W-wait-" My voice cracked, but he didn't stop. His grip was like iron-as if he wanted to snap my wrist into two.

"I know that you are shameless, but I didn't expect you to be this shameful." His voice was deep as he looked at me in mockery. "Drugging me, climbing into my bed on my sacred day, and even killing my Luna...tell me, Lyra. What should I do to you?"

My chest tightened so painfully I could barely breathe. His words cut deeper than any blade, each one tearing at what little was left of me.

It was foolish of me to think that at least he would demand an explanation from me.

"Kyle..." I whispered his name, barely recognizing my own voice. "You know I would never-"

"Enough!" His growl echoed through the dungeon walls. His eyes burned red-not like last night, but with pure disgust. "You don't get to say my name. You should know your place."

Something inside me cracked. The man who once held me like I was his world, now looked at me like I was nothing but a dirty trashbag.

Tears slowly fell from my cheeks as he dragged me out of the cell and threw me onto the ground before the pack council.

"She's that slut who killed the Alpha's Luna..."

"Where did she get the nerve to drug the Alpha and climb onto his bed?"

Their murmurs sliced through me, and each of them made me feel helpless.

Helena, Kyle's mother, was there too. Her eyes were coldly looking at me as if she were looking at my corpse.

"She doesn't deserve a trial," she spat. "Execute her now."

Gasps filled the hall, but almost all of them agreed with the decision.

I looked at everyone, then at myself. I let out a heavy chuckle.

Right. Maybe it would be best. There's no redeeming of myself. I am already dirty. A filthy woman.

*

Kyle

"She doesn't deserve a trial," Mother spat. "Execute her now."

Gasps filled the hall. Murmurs of agreement rippled through the council members.

I stared down at Lyra on the floor-broken, trembling, covered in bruises I'd put there.

Good. She deserved worse for what she'd done.

For drugging me. For killing my fiancée. For-

"Do it and I disappear forever."

My wolf's voice crashed through my mind like a thunderclap, making me stagger back a step.

He'd been silent for so long I'd almost forgotten he was there.

"What?"

''You heard me. Execute her, and you'll never hear from me again. I'll retreat so deep you'll be wolfless. How long before they strip you of your title, Kyle? A week? A day?"

My hands clenched into fists.

"She killed-"

"She's our MATE!"

His roar shook through my entire being.

"Our TRUE MATE. You felt it eight years ago when her wolf awakened. You felt it last night when you were inside her. Stop lying to yourself!"

I felt my mother's expectant gaze on me, waiting for my approval of the execution.

She's an omega. She can't-

"I don't care what she is. The Moon Goddess chose her for us, and if you kill her, I'm gone. Forever. Choose-your pride, or your wolf."

The silence in my head was suffocating. I could feel him coiling, preparing to sever our bond. The emptiness already creeping in at the edges.

An Alpha without a wolf was nothing.

"No."

The word left my mouth before I could stop it.

Mother's head snapped toward me. "Alpha! Don't tell me that you still-"

"Death would be too merciful for someone like her," I interrupted, my voice cold.

I stepped forward and grabbed Lyra's hair, forcing her to look up at me. Her tear-filled eyes met mine-so much pain, so much betrayal.

Something in my chest twisted, but I shoved it down.

"Smart choice," my wolf growled. "Now claim her. Make it permanent."

"I'll bond her with me."

Lyra

"I'll bond her with me."

The hall erupted into chaos. My eyes widened as I looked at him in disbelief.

"What do you mean by you'll bond her?!" I could hear Helena angrily shout. "She's a fucking murderer! She drugged you, climbed onto your bed, and even killed your Luna!"

However, he ignored all of their words-even his mother's.

"From this day forward," he declared while coldly looking at everyone. "Lyra will be bound to me as Luna of the Crescent Moon Pack."

"You're crazy..." I whispered, my chest tightening as a chill spread down to my spine.

He let out a cold laugh. "You badly wanted to be my Luna right? Now, you're my Luna. A title you don't deserve."

It had been three years since that night-three years since everything was changed.

I become Alpha Kyle's Luna.

And I was labeled as whore, a murderer, and the name Luna-the title I had once longed for-became a shackle for me. It was no longer an honor; it was a chain I couldn't escape. A cruel joke that fate had on me.

I lived like a shadow inside this pack. Whenever I go out, the pack would look at me in disgust, curse me heavily for killing the Alpha's Luna, throwing rotten eggs at me...there was no time that I wouldn't get laughed at for being the Luna.

Never as Kyle speak to me after that day. We shared a house, but he lived as though I didn't exist. He'd pass by me in the hall without a glance, his presence cold and commanding, he'd just watch from the shadows whenever I get mocked at.

Yet every time I thought he would finally release me, he didn't.

I let out a mocking laugh. Right. He wanted me to suffer. He wanted me to pay the price of killing his Luna.

Although we have been bonded, he never marked me.

I mean, how could he mark the woman who killed his Luna?

During the three years, the only thing that kept me sane was music. Late at night, when the moonlight slipped through the window, I'd sit by the piano-the one he used to play when we were younger-and let my hands wander.

Through music, I can let out the voice that I had been trying to hold back. A voice that the whole world tried to shut whenever I tried to defend myself.

It was my secret haven. A way of my escape.

I thought this dull life would continue for another year, not until a message came.

It was from Kyle.

'Come to my birthday banquet tonight. Wear something nice.'

For a moment, I just stared at the message, my heart thudding painfully.

He hasn't spoken to me in months. Whenever he sees me, his face is filled with disgust.

So, why now?

I typed a reply, hesitated, then deleted it. Maybe... maybe this was something. Maybe for once, he will finally recognize me.

So, I went.

I spent the rest of the day in the servants' quarters, sewing a small leather-bound notebook with my own hands. Inside, I wrote the music I'd composed in secret. I didn't sign it-just pressed the silver treble symbol on the first page. It was the only thing of myself I had left to give.

When evening came, I put on the dress the maids had once mocked me for wearing-a soft gray gown that no one else touched anymore. My wolf stirred weakly inside me, uneasy, but I ignored her.

When I got there, the hall was glowing with laughter, music, the scent of foods-the warm atmosphere I hadn't felt in years.

As soon as I got there, everyone turned their heads to me. Their smiles had been replaced with a frown and disgust as they whispered each other sharp words that I could hear.

"Why is she here?"

"Fuck, such a mood killer. Who invites that murderer here?"

"She still has the nerve to show her face?"

And there I saw him.

At the head of it was Kael, who was sitting, filled with authority and dominance.

My heart stumbled. The Alpha of the Moonfang pack, my mate, looked devastatingly majestic in his black attire. His golden eyes glinted as he raised his goblet.

And in his arms...was another woman.

Rhea Harper.

The late Luna's younger sister.

Her delicate fingers rested on his chest as she laughed softly, tilting her head toward him. It was a dagger straight to my heart seeing this scene.

I froze, every breath shallow. My gift box slipped slightly in my trembling hands.

"Oh, look who decided to show up," I heard Rhea say, loud enough for everyone to hear. Her voice dripped with mockery. "The murderer Luna herself."

Laughter rippled through the crowd.

"Rhea," Kyle's tone was low-a warning-but she ignored it.

"What's that?" she sneered, pointing at the box in my hands. "A gift? How sweet. Did you carve it between prison breaks?"

My throat burned. "It's not for you," I whispered despite the tremors of my voice.

She laughed, tossing her hair. "Of course not. It's for him, isn't it? You think he would accept a gift from a murderer? A slut who climbed her way to become the Luna?"

"You used Kyle's number to text me..." I pressed my lips together. The last fragile piece of pride I'd been holding on to, had crumbled.

Rhea laughed, tilting her head. "My bad, I thought I was using my own when I did that."

When I look at Kyle, he just looks at me coldly, and doesn't deny it.

Right. I let out a bitter laugh. What should I expect? I spun on my heel, desperate to escape from their mocking stares, my chest tightening with shame. How could I be so foolish as to think that it was him who texted it? That he want to see my presence at his birthday party?

As I hurriedly walked away, a sudden grip on my hand made me stumble. I looked up, expecting Kyle, but it wasn't him. It was a stranger, a drunk stranger whose eyes were looking at me with pure malice, deeply hiding the lust in them.

"Where are you going, little Luna?" he slurred. "Stay and dance with me." His grip tightened while caressing my hands, sending shivers down my spine.

"Let go!" I tried to pull away, panic rising as I looked at him in disgust.

"Aw, don't be shy-"

A low growl split the air.

The sound was primal, commanding enough to silence the hall.

Kyle.

His eyes glowed red again-the same way they had three years ago-and before I could process it, he was in front of me.

The drunken stranger released me instantly, stepping back in terror.

Lyra

I watched as the drunken stranger stumbled back, hands raised in fear as soon as Kyle appeared in front of me, coldly looking at him. His red eyes glowed, which also made me freeze, along with the drunken stranger who suddenly sobered up after seeing the Alpha.

"Kyle." I whispered in relief that he appeared, and fear when I saw his red eyes.

It reminds me of what happened three years ago.

He didn't answer. His eyes swept onto the people that was watching us. For a moment, I saw him squint his eyes.

Before I could even react, he already turned his back on me, and he grabbed my wrist, firmly, as he dragged me out of the hall. The energy he radiated made my breath hitch.

I wanted to pull away my grip, and tell him that there's no need to drag me off since I will follow him if he wants me to-but my voice was already torn from fear, but at the same time, a small longing for his affection.

He dragged me out of the hall, down to the corridor, and through the doors leading to the parking lot, where there were no other wolves that could disturb us. The cold night air hit my skin, but I couldn't feel the coldness at all.

Instead, I felt warm.

I barely had the time to catch my breath when he dragged me again toward the black SUV, and his grip on my wrist tightened enough to leave a bruise on it.

I was about to open my mouth when he yanked the door open and pushed me inside.

I flinched as I watched the door slam shut as he went to the driver's seat, sealing both of us inside. Without hesitation, he started the engine and pulled out of the driveway. I couldn't help but watch as the lights of the pack house blurred behind us.

"W-Where are-"

Before I could finish my words, he already slammed the steering wheel so hard that the horn honked.

"Why did you come?" His voice was raw. "Who told you to show up?"

The warmth I felt earlier had slowly dissipated as I watched his face darken.

"I.It was Rhea who used your phone.I thought."

I also wanted to ask him if Rhea was now his new mate.but how could I ask such an obvious thing?

"Thought what? Thought that I'd want to see you? The woman who had killed my Luna?" He let out a mocking sneer that made my hands tremble.

Every time I dared to lift my hopes, the world came crashing down, leaving me with nothing but disappointment.

Right. how could I forget that in their eyes, I am the one who climbed my way up to become his Luna.

And in his eyes, I was the one who killed his beloved Luna.

Whenever I look at his eyes, and see nothing but anger and disgust towards me.I wanted to disappear, to melt into the ground, and leave this pain behind, but I couldn't move. All I could do was stare at him, tears blurring my vision.

"You know that I didn't kill her." My voice barely had the strength, but it was enough for him to hear.

His eyes coldly looked at me and chuckled. "Are you still denying after all these three years? If it wasn't because of you, she wouldn't die."

Tears burned behind my eyes, and I couldn't help but laugh. "Right.and it was also my fault for always getting my hopes up, thinking that you'd listen to my explanation."

He scoffed. "What's the need for your explanation when the evidence was already laid out?"

I let out a heavy, broken laugh as I looked at him, the man whom I had loved after all these years. "To think that even after all these years, I still love you. Isn't that pathetic?"

His eyes flicked to mine, and he let out a sneer. "It is."

I bit my lower lip. His words cut straight to my heart, and all the hopes that I have for him start to crumble.

The ache in my chest was so suffocating that it was hard for me to breathe. I could only see the blurry figure of him, but I knew he was still looking at me with those cold eyes.nothing like the man who used to love me.

Indeed. I am pathetic for still longing for his love.

"Stop the car," I managed to say, yet it was more like a plea than a command.

However, he didn't listen and even stepped hard on the accelerator.

My hands gripped the edge of the seat, knuckles white. "I said, stop the car!"

I thought that he would turn a deaf ear to my words, but this time, he stepped onto the brake, his face was dark, and his jaw was clenched. "What is it?"

The car lurched as he slammed on the brakes, but I couldn't care about it. My last trace of hope had died down. There's no use in these feelings of mine.

"End the bond between us." Despite that, it felt like there was a tear in my throat when I said it, but I still said it.

His hands froze on the wheel, and this time, he looked at me. His teeth were clenched, and if looks could kill, I'd be a corpse now.

"You are not the one who decides that, Lyra."

"Then decide now, Alpha. Let me go."

The glow returned to his eyes-red now, and his wolf clawing at the surface.

"Do you think that I'd believe you? You climbed onto my bed, drugged me to be my Luna, and now you wanted me to let you go?" His sneered. "What are you playing this time, huh?"

I lifted my chin and forced my gaze to be steady as I repeated my words. "Let me go."

"Bullshit!" He roared. His fist slammed into the side window, and it shattered instantly.

I flinched, but I didn't back away. For once, I wasn't afraid.

Because somewhere deep inside me, I long for freedom. To be away of this pain.to stop enduring humiliation I've endured for years out of guilt.and out of love.

This time, I want to choose myself for once.

"And where would you go? Do you think you can survive out there?" His voice was trembling from restraining his rage. "For fuck's sake, Lyra! You're an Omega with no pack, no rank! You'll crawl back to me the moment you realize no one else wants you! You think I'd accept you again if you come back?!"

His words cut deep, but for once, they didn't break me. I met his glare head-on, feeling something stir inside me. It was a different rhythm that didn't belong to an Omega.

My wolf, who had been dormant since the night three years ago, stirred, stretching her limbs after years of being forced to submit. It had been a secret that I kept since that night-that the Omega they branded as whore, murderer. had awakened as an Alpha.

And for the first time, I didn't look at him with affection.

I met his gaze, my hand tightening on the door handle. "You're right," I said coldly. "I'm an Omega. An orphan. A slut. A murderer-you name it."

A bitter smile curving my lips as I looked at him, whose gaze was dark. "But one thing's for sure, Kyle. I'll never crawl back to you again."

I didn't give him the chance to speak and directly opened the car door and stepped out. The night wind whipped through my hair, which made me take a heavy, deep breath as I closed my eyes for a brief moment to feel this unfamiliar feeling.

Without hesitation, I started walking toward the forest. It was a good thing that he had driven me here, as if this all was planned by fate.

"Lyra!" I heard him shout after me.

But I hardened my heart this time. I didn't turn back. I stopped myself from turning back.

'You finally open your eyes, Lyra.'

I paused after hearing the cold tone of my wolf, but at the same time, I seemed to feel her relief.

The corner of my lips raised. "I let you watch my desperate side for the whole three years."

'Where do you want to go now?'

I let out a heavy sigh and shook my head. "I don't know either. But maybe I'll use my talent for singing."

'So, what are you sighing for?'

"His family controls every major industry. It will be hard for me to have a fresh start." I murmured. "But for the meantime, maybe I could find my sister.for help, or maybe I could hide my identity to earn a living by singing online."

'That's a fresh start. We could do that.'

I let out a hollow chuckle, knowing that music that was once my freedom would only awaken the memories I fought hard to forget.