Chapter 3
The crypt beneath the pack house was silent except for the soft drip of water somewhere in the darkness. I traced my fingers over the fresh stone bearing the Dowager Luna's name, my damaged hand aching beneath its bandages.
"I'm sorry," I whispered, placing a white rose against the cold marble. "I couldn't protect you."
The air shifted subtly—a change in pressure that made my wolf stir uneasily. A shadow detached itself from the corner, moving with practiced stealth.
"Careful, Jocelyn," a familiar voice cautioned. "These walls have ears."
I spun around, my heart hammering against my ribs. The Dowager Luna stood before me, her face pale but very much alive.
"You're..." I couldn't finish the sentence.
"Alive? Yes." She glanced toward the entrance. "We don't have much time. Rex has spies everywhere."
"But the funeral—Ethan buried you yesterday."
"A clever deception." She moved closer, her eyes gleaming with a fierce intelligence I'd never fully appreciated. "With Elena's help. The healer who tended to you."
"Why?" My voice cracked. "Why fake your death?"
"Because Rex sent assassins for me." She touched the moon pendant at her throat. "Just as he did for your child."
The words hit me like a physical blow. "Rex ordered the attack?"
"He and Salma." The Dowager Luna's lips curled in disgust. "They've been lovers for months. She's been playing both father and son—ensuring she'll be Luna regardless of who holds the Alpha title."
I sank onto a stone bench, my mind racing to process this information. "Then we need to—"
"Destroy them," she finished for me. "But carefully. Strategically." She sat beside me, her voice dropping to a whisper. "You will attack from within—break Ethan and Salma emotionally. I will gather evidence against Rex."
"And then?"
"Then we expose them all at the Alpha Summit." Her hand found mine, squeezing gently. "Are you with me, Jocelyn?"
I looked into her eyes—the eyes of a woman who had survived decades of pack politics and personal betrayal—and felt something shift inside me.
"Yes," I said. "I'm with you."
---
I placed the small wooden wolf carving on Ethan's desk, positioning it where he couldn't miss it. It was one of the first gifts he'd ever given me—a symbol of our courtship before everything went wrong.
Then I retreated to the adjoining room, waiting.
Ethan entered his office an hour later. I heard his footsteps pause, then resume with a slight hesitation. The carving had been noticed.
Over the next week, I left more mementos—a pressed flower from our first full moon run together, a photo from when we'd received our mate marks, a strand of hair tied with the silver thread he'd used to bind our wrists during the mating ceremony.
Each item was a dagger, precisely aimed at the memories his wolf still cherished.
Today, I stood in his office doorway, ostensibly delivering documents. Inside, I clutched the ultrasound image I'd kept hidden—the only proof of our child's existence.
"Alpha," I said formally, extending the papers.
Ethan took them without looking at me. Then I let the ultrasound slip from my folder, falling to the floor with a soft whisper.
"Oh," I gasped, my voice breaking perfectly. "My baby..."
I dropped to my knees, shoulders shaking with sobs that were only half-feigned. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to..."
From the corner of my eye, I saw Ethan freeze. His wolf surged forward—I could smell the change in his scent, see the flicker of gold in his eyes.
"Get out," he growled, but his voice trembled.
I gathered the ultrasound, pressing it to my chest as I fled. Behind me, I heard him call for Salma, his voice sharp with sudden irritation.
"What is wrong with you?" he snapped at her. "Can't you feel that?"
---
The burner phone's GPS history led me to a motel on the outskirts of pack territory. I parked across the street, watching as Salma's car pulled into the lot.
She entered room 237, glancing around nervously before closing the door.
Twenty minutes later, a black sedan arrived. Rex Rogers emerged, his imposing figure unmistakable even from a distance.
I slid from my car, keeping to the shadows as I approached the motel. The window was cracked open despite the air conditioning—careless, or perhaps deliberate.
"Is it done?" Rex's voice drifted through the gap.
"Almost." Salma's laugh was cold. "Ethan's wolf is starting to fight him. She's good—I'll give her that."
"The plan remains the same," Rex said, his voice hardening. "Once I retake the Alpha position, you'll be my Luna. Ethan will be dealt with."
"And if he suspects?"
Rex's laugh was chilling. "Then we'll have to arrange another accident."
I pressed record on my phone, capturing their conversation—and more. Through the window, I could see them moving closer, Salma's hands sliding up Rex's chest.
"Let's celebrate our future," she purred.
As they fell onto the bed together, I continued recording, my hand steady despite the rage building inside me. This wasn't just betrayal—it was treason against the entire pack.
And I had the evidence to prove it.
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