Rejected Luna's Justice

Pain greeted me before consciousness fully returned. A deep, hollow ache that radiated from my core outward, as if something essential had been carved from my body. My eyes fluttered open to the familiar wooden ceiling of the healer's den, the scent of medicinal herbs doing little to mask the copper tang of blood—my blood.

"Katherine." Healer Elena's voice was soft, her eyes red-rimmed as she leaned over me. "I'm so sorry."

I tried to speak, but my throat felt raw, as if I'd been screaming. The memories flooded back—the ceremony, Dominic's public rejection, Isla standing triumphant beside him, and then... blood. So much blood.

"The pup?" I whispered, though I already knew the answer.

Elena's tears spilled over as she gently squeezed my hand. "I'm sorry, Luna. There was nothing I could do."

A sob tore from my chest, triggering fresh pain that made me gasp. The physical agony was nothing compared to the supernatural fire burning through my chest—the mate bond being violently severed, cell by cell, molecule by molecule.

"Three hours," Elena murmured, wiping my tears with a cool cloth. "You've been unconscious for three hours."

Outside the den, voices drifted through the walls, my wolf's heightened senses picking up every word despite my weakened state.

"Did you hear? The Luna was unfaithful..."

"Alpha Dominic showed such mercy not executing her..."

"Isla will make a much better Luna..."

Each whisper was a dagger twisting deeper. I closed my eyes, reaching instinctively for the pack mind-link—that sacred connection that bound us all together. I needed to defend myself, to tell them the truth.

*Pack,* I called out mentally. *I've been betrayed. These images are lies.*

Nothing. Not even an echo. Just a void where the warm hum of pack consciousness should have been.

"He's blocked you," Elena whispered, reading my expression. "Alpha Dominic has blocked your access to the pack mind-link."

The realization hit me like a physical blow. He had silenced me completely—cut me off from the one tool I had to defend myself.

The door to the healer's den burst open, and Madilyn strode in, her Beta aura flaring protectively. She positioned herself at the entrance, crossing her arms as she faced two warriors who had followed her.

"You're not welcome here," she said coldly. "The former Luna needs rest."

Former Luna. The title felt like ash in my mouth.

"Madilyn," I whispered, reaching for her.

She came to my side immediately, pouring water from a clay pitcher and helping me drink. Her eyes were fierce with protective fury as she sat beside me.

"Luna," she said quietly, using the title despite everything. "I need to tell you what I've discovered."

She glanced toward the door, lowering her voice further. "I've been tracking Isla's movements for the past three months. Her scent carries traces of multiple pack warriors—Delta Marcus, Delta James, and at least two others I haven't identified yet."

I struggled to process this information through the haze of pain. "What are you saying?"

"The pup she's carrying..." Madilyn hesitated. "There's no way to know if it's even Dominic's."

A bitter laugh escaped me, quickly stifled by a wince of pain. "Of course it's not his. Nothing about this is what it seems."

"I have documented evidence," Madilyn continued, pulling a small tablet from her pocket. "Security patrol records showing her entering the warriors' quarters at night. But Alpha Dominic refused to hear it when I tried to present it to him two weeks ago. He accused me of being jealous of Isla's youth and beauty."

Before I could respond, the door swung open again. Dominic stood there flanked by two warriors, his face a cold mask I barely recognized.

"Leave us," he ordered Elena and Madilyn.

"Luna Katherine needs—" Elena began.

"Leave. Now." His alpha tone brooked no argument.

Madilyn hesitated, her protective instincts warring with pack hierarchy. "I'll be right outside," she promised me before reluctantly stepping out.

Dominic approached my bed, his eyes devoid of the warmth that had once made me feel like the center of his universe. He pulled a formal document from his jacket.

"You will accept this rejection officially," he said, his voice devoid of emotion. "You will sign over all claims to pack leadership, territories, and resources. You will leave Silvermoon Pack within forty-eight hours and never return."

I stared up at him, this stranger wearing my mate's face. "Why?" I whispered, my voice breaking. "After everything I sacrificed for you, after I lost our pup saving you from rogues three years ago, after I made you Alpha when you were nothing but a rogue's son... why?"

His jaw tightened—that tell I'd known since we first met, the subtle signal that he was lying.

"Because you were never truly mine," he said, each word precise and cutting. "You kept me as your pet Alpha, parading your bloodline superiority while I played the role of grateful mate. Isla sees me as a true Alpha. She submits to my authority without making me feel indebted."

In that moment, as the mate bond continued to burn away between us, I realized just how thoroughly I had been betrayed—and just how much I had left to lose.