Chapter 2 The Lies That Drowned Her

Lyanna wore the Luna crown like it was made for her. Every day, she smiled wider. Kissed Kaelen in public. Walked through the pack like she belonged. Her hair was the same. Her laugh was the same. Her scent, twisted by old magic, clung close enough to fool the others. Everyone believed she was Seraphina.Everyone but the ghosts. And the broken heart inside Kaelen.

He didn't smile much anymore. He didn't hold Lyanna the way a man should hold his mate.He didn't look her in the eyes when he said he loved her. And Lyanna felt it. Oh, she felt it every time his arms stayed loose around her. Every time his kisses felt cold. Every time he turned away at night and left her reaching for a love that wasn't hers.

Still, she wore Seraphina's name like a weapon. She lied. She played her part. Because the truth would destroy everything she stole.

Far away, Mira sharpened her knives.

Her heart was a battlefield.

She had trusted once. She had died for it.

She would not make that mistake again.

Thorne sat across from her, his voice like poison wrapped in silk."You think Kaelen mourned you?" he said, his eyes shining with cruel amusement. "He didn't even stop the wedding. He didn't even look for your body."

Mira said nothing, but her hands shook.

"He moved on with your sister," Thorne hissed. "He crowned her. Took her to his bed. Loved her like you never existed."

The lies wrapped around Mira's heart like thorns.

Tighter. Deeper. Bleeding her dry.

She wanted to scream. To howl. To tear the sky apart. But all she did was nod. "I will destroy him," she whispered.And Thorne smiled. The kind of smile that promised ruin.

Kaelen stood on the balcony of the Alpha's quarters, staring out into the endless night. He felt lonely and something was very different.His hands held the railing until his knuckles turned white.

Something was wrong. Deeply, wrong. The woman in his bed... she smelled right. She looked right. She said the right things. But his wolf howled in protest each time she touched him.

At night, when he closed his eyes, he remembered happy moments with Seraphina, it was not Lyanna's face he saw.

It was her.

The real one.

The mate he had lost.

The mate he had killed.

Kaelen didn't know the truth. He didn't know it was Seraphina who had fallen under his claws that night. He didn't know the real enemy had been standing right beside him, smiling through the bloodshed.He only knew the guilt that never left him. The guilt that clawed at his soul and kept him awake long after the world slept.

Lyanna watched him from behind. She was living her dreams. She saw the way he stared into the distance, lost in memories that didn't belong to her. Fear gnawed at her heart.

She had won. She had him. She had everything she ever wanted. And yet... she could feel it slipping through her fingers. Mira's return had shaken something awake in Kaelen. Something dangerous. Something Lyanna could not control.

She had to act fast. Before the lies unraveled. Before the ghost of the real Seraphina took everything back.Mira stood before the mirror, breathing hard.Thorne's words spun in her mind like a storm.He betrayed you.He replaced you.He killed you and never looked back.

The knife in her hand glowed under the flickering light.

It would be very easy. One strike. One kill.She could end it. End the pain. End him.But deep inside, something trembled.

A memory. A touch. A voice.

Kaelen's hands cradled her face. His lips whispered promises against her skin. His heartbeat steady against her ear.

Was it all a lie?

Has it ever been real?

Tears blurred Mira's vision.

She slammed the knife down, burying it into the wooden table in front of her. She didn't know anymore.And that terrified her more than anything.

Thorne came to her that night, a bottle of poisoned hope in his hand.He spoke of plans.Of ambushes. Of blood. "He will pay," he said, brushing a strand of hair from her face. "He will bleed for what he did to you."

Mira closed her eyes, letting the anger fill her.It was easier than feeling the sadness.Easier than facing the truth she wasn't ready to see. "Tell me what to do," she whispered.And Thorne smiled again.Victory tasted so sweet when it wore the mask of love.

In the Alpha's house, Kaelen couldn't sleep. The dreams became stronger now. Flashes of silver hair, of laughter that made the world brighter. And blood. Always blood. He woke with a strangled cry, chest heaving, sweat pouring down his back. Lyanna stirred beside him. "Nightmare?" she whispered, her voice soft, sweet, wrong. Kaelen didn't answer. He swung his legs off the bed and stared into the darkness. A nightmare, yes. But not the kind you wake up from. A nightmare made of choices. A nightmare he couldn't escape.

Mira trained harder. She moved like a shadow, swift and silent. Every swing of her blade was Kaelen's face. Every strike was the betrayal she believed.

Thorne watched her, pride gleaming in his cold eyes.He had her now. Mira was his weapon. His blade struck down the mighty Alpha.All he had to do was keep feeding the fire. And pray the truth stayed buried long enough for revenge to taste sweet.

Lyanna sent spies. She couldn't afford the risks.The stranger, the girl with the familiar scent, was a threat. She needed to be removed. Soon.

Before Kaelen looked too closely.Before the truth crawled out of its grave.Before everything Lyanna built on blood and lies crumbled beneath her feet.

Under the bleeding moon, fate sharpened its claws. Mira would rise. Kaelen would fall. Or so they thought. But fate had its plans.

Plans are written in blood, betrayal, and the love that refuses to die.