After I died, Alpha went mad.

Everyone in the Shadowfang Pack knew that Alpha Kael was fiercely devoted to his Luna.

To save me, he had sacrificed his own soul to shadow magic.

He had endured the agony of being flayed alive, just to keep me breathing.

He had torn open his own heart, feeding me his blood, just so we could be together.

For three hundred years, I firmly believed I was his Luna, his other half.

But now, I was looking right at him. Kael, my Kael, thrusting his hips forward in a violent, primal rhythm, pinning a woman against the mattress.

A bell hung around her ankle, chiming with his every movement.

It was Lyra. My handmaiden.

Her magic-laced voice slithered into my mind via the mind-link. "Does it hurt, Luna? The Bell of Severance only rings when I feel... pleasure. And with every chime, your soul shatters a little more."

Kael kissed her passionately. "Make it ring louder. I want to hear it."

Chapter 1

"Luna Elara, are you certain?" The voice echoed through the dark, boundless caverns of the Underworld.

The Underworld wasn't a place of fire and brimstone; it was a realm of absolute silence, thrumming with ancient power.

The Arbiter, a being forged entirely of shadows with eyes like starlight, watched me in serene stillness.

"This soul pact is irreversible. In seven days, your soul will dissipate, fading into nothingness. The one who signs this contract shall never see reincarnation."

I stepped forward, my bare feet making no sound against the obsidian floor.

Without a shred of hesitation, I picked up the quill made of solidified moonlight. It drew not ink, but my own soul, pulling a shimmering thread of silver energy from within me.

I pressed my palm against the freezing altar stone, sealing the contract with a single drop of my blood.

According to ancient laws, once a soul was offered, its complete reflection should appear on the smooth surface of the altar stone.

But when I looked down, I only saw a fractured, broken orb of light.

The Arbiter's form flickered, a ripple of shock passing through his shadowy body. "You... you are..."

I knew why he was so surprised. Because he recognized who I was.

The entire werewolf world knew the story.

I was the Luna with the shattered soul. When Kael pulled me back to the living world from the brink of death, a part of me-a crucial, vital part-was left behind in the dark.

I left the Underworld and walked back through the village nestled at the foot of our fortress.

I could hear the excited whispers of the local girls.

"Is the Alpha getting married?" a young she-wolf asked an elder.

"Silly child," the old woman chuckled softly. "The Alpha has been mated for three hundred years. He is utterly devoted to his Luna. Why would he marry anyone else?"

"I heard it's a surprise," another chimed in, her tone filled with romantic awe. "He's prepared the Moonrise Chamber for her, decorating it exactly like a human cottage. He wants to give her a human wedding."

I listened, a bitter, hollow ache rising in my chest. The entire realm knew of Kael's unwavering loyalty. I had thought the exact same thing.

Three hundred years ago, I was just an ordinary human healer.

A rogue wolf attacked me, leaving me at death's door.

Kael, the pureblood Alpha of the Moonshadow Pack at the time, found my scent.

He didn't just want to save me; he broke every sacred law to do it.

He endured the agony of being flayed and embraced the dark power of a feral Eclipse Wolf, all to channel enough raw, primal magic to stitch my broken body back together.

Yet, even with such a massive sacrifice, it wasn't enough. I woke up alive, but a piece of my soul was missing. I had been in a coma for a year.

I remember the day I woke up. Kael was there, pale-faced, his eyes bloodshot and frantic.

He looked utterly drained, like a god crushed by fear. He pulled me into his arms, holding me so tightly I could barely breathe, his hoarse voice whispering against my ear.

"Elara. My Elara. Never leave me. Please. I have nothing. I am nothing. I only want you."

I hugged him back fiercely, my heart overflowing with agonizingly beautiful love and sorrow. I was the luckiest woman in the world.

For three centuries, I believed it with every fiber of my being. I was his Luna, his mate, his soulmate. Even in the harsh, unforgiving lands of the pack, I felt nothing but bliss.

In our quiet, intimate moments, he would graze my earlobe with his fangs and whisper, "Elara, I will never love anyone the way I love you. You are my very soul."

I believed him.

I drowned in his devotion.

The daily offering of his blood, once a painful necessity to keep me alive, had become a sacrament, a symbol of his love.

I thought I understood the true meaning of death. I was wrong.

Last month, I discovered that there are things far more painful than dying.

A dreadful premonition drove me to the Moonrise Chamber, the sacred suite Kael had prepared for me.

I never should have gone.

Kael had told me he would be patrolling the eastern territories, but I found him there instead.

He was with Lyra.

They were tangled together in the bed that belonged to Kael and me. The bell on Lyra's ankle chimed, each ring piercing my soul.

Lyra. I recognized her instantly. Twenty years ago, we had found this starving, freezing wolf on the edge of our territory, and I had begged Kael to spare her life.

In her desperate eyes, I had seen the humanity I once lost.

I took her in, gave her food and clothes, and called her my sister. In the castle, whatever was mine was hers.

Kael used to joke with an indulgent smile that I spoiled her too much.

Now, my "sister" was curled up in my husband's arms.

Lyra was wearing a pure white gown-the ceremonial dress for the Luna's Ascension.

The exquisite silver wolves and crescent moons embroidered on the fabric were burned into my memory.

I had spent months stitching that gown, pouring all my love and hope into every needle and thread.

It was my wedding dress. My human wedding dress. I had dreamed of the day I would wear it, dreamed of the look on Kael's face when he saw me.

Lyra had once said, "Luna Elara will be the most beautiful bride in all the realms."

Her words now echoed in my mind, a cruel, twisted mockery.

I stood frozen in the doorway, my hands clenched into fists so tight that my nails drew blood. I couldn't feel the pain. I tried to step back, to flee this nightmare.

A deliberately raised voice shattered the silence.

"They say the Alpha loves his Luna more than his own life," Lyra whispered softly, tracing idle circles on Kael's chest. "So why do you still come to me?"

I stopped, feeling as if my breath had been snatched from my lungs.

After a long, agonizing moment, I finally heard Kael's voice. It was low, husky, and ruthlessly cold.

"She is... kind and pure. But in the bedroom, beneath the burning moonlight... she is cold. She lacks your fire. She doesn't have even a tenth of your passion."

Those words flooded my veins like ice water, freezing me from the inside out.

Lyra's sweet laughter rang through the room like shattering glass.

She tilted her head, her gaze shifting over Kael's shoulder to meet mine dead-on. Her eyes were sharp and triumphant, gleaming with a predatory thrill.

"Then," she murmured, "give her the ceremony. Give her the vows, the flowers, and the adoration of the pack. But the night of the Ascension... the night of blood and the mating bond... save that for me. Will you?"

The world seemed to stand still. My heart stopped beating.

The next second, Kael dipped his head and kissed Lyra fiercely.

I squeezed my eyes shut, but I couldn't block out the sounds.

The wet, hungry kisses. Lyra's soft moans. The rustle of expensive fabric being shoved aside.

I figured this was what being flayed alive felt like. This was what it felt like to watch your own heart being ripped from your chest.

The soul pact had been forged.

In seven days, Elara would cease to exist.

I wandered back to the castle in a daze. A freezing rain began to pour. Kael hadn't returned. He never came back that night.

I stood by the window, watching the raindrops trace paths down the glass, blurring the outside world into a gray watercolor painting. My vision blurred right along with it.

I thought back. When did all of this begin?

I remembered Lyra bending over to pick up a dropped handkerchief, her neckline dipping low.

I saw Kael's gaze trace the line of her collarbone. A flicker of heat flashed in his eyes before he snapped them shut and abruptly turned away.

After that, he was restless for days, snapping at everyone.

"Elara," he finally said, his voice a bit rough. "Perhaps Lyra should have her own room in the East Wing... I know you adore her. But she's young, and she needs her own space."

Was that when the thorns first took root? I wondered, a bitter smile tugging at my lips.

A biting gust of wind sliced through the old window frame, piercing right through me. My body began to tremble uncontrollably, and the world seemed to tilt. I felt myself falling, collapsing silently onto the cold stone floor.

When I opened my eyes again, Kael was there.

He was sitting on the edge of the bed, holding me.

His face was pale, his features drawn with worry. There was a faint trace of blood on his lips. I realized he had just fed me. He had mixed his blood with a sleeping draught and passed it from his mouth to mine.

The moment he saw my eyes flutter open, he crushed me to his chest.

So tightly. So desperately.

"Elara. My Elara, you're awake." His voice was choked, tears shining in his eyes as he trembled. "When you collapsed... I thought... I was so scared. I thought I lost you."

He was terrified. He looked exactly like a man who loved me more than anything in the world.

But he smelled like her. That sickly-sweet perfume Lyra wore. Catching that scent now made my stomach churn with sickening nausea.

My voice was perfectly flat, so hollow it sounded like an echo of myself. "Where were you last night?"

I saw it. A barely perceptible shift of emotion flickered in his eyes.

For a split second, he seemed to want to look away, but he quickly reassembled his mask of concern.

"There was an urgent matter to handle over in Thornwood. I couldn't make it back, I am so sorry."

I said nothing.

His voice softened, taking on a pleading edge. "My Elara, are you mad at me? I swear, this is the first and last time. For forgive me, please."

My gaze was drawn involuntarily to his neck. Right there. A stark, unmistakably clear bite mark, resting just above his throat, right beneath his jaw.

It was completely unhidden-a brand, a flag of conquest.

I could picture the scene with vivid clarity: Lyra boldly declaring her desire, sinking her teeth into him. And Kael throwing his head back, letting her claim him, a low, indulgent growl rumbling in his chest.

I fought to keep my voice steady. "What is that?"

He caught his reflection in the window glass and froze.

Only for a second. Then he let out a helpless little chuckle, brushing it off. "A training accident. One of the pups got too overexcited."

I met his eyes. "A wolf got near your throat and took a bite?"

He paused, a flash of irritation crossing his face before he masked it again. "It was my fault. I was distracted. I was worried about you. It's nothing. Let me make you a cup of that honey tea you love."

Back when I was human, I had a massive sweet tooth. And Kael, the formidable Alpha wolf, had always loved making sweets for me.

Even amidst the harsh reality of the pack, he kept that tradition alive. The other wolves always envied my Alpha's tenderness.

Now, that precious memory was just another lie, another shattered fragment of the illusion I had been living in.

I heard my own voice say, "Alright."

It wasn't Kael who brought the tea, but a handmaiden. She kept her head bowed, her demeanor respectful. "Luna, Alpha Kael was called away. There's an issue at the Crimson Creek border. He asked me to tell you to rest well and drink this tea. It will help you sleep."

I didn't care if there was actual trouble or not. I accepted the warm cup mechanically, my movements stiff.

As I drank, I failed to notice the triumphant smirk ghosting across the maid's lips.

An unnatural exhaustion swallowed me instantly. It wasn't a gentle slumber, but a suffocating darkness.

Just before I completely lost consciousness, the maid's face shimmered, morphing back into Lyra's breathtaking features.

"Hello, sister," her voice hissed in my mind, as sharp as a viper's fangs. "Long time no see."

A wave of terror washed over me, and then the darkness claimed me entirely.