I had personally hung up this sign.
During our first anniversary.
We kissed down the hallway till we got here. Aroused. Wet. Mathew's hands down there, rubbing and teasing me as I installed the sign with trembling hands.
The brass numbers had been cold under my fingers. But his touch was warm. Hot. His breath on my neck as he whispered what he'd do to me once we got inside.
I shook my head to clear unnecessary thoughts as I reached for my card to swipe.
It wasn't the time for that.
The lock beeped. Green light.
The door swung open.
"Mom."
My son's voice.
Relief flooded through me. He was here. Everything would be okay. He'd explain. Tell me the video was fake. Edited. A cruel joke.
But he wasn't looking at me.
He was looking at Vivian.
My best friend.
She stood by the window. Blonde hair messy. Lipstick smudged. Wearing nothing but a silk robe.
My robe.
The one Mathew bought me last Christmas.
Then the smell hit me.
Sex.
Heavy. Unmistakable. It clung to the air like humidity.
I heard. I saw. I smelled.
Then I broke.
My bag fell.
Hit the floor with a dull thud.
The same way my heart did.
But my body moved fast.
Faster than I knew I could move.
My hands went to her neck.
Vivian's eyes went wide. Shocked. Like she didn't expect this. Like she thought I'd just stand there and take it.
I wanted to end her the way she ended my marriage.
My fingers dug into her throat. Soft skin. Fragile. I could feel her pulse racing under my thumbs.
She made a choking sound. Clawed at my hands.
I didn't let go.
Blinded by rage, I tightened my grip. My vision blurred. Tears? I couldn't tell. I just wanted her heart to stop.
Stop the way mine had when I saw that video.
Stop the way it did when I smelled sex in our room.
Stop the way—
Pain.
Sharp. Searing. In my stomach.
I gasped.
My hands loosened on Vivian's neck. She stumbled back, coughing. Gasping for air.
I looked down.
A knife.
Buried in my stomach.
Blood bloomed across my shirt. Dark red. Spreading fast.
Stab.
That was the first of four stabs.
I turned to see who did it.
Mathew.
My mate.
He stood there. Knife in hand. Blood dripping from the blade.
His face was calm. Too calm. Like he'd done this before. Like stabbing me was nothing.
"Mathew?" My voice came out weak. Confused.
Before I could process this absurdity, he stabbed again.
The knife punched into my side. Between my ribs.
I stumbled. Caught myself on the dresser.
And again.
This time my shoulder. The blade scraped bone.
Three now.
My legs gave out. I hit the floor. Hard. My head cracked against the carpet.
Everything spun.
I looked up. Saw my son standing there. Watching.
He didn't move. Didn't scream. Didn't try to stop his father.
Just watched.
Like I was already dead.
"Why?" I choked out. Blood bubbled in my throat. Tasted like copper. "Why?"
Mathew crouched down beside me. Wiped the knife on his pants. Casual. Like he was cleaning up after dinner.
"You weren't supposed to find out now. But it's fine, I'm done pretending. Time to end this charade." He laughed. Short. Cold. "Foolish Ariana, who fell for someone who wasn't her mate." His voice taunting dropped the biggest bombshell in my life.
Vivian came up behind him. Wrapped her arms around his shoulders. Kissed his neck.
"Is she dead yet?" she asked.
My son stepped closer. Looked down at me.
His eyes were empty.
"Not yet," Mathew said.
He raised the knife again.
---
Then I blacked out.
When I awoke, I was weak and bloody.
Lily? I called once more.
Was she still going to ignore me at this point?
Their hushed voices drifted to my ears.
"We need to dispose of her body and create an alibi before morning."
That anxious voice was my blood.
My own son.
I broke deeper.
Something inside me shattered. Not my ribs this time. Not my heart.
Something else. Something I didn't know could break.
I held my voice with everything in me.
I didn't want them to hear my sobs.
I didn't want them to know how much they'd hurt me.
Wouldn't give them that satisfaction.
As they discussed further, my mate suggested burning.
The word came out casual. Like he was suggesting what to have for dinner.
They thought they had killed me. And here I was, wounded and wolfless. Listening to them plan how to cut off my head.
Moon Goddess, you revealed my husband's true colors to me. Don't let him kill me. Please.
I prayed fervently. Hoping she would grow tired once again and respond to me.
She did.
The fabric around me loosened . Just slightly. Just enough.
I twisted. Pulled. My skin tore against the rough fiber.
They tore.
Then I ran.
"Lily!"
My legs pumped beneath me. Weak. Shaking. But moving.
Blood soaked through my shirt. Dripped down my side. Left a trail behind me.
"Lily!!
Take over please!"
I couldn't even hear my own voice as I screamed at the top of my lungs.
Why wasn't my wolf responding? Why did she abandon me when I needed her the most?
Behind me, shouting. Footsteps. Heavy. Fast.
They were coming.
Bleeding and weak, I ran as much as I could.
But I was human. I could only do this much.
The forest blurred around me. Trees. Darkness. My lungs burned. Each breath sent fire through my ribs where Mathew had stabbed me.
I looked back.
Three figures. Running. Closing the distance.
I turned forward—
My foot caught.
A twig. A root. Something.
I went down hard. Hit the ground face first. Tasted dirt and blood.
"Ahh!"
My ankle was caught. Twisted in the root. I pulled. It wouldn't budge.
Moon Goddess, please help me again.
The tears wouldn't stop. Hot. Blurring my vision. I had no strength to loosen my leg from the root that trapped me.
I lay down.
It was futile.
Seconds later, three wolves surrounded me.
Large. Menacing. Their eyes glowed in the darkness.
One by one, they transformed back to humans.
Mathew.
My son.
Vivian.
All naked. All staring down at me like I was already a corpse.
Vivian walked slowly towards me with a smile.
That smile.
The same one from the video. Cruel. Satisfied.
"Luna," she purred. "How does it feel to be below someone you hate?"
Her stiletto's pointed edge pressed into my palm.
Pain exploded through my hand. Sharp. White hot.
I let out a howl.
Animal. Desperate. Not my wolf. Just me. Broken and bleeding.
I glared at her. Her smile was infuriating.
I envisioned ripping her face. Watching her smile stretch so wide it never closed. Tearing into her throat the way she'd torn into my life.
But I had no strength.
My hand throbbed. Blood pooled under her heel.
"Glaring at the future Luna?" She tsked. "Disrespectful."
She crouched down beside me. Her perfectly manicured nails gleamed in the moonlight.
She reached out for my face.
I tried to move. Couldn't.
Her fingers pressed against my eyes.
Then her nails dug in.
Pain.
Worse than the stabs. Worse than anything.
Searing. Blinding.
I screamed.
Felt something wet run down my cheeks. Not tears. Blood.
She pressed harder.
Deeper.
I thrashed. Tried to fight. But Mathew's foot came down on my chest. Pinning me.
"Hold still," Vivian said sweetly. "This will only take a second."
Her nails scraped. Gouged.
Then—
Nothing.
Darkness.
I couldn't see.
I really couldn't see.
"Perfect," Vivian said. Her voice distant now. Muffled. "Now she won't be able to identify us."
I lay there. Blind. Bleeding. Broken.
Lily. Please. Please.
Still nothing.
Just darkness.
And the sound of them laughing above me.