CHAPTER ONE: THE BETRAYAL
Selene's POV
The silver necklace felt cold against my collarbone as I walked down the marble hallway of the packhouse. It was my twenty-first birthday, and according to pack tradition, tonight was the night Caleb would officially announce our mating bond to the entire Crescent Pack.
My mate. My future Alpha. The man I had loved since I was sixteen.
I smoothed down the emerald dress I had chosen specially for tonight—Caleb always said green brought out my eyes.
My heart hammered with nervous excitement as I approached his chambers. The door was slightly ajar, warm light spilling into the darkened corridor.
I lifted my hand to knock, but froze when I heard her voice.
Lila's voice.
My twin sister.
"Caleb, we can't keep doing this."
Her tone was breathless, almost whining.
"Selene will be here any minute."
Every muscle in my body went rigid. The world tilted sideways as my wolf whimpered in confusion deep within me.
"Then let her come," Caleb's voice rumbled, thick with something I'd never heard before—desire, but not for me.
"She'll have to know eventually."
No.
My hand trembled as I pushed the door open wider.
The scene before me shattered something fundamental inside my chest.
Caleb, shirtless, with his hands wrapped around Lila's waist. Her dress was half undone, her lips swollen and red.
They were tangled together on his bed—the same bed where he'd whispered promises to me just two nights ago.
The mate bond that should have been sacred between us twisted like a knife in my gut.
"Selene?"
Caleb's eyes widened for a split second before his expression hardened into something cold and unrecognizable.
Lila turned slowly, not even bothering to fix her dress. A cruel smile curved her perfect lips.
"Oh. Sister. I didn't hear you knock."
"Get away from him."
My voice came out strangled, barely above a whisper.
She laughed—actually laughed.
"No, I don't think I will."
My eyes snapped back to Caleb, searching for any trace of the man I thought I knew.
"Tell me this isn't real. Tell me I'm imagining this."
He ran a hand through his dark hair, not meeting my gaze.
"Selene, you don't understand—"
"I understand perfectly."
My voice rose, cracking with the weight of betrayal.
"You're my mate, Caleb. The heavens paired us. You swore…"
"The heavens made a mistake!"
Lila's voice cut through my words like glass.
She stepped forward, chin raised in defiance.
"You were never strong enough to be Luna. You're weak, Selene. You've always been weak."
The word hit me like a physical blow. Weak. It was what my father had called me when I couldn't shift until I was fourteen. What my mother whispered when she thought I couldn't hear. The label I'd spent my whole life trying to prove wrong.
"Caleb."
I forced myself to look at him, tears burning behind my eyes.
"Say something. Tell her she's wrong."
For a long moment, he just stared at me. Then his jaw clenched.
"She's not wrong."
The bond between us, already fractured, splintered further. I felt it tearing, a physical pain that radiated from my chest outward.
"I was going to tell you after the ceremony," he continued, his voice flat.
"This was never going to work, Selene. You're not Luna material. Lila is stronger, more capable—"
"More willing to spread her legs for you, you mean?"
The words flew from my mouth before I could stop them.
Lila's eyes flashed dangerously.
"You bitter little—"
My hand moved on instinct. The slap echoed through the room, sharp and final.
Lila's head snapped to the side, and when she looked back at me, there was murder in her eyes.
"You're going to regret that."
"Enough!"
Caleb roared, stepping between us.
But he didn't reach for me. He positioned himself in front of Lila, protecting her.
Something inside me crumbled into dust.
"Caleb, please."
I hated how desperate I sounded.
"We're mates. Doesn't that mean anything to you?"
His silver eyes—the ones I'd once thought were beautiful—turned to ice.
"It means I'm stuck with a bond I never wanted."
The air left my lungs.
"Guards!" he called out suddenly, his voice booming through the hallway.
"What are you doing?"
Panic seized my chest as heavy footsteps thundered toward us.
Four packguards appeared in the doorway, all armed, all staring at me with suspicion.
Caleb's expression twisted into something I didn't recognize—cold, calculated, ruthless.
"Arrest her."
"What?" The word barely made it past my lips.
"She's been meeting with rogues beyond our borders," he announced, his voice ringing with false authority.
"I have proof of her treason."
Ice flooded my veins.
"That's a lie! Caleb, you know that's a lie!"
Lila moved to his side, slipping her hand into his like they'd done this a thousand times.
"Poor Selene. Always playing the victim."
"I have witnesses," Caleb continued, ignoring me completely.
"She's been feeding information to our enemies. She's a traitor to the Crescent Pack."
"No!" I stumbled backward as the guards moved forward.
"You're lying! You're doing this to cover up your own betrayal!"
One of the guards grabbed my arm, his grip bruising. I yanked against him, my wolf surging forward in a desperate attempt to break free.
"Please, you have to listen to me!" I shouted, my voice echoing off the marble walls.
"He's lying! He's been sleeping with my sister and now he's…"
"Silence her," Caleb ordered, his tone void of any emotion.
A guard clamped a hand over my mouth. I bit down hard, tasting blood.
He cursed and pulled back, and I used the moment to wrench myself free.
"You'll regret this, Caleb!" I spat, my voice raw. "The truth will come out!"
Lila tilted her head, smiling sweetly.
"Oh, Selene. No one's going to believe a traitor."
Caleb's hand moved to his side, and my blood turned to ice when I saw what he was reaching for.
A gun. Loaded with silver bullets.
"Take her down," he commanded.
The world slowed. I saw his finger move to the trigger. Saw the cold determination in his eyes.
He was really going to kill me.
My wolf screamed inside my mind, and I didn't think—I just ran.
I shifted mid-sprint, my bones cracking and reforming as fur rippled across my skin. The first bullet whizzed past my ear, so close I felt the heat of it.
"Don't let her cross the border!"
someone shouted behind me.
"Kill her!"
"Traitor!"
I crashed through the packhouse doors and into the night. The forest swallowed me whole, branches tearing at my fur as I ran faster than I'd ever run in my life.
Another gunshot. This one found its mark.
White-hot agony exploded in my shoulder as the silver bullet tore through muscle and bone. I yelped, stumbling, but I didn't stop. I couldn't stop.
Behind me, the sounds of pursuit grew louder—snarls, footsteps, shouts.
The border loomed ahead, marked by ancient stones that separated Crescent territory from the forbidden lands beyond.
The Nightshade territory.
A place so dangerous, so deadly, that even our strongest warriors didn't dare cross it.
I hesitated for only a heartbeat.
Then I heard Caleb's voice, closer than before.
"Stop right there, Selene!"
I leaped over the border stones.
The moment my paws touched Nightshade soil, the air changed. It grew colder, heavier, charged with a dark energy that made every instinct in my body scream at me to turn back.
But I couldn't. Not when death was chasing me from behind.
I ran until my legs gave out.
I collapsed in a heap, shifting back to human form as blood pooled beneath me. The silver was spreading through my veins, burning like acid. My vision blurred, and the world spun.
Somewhere in the distance, I heard Caleb's voice call out one last time.
But he didn't follow. None of them did.
Because crossing into Nightshade was a death sentence.
And they were going to let this land kill me for them.
I pressed a trembling hand to my wound, trying to slow the bleeding. It didn't work. The silver made everything worse, made my healing useless.
My eyes fluttered closed.
This was it. I was going to die alone in enemy territory, betrayed by the man who was supposed to love me.
"Pathetic."
My eyes snapped open.
Two figures stood over me, dressed in black tactical gear with a silver wolf insignia on their chests.
Nightshade soldiers.
One of them crouched down, his face hard and unreadable.
"She's Crescent. You can smell it on her."
"And she's bleeding out," the other one muttered.
"She won't last the night."
"The Alpha will decide what to do with her."
The first soldier grabbed my arm, hauling me up with no gentleness.
I groaned in pain, my legs refusing to support my weight.
"Move it, Crescent," he growled, dragging me forward.
And through the haze of pain and blood loss, one thought echoed through my mind:
I survived Caleb's betrayal. But I might not survive what comes next.