“Just two minutes, that’s all I’m asking.” Bella’s voice quivered as she pleaded with Luke, the future Alpha of the Red Moon Pack. Her hand rested lightly on his arm, seeking connection, but his deep blue eyes—once her sanctuary—were fixed on her touch with a frown of disapproval.
They had been lovers, if only casually, for over a year. But it was over now. The Moon Goddess had gifted him his fated mate, and with that, Bella was nothing more than a shadow of his past. The man who once knew her intimately now wouldn’t spare her even a sliver of his time.
Bella’s heart ached, though she had always known this moment would come. She’d carefully kept their relationship light and unassuming, hiding the depth of her feelings. Luke wasn’t her fated mate, nor was she his. But her love had been real, and now it felt impossible to let him go. All she wanted was to wish him well and let him know she was leaving—to focus on her law degree, to intern during breaks, and to avoid coming home for at least the next two years.
She couldn’t stay, couldn’t bear to witness the love Luke would share with his mate, Mia. Watching them happy, watching them build a future she had secretly longed for, would shatter her completely. But she would never admit that to him.
As she stood there, clutching his arm, trying to muster her usual playful smile, the door swung open. Mia entered, her presence dominating the room. Her gaze darted to Bella’s hand on Luke’s arm, and her expression hardened into fury. She didn’t care about the decades of friendship Bella and Luke shared. To her, Bella was a threat—a relic of his past that had no place in their future.
“Take your filthy hands off, my mate!” Mia’s voice was venomous, her wolf’s snarl audible in her words. She stormed forward, yanking Bella’s hand away and shoving her backward. Before Bella could even process what was happening, Mia’s hand lashed out, landing a sharp slap across her cheek. The impact sent Bella staggering, her hand instinctively flying to her stinging face.
Tyler, Bella’s wolf, erupted with fury. The insult, the attack—it was too much to bear. Tyler surged forward before Bella could stop her. Claws extended, and she struck back with a force born of rage and instinct. Her hand slashed across Mia’s face, leaving three deep, bloody gashes in its wake.
Mia screamed, clutching her injured face as blood dripped onto her clothes. Tears streamed from her eyes as she turned to Luke for solace. He was at her side in an instant, pulling her into his arms and cradling her protectively.
When Luke turned to Bella, his eyes were blazing with fury, his wolf seething just beneath the surface. “Leave this pack,” he roared, his voice filled with a rage that shook her to her core. “Don’t you ever come back.”
The weight of his words hit her like a physical blow. Bella’s green eyes welled with tears as the reality sank in. Treason. Attacking the Luna—or even the future Luna—was treason. Her wolf had acted in defense, but that wouldn’t matter. Tyler whimpered in her mind, the gravity of their actions settling heavily on them both.
Without another word, Bella turned and fled. Staying any longer would only bring harsher punishment—perhaps even death. Her steps quickened as she left the packhouse, her heart pounding with panic and grief. Tears streamed down her face as she reached her car, her mind racing with dread. What if Luke changed his mind? What if Mia demanded more severe retribution—imprisonment, t*****e, or worse?
There was no time to say goodbye to her family. Not to her parents, not to her brother. As she ran, she heard Jackson, the future Beta, call out to her in confusion. “Bella, what’s wrong?”
But she didn’t stop. She couldn’t.
Sliding into her car, she started the engine and sped away, her only thought to get as far from pack territory as possible. Her chest heaved with sobs as Tyler’s mournful howl echoed in her mind.
“Why, Tyler?” Bella whispered brokenly, the tears blurring her vision.
Her wolf’s response came like a dagger to the heart. “To protect the pup.”
Bella’s breath caught, her entire body trembling. The truth she had hidden even from herself now surged to the surface. She was carrying Luke’s child. And he had just cast her out like she meant nothing.
Tears streamed down her face as the pain of his rejection and the weight of her secret pressed down on her like a crushing force. But she had to endure it. For her child, she would survive. For her pup, she would find a way to carry on.
There was no time for goodbyes. No final words to her mum, her dad, or her older brother. Tears streamed down Bella’s face as she ran, her heart pounding with panic and grief. The weight of what had just happened pressed heavily on her chest, but she couldn’t stop—not now. Behind her, she heard Jackson, the future Beta, call out with concern. “Bella, what’s wrong?” His voice carried a hint of urgency, but she didn’t have the strength to respond.
Reaching her car, she slid into the driver’s seat, hands trembling as she started the engine. She drove away as fast as she could, the urgency of escape coursing through her veins. She needed to get off-pack territory before anything worse could happen.
For now, at least, she hadn’t been stripped of her rank or branded a rogue—her only small mercy. But that reprieve could still be taken away. Alpha Blaine, Luke’s father, would decide her ultimate fate. He would hear Luke and Mia’s account of the events and render his judgment. The possibility of being marked as a rogue loomed over her like a dark cloud.
“Why?” Bella whispered brokenly, her voice barely audible as sobs wracked her body. She gripped the steering wheel tightly, her vision blurred by tears. The road ahead seemed endless, yet it was her only path to safety.
Tyler’s response came through their bond, raw and anguished. “Protect pup.”
The words struck Bella like a lightning bolt, her tears falling even harder as the truth settled over her. A baby. His baby. The very thought tore at her soul. Luke had discarded her like she was nothing—banished her without hesitation—completely unaware of the life growing inside her.
The ache in her chest deepened, spreading to every corner of her being. It felt as though the pain would consume her entirely, but she knew she couldn’t give in. She had to survive this—for her pup. For the tiny spark of life that now gave her purpose.
As the university’s familiar campus came into view, Bella let out a shaky breath. Her dorm would be her refuge, her sanctuary, a place to regroup and protect the secret she now carried. The bond with her pack had been severed, and the man she loved had turned his back on her, but she still had Tyler. She still had her child. And for them, she would endure.
