Chapter 1
At eight months pregnant, I was organizing the paperwork for my upcoming hospital stay. I planned to drop off a copy of my insurance records at Alpha Jack’s office when I accidentally overheard a conversation between him and Alpha Zane of the Thunder Mountain Pack.
“You made Leyna take birth control for three years, let her believe she was a barren Luna—that’s cold, Jack.” Zane scoffed. “Then you used Claire’s eggs for IVF and implanted them into her... Alpha Jack, you even betrayed your fated mate?”
“Claire is the one worthy of carrying an Alpha pup. You think I’d let her go through tenth-level labor pain? Don’t be ridiculous. That kind of swollen, deformed look would ruin her beauty.”
Alpha Zane smirked. “Aren’t you afraid Leyna will find out? You’re the one who raised her up to be Luna. And now she’s pregnant with someone else’s child... don’t you think that’s pathetic?”
Alpha Jack gave a contemptuous laugh. “She’s too stupid to figure it out. And even if she did—what can she do? She’s already eight months in. Can she still abort? Besides, she’s so fat now, who would want her?”
Alpha Zane raised an eyebrow. “That actually makes me curious. I’ve always wondered what it feels like to mate with a Luna carrying a pup.”
Alpha Jack frowned. “Don’t disgust me. Just looking at her makes me want to throw up.”
“If you won’t touch her, I won’t hold back.” Alpha Zane licked his lips. The two of them burst into crude laughter.
Six years of marriage, and I still hadn’t been able to give Alpha Jack of the Silverfang Pack an heir.
At his request, I had undergone three years of embryo implantation treatments. Last year, the pack doctor finally told me I was pregnant.
I stood frozen behind the wall. The prenatal check-up report slipped from my hand. I didn’t bother to pick it up.
So, the child was Claire’s. I was nothing but a surrogate. He just didn’t want Claire to suffer.
My stomach churned. And then, in the back of my mind, a familiar voice surged like wildfire:
[Do it, Leyna. Cut their throats. Don’t hesitate.]
I flinched.
Cathy.
My wolf soul. She had awakened the night I was cast out of my birth pack, only to fall back into silence. She only came back when I was truly broken.
[Alpha Jack mocks you. Alpha Zane wants to claim you. Claire uses your womb as her stepping stone to the throne. And you? You just pretend nothing’s wrong?]
“Shut up…” I whispered, shaking. “I can’t lose control. I’m still carrying…”
[That’s not your child. That’s Claire’s sin. They used you like a breeding tool. You think you’re their Luna? In their eyes, you’re just medical equipment.]
I gripped the clinic card on my keychain—an appointment I had made weeks ago, at the only hospital in the Northern Territory not under Jack’s control.
I pulled out my phone and dialed the number.
“Hello, I need to schedule an emergency termination.”
“How far along are you?”
“Eight months.”
There was a pause on the other end. “Come in immediately. We need to examine you in person.”
The doctor completed the examination in silence. Then he said, voice low, “Given your term and your status in Silverfang, this will be a high-risk procedure. Are you sure? What about the pup’s father?”
“He’s dead.”
He gave me a long look, then handed me a prescription and a pre-surgery form. “Surgery will be in three days. No food after tonight. Take the medication as prescribed.”
I took the medication and returned to the Silverfang Alpha residence. When I tried the fingerprint scanner, it denied me access three times with “Unauthorized User.”
I was about to contact Jack through the emergency line when the door suddenly opened from the inside.
Claire walked out slowly, wearing my cotton loungewear.
