Chapter 1

As I collapsed in a pool of my own blood, the mate-link deep in my mind flared with the thoughts of my Alpha husband, Cullen:

'I only had my men give Ayla ten lashes to let Selena vent her frustration. How is she bleeding this much?'

'She must be using fake blood again, trying to guilt-trip me into coaxing her.'

What he didn't know was that those ten lashes had claimed the life of our two-month-old unborn baby.

Nor did he know that I had just been diagnosed with terminal Wolfsbane Necrosis. I had permanently lost my werewolf healing abilities.

This wasn't the first time he had hurt me for Selena's sake.

When Selena suffered from insomnia, he extracted my heart's blood to use as her cure; when she needed to vent her temper, he turned a blind eye as his guards held my head under the freezing waters of the icy lake.

And this time, Selena had caused an absolute catastrophe, provoking a savage pack of rogue wolves.

Cullen looked down at my curled-up, trembling form, his tone leaving no room for argument:

"Since you are the Luna, you should bear the responsibility. Go to the rogue camp and take the fall for Selena."

"With a werewolf's physique, taking a beating won't kill you."

He didn't know that Selena had already bribed those rogues to torture me to death.

But I didn't cry and beg for myself like I usually did. I simply leaned against the wall and forced myself to stand.

"Fine. I'll go."

For a split second, a flash of astonishment crossed his eyes. He had no idea that those words were my final goodbye to him.

......

I knelt at the foot of Cullen's throne, so weak that even lifting my eyelids felt like it drained every ounce of strength I had left.

High upon the throne, my husband—Cullen, the most powerful Alpha of this territory—was glaring down at me with unbridled disgust.

In his arms, he protectively cradled a shivering Selena—his first love, the one woman who could do no wrong in his eyes.

Just last night, Selena had secretly trespassed into the rogue wolves' territory at the border. Not only did she destroy their sacred totem, but she also accidentally burned the pup of the rogue leader, Griffin, to death.

Now, hundreds of bloodthirsty rogues had surrounded our pack borders, demanding we hand over the murderer, or else they would wage a bloodbath.

"It's one thing for you to be jealous of Selena normally, Ayla, but to be so vicious as to commit arson in the rogues' territory and try to pin the blame on her?" Cullen's voice was freezing cold, every word like a poisoned blade piercing with pinpoint accuracy into my already battered heart.

I struggled to lift my head, my pale lips trembling. "It wasn't me... Cullen, I was in my room all night last night, I—"

"Enough!" Cullen slammed his hand against the armrest. "Selena can't even shift! How could she possibly burn down a rogue camp? Only you, as the Luna, have the authority to cross the borders freely. You committed such a malicious act, and now you still try to lie your way out of it?"

Hiding against Cullen's chest, Selena squeezed a few tears from her eyes. "Cullen, please don't blame Ayla. She just loves you too much and is afraid I'll steal you away... If the rogues insist on an answer, just hand me over. I'm not afraid of being torn to pieces..."

"Nonsense, Selena. I won't allow you to say such things. The one who made the mistake is the one who should be punished." Cullen tenderly stroked Selena's hair, but when he turned his gaze back to me, it became ruthlessly cold.

Five years ago, Selena had left without a word. When she returned in tears not long ago, claiming I had manipulated her into leaving, Cullen instantly condemned me as a scheming, venomous woman.

In his eyes, if I was capable of driving away his true love just to snatch the title of Luna, then naturally, I must be wicked enough to set fire to the border and frame her for it now.

The special resonance of our mate bond allowed me to clearly hear the thoughts echoing deep in his mind.

'I get it. She's refusing to submit, so she deliberately made herself look this pathetic. That blood on the floor is probably just animal blood she found somewhere, pretending to be sick to force my hand. What a pathetic performance.'

'If she just kneels down and grovels to Selena, admitting what she did, I might just forgive her and negotiate with the rogues to save her. But she's too stubborn. I have to use this opportunity to teach her a harsh lesson and make her realize her mistakes.'

Hearing his self-righteous thoughts, a wave of absurd sorrow surged from the dead ashes of my heart.

He had no idea that I had just lost our baby. Even less did he know that the pack doctor had issued my critical illness notice just yesterday, giving me three days to live at most.

"Cullen... I had a miscarriage... I'm severely ill. If you hand me over to the rogues, I will die."

"Die?" Cullen looked as if he'd just heard the funniest joke in the world, a mocking smirk curling on his lips. "Ayla, did you forget you're a werewolf? Even if your bones were snapped in half, they'd heal in a few days. Playing the victim won't work on me anymore. If you did the crime, you do the time!"

He stood up, pointing down at me imperiously as he delivered his final verdict. "Guards! Escort Ayla to the border and hand her over to Griffin. Tell him this is the arsonist. They can do whatever they want with her, as long as they leave her with one breath."

Let her suffer a few days with the rogues. Once she's terrified out of her mind, she'll naturally cry and beg me to bring her back. Maybe then she'll finally be an obedient, submissive wife.

Two burly guards marched forward, roughly grabbing me by both arms.

My arm bones, already eroded and fragile from the Wolfsbane Necrosis, immediately cracked under their rough handling. The agonizing pain made my vision go entirely black. Cold sweat instantly drenched my clothes, and I could only let out a weak, muffled groan.

"Fine. I will go." Refusing to offer a single word of defense anymore, I finally spoke.

A flicker of surprise crossed Cullen's face at my uncharacteristic submission, but he quickly masked it, waving his hand. "Stop dawdling, drag her out! Keep her out of my sight."

With that, he turned away, going back to softly coaxing the "wronged and frightened" Selena in his arms.

I was dragged away like a broken ragdoll, the blood from beneath me leaving a long, harrowing trail of crimson across the pristine floor.

I took one last look at the face of the man I had once loved so deeply.

As you wish, Cullen. I will never be an eyesore to you again.