His Mistress Wore My Luna Crown

The carpet fibers scratched against my cheek, but the sensation was distant, muffled by the roaring fire in my veins. My throat had closed completely. I clawed at my neck, my nails digging into skin that felt like it was melting, desperate to tear an opening for air that refused to come.

Above me, the chandelier blurred into a halo of mocking light. Jax stood over me, his arms crossed, his face twisted not in concern, but in disgust.

"Get up, Camille," he sneered, his voice vibrating through the floorboards. "This performance is pathetic. Even for you."

I tried to shake my head, to signal that I was dying, but my body convulsed. A spasms arched my back off the floor. The silver dust in the stew was shutting down my nervous system, severing the connection between my brain and my lungs.

"She's turning blue, Jax!" Ezra cried out, clutching his arm. "Maybe she's really sick? Oh goddess, did I use the wrong mushrooms?"

"She is immune to drama, not mushrooms," Jax spat, nudging my paralyzed leg with his boot. "She is doing this to ruin our dinner. To make you feel guilty for carrying my heir. Stop it, Camille! I command you to breathe!"

The Alpha Command slammed into my chest, a heavy mental weight trying to force obedience, but biology was stronger. My heart stuttered. The edges of my vision turned black. The last thing I saw was Jax rolling his eyes, reaching for his wine glass.

Then, the doors burst open.

"Move! Get back!"

Dr. Webb didn't wait for permission. He slid across the floor, his knees hitting the wood with a crack. He didn't check for a pulse; he saw the hives, the swelling, the agony etched on my face.

"Silver poisoning!" he roared, uncapping a syringe with his teeth.

He jammed the needle into my thigh. A rush of cold adrenaline flooded my system, fighting the fire. My throat convulsed, opening just a sliver. I sucked in a ragged, whistling breath that sounded like a scream.

"She was faking it," Jax muttered, though he took a step back, the scent of his own uncertainty souring the air.

Dr. Webb looked up, his eyes blazing with a fury a healer shouldn't possess. "She has enough silver in her blood to kill a Beta, Alpha. If I had been ten seconds later, you would be a widower."

***

A week later, I was still coughing up blood.

The silver had ravaged my immune system, leaving my wolf dormant and my human body frail. I sat by the window of the guest suite, watching the rain lash against the glass, when the door opened without a knock.

Jax stood there, dressed in tactical gear. "Get dressed. We’re going for a run."

I stared at him. "I can barely walk to the bathroom, Jax. My lungs are still healing."

"The pack is talking," he said, ignoring my weakness. "They say you tried to poison yourself to frame Ezra. They say the Luna is unstable. We are doing a Unity Run along the Ravine Borders. You will run alongside Ezra and me, and you will show the pack that we are united."

He leaned against the doorframe, his expression stony. "If you refuse, I will take it as a resignation of your position. You will be stripped of your rank and exiled as a Rogue by sunset."

A Rogue. Alone, without territory, hunted by everyone. In my condition, it was a death sentence.

"I'll be ready in five minutes," I whispered.

The Ravine Borders were treacherous even on a sunny day. Today, the mud was slick, and the wind howled up from the gorge like the voice of an angry god. The river below was a churning ribbon of white foam, swollen from the rains.

The pack ran in wolf form, a sea of grey and brown fur darting through the trees. Jax, in his massive midnight-blue wolf form, led the charge. I was forced to run in human skin, my wolf too weak to surface. My boots slipped on the wet leaves, my chest burning with every gasp.

I fell behind.

"Keep up, Luna!" a Delta warrior jeered as he sprinted past.

I gritted my teeth, forcing my legs to move. I rounded a bend where the trail narrowed dangerously close to the cliff edge. The drop was sheer, a hundred feet down into the jagged rocks and freezing water.

Jax was far ahead, disappearing into the mist. But someone was waiting for me.

Ezra stood by the precipice. She wasn't winded. She looked fresh, vibrant, her cheeks flushed with health—my health.

"You're persistent, I'll give you that," she said, her voice carrying over the roar of the river.

I stopped, clutching a sapling for support. "Move, Ezra. Jax is waiting."

She stepped closer, blocking the path. The sweet, innocent mask she wore for the Alpha melted away, replaced by a predator's grin. "He's not waiting for you, Camille. He's waiting for his future. A future you're cluttering up."

"He won't let you hurt me," I said, though my voice trembled. "He needs me. I'm the only one who knows how to run this pack."

Ezra laughed, a cold, sharp sound. She placed a hand on her stomach. "He doesn't need you. He has this. His precious heir."

She leaned in close, her lips brushing my ear. "Do you want to know a secret, Iron Luna? Jax's wolf is sterile. Dead inside. He couldn't sire a pup if his life depended on it."

My blood ran cold. "That's impossible. He believes..."

"He believes what I tell him," she hissed. "Beta Eugene has very strong genes. And very deep pockets."

The betrayal stole the breath from my lungs. It wasn't just adultery; it was a coup. "You're carrying Eugene's bastard? Jax will kill you."

"Only if he finds out," she smiled. "And dead Lunas don't talk."

She didn't hesitate. She shoved me hard in the center of my chest.

My boots scrambled for purchase on the wet mud, but there was nothing to hold onto. The world tilted. The grey sky swapped places with the ground.

As I tipped backward over the edge, time seemed to slow. I saw Jax emerge from the mist fifty yards away. He looked back. He saw Ezra standing with her hand extended. He saw me falling into the void.

*Jax!* I screamed through the bond, a final, desperate plea.

He paused. His golden eyes met mine for a fraction of a second. Then, he turned his massive wolf head away and kept running.

The wind roared in my ears, drowning out my scream as the icy water rose up to swallow me whole.