Scarlet Moon: The Billionaire's Forsaken Mate
Rain poured over the Silvercrest courtyard, turning the marble floor into a mirror of storm and shadow. Lyra Hale knelt in the center, her once-elegant silver gown soaked and torn. Mud streaked her hands. Blood stained her lip. The wolves of her pack surrounded her, silent, their glowing eyes filled with judgment.
At the top of the steps stood Damon Voss, her husband, her Alpha. His black suit clung to his broad frame, his expression carved from stone. Lightning flashed behind him, outlining his face like a god of wrath.
“You betrayed me, Lyra,” he said, his voice calm but cruel. “You sold our secrets to Nightbane.”
Her heart cracked. “That is not true. Damon, you know me. I would never do that.”
He lifted a document, soaked but legible. “This has your signature.”
“Someone forged it,” she cried. “You have to believe me.”
He didn’t blink. His cold eyes cut into her like blades. “Enough. The council has spoken. You are stripped of your title. You are no longer Luna of Silvercrest.”
Gasps rippled through the crowd.
Lyra felt the world tilt beneath her. Her wolf whimpered inside her chest, clawing to be heard. “Damon, please. Look at me. Feel our bond. You know my truth.”
For a second, something flickered in his eyes, pain, doubt, memory but it vanished the moment Selene Nightborn stepped beside him. She was flawless, calm, untouched by the storm. Her lips curved as she placed a hand on his arm.
“She is dangerous,” Selene said softly. “You cannot let pity blind you again.”
Lyra’s pulse spiked. “You,” she whispered. “You did this.”
Selene’s eyes glittered. “You always were too trusting, Lyra.”
Damon’s voice broke through. “Take her away.”
Two guards grabbed her by the arms. Lyra struggled, fury replacing despair. “You will regret this, Damon Voss. When the truth comes out, it will destroy you.”
He turned his back on her. “There is no truth left to find.”
They dragged her across the courtyard. Her bare feet scraped against stone. The heavy gate of Silvercrest loomed ahead, and with every step, the bond between her and Damon tore a little more. The pain was unbearable, but she refused to cry.
“Alpha, wait!” a young warrior shouted suddenly from the edge of the crowd. “You need to see this...”
Damon’s glare silenced him. “Enough. Let her be gone.”
The gate opened with a moan. The guards threw her out into the storm. The steel slammed shut behind her, sealing her fate.
Lyra stumbled into the mud, her hair plastered to her face. Her body shook from cold and heartbreak. But as she pressed a hand against her chest, another pain surged, lower, sharper. She gasped and fell to her knees.
Her trembling fingers moved to her stomach. A faint warmth pulsed beneath her skin. Realization dawned, slow and terrifying.
She was pregnant.
Her breath came in broken whispers. Damon’s child.
Tears blurred her vision, but she forced herself up. She could not die here. Not now. Not while she carried the one piece of him that was still pure.
A twig snapped behind her. She froze.
From the shadows of the forest, a man stepped forward, cloaked and hooded. His eyes glowed faint amber under the rain.
“Selene sends her regards,” he said, drawing a blade that gleamed with silver.
Lyra’s pulse thundered. Her wolf stirred, fierce and protective. “Tell her she should have come herself.”
The assassin lunged. She dodged, mud splashing beneath her feet. His blade sliced the air, close enough to graze her arm. Pain burned, but adrenaline surged stronger.
She grabbed a broken branch and swung with every ounce of strength left in her. The wood cracked against his skull. He fell, snarling, and she ran into the forest, into the storm, into the unknown.
Thunder roared overhead. Her breath came fast. Blood dripped from her wound, but she didn’t stop. She clutched her stomach, whispering a promise through gritted teeth.
“I will survive,” she said. “For you. For us.”
Behind her, the assassin’s voice echoed faintly. “You cannot hide forever, Luna.”
Lyra didn’t look back. She vanished into the darkness, the rain washing away her footprints.
The pack thought they had cast her out. What they didn’t know was that they had just unleashed something far more dangerous than betrayal.
And under the raging sky, the first cry of vengeance was born.
