The mansion slowly returned to normal after the attack, but Lucian could feel the difference in the air. Something had shifted. The way some pack members looked at her had changed-less like she was an outsider, and more like... they were unsure of her.
She didn't blame them. She was unsure of herself too.
Lucian didn't speak about what happened that night. Not even to Lena. She didn't understand it, and she wasn't ready to face the truth. She threw herself into her Luna duties instead, determined to prove she belonged, even if Alex barely looked her way.
She began waking up early to learn more about the pack. She helped with meal plans, checked on injured warriors, and tried to memorize names and faces. She asked questions, even when people seemed uncomfortable. She listened more than she spoke. some pack members slowly began to warm up to her.
Mia and Blue, two young warriors close to Lena, started eating lunch with her. They told her stories, laughed around her, and even asked for her opinion once or twice. It wasn't much, but it gave Lucian a small piece of hope. She was starting to find her place.
Until the day the past walked back through the front door. It was just afternoon when Lucian saw the silver car pull into the mansion gates. Something about it made her chest tighten.
She watched from the window as a woman stepped out. Tall. Beautiful. Confident. Hair flowing like silk. Expensive heels, tight dress, a designer purse on her arm. Lucian's breath caught in her throat. She knew that face. Vanessa.
The same woman she'd seen at the wedding. The same woman Alex hadn't spoken about, but whose eyes never left him that day.
Vanessa walked into the mansion like she belonged there. As if no time had passed. She smiled politely at the guard, waved at a maid, and headed straight inside without needing directions.
Lucian's heart was heavy. She didn't need anyone to tell her who vanessa was, vanessa had one confronted her before and with the they looked at each other when they saw her. She could feel it in the quiet tension that settled over the house.
Later that afternoon, Lucian passed by the private lounge on the second floor. The door was slightly open. Voices drifted through. She wasn't trying to eavesdrop but she heard them anyway.
"It's been years, Alex. I came back for you."
"That part of my life is over." Alex said.
"You say that but you married a girl no one even knew. A maid. Is that what your heart truly wanted? Or were you just trying to escape pressure?"
Lucian's hand tightened around the tray she was carrying.
Then Alex's voice again, low and controlled. "Leave, Vanessa."
"I won't give up that easily."
Lucian turned and walked away before they could sense her presence.
Her throat burned. Her steps were heavy. She didn't cry. She wouldn't. But a cold doubt crept into her surrounded her chest.
Maybe Alex really didn't want her. Maybe she was just a convenient option. A shield. And maybe the real Luna, the one he'd once loved was now back to take her place.
That evening, Lucian sat alone in the library, pretending to read. The words on the page blurred. She thought about her grandmother. About the promise she made to herself to just stay long enough to help her. About how she was slowly forgetting why she came.
Now it felt like everything was falling apart.
"Running away won't help," a voice said behind her. Lucian turned quickly. It was Lena. "I'm not running," she said quietly.
Lena gave her a look. "Then don't let someone else make you feel like you don't belong here."
"She's was his girlfriend before she traveled," Lucian said, her voice barely a whisper. "She probably knows him better than I ever will."
Lena came closer. "That doesn't matter."
Lucian shook her head. "He married me because he had no choice. That's what he told me. He needed a Luna. I was just an option.
"Maybe that was true at first," Lena said. "But people change. Bonds grow."
"Not with him. He keeps his heart locked like a prison."
Lena smiled sadly. "Even the strongest walls can crack, Lucian. Just give it time."
That night, Vanessa stayed in the guest room.
Lucian didn't sleep. She lay in bed, eyes open, mind spinning. She had faced so much already. But this was different. This wasn't someone trying to attack her. It was someone trying to take her place. And that kind of enemy was harder to fight.