Aria's POV
I swept up the shattered crystal wolf with trembling hands, each broken piece cutting deeper than glass ever could.
"Let me help." Marcus crouched beside me, reaching for the dustpan.
"Don't." I pulled it away. "I can do it myself."
"Aria, come on. We need to talk."
"About what? How your brother's fated mate keeps having convenient accidents?" I dumped the glass into the trash. "Or how everyone pretends not to notice?"
Marcus stood, his face uncomfortable. "Can we talk in private?"
Something in his tone made my stomach twist. Marcus had been my best friend since I arrived at Silvermoon. When I was too scared to speak at pack meetings, he encouraged me. When I didn't know how to be Luna, he taught me. He was like the brother I never had.
But lately, even he felt distant.
"Fine." I followed him to his office and closed the door. "What's so important?"
He took a breath. "I think you should step aside gracefully."
The words hit like a physical blow. "What?"
"As Luna. I think you should step down. Let Selene take over." His eyes were sympathetic, which somehow made it worse. "It would be easier for everyone."
"Easier for who?" My voice shook. "For Damien? For Selene? Certainly not for me."
"For the pack." Marcus moved closer. "Aria, you're miserable. Everyone can see it. And Selene—she's his fated mate. That's sacred. You can't compete with destiny."
"I'm not competing! I'm fighting for my marriage!"
"A marriage that's killing you." His voice gentled. "Look at yourself. You've lost weight. You barely sleep. Your garden is dying because you can't take care of it anymore. Is this really how you want to live?"
Tears burned my eyes. "So I should just give up? Hand over everything I've built?"
"I'm saying maybe it's time to accept reality." He touched my shoulder. "You're an omega, Aria. You were never supposed to be Luna. It was always temporary until Damien found his true mate."
The words felt like poison. "Temporary? We've been married five years!"
"But you're not his fated mate." Marcus's eyes held pity. "And now that she's here, staying just makes you look desperate."
"Desperate?" I stepped back. "I'm pregnant with his child!"
"Which is why you should step aside with dignity while you still can." Marcus sighed. "If you fight this, you'll lose. And you'll lose ugly. Better to leave gracefully and keep your pride."
I stared at the man who'd been my best friend. "Who are you?"
"Someone who cares about you—"
"If you cared, you'd support me! You'd tell Damien he's wrong! You'd help me fight!" My voice rose. "Instead, you're telling me to surrender?"
"I'm telling you to be realistic—"
"Get out." The command carried Luna power, even if Marcus didn't think I deserved the title anymore. "Get out of my sight."
He left, disappointment on his face. Like I was the one being unreasonable.
I sank into a chair, shaking. Marcus was supposed to be on my side. If I lost him, who did I have left?
*Lyssa. You still have Lyssa.*
I clung to that thought like a lifeline.
The rest of the day passed in a blur. I went through my Luna duties on autopilot—checking on sick pack members, organizing next week's training schedule, reviewing supply requests.
But everything felt wrong.
Pack members who used to smile at me now looked away. Warriors who once sought my counsel now went to Selene. Even the omegas I'd helped for years seemed uncomfortable around me.
I was becoming a ghost in my own pack.
That evening, I decided to check on my garden. Maybe I could save a few plants. Maybe having something to nurture would help me feel less useless.
But when I reached the garden, I stopped dead.
Everything was destroyed.
Not just dying from neglect—actively destroyed. Plants ripped from the ground, roots exposed. Herb beds trampled. My gardening tools smashed and scattered.
Five years of work. Gone.
I fell to my knees in the ruins, too shocked to even cry.
"Luna Aria?" A young warrior named Jake approached hesitantly. "Are you okay?"
"Who did this?" My voice came out hollow.
"Did what?"
I gestured at the destruction. "My garden. Who destroyed it?"
Jake looked around, his face carefully blank. "I don't know. Should I investigate?"
"Yes. Please." Hope flickered. Maybe Jake still respected me. "Find out who did this."
He nodded and left.
I stayed in the ruins until dark, trying to salvage anything. But it was all dead. Every single plant.
Hours later, Jake returned. "Luna, I asked around. Nobody saw anything."
"Nobody?" I stood up. "This much destruction, and nobody saw anything?"
"Everyone was busy with other duties." His eyes didn't meet mine. "It was probably rogues who snuck past the border."
"Rogues wouldn't bother with a garden. They'd attack people."
Jake shrugged. "I don't know what to tell you."
But I saw it in his face. He knew something. He just wasn't saying.
"Jake, please. I need the truth."
He shifted uncomfortably. "With respect, Luna... maybe it's time to focus on more important things. It's just plants."
Just plants. My sanctuary. My safe place. The thing I'd built with my own hands.
Just plants.
"Thank you for your help," I said numbly.
He left, clearly relieved.
I walked back to the packhouse in the dark, my mind spinning. Someone destroyed my garden, and nobody would investigate. Nobody cared.
Because I didn't matter anymore.
Inside, I heard laughter from the dining room. I followed the sound like a moth to flame, knowing it would hurt but unable to stop myself.
Through the doorway, I saw them: Damien, Selene, Marcus, and a dozen pack members. Eating dinner. Laughing. Acting like a family.
Without me.
Nobody noticed I was gone. Nobody saved me a seat.
Selene sat in my chair. At my table. With my pack.
"She's so good for the pack," someone said. "Exactly what we needed."
"Poor Luna Aria," another voice chimed in. "She tried her best, but she was never really Luna material."
"An omega playing dress-up."
The words sliced through me like knives.
I turned and ran before they could see my tears.
In the guest wing bedroom—my new room since I'd moved out—I finally broke down. Sobbing so hard my whole body shook. My wolf whimpered in pain, confused why our pack was rejecting us.
A knock on the door made me freeze.
"Aria? It's Lyssa. Let me in."
I opened the door. Lyssa took one look at my face and pulled me into a hug.
"I saw the garden," she said quietly. "I know what happened."
"Everyone's abandoning me." The words tumbled out between sobs. "Even Marcus. He told me to step aside gracefully. Like I'm just an inconvenience to be removed."
"Marcus is an idiot—"
"He was my best friend!" I pulled back. "How did this happen? How did I lose everything so fast?"
Lyssa's face was grim. "Because someone's orchestrating it. Aria, this isn't random. Your garden didn't destroy itself. That crystal didn't break by accident. You're being pushed out systematically."
"By who? Selene?"
"Maybe. Or maybe someone who wants Damien weak and distracted." Lyssa grabbed my shoulders. "But you can't give up. You're Luna. You earned that title. Don't let them take it."
"What if Marcus is right? What if I should just—"
"Don't you dare finish that sentence." Lyssa's voice turned fierce. "You're stronger than this. The Aria I know doesn't surrender."
But I didn't feel strong. I felt broken.
"I need evidence," I whispered. "If someone's doing this deliberately, I need proof."
"Then we'll find it." Lyssa's eyes hardened. "Together."
She left me with a promise to start investigating quietly.
I tried to sleep but couldn't. My mind raced with questions. Who would want to destroy me? Why?
Around midnight, I heard voices in the hallway. I cracked my door open and saw Marcus and Selene talking quietly outside her room.
"—she's too stubborn," Marcus was saying. "She won't leave voluntarily."
"Then we'll have to make her want to leave." Selene's voice was cold. Nothing like the gentle tone she used around others. "The garden was a good start. What's next?"
My blood turned to ice.
Marcus—my best friend—was working with Selene. To drive me away.
"Are you sure about this?" Marcus sounded uncertain. "She's pregnant. If Damien finds out we're—"
"Damien won't find out. He's too distracted by the bond." Selene laughed softly. "Besides, we're doing him a favor. Once Aria's gone, he can fully accept me as his true Luna. Everyone wins."
"Except Aria."
"She's an omega who got lucky for five years. Now her luck's run out." Selene's voice turned sharp. "You promised to help me, Marcus. Don't get cold feet now."
"I'm not. I just..." Marcus sighed. "Fine. What do you need me to do?"
"Keep undermining her authority. Make sure the pack sees her as weak. And find something we can use against her. Something that will force Damien to reject her completely."
"Like what?"
"I don't know yet. But there's always something."
They moved away, their voices fading.
I stood frozen in my doorway, the world tilting beneath my feet.
Marcus—my best friend, the man I trusted like a brother—was actively working to destroy me.
And Selene wasn't just an innocent fated mate caught in circumstances. She was a threat. A deliberate, calculating threat.
I needed to tell Damien. Right now.
I ran through the packhouse, my heart pounding. Found him in his office, working late as usual.
"Damien, I need to—"
"Not now, Aria." He didn't look up from his papers. "I'm busy."
"This is important! Marcus and Selene are—"
"Whatever it is can wait until morning." His tone was dismissive. Exhausted.
"They destroyed my garden! They're plotting against me!"
Now he looked up, but his eyes were weary. "Aria, you sound paranoid."
"I heard them! In the hallway! They admitted—"
"You heard them talking and jumped to conclusions." Damien rubbed his face. "Selene wouldn't do that. She's been nothing but kind."
"She's manipulating you!"
"And you're jealous!" He stood up. "I get it. This situation is hard. But accusing Selene of conspiracy makes you look unstable."
The word hit like a slap. "Unstable?"
"You're stressed. Pregnant. Not thinking clearly." His voice gentled with pity. "Go to bed. We'll talk in the morning when you're calmer."
"I am calm! I'm telling you the truth!"
"The truth is you want Selene to be the villain so you don't have to face reality." Damien's words were knives. "She's my fated mate. She's here to stay. You need to accept that."
"So you won't even investigate—"
"There's nothing to investigate!" His patience snapped. "Stop this, Aria. You're making things worse."
I stared at him, and realized with horrible clarity: he wouldn't believe me. Not about Selene. Not about Marcus. The bond had blinded him completely.
I was truly alone.
"You're right," I whispered. "I'm making things worse. I'll stop."
Relief crossed his face. "Good. Now go rest. For the baby."
I left his office, my mind spinning.
They were working together to destroy me. My best friend and my husband's fated mate. And Damien wouldn't believe me.
I had to find proof. Had to expose them before they succeeded in driving me away.
But how?
Back in my room, I found something that made my blood run cold.
An envelope had been slipped under my door.
Inside was a single photograph.
It showed me from weeks ago, meeting with the pack healer. A private conversation about my pregnancy.
But someone had been watching. Taking pictures.
And written on the back in unfamiliar handwriting:
*"We know all your secrets, little omega. Leave now, or we'll make you."*
My hands shook as I stared at the threat.
This wasn't just about making me uncomfortable anymore.
Someone wanted me gone.
And they were willing to do whatever it took to make it happen.