Chapter 8 Shadows of Betrayal

The Moon hung above the packhouse like a silent judge.

Its light spilled across the floor of my chamber, painting silver over my skin and the mark that bound me to Darius. The mark pulsed faintly—almost accusingly—as if it knew my thoughts still wandered to another.

Sleep never came. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Kieran’s face. The way his hand brushed mine. The look in his eyes when he said you’re mine. Those words had burned themselves into my blood.

But this morning, the air in Crescent Moon territory was heavy. Different. Something restless moved through the pack like a ripple beneath calm water. Even my wolf stirred uneasily, pacing inside me.

I dressed in silence, lacing my boots, braiding my hair, and stepping out into the chill dawn. Warriors moved across the courtyard, tense, whispering. The scent of fear clung to them.

“Another attack?” I asked one of the guards.

He hesitated. “Three border sentinels went missing before dawn, Luna. Alpha called a meeting.”

My heart skipped. Rogues again. Or worse—Kieran’s kind.

Inside the hall, Darius stood at the head of the long table, all authority and cold beauty. His presence commanded silence the way the moon commands the tide. The pack’s leaders surrounded him—Gamma Tessa, Elder Rowan, and several patrol captains. Their faces were grim.

Darius’s eyes lifted to me the moment I entered. “You’re late.”

His voice wasn’t sharp, but something in it cut anyway.

“I came as soon as I heard,” I said, keeping my tone steady.

He nodded once, then gestured toward a map spread across the table. “The rogues are moving closer to our heartland. They know our patrol patterns. Someone’s feeding them information.”

A low murmur swept the room. Betrayal. The word every pack fears.

Rowan’s gaze flicked toward me—too quickly to be polite. “Luna,” he said carefully, “were you near the eastern woods last night?”

The world stopped for a second. My lungs forgot how to work.

“The eastern woods?” I repeated, feigning confusion. “Why would I be there?”

“Because one of our scouts saw a figure in a white cloak—your cloak—walking past the pine ridge shortly before the attack.”

I felt every eye turn toward me. The mark on my wrist burned.

Darius’s voice was quiet. “Is that true?”

I met his gaze. The instinct to confess clawed at me, but the memory of Kieran’s blood, his warning, and the secret that tied us silenced my tongue.

“No,” I said. “It wasn’t me.”

Silence.

Darius studied me for a long, unreadable moment before he looked away. “Then the scout was mistaken,” he said at last. “We’ll find the real leak.”

But the room didn’t relax. Doubt hung heavy, invisible but suffocating.

Later, in the training yard, I sparred with the warriors until my arms trembled and my knuckles split. Anything to drown the guilt pounding in my chest.

“Luna, you’re pushing too hard,” Tessa said, stepping between me and the next opponent. “You need rest.”

“I need silence,” I snapped, then softened at her startled look. “I’m sorry. It’s just—everything feels wrong.”

Tessa hesitated. “The Alpha trusts you, but… be careful. The elders are uneasy. They think the Moon’s chosen bond has been… unsettled.”

Her words sent a chill through me. Could they sense it? The way my bond flickered whenever I thought of Kieran? The way my wolf stirred with longing that didn’t belong to Darius?

When she left, I pressed my palms against the cool stone wall, whispering to myself, I can fix this. I can protect them all.

But the Moon inside me disagreed. It pulsed like a heartbeat whispering, You can’t serve two destinies.

That night, I couldn’t stay still. The pull returned—soft, insistent, undeniable. It was the same instinct that had driven me into the forest before. The bond to Kieran wasn’t fading. It was growing stronger.

I waited until the guards changed shifts, then slipped through the side gate and into the woods. The air smelled of rain and pine sap, of earth and memory.

My wolf hummed under my skin, guiding me toward the place where we’d fought together. The clearing still bore scars—burned grass, claw marks, blood darkened to rust.

“Kieran?” I whispered.

For a moment, only silence. Then a low growl answered from the shadows.

He stepped into the moonlight, looking more haunted than I’d ever seen him. His clothes were torn, a fresh wound glistening at his collarbone.

“You shouldn’t have come,” he said.

“I had to,” I whispered. “They’re starting to suspect—”

“I told you this would happen,” he interrupted. “You’re playing with fire, Lyra.”

I moved closer. “Then let it burn.”

His eyes softened, but only for a heartbeat. “There’s more. Someone from your pack is working with the rogues. They know about you and me.”

The world tilted. “What?”

“They want to use you—to get to Darius. And whoever your traitor is… they’ve already sent word to the Alpha Council.”

A twig snapped behind us.

Kieran’s eyes went sharp. He pulled me behind him just as a shadow moved between the trees. My heart slammed against my ribs.

“Show yourself!” he snarled.

The figure stepped forward-and my breath caught.

Tessa.

Her training leathers were dark with rain, her bow raised but trembling. “Lyra,” she whispered, voice breaking. “The Alpha sent me. He knows.”

“No…” I stepped forward, shaking my head. “Tessa, you don’t understand.”

Her eyes filled with tears. “You’ve betrayed him. I saw you.”

Lightning flashed, revealing everything—the anguish on her face, Kieran’s defensive stance, the inevitability of what came next.

“Tessa, please,” I said. “If you tell Darius—”

“I have to,” she whispered. “He deserves the truth.”

Kieran moved, a blur of motion, grabbing her wrist before she could turn. “She won’t make it back to the pack.”

“Don’t!” I shouted, catching his arm. “She’s my friend!”

For a second, the world was nothing but rain and heartbeat and the terrible choice between loyalty and love.

Tessa’s voice cracked. “Then choose, Lyra. Him or your pack.”

The thunder swallowed my answer.