Chapter 3
The east wing cellar was not a cellar. It was a stone box beneath the packhouse—no windows, no ventilation beyond a thin crack in the ceiling that let in a whisper of air and the distant sound of footsteps overhead.
They threw me in and locked the silver-reinforced door.
For three days, no one came.
No food. No water. No blood supplements that pregnant wolves needed to sustain their pups. I licked condensation from the walls to survive. I talked to my babies constantly, pressing my hands to my belly, begging them to hold on.
On the fourth day, Kael came.
He brought a tray—raw meat, water, a vial of prenatal serum. His face was gaunt, his eyes bloodshot.
"I didn't know," he said immediately, setting the tray down. "I swear on the Moon Goddess, I didn't know she'd put you here. I was at the northern outpost with Mira for her safety check and—"
"Four days, Kael." My voice was raw, barely human. "Your mother starved your pregnant mate for four days, and you didn't notice I was gone?"
He flinched. "I'm going to get you out."
"When? After the Luna Ceremony?" I laughed—a broken, hollow sound. "After you crown Mira? After my children are officially declared cursed?"
"That won't happen."
"It's already happening!" I slammed my fist against the stone floor. Pain shot up my arm but I didn't care. "The pack already whispers about me. Your mother calls my babies bastards. Mira tells everyone I seduced a guard. And you—you do NOTHING."
He knelt before me, gripping my shoulders. "I am doing everything I can without destroying Mira's cover. If the council finds out that child is a rogue's—"
"Then let them find out!" I screamed in his face. "Why is protecting her lie more important than protecting your own family?"
His jaw tightened. He said nothing.
And in that silence, I heard the truth louder than any words: because to him, it was.
"I'm moving you tonight," he finally said. "To the old keeper's quarters in the west garden. It's secluded. Safe. No one will know you're there. I'll bring everything you need."
"A prettier cage," I whispered.
"A temporary arrangement." He cupped my face. "Three more months. Once Mira delivers and leaves with the child, I'll reveal everything. I'll claim our twins publicly. I'll reject the false Luna bond and complete ours. Just three months, Serena."
Three months of hiding. Three months of my children growing inside me while the world called them cursed. Three months of watching from the shadows while another woman wore my title.
I looked into his golden eyes—eyes I'd loved since I was sixteen—and felt nothing.
"Fine," I said.
He exhaled with relief, pulling me into his arms. "Thank you. Thank you for understanding."
I didn't understand. I had simply stopped caring whether he stayed or left.
That night, he moved me to the keeper's quarters. It was a stone cottage at the edge of the property—one room, a narrow bed, a small bathroom. Better than the cellar. Still a prison.
"I'll come every night," he promised at the door.
He came twice the first week. Once the second. By the third week, he stopped coming altogether.
Through the thin walls, I heard the pack celebrating. Music, howling, laughter. The Luna Ceremony had happened. Mira was crowned.
And I? I was exactly what they called me.
Nothing.
On the night of the full moon—the night Mira officially became Luna—I felt my phone vibrate. A message from an unknown number.
*"We've found you, little sister. We're coming. Hold on."*
I stared at the screen, my heart hammering. Weeks ago, I'd reached out to the only lead I had about my past—a woman at the orphanage had mentioned siblings. Older brothers. A powerful bloodline. I'd thought it was a fairy tale.
Another message appeared:
*"You are Serena Volkov. Daughter of the Lycan King. And we will burn anyone who touched you."*
My hands trembled so violently I nearly dropped the phone.
Then one final message:
*"We arrive at dawn."*
They threw me in and locked the silver-reinforced door.
For three days, no one came.
No food. No water. No blood supplements that pregnant wolves needed to sustain their pups. I licked condensation from the walls to survive. I talked to my babies constantly, pressing my hands to my belly, begging them to hold on.
On the fourth day, Kael came.
He brought a tray—raw meat, water, a vial of prenatal serum. His face was gaunt, his eyes bloodshot.
"I didn't know," he said immediately, setting the tray down. "I swear on the Moon Goddess, I didn't know she'd put you here. I was at the northern outpost with Mira for her safety check and—"
"Four days, Kael." My voice was raw, barely human. "Your mother starved your pregnant mate for four days, and you didn't notice I was gone?"
He flinched. "I'm going to get you out."
"When? After the Luna Ceremony?" I laughed—a broken, hollow sound. "After you crown Mira? After my children are officially declared cursed?"
"That won't happen."
"It's already happening!" I slammed my fist against the stone floor. Pain shot up my arm but I didn't care. "The pack already whispers about me. Your mother calls my babies bastards. Mira tells everyone I seduced a guard. And you—you do NOTHING."
He knelt before me, gripping my shoulders. "I am doing everything I can without destroying Mira's cover. If the council finds out that child is a rogue's—"
"Then let them find out!" I screamed in his face. "Why is protecting her lie more important than protecting your own family?"
His jaw tightened. He said nothing.
And in that silence, I heard the truth louder than any words: because to him, it was.
"I'm moving you tonight," he finally said. "To the old keeper's quarters in the west garden. It's secluded. Safe. No one will know you're there. I'll bring everything you need."
"A prettier cage," I whispered.
"A temporary arrangement." He cupped my face. "Three more months. Once Mira delivers and leaves with the child, I'll reveal everything. I'll claim our twins publicly. I'll reject the false Luna bond and complete ours. Just three months, Serena."
Three months of hiding. Three months of my children growing inside me while the world called them cursed. Three months of watching from the shadows while another woman wore my title.
I looked into his golden eyes—eyes I'd loved since I was sixteen—and felt nothing.
"Fine," I said.
He exhaled with relief, pulling me into his arms. "Thank you. Thank you for understanding."
I didn't understand. I had simply stopped caring whether he stayed or left.
That night, he moved me to the keeper's quarters. It was a stone cottage at the edge of the property—one room, a narrow bed, a small bathroom. Better than the cellar. Still a prison.
"I'll come every night," he promised at the door.
He came twice the first week. Once the second. By the third week, he stopped coming altogether.
Through the thin walls, I heard the pack celebrating. Music, howling, laughter. The Luna Ceremony had happened. Mira was crowned.
And I? I was exactly what they called me.
Nothing.
On the night of the full moon—the night Mira officially became Luna—I felt my phone vibrate. A message from an unknown number.
*"We've found you, little sister. We're coming. Hold on."*
I stared at the screen, my heart hammering. Weeks ago, I'd reached out to the only lead I had about my past—a woman at the orphanage had mentioned siblings. Older brothers. A powerful bloodline. I'd thought it was a fairy tale.
Another message appeared:
*"You are Serena Volkov. Daughter of the Lycan King. And we will burn anyone who touched you."*
My hands trembled so violently I nearly dropped the phone.
Then one final message:
*"We arrive at dawn."*