Chapter 3
I stumbled backward, my heel catching on the shattered remains of a glass tumbler on the hardwood
floor.
A sharp pain lanced through my palm as I broke my fall. Looking down, I saw blood welling between my fingers, dripping onto the polished wood.
Tiberius’s expression instantly shifted, predatory anger giving way to concern as he lunged forward to grab my injured hand.
“Giselle…”
Behind him, Lilith stared at his outstretched hand with wounded disbelief, her eyes filling with tears as she pressed her trembling lips together.
I yanked my bleeding hand away despite the stinging pain, a cold laugh escaping my throat.
“If you wanted another mate to bear your pups, Tiberius, you could have just told me directly. I wouldn’t have stood in your way. Why the decade of lies?”
“You were the one who howled to the moon that you’d never take another mate. You promised we’d face a childless future together. If you never intended to honor those vows, why make them at all?”
“Lilith has done nothing wrong here, but tell me–what exactly did I do to deserve this betrayal?”
My voice cracked with raw anguish, causing several pack members to lower their eyes. The former Alpha pair–his parents–fixed me with looks of pure disgust.
“Control yourself, Giselle!” his mother snarled, canines flashing. Times have changed. Tiberius is
destined to lead the entire Northern Alliance. The Silver Crescent bloodline cannot die with him.”
“If you
still want to maintain your status as Luna, you need to learn your place in the hierarchy. The pack’s future must always come before personal feelings.”
I lowered my gaze to my bleeding hand, saying nothing.
Tiberius sighed, stepping forward to grip my shoulders with what he clearly thought was reassuring pressure. His tone softened manipulatively.
“Listen to me. Taking Lilith as my equal mate only legitimizes our pups in pack hierarchy. You’ll still be
Silver Crescent’s Luna.”
“If you miss having pups around, once Lilith delivers this one, I can place it in your care. You’ll have
22:01
ALPILA’S ENDLESS REGRET Aner The Batren Luna’s Leave
Chapter 1
someone to hunt for you when you grow old. Isn’t that what you want?”
I raised my eyes to meet his, but before I could respond, Lilith–eight months pregnant and visibly struggling–lowered herself awkwardly to her knees, her swollen belly nearly touching the floor.
“Luna Giselle,” she pleaded, using my formal title, “I’ll serve you both as faithfully as the lowest ranked wolf. I’ll be your beta in all things. I only beg you to allow our pups their rightful place in the pack bloodline!”
She pressed her forehead to the floor repeatedly, her submission display painfully exaggerated.
Somehow, in this twisted narrative, I had become the villain.
After a long silence, I finally laughed–a hollow, empty sound that echoed against the walls.
“You don’t need to submit to me, Lilith.”
She froze, looking up with wary hope in her eyes.
I smiled thinly. “You’ve given Silver Crescent heirs, and Tiberius wants you as his equal mate. Soon you’ll
wear the Luna’s ceremonial collar, not me.”
Tiberius’s eyes brightened as he eagerly grabbed my hand again. “You’re accepting this arrangement?”
“When was my acceptance ever required?”
Fighting down revulsion, I pulled my bloody hand from his grasp and withdrew the mate–separation papers I’d prepared from my jacket pocket, placing them on the table between us.
“After all, once our bond is formally severed by the Council, what happens in Silver Crescent territory is no longer my concern.”
