After My Husband Rejected Me, Revenge Began

I couldn't sleep that night. The rejection certificate burned in my pocket like a hot coal, and Ethan's cruel words echoed in my mind. When he slid into bed beside me hours later, I pretended to be asleep, my body rigid as he casually draped an arm across my waist. The man I'd devoted a decade of my life to had been poisoning me, rejecting me, and building a family with another woman—all while I blamed myself for our childless home.

The next morning, I stood before my vanity mirror, studying my reflection. Dark circles shadowed my eyes, but I covered them carefully with concealer. Today, I needed answers.

"I'm heading to the Lycan Craftsman Guild," I announced as Ethan reviewed reports at the breakfast table.

He barely glanced up. "What for?"

"The moonstone pendant you promised for our anniversary. The one I showed you last year." My voice remained steady, betraying none of the storm raging inside me.

"Right." He shuffled papers. "I'll take you this afternoon."

The Guild was bustling when we arrived. Master craftsmen displayed their wares to wealthy pack members, silver and precious stones glinting under artfully arranged lights. I headed straight for the moonstone display, my heart quickening when I spotted the teardrop pendant I'd admired a year ago.

"Alpha Reynolds!" The Guild Master approached with a deferential bow. "I see your Luna is admiring our finest piece."

"Actually," Ethan said, his hand settling possessively on my lower back, "I've already purchased it."

Hope flickered briefly in my chest—had I misjudged him?

"Olivia will be wearing it tonight at the ceremony," he continued, smiling broadly. "It's a gift for her service to the pack."

The Guild Master's eyes darted between us, sensing tension. "I... I see."

"Ethan," I whispered, "you promised that pendant to me."

His smile hardened. "Don't be materialistic, Claire. Olivia needs the strength of the moonstone for her... special role." His fingers dug into my back, a warning. "We can find you something more suitable."

I said nothing more, but Selene growled deep within me. *Another piece of evidence*, she snarled. *Another betrayal.*

---

The full moon ceremony at Elder Victoria's estate was a mandatory event for all pack members. I dressed carefully in silver-gray silk that complemented my position, though I now knew it was a position built on lies.

As we approached the ceremonial grounds, I spotted Olivia near the stone steps leading to the sacred circle. The moonstone pendant—my pendant—gleamed at her throat, catching the light of the rising moon. Beside her stood a boy of about five, with Ethan's dark hair but none of his features. Jacob.

Ethan immediately gravitated toward them, leaving me to walk alone. I held my head high as pack members bowed slightly, still respecting the title I apparently didn't legally possess.

"Claire." Victoria's cold voice stopped me. "You're late. The moon waits for no one."

"I apologize, Elder," I murmured, though I was precisely on time.

As I moved to take my place beside Ethan at the top of the stone steps, Jacob darted forward, his small face twisted in a sneer no child his age should possess. "You don't belong here," he hissed, and before I could react, his hands shoved against my abdomen.

The push wasn't particularly strong, but it caught me off-balance. I tumbled backward down the stone steps, my silk dress tearing as I tried to catch myself. Pain shot through my palms and knees as I landed hard on the rough stone, blood seeping through the fabric.

Gasps rippled through the crowd. I looked up, expecting Ethan to rush to my side. Instead, he stood frozen, his eyes darting between me and Olivia, who had pulled Jacob protectively against her.

"Claire!" Victoria's voice cracked like a whip. "What is wrong with you? You've frightened the pup!"

I stared at her in disbelief, blood dripping from my scraped palms. "He pushed me."

"Nonsense." Victoria descended the steps, bypassing me completely to comfort Jacob. "Children don't do such things. You simply weren't watching where you were going."

Ethan finally moved, but not toward me. He joined Victoria in soothing Jacob, while Olivia shot me a triumphant smile over the boy's head.

An omega healer helped me to my feet, quietly cleaning my wounds away from the ceremony. No one else came to check on me.

---

Dawn broke with a pale, sickly light filtering through the windows of the Alpha suite. I reached for the silver amulet I always kept on my bedside table—the only thing I had left from my mother. My fingers met empty space.

Panic surged through me. I searched frantically through drawers and under furniture, my heart pounding. The amulet was irreplaceable, imbued with my mother's magic and my last connection to her.

"Looking for something?" Olivia's voice came from the doorway. She leaned against the frame, my mother's amulet dangling from her fingers.

"That's mine," I said, my voice deadly quiet. "Give it back."

"I just borrowed it." She twirled it carelessly. "It's quite pretty, though old-fashioned."

I stepped forward, hand outstretched. "It belonged to my mother. Please."

Something cruel flashed in her eyes. "Oops." She opened her fingers, letting the amulet fall to the hardwood floor. The silver shattered, fragments scattering across the polished surface.

"No!" I dropped to my knees, desperately gathering the pieces. Tears blurred my vision as I cradled the broken remnants of my heritage.

Heavy footsteps approached. "What's going on?" Ethan demanded.

"It was an accident," Olivia simpered. "I was just admiring Claire's trinket."

I looked up at him, silently pleading for him to see the truth, to defend me just this once.

"It's just an old trinket, Claire," he said dismissively. "I'll have the pack silversmith make you a better one."

Something broke inside me then—the last thread of hope that there might be some explanation, some misunderstanding. As Ethan led Olivia away, his hand resting possessively on her lower back, I gathered the fragments of my mother's amulet and my shattered heart.

*They think they've broken us,* Selene whispered in my mind. *But they don't understand what happens when you corner a she-wolf with nothing left to lose.*

I clutched the silver shards in my fist until they cut into my palm, blood mixing with tears. *No,* I agreed silently. *They have no idea what's coming.*