On the Next Lunar Eclipse. I Swear Vengeance, Alpha!

Layla

I’d been waiting for over an hour, pacing restlessly outside the emergency wing, my whole body trembling.

I couldn’t sit still, couldn’t think straight.

My ears kept ringing, the pressure on my hearing getting worse by the second.

Then, the Moon Goddess granted me her blessing. I could hear the sound of Naomi’s heart monitor.

Then the door swung open and Dr Francis¬—my mum’s old friend stepped out. The moment he saw me, he pulled down his mask and gestured with a tilt of his head for me to follow him into his office.

“She’s lost a lot of blood,” he said, his voice serious. “If you’d arrived even a little later, she wouldn’t have made it.”

“Is Naomi going to survive?” I asked, barely breathing.

He paused, clearly reluctant to answer. "Can you hear me?"

"Yeah, thank the Moon Goddess. How's Naomi?" I asked him straight away.

“I’m sorry, Luna Layla. One of her legs is still functional—she might walk again. But her heart… she’s only got three months left, at best—and that’s with constant support from the hospital’s Healers.”

“Then do whatever it takes,” I said firmly. “I’ll get her heart stabiliser serum.”

He nodded, and without wasting another second, I drove straight back to the pack house.

As I sped down the road, my mind pulled me back—five years ago.

Naomi was born with a weak heart. The prognosis had been brutal: her inner wolf might never awaken. I nearly lost my mind… until Alpha Tristan pulled me back from the edge.

“I’ll do anything for our daughter,” he’d said. “She’s a gift from the Moon Goddess—the last girl born under the Sagittarius witch bloodline.”

Those words became my anchor through endless dark nights, as I searched desperately for a heart donor.

Failure after failure, but Tristan stood by me. He held me through every breakdown. Whispered that hope still existed.

And then—I found it. A perfect match. From someone in my own bloodline.

My mother. I was ready to give up my own heart, but she beat me to it.

Then came the explosion in my lab. The radiation leak.

I lost my hearing—something that shouldn’t even be possible for a werewolf.

But it happened. Silence wrapped around my world like a shroud.

Mum offered her heart without hesitation. “Finish your research,” she told me. “I believe in you.”

I returned to the pack house to collect Naomi’s blood samples, so I could run some proper tests and get accurate results.

But the moment I stepped through the front doors, a scent hit me—sharp and unmistakable.

Rovena’s pheromones… mixed with Alpha Tristan’s seed.

I crept towards the master bedroom, heart pounding—and through the tiny crack in the door, I saw them.

Naked. Twisted around each other on our bed, sweat clinging to the sheets I once called heaven.

My heart shattered. The betrayal hit me like a silver bullet. I blacked out.

The next morning, I woke to find Alpha Tristan beside me, carrying a tray of breakfast and a glass of water.

“Here, love,” he said, his hand movements in sign language. “Take your meds. You fainted last night. Doctor said you’re just overworked.”

His eyes looked the same, but the bond between us was dead. There was no spark left—just the cold ashes of a once-burning love.

“I came for Naomi’s blood samples. I’ll be on my way,” I said flatly.

“Need a warrior to escort you?” he asked, stroking my cheek like we were still lovers.

I turned away. I couldn’t bear the lies written all over his face.

I knew exactly what he wanted—to get me out of the house so he could go back to fucking her, undisturbed.

Fine. He could have her. I was done.

Love was dead. Trust, obliterated. All that remained was ice.

“I won’t be funding your research any longer, Luna,” Alpha Tristan snapped at the interpreter beside him.

He no longer spoke to me directly in sign language—he wouldn’t even look at me.

“I thought the pack’s finances were stable.”

“They are. You’re the problem. You broke my trust. You cheated—with your best friend.”

He slammed a photo down in front of me—me and my best friend outside a hotel.

“I went there to help him say goodbye to his dying mate!” I snapped.

But Alpha Tristan had already made up his mind. He waved a journal at me—one forged in handwriting like mine.

Pages filled with lies, saying I’d lusted after my best friend and regretted mating with Alpha Tristan.

I never wrote that bloody journal. But I knew who did.

From that day, he treated me like dirt.

He cheated first. Then painted me the villain.

As I stepped into the main hall of the pack house, Rovena’s dark aura slammed into me like a wall.

She stood there with arms folded, eyes dripping arrogance.

“No wonder you’d rather stay away from the pack,” her voice slipped into my mind with her magic, like poison.

“And no wonder you prefer crawling all over someone else’s mate,” I shot back. “Shouldn’t you be off turning frogs into coconuts or whatever it is half-baked witches like you do? Mistress? Don’t make me laugh.”

Her face turned a deep shade of purple—but she caught herself, switching tactics.

“Your reign is over, Luna Layla,” she hissed.

“Not yet, Rovena. You have no idea what I’m capable of.”

“Ooh, scary. But thanks, really. Knowing Tristan finally got that heart—it’s made me so excited to face you.”

She chipped away at my mental defences. My fists clenched. My claws pierced skin.

“I’m not just some mistress—I’ll be her Luna. The next Lady of this house. You and your brat can rot.”

I slapped her. Hard.

She needed to be reminded of her place.

But the damn witch was ready for it.

She snatched a candle off the shelf, burned her own face, and screamed bloody murder.

“I’m sorry, Luna! Why did you do this to me?!” she wailed at the top of her lungs.

Alpha Tristan stormed in, eyes glowing red, claws out. He didn’t even hesitate.

He grabbed me by the throat and lifted me clean off the floor.

“You dared lay a hand on Rovena?! Is this how a Luna behaves?”

I thrashed, shaking my head, trying to explain—but his grip silenced everything.

“My face—aaaah! It burns!” Rovena cried behind him, her voice a perfect blend of agony and deceit.

He threw me to the ground like garbage. My spine lit up in pain, but the betrayal cut deeper.

“Pray I find it in my heart to forgive you, Luna Layla,” he spat. Then barked with Alpha Tone, “Warrior, lock her in the dungeon.”

Two warriors appeared, each grabbing an arm.

“No! Naomi’s in the hospital—she needs me!” I shouted.

“You think I care?” Alpha Tristan sneered. “I’ll drag you through hell itself if you ever touch Rovena again.”

Then he carried her out, like some precious prize.

I caught one last look at Rovena’s face as they disappeared down the corridor.

She was smiling.

I crumpled to the floor. My head pounded. The room spun. I could smell the silver in the dungeon air.

And then—darkness.

I prayed to the Moon Goddess, hoping this wasn’t the end. I needed to get out before this hell completely burned my soul to ashes.