He climbed the stairs quickly, hoping his anger would ease even slightly, but it only burned hotter with each step. Calm down... think clearly... he tried to tell himself, yet the image of betrayal and defiance kept fueling his rage.

Lunara, half-dressed, looked up and smiled mischievously as if nothing was wrong. The sight of that forced, almost mocking smile snapped something in him. She still thinks this is a game... the thought hit like a spark in dry wood.

"Look who finally showed up... Moon Prince Brandon."

Lunara’s smirk deepened. "I knew you’d come crawling back eventually..."

The slap came before thought caught up. His wolf surged forward instantly—restless, furious, and dangerously close to taking over.

She disrespected us.

The growl echoed in his mind, darker than his own thoughts.

Brandon clenched his jaw. Not here... not like this, he warned himself, though the control was already slipping.

This time she didn’t fall deliberately. She collapsed under the sheer force, the shock stealing her balance. The air in the chamber seemed to still for a second.

A flicker of guilt crossed him.

Gone almost immediately.

No. She had pushed too far—and there was no taking it back now.

He kicked her legs in a burst of uncontrolled fury. Leo rushed in immediately, stepping between them to stop him from going further. Brandon shoved him away roughly, barely registering the resistance. Don’t interfere... not now, he thought, blind with agitation.

He seized her and lifted her off the ground.

Down the stairs...fast.

His grip was tight, but there was a strained tension beneath it...his wolf growling, restless, as if warning him he was slipping past control. This is necessary... it has to end, he told himself, even as something inside him resisted the brutality of the moment.

Domestic workers froze as they saw them pass,

No one dared step forward. Not when their Alpha looked like this. Not when even the air around him felt unstable, their mouths slightly open in shock ,unable to process what they were witnessing.

Lunara screamed and struggled wildly, twisting in his hold, her voice breaking through the hallway as she fought for freedom.

Maxwell quickly opened the rear door of the car. Without slowing, Brandon placed her inside...almost throwing her in under the weight of everything he refused to feel...and shut the door behind him, his chest still burning with conflict he refused to acknowledge.

"Brandon, you don’t know who you’re messing with!" she yelled as she opened the car door. "You will surely regret this! I swear to the moon goddess! You must crawl on your knees and worship me!"

Emma didn’t rush forward.

She simply watched...calm, composed, completely unshaken.

"Worship?" she scoffed. "You really think that highly of yourself?"

"I didn’t know you could be this delusional. He doesn’t want you...and you know it. Even if hell freezes over, he still wouldn’t mate with you."

"The king will never accept you, even if you carry a hundred heirs," she added coldly, her eyes narrowing with quiet certainty.

"Well, whether the king accepts me or not, I don’t care. He isn’t meant to accept me—I’m not mated to him," she shot back smoothly. "And as for royal heirs..." A faint, knowing smile curved her lips. "That’s something you’ll never carry."

"Maxwell, take this foolish wolf out of my house," she ordered, her tone sharp with authority.

She kissed Brandon. It wasn’t for comfort or reassurance, but a deliberate claim—one meant for everyone watching, and most especially for her. No one spoke for a brief moment.

"The king will hear about this. I’ll be back for both of you," And the way she said it...

It didn’t sound like an empty threat.

"If I see you again, I’ll set you ablaze!"

He yelled as he jammed the door violently. The sound echoed through the house, leaving a heavy silence in its wake. "If she refuses to come out of the car when you get to her house, drag her out of my car!"

The words lingered in the air long after Lunara was gone. Even after the car disappeared, the silence remained heavy.

It was as if the house itself was still trying to recover from what had just happened.

Brandon didn’t move immediately. His chest was still tight with something he refused to name.

Then, he turned to Emma.

She was already watching him...calm, steady.

Some of the tension in him eased. The anger was still there, no longer explosive but controlled, sinking into something quieter...something far more dangerous, laced with a deep, possessive instinct to protect.

He pulled her closer and kissed her.

"Hmm... my alpha, she really pushed you to the wall. I thought you went to check on her," she smirked, a glint of mischief dancing in her eyes. She didn’t think he had it in him... not this side of him.

"I never checked up on her, they’re all lies she schemed to confuse you," he smirked .

"I can’t believe you can do that. Hope you won’t bundle me one day and..."

Brandon cut her off with a heated kiss, his lips claiming hers before she could finish. How could she even joke about that? Not when the thought alone unsettled him.

"How do you expect me to stand by and watch some wolf scheme against my moonheart?" he murmured against her lips, his voice low and possessive.

He nibbled gently at her ear, his touch turning tender and dangerously distracting...so much so that he nearly forgot Ken, Brooklyn, and a few domestic workers were still very much present.

"Easy, BO... we’re still here," Ken teased, his tone laced with amusement as he folded his arms. These two really have no restraint.

With nothing more than a calm glance, he issued his orders, and the workers instantly understood, dispersing quietly to their duties without a word of protest.

"I thought you had found your mate, Ken. Leave us alone," Brandon shot back, a smirk tugging at his lips. If Emma stays any longer, he might actually forget himself.

"My heart, come to me," Ken called dramatically as he strode toward Brooklyn.

Brooklyn squealed and instantly took to her heels, laughter spilling from her lips. "Not today, Ken!

He chased after her, all of them breaking into carefree laughter that echoed through the space, lightening the air around them.

The next day, Emma woke before dawn.

The happiness was still there.

She slowly unwrapped her mate’s arms and turned and faced him. He was deeply asleep but looked as though he was smiling. The news of her pregnancy gave them unimaginable joy. She couldn’t wait to carry their pup - an immaculate combination of Emma and Brandon. Two lovers in one wolf blessed by the Moon Goddess.

She grinned happily, already imagining the pup they would have...so cute, so intelligent, a perfect blend of both her and Brandon.

Yet beneath that happiness, a quiet unease lingered, faint but persistent, like a shadow she couldn’t quite place or explain.

She relaxed her head on the pillow again and began to fantasize how great of a mother she was going to be to her future moonpup. She’d need to change a lot of things about herself to actually be that great mother worthy of raising an Alpha’s heir. She smiled and slowly rolled out of bed to avoid waking him up. She needed to update her story and the time looked like the best time for her. She walked towards the bathchamber and washed her mouth. She grabbed her communication device that was on the table and tiptoed out of the bedchamber.

Bubbling with happiness, she hummed a soft tune as she walked down the stairs. Everywhere looked deserted and a bit eerie under the dim glow of moonlight reflecting on the satin walls. The quietude in the pack house set her mood up as she walked into the study chamber. She switched the lights off and put on her writer’s candle as usual. Her head was already filled with all the things that happened throughout last week within the pack and beyond. She began to pen them down.

At 4:58 am, her device rang. She looked at the caller and ignored the call. She had been calling her since her mate, the Moon Prince, threw her precious moonpup out of the pack house. She tossed the device and continued writing. After a few minutes, the device rang again. This time it was Emily. She guessed Luna Theresa spoke with her.

"Moonrise, Mother," she greeted softly as she received the call, trying to steady her voice. Why is she calling this early... something isn’t right.

"Emma, I couldn’t sleep last moon-fall..." Emily’s voice trembled through the line, heavy with distress. The images won’t leave her head... she can still see it.

"Mother... are you crying?" she asked, her brows knitting in concern as she listened to the faint sniffles. This isn’t just worry—something has truly shaken her.

"What is it?" she pressed gently when silence lingered. Please, just tell me already...

"I couldn’t sleep. I’m worried about you,"

Emma’s grip tightened... around the device.

That wasn’t just a worry.

There was something else in her mother’s voice...something she hadn’t said yet.