At the heart of a cloaked world of secrecy utter in Luna's laborious hands, age-old werewolf taboos shatter when Ryder, her vengeful ex-lover and alpha to another pack, discovers that not only is she a werewolf but that she is also the mother to their pup. Claiming that she has sold their pack's secrets and that she has betrayed him, Ryder ruthlessly hunts his erstwhile lover down. Desperate to spare her child the brunt of Ryder's anger, Luna must confront past choices and a dangerous foe also hiding in the shadows. When Ryder finally uncovers the truth about Luna's actions and the true threat to them, what begins as a fierce confrontation gradually turns into a fragile truce. They both must find a way along that thin line of forgiveness and redemption to protect their future. Betrayal of trust, vengeance sought after, and love reignited in the light of the full moon-such is Moonlit Betrayal.
Chapter 1 Prologue
The night she left Ryder was the hardest night of her life.
Luna could still remember the cold air biting at her skin as she slipped away from the pack's territory, her heart pounding as she cradled the secret she hadn't dared to share. The secret she would protect with her life. The child growing inside her.
She had loved Ryder with everything she had. He was more than just the alpha of their pack. He was her partner, her protector, the one person who made her believe she could have a future free of fear and danger. But that all shattered the night she realized the pack was no longer a safe place for either of them. Whispers of betrayal and enemies lurking in the shadows made her decision for her.
Ryder didn't know the whole truth. He didn't know that Luna had overheard the plans-the plots against him. And she couldn't risk telling him. The danger was too close, and she knew Ryder's loyalty to the pack would keep him from seeing the full picture. So she did the only thing she could think of. She ran.
Leaving him behind nearly broke her, but she had to keep their child safe. She knew he would never understand. She could still hear his voice in her head, accusing her of betrayal, of abandoning him. But it wasn't just Ryder she was running from. It was the threat of something bigger, something darker than even he could protect her from.
Years had passed since that night, and Luna had built a new life far away from the chaos of the pack. A quiet life in a small town where no one asked questions, where she and her child could blend in and pretend to be normal. But deep down, she always knew this peace wouldn't last. The past had a way of catching up, no matter how far or fast you tried to outrun it.
And now, it had.
She felt Ryder's presence before she ever saw him. It was like a ripple in the air, a shift in the world around her. She had been preparing for this day for so long, telling herself over and over that she would be ready when it came. But now that it was here, all the fear she had kept buried inside for years rushed to the surface.
She wasn't ready.
He was here, searching for answers, searching for her, and worst of all, searching for the child he didn't even know existed. Luna's heart clenched at the thought of what Ryder would do if he found out about their child. He would never forgive her for keeping such a secret from him, and she wasn't sure what he was capable of in his anger.
But this was no longer just about Ryder's wrath. The danger Luna had feared for so long was closer than ever, lurking in the shadows of their past. And now, she was caught between the two things she feared most: Ryder's fury and the deadly threat that had once driven her to run.
She knew one thing for sure. She would do whatever it took to protect her child, even if it meant facing the man she once loved and the past she had tried so hard to escape.