The Ex-Luna's Secret Heir

The crystal glass in my hand felt heavy and cold. Golden bubbles danced in champagne under chandeliers. Violin music floated through the ballroom. People laughed and smiled. Every corner was filled with velvet chairs and roses. I stood near center stage, watching the crowd. For five long years, I worked every day to make this pack strong. When I married Jasper, the Crescent Moon Pack was in financial trouble. Bank accounts were empty, and neighboring packs did not respect them. I was only a human girl with no wolf strength. Pack members looked down on me at first, calling me weak. But I did not give up. I spent countless nights sitting at a desk, fixing accounts and making sure every family had food. Tonight was the biggest night of Jasper’s life. He was named the youngest Alpha on the Regional Council. It was a position of great power. Jasper stood beside me, looking handsome in his dark suit. His golden hair caught the light, and his blue eyes sparkled with pride. He held a glass of wine, laughing with pack elders. Feeling my eyes on him, Jasper turned around. A warm smile broke across his face. He wrapped his arm around my waist, pulling me close to his side. He leaned down and pressed his lips to my cheek. "Thank you for setting all of this up, Aria," he whispered into my ear. "Everything looks incredible. You always make me look good." I smiled up at him, my heart full of soft warmth. "I do it because I love you, Jasper. Your success is my success." He squeezed my waist before letting go. Then, he raised his hand and tapped his spoon against his glass. The crisp sound echoed through the ceiling. Violin music stopped. Chatter died away. Dozens of eyes turned toward us. Elders, captains, noble families, and young wolves looked up with respect. I took a step forward, keeping my posture straight and my chin high. I held my glass up, looking out at the friendly faces. "Thank you, everyone, for coming tonight," I said, my voice clear. "Five years ago, when Jasper became our Alpha, we faced dark times. But he worked without stopping. Tonight, he takes his place on the Council. I am proud to stand by his side as his Luna." I raised my glass higher into the light. "To Alpha Jasper! To the Crescent Moon Pack! And to our bright future!" "To Alpha Jasper!" the crowd shouted in unison. "To our future!" others echoed cheerfully. Glasses clinked across the room. Cheers filled the air. My chest swelled with pride. All the tears I had shed, all the painful medical shots, and all the long hours of work felt worth it. I believed that Jasper and I were finally entering the best chapter of our lives. The double doors at the end of the ballroom slammed open against stone walls. Freezing night air rushed into the hall. The sweet smell of roses was blown away, replaced by rain and wet dirt. The room went silent. A woman stood in the open doorway. She wore a thin white dress soaked with rainwater. Mud splattered her skirt. Her long blonde hair hung in wet strands over her face, and her body trembled. Tears had washed red tracks down her pale cheeks. She looked tiny and broken. I did not know who she was. I had never seen her face before. Yet, a strange, cold knot pulled tight in the deep pit of my stomach. Beside me, Jasper froze. His body went stiff. The bright smile vanished from his face. His blue eyes widened in shock. The glass of wine in his hand tipped slightly, spilling a red drop onto the white tablecloth. "Jasper..." the woman sobbed. Her voice was thin, sharp, and trembling. "I'm sorry... I'm so sorry to ruin your big night. But I didn't know where else to go." Whispers erupted across the room like a sudden swarm of bees. "Is that her?" a pack elder gasped. "It can't be! That's Chloe!" a noble woman whispered behind her fan. "Chloe? The Alpha's fated mate who vanished five years ago?" "Look at her! Where has she been all this time?" My hand began to shake. The cold glass felt like ice in my fingers. Fated mate? Jasper had told me his fated mate died years ago before we met. He had sworn that I was his only love. Chloe took three shaky steps into the ballroom. Leaves and mud clung to her feet. She pulled out a folded piece of paper from her dress pocket, holding it tightly against her chest. "I was sick, Jasper," Chloe cried out, her voice echoing off stone walls. "I was terrified. I thought I was going to die, so I ran away to protect you from pain. But I survived. I got better! And... I brought proof of why I came back to you tonight." She stepped closer, holding up the piece of paper for everyone to see. It was a black-and-white medical ultrasound picture. "I am carrying your true wolf heir," Chloe sobbed, looking directly at Jasper with pleading eyes. "A pure Alpha child. Conceived right before I disappeared." The ballroom seemed to spin around me. The floor felt soft beneath my heels. Air refused to enter my lungs. For five long years, I had gone to every famous doctor in the territory. I had let them poke my arms with needles and give me painful injections. Every doctor told us the same cruel words: A human body is too weak to hold a pure Alpha wolf child. I had cried myself to sleep in Jasper’s arms dozens of times. And now, this woman stood here, holding proof of his true biological child. "Jasper?" My voice was thin, small, and cracking with fear. I reached out to touch his arm. "Jasper, what is she saying? Tell me this isn't true." Jasper did not look at me. He did not touch my hand or say a single word of comfort. Instead, he pulled his arm away from my touch and took two steps back. He walked straight past me, leaving me standing alone under the spotlight with my glass still raised. He did not look back once. He walked across the ballroom floor until he reached Chloe. When he reached her, his eyes filled with warmth and wild joy. He took her wet, trembling hands into his palms. He pulled her gently against his chest, wrapping his jacket around her shoulders. Then, Jasper turned around to face the ballroom. He looked back at me. His eyes were no longer warm. There was no love in them, no memory of the five years we shared, and no appreciation for everything I had done. His gaze was icy and distant. "Aria," Jasper said, his deep Alpha voice carrying easily to every corner of the silent room. "The Crescent Moon Pack needs a true Alpha heir to survive. Chloe is my fated mate, and she carries my blood." He lifted his right hand and pointed his finger directly at me. "Take off the Luna ring."