MAEVE'S POV
Serena and I had been best friends since we were pups.
We were the mismatched duo—the kind of friendship that made no sense to anyone.
She was the beautiful one. The tall one. The easygoing one. The popular one.
The one who had wolves begging to be her friend.
And yet, of all the options she had, she chose me—the outcast.
I had felt lucky. Cherished.
Even when my life with Ivan had soured into a nightmare, I found solace in knowing I had a best friend who would always stand by me.
Or so I had thought.
The night I suffered a miscarriage—or thought I did—I had wept on her shoulder, heartbroken over the loss of my one ray of sunlight.
I still remembered how much Serena had cried with me, holding me so tightly, so tenderly, that I had believed—truly believed—she shared my pain.
Then, weeks later, she had betrayed me in the cruellest way possible.
And now, five years later, standing before her, staring into her razor-sharp gaze, it felt like I was looking at a stranger.
Too much time had passed. Too much had happened.
I barely remembered how to talk to her anymore.
"You must have felt vindicated ruining my wedding," she sneered, her voice icy, wasting no time with pleasantries.
I wondered how long she had been lurking here, waiting for me to show up. Had she even slept last night? Doubtful.
The black circles around her bloodshot eyes told me she had spent the night seething. Her body was rigid, and I could feel how badly she wanted to lunge at me.
She had tried it yesterday. Had to be restrained—by Ivan, of all people.
"I also hear you've been given a set of rooms in the alpha wing." She took a step closer, jaw clenched. "Was that your plan all along? To ruin my wedding and weasel your way into the heart of the pack house?"
Another step.
She was trying to make me back down.
I held my ground. "What exactly do you want me to say?"
"The truth."
A slow, taunting smirk curved my lips.
"Well, if you must know… I guess I've been feeling a little vindictive lately."
Her nostrils flared.
"After the shitty hand you dealt me, I figured it was only right to return the favour. Must hurt, huh? Finally knowing what it feels like to have what's yours stolen away from you."
"None of this was ever yours!" she snapped, jabbing her finger dangerously close to my chest. "You never deserved any of it. Being mated to the alpha prince. Being in the running for Luna of Ash Creek. Selene must have suffered a momentary lapse in judgment, handing it all to you."
I felt my anger swell, rising to match hers.
"Is this your way of justifying what you did to me?" My voice dropped to cold pitch. "We were friends for years, Serena. But that wasn't important to you, was it? Not if it meant getting to play Luna."
Her jaw tightened. I took a step forward.
"It's funny, really—after five years, Ivan still hasn't made you his Luna." A cruel smirk tugged at my lips as I whispered, "I guess you weren't that important to him after all."
She screeched, her voice cracking with rage.
"The wedding wasn't called off! It was merely postponed! Once Ivan gets rid of you, we'll hold another ceremony—grander than the one you ruined!"
I hummed, tilting my head.
"Ivan," I mused. "He seems quite taken with me. Yesterday, while we were alone in the study…" I let my voice drop, just to watch her squirm. "…he could barely keep his hands off me."
Serena's entire face drained of colour.
"That's impossible." The words came out hollow, desperate. "You're lying."
I shrugged, watching panic bloom in her eyes.
"If you say so."
It was a petty move. A cruel one. And I didn't care. Ivan may have never loved her, but she sure as hell loved him.
And now, the little fantasy she had clung to for five years was crumbling before her eyes.
I could see the doubt creeping in—the deep-rooted fear that maybe, just maybe, Ivan had never wanted her at all.
"You must be feeling pretty cocky, thinking my mate has shown you some fleeting level of fascination."
I arched a brow, unimpressed.
"Let me break it to you," she continued, her tone insidious. "The only reason he's even remotely interested is because of that boy of yours. Without him, you're nothing. Useless."
"Useless," I repeated, dragging the word out slowly, savoring it. "Is that what he calls you, then? Seeing as how you've yet to succeed in carrying out your duties as a breeder?"
The immediate flash of hurt in her eyes pleased me more than it should have.
"Ivan loves me," she spat, rushing to her own defense. "As for heirs, we're working on it. How about you get a grip and keep your filthy paws off my mate?"
"Your mate?" I scoffed, rolling my eyes. "I don't want him. I have no interest in reclaiming my trashy seconds. You coveted him. You can keep him."
Serena's lips curled in rage, but I was done humoring her.
"I don't need to keep what's already mine," she shot back, fists clenched at her sides. "And as for that bastard of yours, you can forget about him ever being named heir of Ash Creek. The DNA test results won't change a damn thing." She stepped closer, her eyes alight with cruel amusement. "And you want to know why I know for a fact that he isn't Ivan's? Because I'm the one who poisoned you five years ago, Maeve. I'm the reason you miscarried."
The words landed like a physical blow.
What?
I inhaled sharply, my body going rigid.
"What are you talking about?" My voice barely sounded like mine.
My heart pounded against my ribs as I fought to process the implication of what she had just confessed.
"You're joking," I whispered, forcing out a laugh, though my pulse felt shaky. "Tell me you're joking."
Serena's lips curved into a twisted, satisfied smile.
"I poisoned you, Maeve. I slipped it into your drink when you weren't looking." Her voice was mocking, oozing with wicked pride. "I knew it was the only way to get rid of your disgusting pup before it ruined my chances with Ivan. And guess what? It worked." She tilted her head, her eyes shining with dark pleasure. "How's that for vindictive?"