The security guard's fingers emerged from the inner pocket holding a silver chain. A crescent moonstone swung beneath the chandelier lights.
The ballroom fell silent.
"It was inside the zipper," the guard said.
I did not reach for the necklace. I looked at the clasp instead. A single emerald fiber was trapped beneath the hinge, the same color as my dress.
"Do not let anyone touch it," I said. "Bag the necklace, photograph the pocket, and pull the camera footage from the last thirty minutes."
Sophie covered her mouth. Tears filled her eyes so quickly they looked rehearsed. "Why would I frame the Alpha's wife on my own birthday?"
"That is what the footage will tell us."
Ryan stepped forward and took the necklace directly from the guard.
"Ryan, stop." I caught his wrist before he could hand it over. "You are contaminating evidence."
His jaw tightened. "This is a family heirloom, not a murder weapon."
"Then there is no reason to destroy the chain of custody."
Every guest in the ballroom was watching us. Phones had begun to appear between champagne glasses and folded napkins. Ryan noticed them too. His gaze swept the room, calculating the damage to his image before he considered the damage to mine.
He placed the necklace in Sophie's palm.
"We will handle this privately," he said. "Ivy, apologize so the party can continue."
For one stunned second, I thought I had misheard him.
"You want me to confess to stealing something you have not even investigated?"
"I want you to stop embarrassing this family."
A dry laugh escaped me. "The necklace was found in my purse, and you think I am the one embarrassing us?"
Sophie curled her fingers around the moonstone. "I do not need an apology. I just want everyone to enjoy the evening."
The generosity in her voice drew sympathetic murmurs from the guests.
"How gracious," I said. "You accuse me in front of the pack, then forgive me before anyone checks whether you lied."
Ryan gripped my elbow and steered me through a side door. The oak panel closed behind us, muffling the ballroom music.
I pulled free. "Do not touch me."
"Is this about the canceled trip?" he demanded. "Did you decide to punish Sophie because you did not get your way?"
I stared at him. Three years earlier, silver poison had blackened the veins in his chest after an ambush. I had cleaned the wounds twice a day while the pack physician warned me he might not survive. Ryan had gripped my hand through every fever and promised that if he lived, I would never have to wonder where I stood with him again.
Apparently, promises only mattered when he was the one receiving them.
I slipped my phone from my purse and started a voice recording before I answered.
"When silver poison was eating through your blood, I stayed beside you for a month. You told me I would never come second again."
"Keep your voice down."
"Sophie has been back for three months. She has taken my room, my schedule, our family trip, and now my reputation. How much more am I expected to surrender before you admit you are choosing her?"
"She lost everyone in the border attack."
"And I am your wife."
"You are also the Luna," he snapped. "Act like it."
"A Luna should demand evidence before judgment. So should an Alpha."
His gaze dropped to the phone in my hand. The red waveform moved across the screen.
"Are you recording me?"
"I am preserving what happened. You seem very interested in rewriting it."
Ryan slapped the phone from my hand. It hit the carpet but did not stop recording.
"You are letting jealousy make you irrational," he said. "Go home. We will discuss this when you can behave like yourself."
I bent, picked up my phone, and saved the file.
"This is me behaving like myself. You have simply grown used to me yielding."
When we returned to the ballroom, Ryan raised a hand for silence.
"Luna Ivy is feeling unwell," he announced. "She will be leaving early to rest."
He turned my exile into concern with one sentence. The pack members parted, creating a clear path to the doors.
I walked without lowering my head.
"Mom!"
Leo ran after me carrying the vacation camera. He pushed it against my chest so hard the strap tangled around my wrist.
"Why do you ruin everything fun?" he demanded.
I crouched to his height, though my knees had begun to tremble. "Do you believe I stole the necklace?"
He glanced over my shoulder. Sophie stood beside the cake while Ryan relit a candle that had gone out.
"If you did not do it, you should have let them check later," he muttered. "Now everyone is waiting because of you."
"Someone accused your mother of a crime."
"Aunt Sophie is crying."
"So am I, Leo. I am simply doing it where you cannot see."
His expression flickered, but Ryan came up behind him before he could answer.
"The driver will take you home," Ryan said. "I am suspending your Luna command access for the night. You need time to cool down."
"Keep your driver."
I placed the camera on a console table and walked outside alone.
Moonridge Lodge sat within the Alpha grounds, a twelve-minute walk from our house by the service path. I had made it halfway down the drive when a violent cramp tore through my lower abdomen.
My shoulder struck a stone pillar. I caught myself before I fell and pressed a hand beneath my ribs.
Not now.
The pregnancy test in my bag seemed suddenly heavy.
I called Ryan. The line rang once.
Call Rejected.
A message followed immediately.
Do not make another scene tonight.
I forced myself along the dark path. Each step sent a deeper ache through my pelvis. By the time I reached the Alpha house, cold sweat covered my face.
The halls were empty. Every guard and household employee had been assigned to the party.
I stumbled into the master bathroom and locked the door. My vision blurred as I lifted the hem of my dress.
Bright blood soaked the lace at the top of my stocking.
For one terrible moment, I could not breathe.
I set the positive pregnancy test on the counter, then pressed Ryan's name again.
The screen glowed for three seconds before the call went to voicemail.
I put my blood-streaked hand over my stomach.
"Please," I whispered. "Not my baby."
