From Prison To Luna Throne

"Don't let me catch sight of you again. Women aren't cut out for prison."

The guard sized me up, smoking.

I ignored him, leaving behind Moon Fang Keep, the place that had held me captive for three years.

The long-lost sunlight fell on my skin. Under my sleeves, my clenched fists betrayed my true feelings. I walked away trembling.

“Julie. I’m here to take you home.”

I lifted my head. My gaze landed on that pair of familiar yet strange father and son.

The man was my mate, the Alpha of the Ember Hide Pack, William Jones.

The boy was my own flesh and blood, my son, Rocco Jones.

Three years apart, and they were still powerful; their scent thick with dominance, the pressure of people who’d spent too long at the top.

Yet because of them, I was no longer the gentle and obedient person I used to be, wasting away day by day.

Our eyes met, and William’s expression faltered.

“Get in the car.”

There wasn’t a shred of guilt in his voice. “Three years in Moon Fang Keep should’ve taught you how to behave well. Don’t challenge Pack law again.”

Rocco frowned too, his voice young but hard.

“Dad’s right. Aunt Ann has already forgiven you. But Mom, if you hurt her again, Dad and I will never forgive you.”

“Forgive?” I let out a short laugh,

"Shouldn't it be you two begging for my forgiveness?"

Watching their expressions visibly stiffen, I continued:

“But then again, an Alpha who personally sent his own Luna to Moon Fang Keep has the nerve to talk about forgiveness?”

This father and son used to be my entire world.

And three years ago, they were the ones who shoved me into hell with their own hands.

At that banquet, Ann suddenly coughed up blood and collapsed in front of everyone.

Clutching her mouth, pale as a sheet, she pointed a trembling finger at me

"It was her... she poisoned my drink."

I fell to my knees, desperately begging William to look into the waiters and the glasses.

But he just frowned, staring at me for what felt like an eternity.

Rocco shoved me away in disgust.

At that moment, I laughed.

I laughed at how stupid I’d been.

They turned me over to the Silver Moon Tribunal on the charge of “harming the Pack member.”

For three years, I was tortured in that prison, silver chains biting into my bones, venom wolves tearing at me.

If my Luna blood hadn’t been stubborn, I would’ve been dead long ago.

And now they said, as if it were nothing:

“Rocco and I don’t mind you’ve been in jail. We’re willing to take you home and you should be grateful. Lucy is waiting. Don’t waste time.”

“Yeah, Mom, stop making a scene.” Rocco urged.

When I looked up again, my voice was calm. “I’m not going back with you.”

Love and family were a joke to me now.

A person shouldn’t fall in the same place twice.

William narrowed his eyes, Alpha pressure pouring off him. “A Luna with a crime record, where do you think you can go without me?”

“That’s my business.”

I said flatly, “I’m done being a woman you keep stepping on.”

He froze for a beat. He hadn’t expected the Julie who used to obey without question to talk back.

Three years in prison, people can teach you countless times but you won’t learn. Life teaches you once, and it’s enough.

I stared at that father and son, my heart cold as iron.

“William,” I said, “let’s get a divorce.”

“Mom, you went to prison and you still want a divorce? What will people think of you?”

Rocco blurted it out.

Even William went still.

He’d assumed I’d do what I always used to do, crying, begging him to change his mind, or demanding compensation. He didn’t expect me to ask for a divorce. I used to care obsessively about how others saw me. My reputation and my family’s dignity mattered more than anything.

Three years ago, I’d lowered myself into the dust just to stay beside them.

Now, fresh out of Moon Fang Keep, the first thing I said was divorce.

This transformation was a lesson I learned at the cost of blood.

To him, though, it was just another one of my usual tricks.

Play pitiful, fish for sympathy, and force him to soften.

Just as the air was about to freeze solid, the butler suddenly came over, holding a little blonde girl in his arms.

“Alpha, the pup insisted on seeing you and the madam.”

It was my younger daughter, Lucy.

She was only five, but she’d inherited my eyes, light brown irises, clear as spring water under moonlight.

William’s brows drew together. “Who told you to bring her here?”

“I came on my own.” Lucy lifted her chin, her voice baby-soft but serious.

She wriggled free of the butler’s arms and walked toward me carefully, reaching up to tug at the edge of my clothes.

“Mom,” she looked up, eyes wet but stubborn, “you went to prison and you want a divorce. Will people laugh at you?”

I froze.

In that instant, something stabbed hard into my chest.

Her words—they were actually identical to Rocco’s.

But her voice trembled, clean and pure.

I crouched down, my fingers brushing gently through her hair.

She was too little. She’d only been taught by them —a woman who’d been in Moon Fang Keep was shameful.

I gave a hoarse little smile. “That’s Mom’s business. It has nothing to do with what other people think.”

Lucy blinked, half understanding, then added in a whisper, “But… I’m worried you’ll be sad.”

I almost couldn’t hold back my tears.

William’s voice cut cold. “Rocco’s right. Where exactly are you going to go without the Jones family? Julie, if you keep this up, you’ll turn yourself into the entire Pack’s joke!”

I didn’t react.

I got into an Uber.

The rear-seat screen suddenly lit up.

It wasn’t the news.

It was surveillance footage.

In the video, a woman was chained to the wall with silver chains.

She was covered in wounds. Her eyes were hollow. She howled at the camera like a beast.

Her hair was a mess, and the sound clawing out of her throat was low and almost inhuman.

I recognized her in one glance—me.

A cell in Moon Fang Keep.

Me from three years ago.

When the video ended, the screen cut to an interview set. She sat there in a white dress.

“Ann, as the victim, what do you think?”

Every word dripped with sympathy for Ann.

Ann looked into the camera, gentle as a saint.

“Julie was just sick. And besides, she’s already paid the price for what she did.”

The reporter wouldn’t let it go.

“Is it a mental illness? Do we really need a Luna with mental illness?”

Ann only smiled, not answering.

The driver glanced at the screen and recognized her.

“That’s Ann, right? Oscar-winning actress. I heard she even visited you back then.”

He chuckled, shaking his head. “Such a good person.”

I lifted my eyes to the screen.

That woman’s smile was so soft it looked holy.

Behind her, I saw the version of me they’d chosen to define—

A madwoman.

A sinner.

Someone she had “saved”.

“Good person?”

My throat tightened. I laughed.

“That’s pretty ruthless.”

The driver paused, looking at the washed-out prison clothes I was still wearing, and didn’t ask anything else.

I leaned back in the seat and closed my eyes.

For three years, I’d been in Moon Fang Keep with silver chains cutting into my bones, silver poison burning through my bones.

And they’d been out there, watching fireworks with her, cheering her onto the Moon Shadow Hall stage.

What a joke.

The car finally stopped in front of an old house under my name.

I got out, paid the fare, then walked to a nearby supermarket for basic supplies.

When I went to prison three years ago, every asset under my name was frozen.

Now that I was out, the only cash I had left was emergency money I’d secretly hidden back then.

It had been too long since I’d been in crowds. I realized I didn’t even know how to behave anymore.

When the cashier reached out to scan my items, I flinched back on instinct.

“Miss, are you okay?” the cashier asked kindly.

I shook my head and gave a bitter smile.

I was fine.

It was just that in prison, the beatings had broken my spirit.

The moment I stepped out of the supermarket, my phone vibrated.

It’s Celine.

“Julie! You’re finally out!”

On the other end, my best friend’s voice was shaking from excitement.

“I tried to get back to Los Angeles early, but storm season grounded the flights here. Where are you right now? Are you still at the Jones?”

“I’m at Moon Building,” I said.

Celine went quiet for two seconds. “William didn’t pick you up? You’re still married, after all. He…”

“Celine, I’m divorcing him.”

I said those words softly, like tearing a chunk of flesh off my chest.

The line went silent for a few seconds.

Celine’s breathing turned heavy.

Three years ago, she’d been the only friend who still spoke up for me when the Pack pushed me out.

She’d warned me countless times. If an Alpha doesn’t love you, why cling to him like this?

Back then, I still had fantasies.

She let out a sigh, her voice tight. “In Moon Fang Keep… what did you go through?”

I fell silent. Flashbacks of the scenes I had just witnessed in the car flooded my mind, silver chains, venomous thorns, howling.

These were my real experiences.

But I didn’t answer.

Celine didn’t press. She only said in a low voice, “After you were locked up, your aunt took over your house. And Ann used the chance to gain the Silver Council’s investment qualification… Julie, wait for me. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

“Okay,” I whispered.

When the call ended, my hands were still shaking.

After I went in the prison, my mother cried herself blind. Then she died of heart failure.

I’d written William letters, begging him to save her.

He never answered.

All I got was an obituary.

My fingertips trembled as my gaze turned colder and colder.

Inside me, Linda let out a low howl. “We’ll make them pay.”

I went back alone to my old place in Moon Building.

No one had stepped inside for the past three years.

The air reeked of mold.

I cleaned every inch of it. Glass sliced my fingers open, blood seeping out.

When I collapsed against the couch, my chest was burning.

The drugs and poisons from Moon Fang Keep left my body permanently on fire.

I went to the hospital.

After looking over my physical exam report, the doctor spoke carefully. “You have too many old injuries. Your healing is unstable, and there’s still drug poison in your blood. You’d better stay for observation.”

I closed the report and said flatly, “No need.”

He sighed. “Aren’t you afraid of death?”

I shook my head, causally said. “I was afraid before. Later I realized it didn’t mean anything.”

At the pharmacy window, the crowd was loud.

I was waiting for my number when the door of the examination room beside me opened.

Ann’s laughter floated out.

I looked up.

She was holding Rocco’s hand. William stood behind them.

The doctor smiled at the handsome Rocco, clearly charmed. “The birthmark on the boy’s back is pretty special and it’s shaped like a butterfly.”

Ann suddenly glanced around nervously, and didn’t respond.

In that instant, I froze.

A butterfly-shaped birthmark? And one that appeared gradually as he grew up? Neither my family nor William’s had that gene.

One short sentence made something in my head cracked softly.

But I didn’t say anything.

I simply clenched my hand tighter.

When they walked closer, Ann acted like she’d just noticed me.

She paused for a beat, then smiled warmly. “Julie? What are you doing here?”

She turned to William and said quietly, “I told you a long time ago. She needs psychological counseling.”

William didn’t respond, only frowned.

Rocco secretly took a step behind Ann.

I smiled.

“Don’t worry. I’m not here for you.”

Ann’s smile deepened. “Don’t misunderstand. I’m just worried about you. After all, patients need their family’s understanding the most.”

“Patients?” I repeated softly.

When the word slid out of my throat, it carried almost no emotion.

Suddenly the doctor called after her, “Don’t forget your lab report!”

Ann looked back and smiled. “Thank you, I know.”

Then she turned around and put on a gentle, helpless expression. “Julie, you don’t need to sulk. If you want William, you can just come home. He’s not that heartless to you. You just got out of the Moon Fang Keep. It won’t sound good if word gets out.”

The Moon Fang Keep.

Just hearing those words made my body shiver.

But Rocco’s eyes lit up for a second, for an instant, it almost looked like… hope?

He probably thought I came to find them? To make up?

Then remembering how I’d refused to go back, he quickly pouted again, his voice sharp with childishness. “Mom, you’re so fake! You obviously can’t live without me and Dad, but you still pretend you won’t come home!”

I couldn't help but snort. Honestly, I only hate them.

William’s face cooled too. “I thought you had a spine this time. Turns out you couldn’t even hold two days before you ran to the hospital to corner me? Julie, you’re always like this.”

His voice carried that familiar, commanding Alpha’s dominance, the kind of pressure that used to squeeze my breathing tight.

But now… after Moon Fang Keep, I would never kneel under that pressure again.

“What makes you think I came to the hospital just to see you?” I looked at them coldly.

Before the argument could continue, the doctor walked over.

“Julie, your medication.”

The bag rustled lightly in my hand. The doctor’s gaze swept over the scars on my collarbone and wrists, deep bite marks ground into me by the prison’s silver chains, the sign of a wolf being tamed.

He frowned. “Step aside. Don’t block my patient.”

I lifted my eyes coldly. “I’m at the hospital for medicine, of course. As for you, shouldn’t you go get your brains checked?”

William’s expression stiffened.

He hadn’t expected me to talk like that now.

I turned to leave, but a small hand suddenly caught mine.

“In a few days…it’s my graduation ceremony.”

Rocco bit his lip, his voice so low it was almost inaudible. “No matter how angry you are, you should come back, because you’re my… mom.”

The word “mom” came out so softly it nearly shattered.

My breathing stopped for a second.

Then I pulled my hand free.

My voice was light and cold. “I’m not your mom.”

His hand froze in midair and started to shake.

As I stepped away, Ann’s voice suddenly rose.

“Julie, I understand you went to prison and you’re embarrassed to come home. But you can’t run from a mother’s responsibility. You didn’t take care of the child for three years, and now you’re going to keep pretending you don’t know him?”

She said it loudly on purpose.

People’s eyes immediately focused on me.

“Prison… didn’t take care of the child…”

Those ugly whispers surrounded me, and for a moment it felt like I was back in front of Moon Fang Keep’s freezing stone walls.

The medicine bag was light. But the pain I carried out of that prison was heavier than an entire snow mountain. The way my soul tore apart when my mania hit; the moment my baby’s scent vanished inside my body; silver chains biting into bone; nights so cold they stabbed straight through my heart…

My third child left me on a night like that.

I thought the outside world would be a little easier.

Instead, what I came back to was Rocco’s indifference, William’s irritation, Ann taking my place, their mixed scent was chocking me.

I looked at Rocco first.

“He’s nine,” I said. “Who he wants to call Mom is his choice. And I, I also have the right not to be his mother. Blood alone doesn’t make family. It’s what we’ve done for each other that does.”

Besides, whether he was even my child remained a question. Such a cold soul.

William’s hand suddenly clamped around my wrist.

He seemed to freeze for a beat, probably shocked by how scorching hot my skin was.

“You have a fever,” he said in a low voice.

I smiled. I caught the scent of an Alpha, dominant, suffocating, used to giving orders.

Rocco puffed his cheeks too, his voice trembling between tears and stubbornness. “If Ann hadn’t told me to understand you, I wouldn’t even want you to be my mom! And you’re still treating her like this… and refusing to come to my graduation!”

His tone carried a fear of my strangeness.

He could tell I’d changed.

Didn't they bring this change upon me themselves?

In that prison, silver chains bit into my bones every day, forcing me to suppress my madness.

And they thought those three years were just “punishment.”

To them, my suffering probably didn’t even equal one of Ann’s grievances.

For once, I didn't let my body do that old, automatic thing—dropping my gaze, making myself small. Instead, I shoved his hand off my wrist.

But the fever made my vision go black in waves. I could barely stand. William reached out a hand to me.

I shook off William’s outstretched hand and lifted my head, staring at him coldly.

“William, you make it sound so easy.”

My lips curved faintly.

“Why don’t you go spend a few years in prison yourself?”

The words were sharp as a wolf’s fang.

I didn’t spare them another glance before turning and leaving the hospital.

The moment I stepped outside, I wiped at the place on my wrist where William had touched me.

The sensation made me sick.

There was only one thought left in my mind.

Divorce.

The sooner, the better.

Even sharing the same territory with William felt like torture.

That night, after taking my medicine, I fell into a heavy sleep.

Half awake, half dreaming, I found myself back in the Moon Prison again,

silver claws, iron chains, the bloodstains smeared across the walls during my manic episodes, and finally… the pup who had vanished inside my body.

I jerked awake.

The sound came from the living room door.

Celine rushed in, travel-worn and frantic.

“You just got out, and you’re already burning up like this? When I came back, your fever was almost forty degrees Celsius… Thank God it’s gone down now.”

She handed me water and medicine.

Only in that moment did I feel a little warmth.

My husband could not be relied on.

My son… had already been led toward another “mother.”

In this world, the only person who could still make me feel safe was my friend.

I swallowed the medicine, my voice low but firm.

“I won’t give in.”

Early the next morning, I received a message from Grandma Tina.

In two days, the core members would return to the forest.

It was an annual gathering. Everyone would return to the forest and have the elders examine their wolves, checking whether long-term city life had made them unstable or weakened.

[I heard from William that you’re out of Moon Prison. This is perfect timing. Have your wolf checked while you’re here.]

Tina had always been kind enough to me.

I had no reason to refuse.

Besides, I owed her a message that I was safe.

Ever since I was locked away, she had been worried about me.

After two days of brief rest, my body had recovered a little, but on the day of departure, my head was still heavy and foggy.

The scent of medicine could not suppress the restless wolf nature stirring inside me.

At noon, I borrowed Celine’s car.

My own car had been forced into sale by William after we got married because he thought the brand was too cheap.

After that, I had always driven one of the cars from William’s garage.

But now that I was divorcing him, I naturally refused to stay entangled with him over things like this.

The car drove into the forest belonging to the Ember Hide Pack.

The urban buildings faded outside the window. I still carried Ember Hide’s mark, so entering the forest was effortless.

In the open-air parking lot, that familiar Cullinan with its sequential plate was parked there.

So he had come back after all.

“Mommy, why are you so late? The test is about to start. You walk as slow as a turtle.”

Rocco poked his head out from behind William, his tone impatient.

I lifted my eyes.

Standing beside William was Ann.

He had actually brought her back for the core members’ wolf-spirit examination?

Was he that eager to announce his new Luna before we were even divorced?

Was this his way of humiliating me in public?

Ann smiled at me.

“Julie, you came at just the right time. The elders’ examination ceremony is still missing a few things. Let’s go help together.”

I smiled.

Since when did this kind of work require the Luna to handle it personally?

Thinking back, I used to cook with my own hands only because I wanted my husband and son to eat well.

But all those efforts had never changed how they saw me.

“Lazy.”

“Useless.”

I didn’t move.

Rocco reached out and shoved me.

“Mommy, hurry up and help Ann! Don’t let her get exhausted.”

William and his mother, Becky, were busy exchanging pleasantries with the other nobles.

Neither of them even looked at me.

I turned and walked toward the small room where the elders were preparing for the wolf-shifting examination.

The cabin was set in a more remote corner.

It was also meant to leave more space for the rest of the pack members.

After urbanization, many members of the pack were scattered across different cities and rarely gathered together, except for a few core families who maintained close cooperation.

As soon as I entered, Ann immediately stuffed a data sheet into my hand.

“This is for Elder Grace. It’s Rocco’s original data. I don’t have time. Help me take it to her.”

I clenched the data sheet at my side.

Barely a second after going in, I came back out again.

I quickly found Elder Grace and handed her the data sheet.

“Julie, you’re back?”

Tina’s voice rang out, loud and clear.

It was Grandma Tina—the one who had always cared for me.

I turned around, and at a glance, I saw two familiar figures slowly walking toward me.

I walked over quickly.

Standing beside her was Adrian. William’s cousin.

He wore a perfectly tailored black suit. The black ring on the index finger of his right hand looked cold and sharp, carrying the chill of moonlight in the dead of night.

My fingertips tightened for a split second.

I hadn’t expected Adrian to come back too.

Not under circumstances like these.

Wasn’t he supposed to have stayed in his own territory all this time?

I greeted him politely.

“It’s been a long time.”

Tina pulled me to her side and asked gently about how I had been recently.

Not far away, the examination had already begun.

Rocco stood between Ann and William.

Anyone who didn’t know the truth would have mistaken them for a happy family of three.

The ritual had only just started.

Suddenly—

“Daddy… it hurts… My bones feel like they’re breaking…”

Rocco’s voice trembled.

The next second, he clutched his head and collapsed to the ground with a heavy thud.

He seized Ann’s arm, his sharp claws digging into her skin and leaving bloody marks behind. His entire body was trembling.

His ears kept shifting back and forth between human and wolf form.

That was a dangerous half-shift state.

If a wolf spirit lost control and could not be suppressed in time, the wolf could very well die on the spot.

Tina rushed over in alarm and demanded, “What happened?”

“I don’t know,” Ann said panickily.

Elder Grace stepped in at that moment.

“Rocco’s body data is wrong. The dosage of the potion I prepared was based on inaccurate numbers. That’s what triggered the wolf inside him to lose control.”

William snatched the data sheet off the table.

His face darkened instantly.

“Who checked this data sheet? The height and weight are off by more than ten units.”

The air froze.

Ann and Elder Grace both looked at me at the same time.

Rocco’s data sheet had indeed passed through my hands.

I released the sleeve I had been clutching this whole time, took a deep breath, and walked over.

The next second, William straightened as if he had finally caught me red-handed. His fury crushed the air around us.

“Julie, you wanted to kill Rocco, didn’t you?”

I looked straight into his rage-filled eyes, my voice turning cold before I even realized it.

“You think I’m cruel enough to hurt a pup?”

“That’s not your first time.”

His tone was icy and vicious.

He stepped closer, lowering his voice, but every wolf present could still hear him clearly.

“Look at you now—filthy and worthless. Instead of embarrassing my family, maybe you should go to the front lines and entertain the warriors as a whore. At least they wouldn’t be picky.”

The entire clearing fell dead silent.

The other pack members stood frozen, watching this farce unfold without daring to make a sound.

Ha.

How disgusting.

Comparing me to a front-line prostitute was more insulting than calling me a bitch.

That was a path only the lowest-ranking Omegas were forced into.

By saying it out loud, he was tearing apart my status in this family in front of everyone.

Blackness pulsed at the edges of my vision.

My wolf nature slammed wildly against my ribs.

I could almost feel my claws pushing beneath my skin, trying to break through my fingertips.

Slowly, I raised my head and stared at him.

“William, you’re so disgusting.”

Every word was forced out through restraint.

“If you really want to see someone entertain the warriors…”

I tugged the corner of my mouth and said softly,

“Why don’t you go yourself?”

“Screw you!”

He cursed, his face flushing red with rage.

No one had ever spoken to him like that before.

Tina was so startled that she quickly reached out to hold William back.

But it was already too late.

Because I understood now.

This family.

These people.

There was not a single thing left here worth staying for.

Only one thought remained in my mind.

Divorce.

No wonder they had insisted I go to that small room to help.

So this had been planned from the beginning.

They had been waiting for me here all along.

The air was filled with the faint metallic scent of wolf blood.

It was the scent of tension, suspicion, and malice twisting together.

I could hear every heartbeat around me.

Especially Ann’s.

That tiny, almost inaudible breath of smugness.

Seeing the situation turn rigid, Tina spoke in a low voice, carrying the authority of an old Luna.

“Julie, we will discuss this later. Right now, Rocco’s safety comes first. You are the Luna. Soothing a frenzied wolf spirit is part of your duty.”

I forced down the emotions surging inside me and had just stepped forward when Rocco’s look of resistance pierced straight through me.

My footsteps stopped.

In the silence, Ann leaned close to William and whispered something in his ear.

Then William walked toward me.

His face was as dark as storm clouds before a downpour, and the pressure of his wolf made the air tremble.

He reached out and grabbed my arm, his grip so hard it felt like he wanted to crush my bones.

“Is what Ann said true?”

His voice was cold enough to freeze the whole room.

“Did you deliberately give the elder the wrong data sheet?”

The denial left my mouth almost on instinct.

“I didn’t.”

But Rocco spoke coldly, his eyes red as he glared at me.

“Mommy, Ann has always been good to me. She’s never hurt me. But you… you hurt her before. Why are you doing this to me now?”

The word “Mommy” came from his mouth, yet it sounded colder than anything a stranger could have said.

My fingertips went numb.

The wolf inside my chest thrashed so violently it felt like she wanted to tear through my ribs.

“I said I didn’t.”

I gritted my teeth and repeated it.

But—

No one wanted to hear me.

One was Ann, the Oscar-winning actress elevated by endless resources and praise.

The other was Julie, a prison wolf who had just crawled out of Moon Prison, covered in stains that would never wash clean.

My identity alone was enough to sentence me.

William sneered.

“Three years in Moon Prison, and you’re still this vicious? Now you’re even using your own child?”