Chapter 5

On the day of the Luna Ceremony, Kaelen, for the first time in a long while, came to pick me up himself.

"Estelle, my Luna, you look beautiful today."

He stood at my bedroom door, holding a bouquet of my favorite white roses. He was wearing a custom-tailored black tuxedo, looking as handsome as a god. He was playing the part of the devoted mate, but I knew he hadn't come home last night.

"It will be just the two of us today," he said. "I won't be bringing Cassandra."

I looked at him and said nothing.

"Estelle, I know I've wronged you lately." He reached out to touch my face. "At today's ceremony, I will show the entire werewolf world your honor."

According to wolf tradition, this was the ceremony that would formally make me the Luna of the Black Moon Pack.

The irony was, this would likely be my last day in that role.

His fingers brushed my cheek, and for a fleeting moment, I could almost believe he truly loved me.

"Yes, everything will be alright," I replied with a smile.

Just not the kind of "alright" he was imagining.

The nobility from every corner of the werewolf world had gathered for the Black Moon Pack's grand event. I was dressed in a pure white Luna gown, wearing the Moon Goddess's tiara and holding the silver scepter that symbolized my authority.

"This makes up for it, doesn't it?" he whispered in my ear.

I looked at him, remembering the past. He used to cajole me like this whenever he made a mistake, and I would always soften and forgive him.

But this was different.

He had used my parents as bargaining chips, trampled my dignity underfoot, and auctioned off my most private moments. Even if he offered me the entire world, it wouldn't be enough to make amends. He simply didn't understand that some things could never be fixed.

Halfway through the ceremony, I heard a commotion at the entrance. I turned to see Cassandra standing at the main doors.

All the guests began to whisper.

"Isn't that the Alpha's mistress?"

"How dare she come to the Luna Ceremony?"

Kaelen's face changed instantly. "I told you to stay home."

Her eyes welled with tears. "I… I wanted to be here for the ceremony, to offer Estelle my blessings…"

"I don't want to see you," I said coldly.

But Kaelen had already signaled for an attendant to find Cassandra a seat.

"She came to offer her blessings," he murmured to me. "Just be the bigger person."

Magnanimous. About him bringing his Omega mistress to my sacred Luna Ceremony.

I stood on the altar and heard the officiant's voice ring out. "And now, for the ceremonial Moon Dance, a symbol of their union. Will the Alpha and Luna please take the center of the floor."

Kaelen returned to my side and held out his hand. "Estelle, come."

I took his arm, and we walked to the dance floor. The music began, a traditional hymn to the Moon Goddess. But Kaelen's gaze kept drifting to Cassandra.

She stood in a corner, tears streaming down her face, and then she suddenly clutched her chest, her body swaying as if she were about to faint.

Kaelen stopped dancing instantly.

He hesitated for a second, then turned and walked toward Cassandra.

An Alpha, abandoning his Luna mid-dance at her own ceremony to tend to his mistress. The humiliation was a physical blow, and I felt a blade of ice twist in our mate bond.

Cassandra sank into Kaelen's arms, whispering something weakly. He stroked her hair gently, his eyes filled with concern. This tender scene played out for everyone to see.

"Estelle," one of the Elders approached me, "should we pause the ceremony?"

"No," I lifted my chin. "Continue."

I would not show a single moment of weakness in front of these people.

Half an hour later, Kaelen finally returned.

"Sorry, her blood sugar was low," he said, rejoining me as if nothing had happened.

"It's fine," I said, still smiling. It was the last shred of my dignity as a Luna.

The ceremony continued, but the atmosphere was ruined. Everyone was gossiping about what had just transpired. I had once again become the laughingstock of the werewolf world.

As the ceremony neared its end, tradition required me to walk alone to the altar of the Moon Goddess to receive the final blessing. As I made my way toward it, Cassandra suddenly blocked my path.

"Estelle, I want to say something to you," she said, her voice soft, but her eyes glittering with triumph.

"What is it?"

"Thank you for being so tolerant today," she said, grabbing my hand. "I know you must be angry, but Kaelen was really worried about me."

She raised her voice just enough for those nearby to hear.

"He was holding me in the lounge earlier, telling me how sorry he was. He said he shouldn't have let me see you two being so close, because he was afraid it would break my heart."

She squeezed my hand tightly as she spoke.

"You're so lucky, Estelle, to have an Alpha like that to protect you. Not like me, having to suffer in the shadows…"

The next second, she stumbled backward, deliberately crashing into the display stand holding the sacred Moon Goddess's Chalice. It was a holy relic, passed down for a thousand years, priceless, and a symbol of the Luna's authority.

"Ah!" she screamed as she fell, and the chalice shattered on the ground.

Golden shards flew everywhere, and a few of them cut her cheek.

When Kaelen rushed over, he saw Cassandra collapsed among the pieces of the broken chalice, with me standing over her.

"Estelle!" he roared. "You pushed her and shattered the Goddess's Chalice?!"

"I didn't push her."

His Alpha command slammed into me, forcing me to my knees on the sharp fragments. "You shattered a thousand-year-old sacred relic!"

Cassandra clutched his clothes weakly. "No… don't blame Estelle… It was my fault, I was clumsy…"

"Don't make excuses for her!" Kaelen's eyes were blazing. "This is blasphemy against the Moon Goddess!"

He turned to me, his voice like ice. "Since you shattered the chalice, you will atone for it. With your blood."

He pressed down on my shoulders, forcing me to kneel on the sharp, golden fragments. The shards pierced my knees, and my blood stained my white gown.

"You will kneel here until dawn and repent to the Goddess."