43. Breaking Point.

Lucy’s POV

I didn’t even know what time it was anymore. The mansion walls felt like they were closing in on me, squeezing every bit of sanity out of my skull. The council’s warning kept ringing in my head as if someone had carved the words on the back of my eyelids:

Two weeks… or your title will be stripped.

The mating must be mutual.

The Alpha must feel something—anything—for you.

And then my father—of all people—telling me to “do what must be done.”

Those words burned more than anything the council ever said.

I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t think. The air in my room felt suffocating. I paced back and forth like a caged animal until I suddenly stopped, staring at the wall as a new thought stabbed through me—

Go to him.

A stupid idea. Stupid. But I couldn’t stop myself.

Adrian.

He was the center of this madness. The reason everyone was pulling me apart like a rope in a war. The reason I felt like I was drowning in my own skin.

Before I could talk myself out of it, I stormed out of my room and marched toward his.

The guards at the hallway didn’t even try to stop me—my face must have looked murderous or desperate or probably both.

My heart hammered as I reached his door.

I didn’t knock.

I barged in.

Adrian, who had been shirtless and sorting through documents on his table, jerked up and spun around. His eyes widened as he saw me.

“Lucy?” He frowned. “What the hell?”

I slammed the door behind me. My breath shook with panic, embarrassment, anger—everything mixed together until I couldn’t tell one feeling from the other.

“We need to talk,” I said, trying to steady my voice.

He sighed, rubbing his forehead like I was a burden he wasn’t ready to deal with tonight. “It’s late, Lucy.”

“I don’t care.”

He stopped. His eyes softened—just a little—at the desperation in my voice.

I took a breath and walked closer. “The council summoned me today.”

He stiffened at that.

“They said I have two weeks to bond with you or risk losing my general title… my birthright, the Luna's title.” My throat tightened. “Adrian… if I lose those, the kingdom loses stability. Wolves get restless. Packs break. You know what that means.”

His jaw tightened, but he remained quiet.

I hated that silence. I hated how he could shut down like that, become unreadable in a heartbeat.

“And they said the mating ritual must be mutual,” I whispered. “We both have to… feel something or it won’t work.”

Nothing.

Only the faint clench of his jaw.

I swallowed. “I’m begging you… don’t let them take my title. Please, Adrian. Please.”

His eyes flicked to the floor, then back to me as if he was fighting every instinct not to explode.

“Lucy…” he exhaled. “This is exactly why we’re in this mess.”

I shook my head quickly. “No. No, listen. We don’t even have to… do anything deep. Just the basic—”

“Stop.”

His voice cut through mine sharply.

But I didn’t stop.

I moved closer, my knees hitting the floor before I even realized it.

I bowed my head—a humiliating gesture for a future Luna, for someone raised with pride and power. But I didn’t care. Pride felt useless when your life was dangling on a single thread.

“Adrian, please.” My voice trembled. “Just… just accept me. Just agree. Just let us mate so everything can calm down. I don’t want to fight you anymore.”

He stared at me like he couldn’t believe what he was seeing.

“Lucy, get up,” he said, his voice flat with shock.

I shook my head. “I’m not standing until you answer me.”

His expression hardened.

“Lucy, I said get up.”

“No.”

This time he stepped back from me—as if my desperation startled him more than an actual threat would have. His breathing deepened, and he ran a hand through his hair in frustration.

“This isn’t right,” he muttered.

“Why?” I demanded. “Why is it not right? It solves everything. The council will back off. My father will back off. The packs will calm down. You won’t be questioned. We won’t be questioned.”

“You don’t get it.”

“Then explain!”

He dropped his hands and stared directly into my eyes. For once, he didn’t hide behind that cold Alpha mask.

“Because wolves...alphas don’t mate out of pressure, Lucy,” he said quietly. “We mate out of instinct.”

My throat tightened painfully.

“It’s natural for us to not bed someone we feel no desire for,” he continued. “You know that. You were raised on the same teachings.”

Every word stabbed deeper.

“And right now?” He held my gaze. “I don’t feel that for you.”

The world went quiet.

The floor felt like it vanished beneath me.

I didn’t cry.

I didn’t scream.

I just stared at him, numb.

“I’m not saying you’re not beautiful,” he added quickly, almost defensively. “You are. But I’m not drawn to you. And it’s not something I can force. Not something you should force.”

His rejection wrapped around my ribs like a tight band.

“So I’m disgusting to you?” I whispered.

“No,” he said firmly. “That’s not what I said.”

“Feels like it.”

He sighed. “Lucy… just have some self-respect. You shouldn’t beg someone to want you.”

The words were gentle.

But they hurt more than if he shouted.

Slowly, I pushed myself off the floor. My legs felt like wet paper. My throat felt raw.

“You think I don’t have self-respect?” I whispered.

“I didn’t say that.”

“You implied it.”

He stepped forward. “Lucy—”

“No,” I said quietly. “It’s fine.”

I wiped my palms on my robe, trying to steady my breathing. I didn’t want him to see how deeply that rejection cut through me.

I looked around his room, not really seeing anything. My thoughts were spinning too fast, too loud.

My father’s warning.

The council’s threat.

Adrian’s rejection.

Everything collided into a single terrifying realization:

Maybe the only way out of this mess is to stop asking for Adrian’s help… and take control of everything myself.

Not for the council.

Not for my father.

Not even for the kingdom.

But for me.

For revenge.

For power.

I turned toward the door.

“Lucy,” Adrian said behind me. “Don’t leave like this.”

I didn’t look at him.

If I did, I might fall apart.

“It’s fine,” I repeated, my voice steady even though every part of me was shaking inside. “I understand.”

I opened the door.

“But two weeks,” I said quietly. “After that… things will change.”

And before he could ask what I meant, I walked out.

Not toward safety.

Not toward clarity.

But toward the one path I never thought I would consider:

Doing exactly what my father wanted.

Not to please him.

Not to please the kingdom.

But because Adrian made me realize something I never wanted to admit—

If he wouldn’t claim me…

Then I would claim destiny myself.

Even if it meant war.

Even if it meant blood.

Even if it meant becoming someone he would finally regret rejecting.

I walked down the hallway, my heart burning, my thoughts darkening—

Maybe I will agree to what my father wants.

Not for them.

But for me.

---

Adrian’s POV

I stood frozen long after she left.

The door slowly swung shut, and the silence that filled the room felt suffocating.

What the hell just happened?

Lucy—proud, sharp-tongued, stubborn-as-hell Lucy—fell to her knees and begged me.

Begged.

My stomach twisted with a guilt so sharp it felt like claws.

“Damn it,” I muttered, slamming my palm on the table.

When she came in—eyes wide and desperate—I didn’t expect her to drop all her pride and bow.

That image wouldn’t leave my head.

But what was I supposed to do?

Lie to her?

Pretend I wanted her?

Pretend the bond existed when it didn’t?

No.

I couldn’t force it.

And I wouldn’t let her force it either.

Wolves don’t mate out of fear or orders.

And Lucy—despite everything—didn’t deserve a loveless bond chained by politics.

But seeing her face crumble when I rejected her…

I inhaled sharply and rubbed my forehead.

Everything was unraveling. The council. The palace tension. The whispers. The pressure on her.

And now this.

I hated politics.

I hated the council.

I hated how all of this was pushing her to the edge.

But most of all?

I hated the way she looked at me before walking out—like I had shattered something inside her.

My wolf paced restlessly in my chest, uneasy.

“She’s going to do something reckless,” I muttered.

I didn’t know why, but I felt it.

Felt it deep in my bones.

Lucy wasn’t the type to break, but she was the type to snap.

Her father’s influence.

The council’s threats.

Her pride wounded.

Her fear hidden under all that stubbornness.

And now she was walking straight into something dangerous, I could feel it.

I should go after her.

Stop her.

Make sure she didn’t make a stupid decision she’d regret.

But my feet stayed rooted to the floor.

Because the truth echoed loud in my mind:

I can protect her from everything… except her own choices.

I sank onto the edge of the bed, running both hands through my hair.

Two weeks.

Two weeks before everything falls apart.

Two weeks before Lucy either saves her title…

or loses everything.

And I?

I didn’t know where I stood anymore.

All I knew was the guilt wasn’t leaving anytime soon.

“Lucy…” I muttered under my breath. “What are you planning?”

But there was no answer.

Only silence.

And a sinking feeling that whatever she chose next…

would change everything.