Marked

Elsa’s Pov

The hall had begun to empty, though the laughter of guests still drifted from the courtyard. My arms ached from serving, my throat dry as dust, but I refused to falter. Convocation day had ended in Crystal’s triumph. tonight, she was restless. And I was her favorite target.

“Elsa,” her sharp voice cut across the hall.

I froze where I stood, clutching a tray of empty goblets. Every guest, every maid, every warrior still lingering in the room turned toward me at once.

“Come here,” she ordered.

I swallowed hard, forcing my feet to move. My steps echoed in the vast space as I approached the dais where she lounged beside Caleb, her golden gown glittering in the candlelight.

When I reached her, she smiled sweetly, the kind of smile that promised pain.

“You looked distracted earlier,” she said lightly, though her eyes were like knives. “Were the tasks too heavy for you? Or…” Her gaze sharpened. “…were you watching someone you shouldn’t?”

My stomach dropped.

Had she seen?

“Answer her,” Caleb said coldly, his voice carrying through the hall. He leaned back in his chair, unreadable, but his eyes pinned me like a predator cornering prey.

I lowered my head. “No, Luna. I was only serving as ordered.”

Crystal’s nails clicked against her goblet. “Lies.” She stood, her gown whispering across the marble. “I saw your face when the Red Claw Alpha entered.”

The air in the hall shifted. Murmurs rippled across the guests who lingered near the doors. Red Claw Alpha. My chest tightened.

Crystal’s smile widened. “Should I test your loyalty, Elsa? Should I prove to everyone that you’re still the pathetic girl who thought she deserved Caleb’s side?”

She raised her hand. “Kneel. Right here. In front of everyone.”

Gasps echoed. Amy growled in my chest, thrashing. Don’t. Don’t bow to her again.

I clenched my fists. My knees shook, but before I could decide, a voice cut through the hall like a blade.

“Enough.”

The sound silenced the room.

Every head turned.

Dylan stood at the far end of the hall, tall and commanding, his dark eyes fixed on Crystal. The torches seemed to burn brighter against his shadow.

“You will not touch her,” he said, voice low but powerful.

Crystal’s face drained of color. “Alpha Dylan… this is not your concern…”

He moved before she could finish, striding through the hall with the confidence of a predator. Warriors shifted uneasily, but none dared block his path.

When he reached me, he didn’t hesitate. Strong arms swept me off my feet, lifting me as if I weighed nothing.

Gasps and whispers exploded around us.

“Put her down!” Crystal shrieked, her composure shattering.

Caleb surged to his feet, fury flashing across his face. “What do you think you’re doing, Dylan?”

Dylan’s gaze never wavered. He looked only at me, his grip steady and protective. His scent wrapped around me power, danger, something that set my wolf howling with joy.

Mate. Ours. Claim him.

I shook my head weakly, heart racing. “No… not here, not like this…”

But my wolf surged, drowning me out.

Dylan lowered his head, his breath brushing my ear. “I told you. Survive. Fight. Now you’re mine.”

And before I could stop him, his lips crashed against mine.

The world froze.

His kiss was fire, scorching through every wound, every scar I carried. Amy roared in triumph, clawing to the surface. My body trembled, caught between shock and surrender.

Then, sharp heat seared into my neck.

I gasped as his fangs pierced my skin, sinking deep.

The bond snapped into place with a force that nearly shattered me. A tidal wave of sensation power, belonging, home flooded through me. Amy howled, exultant.

Mate. Marked. Ours forever.

I clutched his shoulders, dizzy, the world spinning.

When he pulled back, blood glistened on his lips, his eyes glowing with possessive fire.

Chaos erupted.

“She’s marked—!” someone cried.

“By Dylan, the Red Claw Alpha!”

“This is madness!”

Crystal’s scream split the air. “No! No, she’s nothing….she’s mine to command!”

Caleb’s voice thundered over hers. “Dylan, you’ve gone too far!” His fists clenched, fury blazing in his eyes. For the first time since he cast me aside, there was emotion in his face jealousy, rage.

Dylan’s head turned slowly, his gaze locking with Caleb’s. “You had your chance. You threw her away. Now she belongs to me.”

The words fell like stones into the silence that followed.

I shook, torn between disbelief and the bond that burned hot and unbreakable in my veins. Marked. Claimed. The richest, most feared Alpha in the region had chosen me.

But the hall was against me.

Warriors shifted, guests whispered furiously, elders looked scandalized.

“She can’t be Luna of Red Claw..she’s a servant here…”

“She’s disgraced…”

“It’s an insult to the Crescent Moon Pack!”

Crystal’s eyes glittered with venom. “You’ve ruined everything,” she spat, pointing at me. “You planned this, didn’t you? You seduced him, you…”

Dylan’s growl silenced her, deep and dangerous. “Careful.”

Caleb stepped down from the dais, his expression dark, deadly. “You think you can walk into my hall and take what’s mine?”

The words sliced through me. What’s mine. Not who I was. Not what I meant. Just possession.

Dylan’s arms tightened around me. “She was never yours. You treated her like dirt beneath your boots. But I see her. And now she’s mine in truth.”

The bond pulsed in agreement, my wolf trembling with fierce joy. But I… I was drowning.

My gaze flicked between them.. Caleb’s fury, Dylan’s possessiveness, Crystal’s hatred, the pack’s shock.

I had wanted freedom. I had wanted strength. But now, marked in front of the entire pack, my fate had been sealed in a way I had never imagined.

The hall erupted in shouting as elders demanded explanations, warriors prepared for conflict, and guests argued about alliances and insults.

But all I could hear was the echo of Dylan’s words.

Now you’re mine.