Chapter Nine: The Luna

Damien's Pov

The wedding suit fit perfectly.

I stood in front of the mirror and looked at a man I didn't recognize. Dark tailored jacket. Silver cufflinks. Hair styled the way Victoria preferred. Everything was in place. Everything was exact.

Everything felt hollow.

"You look good," Klein said from the doorway.

I didn't respond. I just buttoned the jacket and kept my face composed.

Two weeks. It had been two weeks since Lena walked out of the dining room. Two weeks since I had stood in my office and told myself the plan would work. That she would hate me. That the bond would fade. That eventually I would stop feeling like there was a missing piece in my chest.

The bond hadn't faded.

It was screaming.

"Damien," Klein said. He stepped closer. "We should talk about—"

"We shouldn't," I said. "Today is the ceremony.

Klein's expression shifted but he said nothing.

The ceremony grounds blazed with lantern light.

Three hundred wolves had gathered in formal dress. The Elder council stood to the side, faces solemn and approving. My father watched from the front row with an expression of satisfaction — the satisfaction of a man whose plans had come together exactly as he intended.

Victoria arrived like she had been born for this moment.

Silver gown that cost more than most families made in a year. Pearl clips in her dark hair. The kind of composure that came from knowing your entire life had been building toward this one day. She moved through the crowd and took her position at the altar without hesitation.

She looked exactly like what a Luna was supposed to look like.

I took her hand and the ceremony began.

Elder Mara's voice carried across the grounds, speaking the ancient words that bound a Luna to her pack. Victoria stood perfectly still, her hand warm in mine, her expression peaceful. She had trained for this her entire life.

"Do you accept this mate?" Elder Mara asked her.

"I do," Victoria said. Clear. Certain. Like she meant every word.

The Elder turned to me.

"Do you accept this Luna?"

I looked at Victoria. At the woman standing beside me who I felt absolutely nothing for.

"I do," I said.

The words felt like lies.

The light bloomed from the altar, bright and silver and completely real this time. No corruption. No payment. Just the official ceremony sealing Victoria as Luna of Blackridge Pack.

The crowd erupted in cheers.

Victoria smiled and squeezed my hand, not with affection, just acknowledgment. We had both done our job. The alliance was sealed. The pack was stable. The future was secure.

The celebration was in full swing by the time the serving began.

Kitchen staff moved through the crowd with trays of food and wine. I stood beside Victoria, accepting congratulations from other council members, playing my role perfectly.

That was when I realized.

Lena wasn't there.

I scanned the kitchen staff again. The older woman who always brought the wine. The two younger ones who handled the appetizers. The new girl I didn't recognize. But not Lena.

My wolf went completely still.

I ignored him and kept my face composed while my entire body was screaming.

Victoria touched my arm. "Darling, Elder Hale was asking about the territory expansion."

"Of course," I said. I turned back to the Elder and smiled like my fated mate hadn't just disappeared from my awareness in a way that felt like drowning.

The moment I could break away I moved toward the kitchen. Klein followed but I didn't tell him to stop.

Cook was at the counter, preparing the next round of service. She looked up when I entered.

"Alpha," she said. "Is something wrong with the food?"

"Where is Lena?" I asked.

Cook's hands stilled for just a moment. Then she went back to plating, her movements careful and measured.

"She quit," Cook said simply.

The words landed like a physical blow.

My wolf erupted.

Not in anger that was quick and hot. But in rage that was deep and primal and absolutely uncontrollable. He slammed against my ribs so hard I had to grip the counter to stay standing. The counter cracked slightly under my hand.

She was gone.

She had left the pack.

Because of me.

She had walked out of that dining room and realized she couldn't stay in a place where her fated mate would choose someone else over her, over the bond, over everything.

"Thank you," I managed to say to Cook.

I walked out of the kitchen before I could destroy something.

Klein was waiting in the corridor.

"She left," I said.

"I know," he said quietly.

"You knew?"

"I suspected," he said. "The morning after the dinner I went to find her. She was already gone. Her mother confirmed it."

I stopped moving.

"What?"

My wolf was completely silent now.

I turned and walked back toward the celebration where Victoria was laughing with the Elder council, where my father was discussing territory expansion, where everything was exactly as it was supposed to be.

And I realized that I had gotten everything I wanted.

And lost everything that mattered.