Chapter 3

Damian:

“She’s awake.” One of the maids said, approaching me. She hired her, head bowed, waiting for me to dismiss her. I simply nodded at her and watched as she took a step back.

The words drifted lazily through the air as I stood on the training grounds, the scent of steel and sweat clinging to the cold morning wind.

The last thing that I wanted to concern myself was her being awake. The last thing that I wanted to bother myself with was even her name. She was not a person that I wanted to associate myself with, not anymore. And I was well aware that she knew that. Technically speaking, I never wanted to associate myself with her. It was a simple alliance that needed to happen.

I didn’t look up from the blade in my hand. I didn’t need to.

So what if she was awake?

It was not like her being around me came of any benefit. It gave me more of a headache than a benefit to had to admit.

Astrid Vale had a way of clinging to life like a thorned weed. It didn’t surprise me that she’d dragged herself out of unconsciousness just to be difficult again. It was something that I knew that she would be more than willing to do, to simply catch attention, to drift off where she was not needed. I wanted nothing more than to find myself pushing her away. And yet I knew that my duties came first.

Still, the words settled in the back of my mind like a persistent itch. I kept my eyes on the steel for a moment too long before setting it down.

Lorenzo, my Beta, stood beside me, arms crossed and an eyebrow raised as he observed the shifting warriors before us. “Two days unconscious and not a scratch on her. You sure you didn’t push her just a little too hard? I would assume that she at least needed a break, but she would have talked about it. She is not the type to stay quiet, is she?”

I gave him a sideways glance. “If I had, she wouldn’t have woken up at all. I think that you of all people know the games that Astrid likes to play. Person like her is not to be trusted.”

He chuckled. “Fair. Still, you’d think you’d at least ask how she is. She is your mate… technically. The two of you are betrothed for one another. You might as well try and make an effort.”

“Technically,” I echoed dryly, sheathing my blade. “But the bond doesn’t mean anything. It never did. Being betrothed to her means nothing to me. She is nothing more than a duty and it is one that I need to take care of. Once it is done, I do not need to find myself being around her.”

Not with her.

Not with the woman who manipulated her way into my life for status, who wore the Luna title like a crown made of poison. She was not the woman that I wanted to be with. She was not the woman that I intended to live my life with.

Astrid Vale was a mistake. One I intended to correct, soon. I just needed to find the proper Luna and I needed to find the main reason behind me wanting to push her away, otherwise she wouldn't be leaving. A person like her would just keep fighting.

I turned away from the sparring warriors and headed toward the main house, more out of routine than interest. If she was awake, she’d come find me eventually. She always did. It was not like she would be staying away for long, she would simply want to come just to attract my attention.

But this time, she didn’t come storming into my office demanding attention or screeching about why I hadn’t visited her bedside. This time, and for the first time, things seemed to be quiet and different.

This time, there was silence. There was peace. A certain piece that I did not even remember existed within our pack since she approached it. Since she was fated as my Luna.

Hours passed.

The snow thickened outside the windows, but still, no Astrid.

I was halfway through reviewing the patrol rotations when the doors finally opened. She did not bother knocking on the door, but I could tell that she was calm as she did. I did not expect her to knock on the door, most likely because she knew that I was well aware that she was by the door.

She stepped into the room with quiet grace, her hands folded neatly in front of her, her shoulders squared. There were no jewels in her hair, no scowl on her lips.

And when she met my gaze, something was different.

Her eyes were the same shade of pale blue, but they held none of the usual fire. No contempt. No manipulation. No anger.

No demand.

And more importantly, no lies.

I stared at her for a long moment. She didn’t fidget. She didn’t glare. She didn’t speak first.

“Astrid,” I said, voice measured.

“Damian.” Her tone matched mine, calm, respectful. Controlled.

That was new.

Too new.

Lorenzo, seated behind me at the corner of the room, actually straightened in his chair. I didn’t blame him.

This wasn’t the woman we were used to. This was not the woman that I knew. This was not the woman who I was betrothed to.

“I heard you collapsed,” I continued slowly. “And now you’re standing.”

“Yes,” she said simply. “It seems I recovered. The pack doctors still say that I need to rest. Else everything is all right.”

No complaints. No theatrics.

I narrowed my eyes slightly. “Don’t tell me you’re turning over a new leaf. I would have assumed that you would come here with an attitude.”

A small, tight smile tugged at her lips. “Would it matter if I was? I doubt that there is need for an attitude. You asked the question, I simply answered and I was told by one of the maids that you have called for me. You wanted me or at least wanted to see me when I woke up.”

I had no answer for that.

She stood there, waiting, not nervously, but patiently. As if I were the stranger in the room, not her.

The silence stretched. She made no move to approach me, to touch me, to provoke me like she usually did.

Finally, I nodded once. “Good. Now that you are on your feet, I would assume that you know that you need to go back to your responsibilities. You may feel free to roam back and tend to your duties. Whatever they may be.”

I turned back to my desk, dismissing her without looking again.

I expected a huff. A scoff. Some bitter retort.

But the door opened and closed behind her without a sound.

Lorenzo leaned forward, brows drawn. “What the hell was that? And don't tell me that you did not notice the change in her, because this has been as clear as day.”

“I don’t know,” I murmured, staring at the papers in front of me though I hadn’t read a word. “Trust me, I really don't know…”

Because for the first time since I met Astrid Vale…

I wasn’t sure who exactly had just stood before me.

"Call the doctor and tell them to check up on her. Let me know what the response is going to be. She might have hurt her head or something." I instructed Lorenzo, and he then left the room immediately.

There is no way in hell she changed all of a sudden.