The Moon Goddess Never Lies

The room became deathly silent.

Beta Lucas stood rigidly in the doorway, his chest heaving, his breathing uneven as though he had sprinted across the entire estate.

Buck's dark expression instantly hardened into stone. "The Mate Recognition Ceremony?" he repeated, his deep voice heavy with suspicion.

"Yes, Alpha," Lucas said, bowing his head in a display of practiced deference. "Alpha Damon formally requests the presence of every visiting Alpha and dignitary in the Grand Hall immediately."

Buck's piercing blue eyes narrowed into dangerous slits. "The ceremony wasn't on today's official council agenda."

"The Alpha Council unanimously agreed to move the schedule forward," Lucas replied, carefully avoiding eye contact with me. "They are waiting."

Something about his curt, hurried answer felt terribly wrong.

Buck noticed the shift, too. He took a slow, deliberate step toward the doorway. "The Alpha Council... or Alpha Damon?"

Lucas hesitated for a fraction of a second, a bead of sweat tracing his temple. "My Alpha merely carried out the Council's wishes."

Buck held his gaze for another heavy, silent second before turning away. "We'll be there."

Lucas bowed once more and rapidly disappeared down the quiet corridor.

The moment the heavy door swung shut, the room plunged into an uncomfortable silence.

Buck turned back toward me, his broad frame blocking the lingering candlelight. "Do you know what this ceremony entails?"

I nodded slowly, keeping my hands folded tightly over my torn dress. "It's held every year during the autumn summit."

He waited, his intense gaze probing mine.

"When young wolves reach the age of finding their mates, the Council offers sacred prayers to the Moon Goddess before the evening banquet begins."

"And?"

I lowered my eyes to the floorboards, my voice barely audible. "Sometimes... the Moon Goddess directly reveals fated mates through the ancient stones."

Buck's jaw tightened until the muscles strained. "So you knew."

"I know the pack traditions, Alpha."

"No," his voice dropped into a quieter, far more intimate register. "You knew what happened the exact moment our eyes met earlier today."

My bruised fingers curled tightly against the rough fabric of my skirt. There was no point in denying the truth any longer.

"Yes."

Buck exhaled a slow, heavy breath. For the first time since we had met, a flicker of raw uncertainty crossed his harsh features—not anger, not arrogant pride, but profound uncertainty.

Before either of us could speak another word, Ravi knocked softly against the doorframe and stepped into the suite. "The Council is assembling in the high gallery, Alpha."

Buck gave a short, rigid nod. "We're coming."

The Grand Hall looked completely transformed from the afternoon.

Hundreds of towering beeswax candles illuminated the ancient stone arches, casting flickering shadows against the walls. The broad silk banners of every visiting pack hung proudly from the high ceiling, swaying gently in the draft.

Line upon line of Silver Moon warriors stood in polished armor along the perimeter, while house servants stood in quiet rows near the service doors, heads bowed low.

At the far end of the marble hall, the Alpha Council sat behind a massive circular table carved from dark oak.

Damon stood alone beside the ceremonial stone altar. His expression was cool and smooth—far too calm. When his dark eyes cut across the room and found me, a faint, sinister smile touched his lips.

It was a smile that made my stomach twist into a violent knot. He was orchestrating something lethal, and I could feel the trap closing around us.

Buck stepped into the hall flanked by Ravi and Bobby Nash. Conversations immediately hushed, the gathered crowd parting to let the Ironclaw delegation pass.

One by one, the visiting Alphas took their designated seats at the high table. Buck remained standing near the front, his arms folded over his broad chest. His gaze flickered toward me for a single second before he forced himself to look away, yet the magnetic pull vibrating between us only grew stronger with every passing breath.

Bobby leaned toward Buck, keeping his voice down beneath the quiet murmur of the crowd. "You're distracted again, Evan."

Buck didn't answer, his eyes fixed on the central altar.

"You already know what's coming, don't you?" Bobby pressed gently.

Buck's jaw set into iron. "I know what I felt."

"And?"

"I don't accept it," Buck growled under his breath.

Bobby let out a soft, tired sigh. "The Moon Goddess does not make mistakes, Evan."

Buck stared straight ahead, his voice cold. "What if this time... she did?"

At the center of the grand hall, Damon raised both hands, commanding absolute silence.

"My esteemed friends, Alphas, and allies," his powerful voice echoed flawlessly off the marble walls. "Tonight, before we celebrate our great alliance, we gather to honor the Moon Goddess who guides our bloodlines."

The vast chamber fell dead silent.

"For centuries, she has blessed our people with strength, wisdom..." Damon paused, his dark eyes gleaming under the candlelight. "...and fated mates."

One by one, several young wolves stepped forward to touch the ceremonial stone. The traditional ceremony proceeded as it always did—some stones flared with faint, warm colors, while others remained dark. Some young wolves smiled with relief; others looked crushed, bowing before returning to their ranks.

Minutes bled into one another.

Then, Damon took a deliberate step forward toward the altar, his voice rising above the crowd. "There is one final wolf who must step forward tonight."

Every head in the hall turned in confusion.

My heartbeat quickened until it echoed like thunder in my ears.

"No..." I whispered, shrinking back against the stone column.

Damon's cruel smile widened. "Athena Grant."

The entire hall instantly erupted into shocked, scandalized whispers.

"The servant?"

"Why would a disgraced girl be called to the altar?"

"She isn't even worthy to stand on the sacred stone!"

My legs felt like lead, refusing to move.

Beside me, Beta Lucas violently grabbed my upper arm, digging his fingers into my bruises. "The Alpha called your name, girl. Move."

He shoved me forward. Slowly, agonizingly, I walked down the long aisle toward the central altar. Every single step felt heavier than the last, hundreds of judgment-filled eyes burning into my skin.

When I reached the marble platform, Damon looked down at me with an expression of false, sickening sympathy. "Raise your hand, Athena."

I obeyed, my bare arm trembling violently.

An ancient pack Elder stepped forward and placed the heavy, raw Moonstone directly into my blood-stained palm.

For one terrifying heartbeat, its pale silver surface remained completely dull and cold.

Then... suddenly—

CRACK-FLASH!

The Moonstone exploded with a blinding, brilliant burst of pure white light.

Audible gasps erupted across the high hall.

The divine light surged through the entire chamber like a physical wave, illuminating every dark corner of the ancient architecture. Never in the recorded history of the Silver Moon Pack had a Moonstone burned with such devastating brilliance.

Every single Alpha at the high table bolted to their feet.

Bobby's eyes widened in sheer disbelief. Ravi stared at the glowing artifact with jaw-dropped shock. Even Buck looked completely stunned, his posture rigid.

The searing beam of silver light stretched outward from my hand, shooting straight across the marble floor... through the crowd... and locked directly onto Evan Buckley's chest.

Then, the blinding light vanished, leaving only a lingering haze in the air.

Dead silence descended upon the room. No one dared to speak. No one needed to.

Every single wolf in the hall understood precisely what the Moon Goddess had just revealed.

Buck slowly looked up, his piercing blue eyes locking onto mine with an intensity that shook me to my core.

Damon watched him carefully, drinking in the chaos. Then, with the faintest, most malicious smile imaginable, he spoke into the silent room, his voice carrying effortlessly to every ear:

"So..."

He paused, letting the humiliation sink deep into the air.

"...it seems the legendary Alpha Evan Buckley has been given a filthy, murderous servant as his fated mate."

The grand hall erupted into a deafening storm of shocked murmurs and outrage.

Buck stood perfectly still in the center of the storm, his face unreadable. Every single pair of eyes in the room was now pinned on him—waiting to see what one of the most ruthless Alphas in North America would do next.