004: THE LUNA.

~~~ELENA~~~

I didn’t remember falling asleep.

All I remembered was staring at the ceiling until the candles exhausted, until my tears dried on my cheeks, and until exhaustion dragged me under despite how hard I fought it.

The sound that woke me was the soft click of the door.

Then the faint rustle of fabric and then the voices of females so I sat up instantly.

Four women slipped into the room, Their movements were synchronized, efficient, and military precise. They wore simple black dresses belted at the waist, and their hair pulled into tight knots. Wolves, every one of them.

Before I could speak, the first one bowed her head. “Forgive us, Luna but the Alpha ordered your preparation to begin before moonrise.”

Luna.

The word hit like a knife.

“I’m not your Luna,” I snapped, clutching the sheet around me.

The tallest of them with pale-eyes, and broad shoulders stepped closer. “With respect, ma’am, the Alpha’s command is absolute.”

Then she nodded to the others.

In one swift motion, two of them reached for me.

“Don’t touch me!” I hissed, twisting away, but their grips were like iron. My protests meant nothing to them as they moved with trained accuracy.

One unwrapped the sheets, and another pulled me toward the bathing. “I said stop!” I struggled, kicking the air, but they didn’t even grunt

The scent of lavender and soap filled the air as they turned on the taps, steam rising around us.

“Release me!”

“We can do this gently, or not,” the lead maid said, her tone respectful but unyielding.

And just like that, I realized they weren’t here as servants. They were soldiers disguised as handmaids.

Tears burned behind my eyes as they stripped away the remnants of the night before piece by piece, until I stood there, trembling, surrounded by strangers.

They bathed me like I was porcelain, careful but firm and I bit the inside of my cheek to keep me from crying out. Every touch, every movement, reminded me of where I was and who had sent them.

When they were done, they dried me in silence.

Then came the gown.

White silk, threaded with gold embroidery that shimmered under the lamplight.

The Luna's ceremonial attire. Regal and sacred.

When I refused to lift my arms, they lifted them for me. When I turned my face away, they adjusted my veil and jewelry anyway.

“You don’t have to do this,” I whispered, my voice shaking.

The lead woman paused just long enough to look me in the eye and there was pity there. “We all do what the Alpha commands, my lady.”

When they were done, I barely recognized the woman in the mirror.

Gold cuffs circled my wrists. My hair was woven with pearls. My face was painted soft and perfect, a stranger’s mask.

I felt nothing but anger.

Just yesterday, I was another man’s wife. His widow.

Antonio would definitely be turning in his grave right now, that is if they would have even buried him yet with the chaos that had erupted earlier.

Then came the final touch of a small pendant placed around my neck. The crest of the Shadowcrest Pack.

My hands trembled as I stared at my reflection. “If he thinks this will make me his again,” I whispered, “then he is more delusional than I thought.”

One of the maids hesitated. “The Alpha waits in the courtyard,” she said softly. “He asked for you to be brought… immediately.”

I closed my eyes, gathering the little strength I had left.

Because I knew this wasn’t just about humiliation anymore.

It was about domination.

About proving that no matter how far I run, I was still bound to him.

And as they led me toward the courtyard, every step echoed like a countdown to a fate I never wanted.

____

The cold night air hit me like a slap as the doors opened.

The courtyard was vast, ringed by torches, banners bearing the shadowcrest, and the towering statues of ancient alphas who had ruled before Darius.

The entire pack was there, hundreds of eyes turned toward me as I stepped into the light. Wolves in human form, warriors, elders, and servants… all watching in silence.

I could feel their judgment like a physical weight.

Every whisper that followed me burned against my skin.

The mate who deserted her Alpha.

The maids guided me forward until I reached the high table.

The Elders.

Five of them, cloaked in silver and white, their expressions cold as ice. Their eyes were hard, and disapproving and it followed my every step.

I didn’t need to read minds to know what they were thinking.

A Luna who abandoned her mate? A woman who defied her title, her duty, her pack?

No one wanted her back.

And yet, here I was.

At the center of it all stood Darius.

Fully cladded in a dark suit with no crown, or symbol. He didn’t need them anyway. Power clung to him like another skin.

When our eyes met, the noise of the crowd seemed to fade. His expression was unreadable, but I saw it. The satisfaction and the certainty.

He extended his hand but I didn’t take it.

A murmur filled the space but before anyone could react, he stepped forward, closing the distance himself.

His hand caught mine firmly, “Walk,” he murmured, low enough for only me to hear.

“Go to hell,” I whispered back.

His smile slow, and dangerous, he said, “Don’t worry. We’re already there.”

He led me to the center, where the ceremonial circle had been drawn in white ash and silver dust.

I froze because I knew once we crossed that line, there was no undoing it.

An elder rose to speak. “Alpha Darius Veylor Thorne,” the old man intoned, his voice carrying through the still air, “You call forth your mate to renew the bond broken by defiance. Do you swear to bind her by blood and soul?”

“I do,” Darius said, his voice low, and certain.

My heart pounded so loud it drowned everything else.

The elder turned to me. “Elena Vale, do you accept the bond, in body and spirit, and claim your place once more as Luna of this pack?”

My lips parted but no sound came out.

Every eye in the pack watched, waiting for me to submit, to bow my head and accept what fate and Darius demanded.

But all I could feel was the tremor in my chest and the cold pain where freedom used to live.

“I…” My voice cracked, breaking under the weight of everything I wanted to say. I wanted to scream that I wasn’t ready, that this bond had already broken me once. But the words died in my throat.

The elder’s expression darkened slightly. “You must speak, Luna,” he urged, his tone low with command.

I am no Luna!

I wanted to scream. To spit it in their faces.

But before I could, Darius took a step forward. The light from the fire caught in his eyes, turning them into molten gold. Unreadable, yet cruelly knowing.

He stopped right before me, close enough that I could feel the warmth of him and the tension burning off his skin. “Careful, Elena,” he murmured, his voice low, “Don’t test how far I’ll go to make you remember who you belong to.”

I frowned, my eyes meeting his gaze. “I don’t belong to anyone,” I hissed.

For a moment, the air between us shook. Then his lips curved. That slow, and dangerous smirk that always meant something wicked.

“No?” he whispered. “Then maybe this will remind you.”

He leaned closer, voice dropping to a growl only I could hear.

“I found your mother.”

Everything inside me froze and the world fell away. The chanting, the fire, the forest… All of it dimmed until only those words echoed in my head.

My breath caught. “You are lying.”

His eyes softened, but only slightly. “Would you like me to bring her here?” he murmured. “She is not far. Fragile old wolf… but alive.”

The crowd saw only the stillness between us, but inside, my heart cracked wide open. The woman I had searched for my entire life. The one he’d just turned into a weapon.

Darius’s fingers brushed a stray lock of hair from my face, deceptively gentle. “Now,” he whispered, his words sinking into me like a curse, “say the words, Elena.”

My throat burned and my pride screamed not to. But the image of my mother… scared, and alone held me captive.

My lips trembled. The tears stung.

“I… I do.”

Before the crowd’s cheer could fade, Darius’s hand slipped behind my neck, his breath hot against my skin.

“You thought vows were enough?” he whispered.

“No, Luna. The moon demands a mark.”

His teeth grazed my shoulder slowly, and deliberately before sinking in.

Pain and heat rushed through me. The kind that burned through bone and memory, flooding every vein with a fire I couldn’t control.

The bond roared to life, ancient and unyielding as the pack howled.

But, me?

I broke.