Chapter 86: The Pull of the Moon

The forest was hushed as Serena made her way back to the temporary camp alone. She needed the space, the stillness. Every crack of a twig beneath her boots sounded like thunder. Every rustle of leaves whispered the same impossible truth: she was tethered to two men by fate—and breaking at the seams because of it.

Her wolf stirred, restless.

Two mates. One heart. A choice the moon never meant to be this cruel.

When she emerged from the thicket, the moonlight bathed her in silver. She tilted her head toward the sky and closed her eyes, searching for answers in the stars. But the cosmos remained silent, and the ache in her chest only deepened.

"You're thinking too loud."

The voice came from the shadows near the fire. Elias stepped forward, his shirt loose at the collar, eyes tired but steady.

Serena smiled faintly. “You heard that?”

“I felt it.”

He didn’t move closer this time. He just watched her, like he was memorizing the way her lashes caught the light, the way her brows furrowed when she was lost in thought.

“I don’t know how to stop hurting both of you,” she admitted, her voice barely more than a breath. “Every time I think I’m leaning toward one of you, something pulls me back.”

Elias nodded slowly. “Love isn’t always neat. It doesn’t wrap itself in clean choices.”

She stepped forward, bare feet brushing against the soft earth. “I hate that you’ve had to be so patient. That you still are.”

“I’m not patient because I have to be,” Elias said gently. “I’m patient because you’re worth it.”

Her throat closed at his words.

“I saw you with Theron tonight,” he added, his voice quieter now. “And I understood. It wasn’t just history. It was pain. Closure. Maybe something that still lives.”

Serena looked down. “It’s not that simple.”

“No,” he agreed. “But neither are we.”

She looked up then, eyes searching his face. There was no accusation in his expression, no bitterness. Just warmth. And maybe—still—hope.

“I don’t know if this makes me cruel,” she said, “but when I’m with you, I feel… safe. Like the world can fall apart and I’d still be whole.”

He took a step closer. “That’s not cruel. That’s love.”

Serena didn’t stop him when he reached for her hand. This time, she stepped into his space willingly, heart pounding against her ribs like a war drum.

“I’ve waited for a lot of things,” Elias murmured. “But none of them ever felt like you.”

Her breath hitched.

He leaned forward slightly, giving her a moment to move away.

She didn’t.

Their lips met like the softest spark—no fire, just a gentle, reverent heat that built with each heartbeat. Her hands fisted his shirt, and his arms wrapped around her, anchoring her to the earth, to him.

She felt it then—not the pull of the bond, but something quieter, deeper. Choice. Something not born of moonlight or magic. Something wholly hers.

The kiss deepened, her body molding against his, warmth spreading through her like a slow-burning flame. She gasped when he nipped her lower lip, and he responded with a groan that vibrated through his chest.

But just as suddenly, she pulled back, breathless, overwhelmed.

“I—” she placed a hand on his chest, eyes wide with emotion. “I can’t go further. Not yet.”

Elias nodded, resting his forehead against hers. “That’s okay.”

They stood like that for a long time, sharing breath, grounding each other in the silence.

“I need to see Theron tomorrow,” she said softly.

Elias didn’t flinch. “I know.”

“I need to see what’s real… and what’s only memory.”

He brushed a strand of hair from her face. “Do what you need to do. I’ll be here.”

She stared at him for a moment, overwhelmed by the enormity of the moment—and how much she didn’t deserve this man’s patience. But still, he gave it freely.

“Thank you,” she whispered, then turned and disappeared into her tent.

Elias stayed by the fire long after she was gone, staring into the flames, wondering if love alone would be enough in a war between fate and choice.

Elsewhere in the Forest

Theron crouched near the riverbank, watching the water rush past. His wolf form had run until exhaustion forced him back into human skin.

He was unraveling.

When he had returned, he thought reclaiming Serena would be simple. That the bond would draw them back together like a magnetic pull. But nothing had been simple.

Elias had changed everything.

Serena had changed too.

The girl who once clung to his every word was now a woman—fierce, scarred, and full of defiance.

And she was torn.

He closed his eyes, gripping the cold earth beneath his fingers.

“Moon, what have you done?” he whispered.

He’d been raised to believe the mate bond was absolute. That love was pre-written in the stars. But now, watching Serena drift further from certainty, he realized something terrifying:

Maybe love wasn’t about fate at all.

Maybe it was about choice.

And if she chose Elias…

Theron didn’t know if he’d survive it.

Back at Camp

Serena lay awake, the kiss still fresh on her lips, her mind running in endless circles. She remembered the way Elias’s hands felt around her waist. The way her heart had steadied when he whispered her name.

But she also remembered the way her heart had ached when Theron looked at her like she was still the moon in his sky.

Tomorrow would bring a confrontation.

But tonight, all she could do was feel.

And pray that when the time came to choose, she wouldn’t tear herself in two.