Chapter 5

Chapter 5 - The voice

The night sky looked almost unreal.

A full blood-red moon hung above the Blackwood Forest, casting its crimson glow across the world. Beneath it, the lake shimmered like a sheet of liquid rubies, every ripple catching the moonlight. The breeze drifting through the trees was soft and intoxicating, but nothing enchanted me more than the scent surrounding me—the scent of my mate.

Yes.

Tonight was our mating night.

For the first time beneath the Blood Moon, we had claimed each other before the Moon Goddess herself. The sacred bond between our wolves pulsed warmly beneath my skin, alive and undeniable.

We lay together on the dew-kissed grass, our bodies dusted with earth from the forest floor. Vaughn’s dark hair was damp with mist, and his golden eyes glowed softly in the fading night. Around us, the forest had fallen silent, as though even the wild creatures knew this moment belonged only to us.

A cool breath of dawn brushed against my bare skin, making me shiver.

Instantly, strong arms drew me closer.

“Cold?” he murmured, his voice rough with affection.

“Maybe a little.”

He smiled against my hair and pressed a lingering kiss near the mark at my neck. The mate mark tingled, sending warmth flooding through my chest. Through our bond, I could feel his wolf—protective, possessive, utterly devoted.

I tilted my head to look at him.

The fierce Alpha who commanded the Northern Territory looked different tonight. The sharp edges of his expression had softened, replaced by something almost tender.

Then warm breaths traced the curve of my neck again.

Vaughn was once more lost in his quiet devotion, his lips brushing my skin with unhurried tenderness. I was already exhausted from the passion we had shared, but he clearly was not.

He still wanted me.

I could feel it in every touch.

“Hey… stop that,” I whispered, barely suppressing a breathless laugh.

He lifted his head slightly, a wicked smile curving his lips. “No. I want more. I want you again.”

His deep voice sent warmth through me despite the cold dawn air. When his golden eyes met mine, my heart stumbled.

Those eyes always saw through me.

In them I found hunger, longing, protectiveness, and a love so fierce it stole my breath away.

Tiny beads of sweat still clung to his forehead, and I knew my own skin mirrored his. The night had been filled with whispered promises, laughter, trembling touches, and a bond that felt older than time itself.

There was nothing between us now—no title, no pack, no duty.

Only him.

Only me.

As the first pale light of dawn spread across the forest, I noticed the fresh mating marks upon our necks—the sacred bites we had given one another beneath the Blood Moon.

They were a declaration written in flesh and soul.

He was finally mine.

And I was finally his.

Mine.

“What?” I whispered when I noticed him staring at me.

He traced my cheek gently with his thumb. “I’m trying to remember this exact moment.”

A soft laugh escaped me. “You sound as though you’re afraid of forgetting.”

“Never forgetting,” he said quietly. “Just wanting forever.”

The honesty in his voice stole my breath.

Moonlight glimmered across the faint marks at his throat and mine, silent proof that our souls had been bound together. No ritual, no council, no rival pack could undo what had happened beneath this moon.

Vaughn rested his forehead against mine.

Mine, he whispered through the bond.

The word wrapped around my heart like a vow.

“And you’re mine,” I answered.

For a while, we simply lay there listening to the lake and the distant howl of wolves beyond the trees. Dawn had begun to soften the horizon, turning the black sky deep violet.

Vaughn’s fingers laced through mine.

“Whatever comes after tonight,” he murmured, “remember this. Remember that under the Blood Moon, before the world changed, I loved you completely.”

I smiled and closed my eyes, letting the bond hum gently between us.

“Diana… come to me. I’ve been waiting.”

The voice slid through my subconscious like a whisper carried by the wind.

Unknown.

Yet terrifyingly familiar.

I jolted awake.

My eyes flew open, and I sat upright with a gasp, my heart hammering violently against my ribs. For a moment, the world spun around me. Then the memories crashed back one after another.

The severance papers.

Vaughn.

Vanessa.

The rogues.

The forbidden Alpha with crimson-gold eyes.

Elara’s betrayal.

My death.

My breath caught in my throat.

I looked around wildly.

No forest.

No rain.

No blood.

No pain.

Instead, soft moonlight filtered through embroidered curtains, and the faint scent of lavender filled the air.

My chest tightened.

I knew this room.

The carved oak wardrobe. The silver vanity. The pale blue curtains my mother had chosen when I was sixteen.

This had once been my room.

Back when I was simply Diana Carter.

Back before I became the Luna of the Nightfang Pack.

Back before Vaughn.

A chill crawled up my spine.

“How…?” I whispered.

Where was Vaughn?

Where was Vanessa?

Panic surged through me. I threw the blanket aside and rushed toward the door. The moment I stepped into the corridor, I collided with someone and fell hard onto the floor.

“Ouch! Diana, where are you running? Can’t you see where you’re going?”

The familiar voice struck me like lightning.

I looked up.

Elara Carter stood above me.

Alive.

Young.

Far younger than the woman who had revealed herself as the traitor in the forest.

For one savage heartbeat, rage consumed me. My wolf lunged against my mind, claws bared, thirsting for vengeance. I nearly grabbed her throat before I forced myself to stop.

This wasn’t right.

Her face was softer, untouched by the bitterness I remembered. Her eyes held annoyance, not guilt.

“Elara?” My voice came out hoarse.

She frowned. “What’s wrong with you?”

I pushed myself to my feet, staring at her as though she were a ghost.

“What are you doing here?”

Now she looked genuinely concerned. “Diana, you asked me to wake you up. We’re leaving for the gathering tonight. Father will be furious if we’re late.”

“The gathering?” I repeated.

“Yes, the Moonveil Gathering. Alphas from every major territory are attending.” She crossed her arms. “Did you hit your head?”

My pulse quickened.

The Moonveil Gathering.

No.

No, that couldn’t be.

I remembered that night.

The chandeliers dripping silver light. The scent of wolves filling the grand hall. The moment my eyes first met Vaughn Nightfang’s across the ballroom.

The night I found my mate.

My stomach twisted.

“Elara,” I said carefully, “what year is it?”

She blinked. “Diana, that’s not funny.”

“What year?”

“Year 328 of the Northern Moon Calendar.” She narrowed her eyes. “Seriously, are you sick?”

The breath left my lungs.

Ten years.

Ten years before my death.

My hands began to shake.

Elara sighed dramatically and pushed me back toward my room. “Stop acting strange and get dressed. Father keeps saying gatherings like this help us find our mates faster.”

Find our mates.

Again.

The words echoed through my skull.

What about Vaughn?

What about the bond we had shared?

What about Vanessa?

My daughter.

A sharp pain stabbed through my chest.

Elara was still talking. “Wear the silver dress. The one Mother likes. If an Alpha notices you tonight, maybe you’ll finally stop hiding in the library all day.”

I barely heard the rest. My mind was drowning in questions.

Had I survived?

Had I been given another chance?

Or had I gone mad in death?

Elara waved a hand in front of my face. “Diana!”

I flinched.

“Get ready,” she huffed. “We leave in half an hour.”

She shut the door behind her, leaving me alone.

Silence swallowed the room.

Slowly, I turned toward the vanity mirror.

My reflection stared back.

But it wasn’t the woman who had died beneath the Blood Moon.

The face in the mirror was younger, untouched by years of grief. My hair fell longer over my shoulders, my eyes held a brightness I had lost long ago, and there was no Luna mark upon my throat.

I looked eighteen.

Exactly as I had on the night of the gathering.

Cold dread pooled in my stomach.

“This isn’t possible.”

I touched the mirror with trembling fingers.

The glass was real.

The girl staring back was real.

A faint whisper brushed my ear.

I told you I was waiting.

I spun around.

No one stood behind me.

Yet the room suddenly felt colder.

The curtains stirred though the windows were closed. Shadows stretched strangely across the floor, and for an instant I caught the scent of wet earth and wild pine—the same forbidden scent that had haunted the forest.

My heart pounded.

“Who’s there?”

No answer.

Only silence.

Then my gaze fell upon the dressing table.

A silver pendant rested there.

My blood turned to ice.

I knew that pendant.

Vaughn had given it to me on our mating night.

I had died wearing it.

With shaking hands, I picked it up.

It was warm.

And engraved on the back were words I had never seen before.

Find me before the Blood Moon rises again.

A violent knock rattled the door.

“Diana!” Elara called impatiently. “Father says we’re leaving in ten minutes!”

I stared at the pendant, my pulse roaring in my ears.

If this was truly the past, then tonight I would meet Vaughn again.

But another terrifying thought slithered through me.

If I was here…

Then someone else might remember too.

The pendant suddenly grew hotter in my palm.

And from somewhere deep within the manor, a man’s voice whispered through my mind once more.

This time, don’t let him find you first.