MasukChapter 24
SERAPHINAI felt like dirt.I felt like sin that needed to be cleansed.I felt used like a thing that needed to be discarded.The moment Leone left, the air in the room felt heavier. My skin burned where his eyes had been. My body still remembered the way he had looked at me, the way he had made me lose control.I hated it. I hated that somewhere deep inside, I had liked it. I liked his dark, dominating way of punishing me whilEpilogueInto the UnknownSERAPHINAIt was dead in the night. The kind of darkness that swallows everything whole and leaves no trace behind. The dungeon was silent except for the occasional drip of water somewhere in the distance.I sat on the cold stone floor, my back pressed against the equally cold wall. The chill had long since seeped into my bones but I barely felt it anymore. My body had gone numb hours ago.Had I made the right decision?The question circled endlessly in my mind. Rejecting the mate bond, choosing death over submission and eaving Cassandra behind.Was I brave or was I just a coward running away from a life I could not handle?Before I could think it through properly, I heard movement in the corridor outside my cell.I stood up immediately, my heart racing. Were they coming for me already? Was this the execution?I moved to the bars and tried to see what was happening but the darkness was too thick. I could not make out anything.Footsteps hurried towards my
Chapter 189The Final ChoiceSERAPHINAThe silence after my words was deafening.Everyone in the arena stared at me like I had just signed my own death warrant.Which I suppose I had.I turned to Lucien, my voice steady despite the tears streaming down my face. "I gladly accept death rather than living like a pawn in your twisted game."Leone stepped forward, his expression shifting from shock to something that looked almost like panic. "You cannot be serious. Take it back. Take the rejection back right now.""I am completely serious."Reginald moved closer as well. "This is not a joke, Seraphina. If you reject the bond, you will die. We will all die.""Good. Let the prophecy fail. Let your bloodline end. I do not care anymore.""You are being irrational—""I am being honest for the first time in my life. I am tired of this existence you forced me into. I am tired of you both. I am rejecting the bond and I am going to die. The prophecy can go to hell for all I care."Someone grabbed m
Chapter 188The RejectionSERAPHINAI stared at them in complete shock. My mind could not process what I had just heard. What they had just said.Mate.They had called me their mate.Both of them.I turned to my father, desperate for some explanation. "This is some kind of joke, right? Please tell me this is a joke."My father just looked at me with confusion and fear written all over his face. He had no answers. No reassurance to offer."Seraphina, do not do anything stupid." Freya's voice was urgent, worried.I turned on her. "Anything stupid? Like what exactly?""I do not know. Just stay calm. Do not make a scene.""Did you not hear what they just said? They called me their mate. Both of them. How can I be mated to these vile, cruel twins?""I know, but—""No. There is no but. This is wrong. This is impossible."I stood up, needing to move, needing to do something other than sit there while everyone stared at me.As I stepped down from the platform, my eyes caught on someone in the
Chapter 187The Bond RevealedAUTHORLeone stood in the centre of the circle, his ceremonial duties complete. The twenty new pack members had been marked and sworn in. The ritual should have been finished.But then something changed.His entire body went rigid. Stiff as a board. Like someone had run electricity through him.Beside him, Reginald experienced the exact same reaction. One moment he was standing calmly, the next his whole frame locked up tight.Both brothers froze mid-movement. Their heads jerked up simultaneously as if struck by the same bolt of lightning.Leone's breathing turned harsh and ragged. Animal sounds escaped his throat. Not quite growls but not human either. His chest heaved with the effort of trying to control whatever was happening to him.Reginald was making similar noises. His hands clenched into fists at his sides, knuckles white with tension.The arena, which had been loud with celebration just seconds ago, fell completely silent. Every single person
Chapter 186The ClaimingSERAPHINAThe chanting stopped abruptly. The field fell into complete silence. Even the wind seemed to hold its breath.Then Leone stepped forward into the centre of the circle. He was in his human form again, dressed in ceremonial robes that marked him as the Alpha King. The moonlight caught on the fabric, making him look almost otherworldly.This was the final ritual. The initiation.I had heard about this ceremony but never witnessed it. New Lycans who had recently received their wolves would be formally welcomed into the pack.Leone's voice rang out clear and strong across the field. "Step forward, those who have been called by the moon."Twenty Lycans moved from the outer circle into the centre. They looked young, most of them probably in their late teens or early twenties. Their faces were a mixture of pride and nervousness."You stand before me tonight as new members of our kind. You have felt the moon's pull. You have received your wolves. You have
Chapter 185The Moon's PullSERAPHINA"Are you ready for the Moon Ceremony tonight?"Freya's voice pulled me from my thoughts. I had been staring out the window for the past hour, watching the sun sink lower towards the horizon.I did not answer immediately. Something felt wrong. Like there was a storm building inside me that I could not name or control."Seraphina? Did you hear me?""I do not want to go.""What? You have to go. You are the Luna. Everyone will expect you to be there."I turned to look at her, my expression flat. "How convenient being the Luna. As if I did not catch my husband with my cousin three days ago. But sure, let me play the perfect wife for the pack."Freya's face fell. "I know things are difficult right now. But skipping the ceremony will only make everything worse.""How could things possibly get worse?"She did not have an answer for that.I closed my eyes and let my mind drift back to the family meeting the day after I had returned to the palace.***FLAS







