The gates of Silverfang Pack territory loomed ahead like jail bars. Tall iron spikes reached toward the darkened sky as the SUV slowed. Guards stepped forward, their eyes widening when they spotted Aurelia. "Alpha has returned with his mate," Kane stated from the driver's seat. Aurelia's stomach twisted. There was no going back now. The car rolled through huge grounds filled with stone buildings. Werewolves stopped to stare as they passed. Some pointed. Others whispered behind their hands. "They're all looking at me," Aurelia mumbled. Cazriel didn't even look her way.
"They've waited five years for their Alpha to find a Luna." "Lucky them," she said bitterly. The car stopped before an enormous house carved from gray stone. It looked cold and unwelcoming , just like its boss. "We're here," Cazriel said, stepping out. Instead of opening her door, he walked around and yanked it open himself, as if he didn't trust her not to bolt. Smart man. Aurelia stepped out, her legs shaky after the long drive. The air here smelled different – like wealth and power and secrets. Werewolves grouped in a half-circle, keeping a respectful distance. Their curious eyes burned into her skin. Aurelia fought the urge to hide behind Cazriel's big back. A woman with silver-streaked black hair approached, her face a careful mask of kindness. "Alpha, welcome home," she said, her eyes sliding to Aurelia. "Is this...?" "My mate," Cazriel stated, his voice carrying across the courtyard. "Aurelia Mooncrest, daughter of Alpha Alder Mooncrest. She is your Luna now." Whispers exploded like wildfire. "Mooncrest?"
"The disgraced Alpha's daughter?"
"The one whose sister drowned?"
"A rogue as our Luna?" Aurelia's cheeks burned. Of course they knew. Everyone knew the story of how Lyanna died and how Aurelia ran away. The silver-haired woman stepped forward and bowed stiffly. "Welcome, Luna. I am Beta Thalia. I run the home." Cazriel's hand closed around Aurelia's wrist. "Thalia will show you to your quarters after I make the formal announcement." Before Aurelia could argue, he pulled her up the stone steps of the mansion. At the top, he turned to face the gathered crowd. "Hear me," he called, his Alpha voice making the air tremble. "The Moon Goddess has blessed Silverfang with a Luna. Aurelia is my mate and your Luna. You will respect her as you respect me." His words held power, but Aurelia noticed something missing – kindness. He spoke of her like she was a new weapon in his arsenal, not a lover. A tall man with a nasty scar cutting through his eyebrow pushed through the crowd. "Alpha, a word?" Cazriel's jaw clenched. "Not now, Darius." "But the Council meeting—" "Can wait." The look Cazriel gave the man silenced him quickly. Aurelia felt the pulse of Alpha power and shivered. Inside the house, coolness enveloped them. Marble floors, high ceilings, and paintings of stern-faced werewolves looking down from gilded frames. "This will be your home now," Cazriel said simply. "Prison, you mean," Aurelia answered. For a second, something like hurt flashed across his face before disappearing again. He led her up a wide staircase and down a long hallway. The hallway seemed endless, lined with doors and devoid of warmth. Finally, he stopped at a set of double doors carved with silver dogs. He pushed them open to reveal a room bigger than any place Aurelia had ever lived. A massive bed occupied one wall, draped in blue silks.
A sitting area with plush chairs faced tall windows facing the forest. A door to the left showed a bathroom with a tub big enough to swim in. "Your rooms," Cazriel said. "Everything you need is here." Aurelia walked to the window, pressing her palm against the cool glass. "Are there bars I can't see? Or just guards?" "You're not a prisoner, Aurelia." She turned to face him. "Then what am I?" Cazriel's face toughened. "You're Luna of Silverfang. My mate." "But not your lover. Not your wife. Not your partner." His eyes narrowed. "Is that what you want? To share my bed?" Heat rushed to Aurelia's face. "No! I just want to understand what you expect from me." Cazriel moved closer, looming over her. The mate bond hummed between them, making her heart race despite her anger. "I expect you to perform your duties as Luna. Nothing more, nothing less." "And what duties are those?" "You'll attend pack meetings. Make cameos. Help settle arguments among pack females." "And us? What about... this?" She pointed between them, where the invisible thread of the mate bond pulsed. Cazriel stepped back, his face shuttering closed. "There is no 'us,' Aurelia. I brought you here because the link demanded it. Because the pack needs a Luna." She flinched as if he'd hit her. Even though she didn't want him, his rejection stung. "I will never love you," he continued, his voice cold enough to freeze fire. "Don't expect romance or love. The tie is biological, nothing more." Tears pricked behind Aurelia's eyes, but she refused to let them fall. "Good. Because I could never love someone who took me from my home." Something dangerous flashed in his eyes. He moved with Alpha speed, suddenly inches from her face. "Your 'home' was a rotting cabin in the woods," he growled. "You've been hiding from life for ten years. Running from what happened to your sister." Aurelia gasped. "You don't know anything about Lyanna."
"I know enough." His voice dropped to a whisper. "I know what happens when pack members fail to protect each other." Before she could reply, he turned away. "Thalia will bring you dinner. Tomorrow, your training as Luna begins." The door closed behind him with a final click. Alone, Aurelia's legs gave out. She sank to the floor, shaking. Ten years of freedom erased in a single day. Night fell. Beta Thalia brought food Aurelia couldn't eat. Hours passed as she paced her luxurious cage, looking for weaknesses, escape routes, anything. Finally, tiredness overtook her. She curled on top of the huge bed, not caring to change out of her clothes. Tears came then, quiet and hot against her pillow.
For her lost freedom. For the life she'd built, now destroyed. For the sister whose death still haunted her dreams. Sleep claimed her eventually, pulling her into darkness. But just before awareness slipped away, she heard something a voice, soft and familiar, calling her name from somewhere deep in her memories. "Lia... help me... I'm not dead..." Aurelia shot upright, heart racing. The room was empty, quiet except for the wind howling outside. Just a dream. That's all it was. But as she lay back down, eyes wide in the darkness, she couldn't shake the thought that somewhere, somehow, Lyanna was calling to her. And if her sister wasn't dead...then everything Aurelia believed was a lie.