LUCIEN POINT OF VIEW
The hall fell silent.
Araxie stood at the center of the platform, the moonlight shinning through the high windows and catching her hair like silver fire. She didn't look at me. Her chin was lifted, her shoulders straight, her fingers relaxed at her sides.
Cassian watched her like a man who already owned the ending.
"My people," Araxie said.
Her voice carried an unshaken calmness.
"I stand before you tonight not as a dream, but as a decision, I made myself."
A murmur rippled through the pack.
My wolf pressed hard against my chest, restless, sensing danger long before I fully did.
Araxie continued, "The Moon Goddess blesses bonds meant to strengthen a pack. But bonds alone do not build power. Loyalty does."
Cassian smiled.
I didn't.
Her gaze finally swept the hall, over warriors, elders, wolves who had known her since she was young.
And then, briefly, it brushed past me.
Just a for few second. It held no warmth, no apology, nothing.
My chest tightened.
"There have been rumours," she went on. "Of secret ties with my old lover, my ex."
Every muscle in my body tightened.
"This ends tonight." She added, with no emotion on her.
The bond between us screamed.
Pain exploded through my ribs, sharp and sudden, like something inside me had been grabbed and twisted. I sucked in a breath, my vision blurring for half a second.
No...No, she wouldn't...
"I choose this pack, I choose Cassian," Araxie said evenly. "I'm saying this publicly to stop the rumor of me still being with Lucien Vaughan, it ended long ago."
Her hand lifted, not toward me. But toward Cassian.
She placed her palm over his heart.
The room erupted, in a loud cheers and applause. Howls of approval echoed off the stone walls.
My wolf roared in agony.
I staggered back a step, gripping the edge of a table to stay upright. The bond, our bond, strained violently, like a chain being yanked too hard but not yet broken.
Cassian's voice cut through the noise. "Witness this, Crimson Moon. The Crimson Moon can now attest they and the Moon Goddess choose the best Luna for their pack."
Araxie turned to face him fully now.
For a heartbeat, something flickered across her face. But she wiped it away as soon as it came.
Then she spoke again.
"From this moment forward," she said, loud enough for all to hear, "any claim upon me outside this bond is false."
The words slammed into me.
It wasn't exactly a rejection, because I could still feel the bond but faintly. Because I would call it a rejection because the pain became unbearable.
My knees hit the floor.
Gasps rose around the hall, but no one moved to help me. No one dared.
Cassian's grip tightened on Araxie's waist, possessively. Triumphantly.
"See?" he said softly, only for me to hear. "Even the Moon bows to power, that's what you're also going to do brother."
I looked up at her.
Finally, finally, she looked down at me.
Our eyes met.
And in that instant, I realized the truth. The moon goddess didn't just give me a mate, she gave me an enemy, someone who didn't want me.
*************************************************
The cheers slowly faded as the Packmembers began to leave, but I couldn't move. I just stood there, staring at the spot where Cassian and Araxie had disappeared. I knew I had disgraced myself earlier, by lashing out at Cassian, but at that point, I didn't care.
They called it a coronation. To me, it was a theft.
My wolf paced inside me, growling softly.
She's ours, he whispered. She's bound to us.
"I know," I muttered, clenching my fists until my knuckles turned white. "But she made her choice."
Did she really?
Her smile replayed in my head.
The kiss.
The smirk.
I wished I could forget her face.
But it was impossible. Every damn time I closed my eyes, I saw the curve of her smile, the same smile that used to make my heart beat fast in a happy way, now taunting me as she stood beside Cassian.
My jaw tightened. I turned to leave when her scent hit me, that same wild jasmine and strawberry scent that used to drive me insane.
I froze immediately, staring at her beautiful face.
She was standing in the doorway of the hall, still dressed in the pale blue gown from the ceremony. The Luna crest was still placed on her chest, as she ran her hand over it. Her gaze stayed on me for a few second, her expression unreadable, her eyes sharp and restless.
"Lucien," she said softly. I almost wished she hadn't said my name.
"What do you want?" I asked, my tone sharper than I intended.
She held out a small wooden box, carved with Cassian's name on it. "Cassian left this behind. it's supposed to be in his office. I would like you to deliver it to him as his Beta."
I let out a dry laugh. "You want me to play errand boy now?"
Her brows lifted slightly. "You're still the Beta, aren't you?"
That hurt deeper than it should have.
I took a slow step forward, closing the distance between us. "I'm not your maid, Araxie."
"Good," she murmured, her eyes moving up to mine. "Because I wouldn't trust you with something as delicate as that, but I didn't have another option."
Something inside me snapped. "You've changed."
"Or maybe you never really knew me." She said, her voice didn't shake, but her fingers did. I noticed it, the tiny twitch in her finger, as she tried to hide it while holding the box out to me again.
For a moment, our eyes locked, and the air between us changed.
I took the box, my fingers brushing hers softly. The spark hit me instantly, a rush of electricity shooting through my veins. My wolf whimpered. "Mate."
She flinched, slightly, like she felt it too.
"Tell Cassian," I said, stepping back, "that if he wants something delivered, he can ask someone else next time."
I turned to leave, but her voice stopped me again. "Lucien," she said quietly, "be careful with what's inside."
I frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?"
Her words kept ringing in my head long after she left. *Be careful with what's inside.*
I stood there for a while, staring at the small box in my hand. It felt heavier than it looked. Her scent was still all over it, and it took a lot of self control not to start sniffing it to get to remember how that scent drove me crazy.
Part of me wanted to throw it in the fire, right beside me. But something stopped me, curiosity got the best of me .
Slowly, I opened the latch. The lid creaked, and what I saw made my chest tighten in pain. I staggered to a chair and sat, clutching my heart. It felt like a dagger had been shoved into my chest.
Inside was a silver bracelet, sitting delicately on the silk.
Not just any bracelet, my mother's bracelet.
My breath hitched, as I reached out and touched it with shaky hands. The little moon charm in the middle glowed faintly under the light. I could still remember the night my mother gave it to me.
*"When you find someone you truly trust, someone who feels like home, your mate," she said, smiling softly, "give this to her. It will keep her safe and protect your bond."*
And I had given it to Araxie.
My heart thudded painfully. I remembered the night I clasped it around her wrist.
She had smiled like nothing could ever come between us.
But now she ignored me staying by my enemy. I stared at the bracelet once more lying in a box meant for Cassian clenching my jaw in anger.
I noticed a folded piece of paper under the silk cloth. I brought it out, as I unfolded it slowly, my hands already trembling. Her familiar and beautiful handwriting greeted me.
*To my dear husband,
May this bracelet remind you of my love and loyalty. You are my world, Cassian. And I bought it just to show you that.. Always keep it safe, and consider it my gift to you on our crowning.
Your beautiful Luna Araxie.*
I went still. For a moment, I couldn't even breathe. Everything inside me broke at once.
The bracelet slipped from my fingers and hit the table with a dull sound. My chest burned. My wolf growled painfully inside me, angry and heartbroken.
"She gave it to him…" I whispered, my voice shaking. "She gave him what was ours."
I picked up the bracelet again, staring at it through my tear stained eyes. I remembered how her face lit up when I clasped it on her wrist, how she had plastered kisses all over my face and told me she would never take it off.
Now, it was her gift to another man. Not just any man, my enemy, my rival, my brother.
I clenched my jaw so hard it hurt. The air felt heavy, pressing down on me until I could barely stand it.
She wanted me to see this. I could tell.
That warning be careful with what is inside, wasn't a warning at all, she knew I would be curious to open it. It was her way of saying she had moved on.
I closed the box roughly and held it tight against my chest. For a long moment, I stood there in silence, my heart heavy but my anger overshadowed all of the heartbreak.
"She made her choice," I muttered. "But I won't be the one left broken."
I turned and walked away, toward his office. She wants it delivered I would do that gladly. She has had enough hold over me.
The hallways were silent as I walked toward Cassian's office, my boots echoing against the marble floor.
Each step made the anger in me grow stronger.
Every heartbeat reminded me of her lies.
By the time I reached the Alpha's office, my blood was boiling. I didn't even knock. I pushed the door open and stepped inside.
Cassian sat behind his desk, his back turned to me. He was staring out the large window that overlooked the pack grounds. The way he sat, calm and composed, only made my wolf want to tear into him.
"Are you here for me?" asked without turning around. His voice was steady, and calm...too calm for my liking.
I placed the box down on his desk with a loud thud.
"No," I said, my tone cold. "Your Luna did."
That made him turn. His brown eyes met mine, the same eyes we shared from our father, but his held that arrogance I had grown to hate.
"Ah," he said, smirking. "She remembered it then. I was wondering where that was."
He reached for the box, before he could touch it, I stepped forward and stopped him. "You don't deserve this," I said quietly.
Cassian's smile dropped. "Excuse me?"
"This bracelet…" I said through gritted teeth, forcing the words out. "It used to mean something to us. But now it's just another thing you stole from me."
He leaned back in his chair, smirking again.
"Still holding onto the past, little brother?" he said. "Araxie made her choice. You should move on."
I glared at him, "I didn't come here to argue, Cassian. I came to warn you," I said quietly. "You have just a week to leave this fucking throne, and hand me back what belongs to me. Failure to do so, I will expose your evil deed, I will tell father how you are the culprit behind your mother's death,"
For a second I thought I had imagined the color draining from his face. Then his narrowed his eyes and the chair creaked as he rose.
"I know you don't like me, but accusing me falsely won't change anything," he said, but his voice betrayed him, it cracked at the end.
"Trust me, not only will they dethrone you, you will be banished and left packless! You'll find out which of us has nothing to lose" I added growling out. "One week, Cassian, or the pack learns about who their leader truly is. And trust me, I know more than you think."