Chapter 3
Series 1 Chapter 3
The hall fell deathly silent.
Selene sat in the Luna’s seat, one hand resting lightly over her stomach.
The laurel crown gleamed on her head.
A victorious smile curved her lips.
“Damon, now that I’m living in the main house and sitting in this chair, shouldn’t we hold the ceremony soon?”
Her voice was soft and sweet.
“The entire pack deserves to know who the true mistress of Blackwood is.”
Damon looked at her with open indulgence.
He did not spare me a glance.
“There’s no need for a ceremony.”
“I am the Alpha of Blackwood.”
“If I declare you Luna, no one will dare deny it.”
No one in the hall agreed.
Selene’s smile faltered.
Then the chief elder rose from the corner of the room.
He was old, and the hand gripping his cane trembled.
But his voice remained firm.
“Alpha, the Moon Goddess’s bond is sacred.”
“A Luna has never been a wife the Alpha may appoint at will.”
“She must be recognized by the Moon Goddess and entrusted with protecting the entire territory.”
Damon’s face darkened.
“Are you questioning my decision?”
The elder did not back down.
“I am defending the laws Blackwood has followed for centuries.”
“How dare you!”
Damon’s roar shook the hall.
The crushing force of a high-ranking Alpha burst from his body.
The air seemed to freeze.
The servant closest to him dropped to his knees.
Then the stewards.
The commanders.
The elders and guards.
One after another, they were forced down beneath his power.
I was the only one left standing.
The Moon Goddess’s bond burned faintly against my chest.
Damon’s command swept over me, strong enough to make any ordinary wolf submit.
But it could not make me bow.
He noticed.
From the raised platform, his wolf-dark eyes locked onto mine.
“You’re still standing?”
I held his gaze.
“I am the Luna.”
“A Luna recognized by the Moon Goddess does not kneel before an Alpha.”
His expression turned murderous.
Damon descended the steps slowly.
Each heavy footfall echoed through the hall.
As he passed the chief elder, he drew the sword from his waist.
The blade flashed.
Cold steel pressed against my throat.
Its edge sliced through my skin.
A warm drop of blood slid down my collarbone.
A sharp breath rippled through the room.
Damon stood before me without a trace of warmth in his eyes.
“I’ll ask you one last time.”
“Get out of the main house.”
“Leave Blackwood.”
Three years ago, he had held my hand and promised he would never betray me.
Now he was holding a sword to my throat for the woman he had once loved.
A tear slipped down my cheek.
And somehow, I smiled.
“Damon.”
“The Moon Goddess gave me this position.”
“You have no right to take it away.”
The words pushed him over the edge.
He pressed the blade harder.
The cut deepened.
“Guards!”
His roar thundered through the hall.
“Drag this woman out!”
The guards lining both sides of the hall lifted their heads.
Steel rang through the room.
Dozens of swords were drawn at once.
Damon looked at me, a cold smile returning to his face.
“You claim the Moon Goddess chose you.”
“Then let’s see who still dares to protect you.”
The captain of the guard advanced toward me, sword in hand.
He had once knelt before me and sworn loyalty to Blackwood’s Luna.
Now his blade was pointed at my chest.
Damon’s command cut through the silence.
“Do it.”
The captain raised his sword.
Then brought it down.
Clang!
The blade did not touch me.
It struck the stone floor beside my feet.
The captain dropped to one knee.
“Command us, Luna.”
Damon’s smile froze.
“You dare defy your Alpha?”
The captain raised his eyes.
“A true Alpha protects Blackwood.”
“He does not order its guardians to destroy one another.”
A second later, the sound of metal thundered through the hall.
One sword.
Then another.
Dozens of blades struck the floor as every guard knelt behind their captain.
“Command us, Luna!”
Their voices shook the walls.
Damon slowly turned around.
Only then did he realize—
Blackwood’s entire guard had chosen to stand behind me.