Chapter 5: The Broken Mating Ceremony

The message stayed on my screen long after I stopped reading it.

"Your bloodline belongs to someone else."

I deleted it.

Then another message appeared.

"You cannot hide from the First Moon."

I blocked the number immediately.

My instincts told me someone was testing my fear.

I refused to give them the satisfaction.

Still, I couldn't forget the symbol in the photograph.

The same silver crescent I had seen on my mother's old jewelry.

The same symbol my brother had refused to explain fully.

I decided to confront him.

When I arrived at his office, he was already speaking with several elders.

"I need to talk to you," I said.

He looked at me and immediately understood something was wrong.

"Everyone leave."

The elders bowed and left.

"What happened?" he asked.

I showed him the photograph.

His expression changed.

"Where did you get this?"

"Someone sent it to me."

"What did they say?"

I repeated the messages.

My brother's jaw tightened.

"I was afraid this would happen."

"You knew?"

"I knew there were people searching for you."

"Who?"

"A faction that believes the First Moon bloodline should rule all werewolves."

I stared at him.

"Why would they want me?"

"Because you're the strongest living heir."

"And if I mate with Falcon?"

"Your influence would become almost impossible to challenge."

The room suddenly felt colder.

"So this ceremony isn't just a marriage."

"No."

"It's political."

"Everything involving your bloodline is political."

I sighed.

"I wanted to become a healer."

"I know."

"I never asked for any of this."

My brother softened.

"That's why I wanted you protected."

"By arranging my marriage?"

"I thought Falcon could keep you safe."

"I thought he was honorable."

"He is learning."

I almost laughed.

"You have a strange definition of honorable."

My brother smiled faintly.

"You're still my sister."

"Unfortunately for you."

He laughed.

For a moment, the tension disappeared.

Then the ceremony announcement arrived.

The council had decided that the mating ceremony would proceed under strict security.

There would be no further delay.

Falcon had agreed.

I wasn't sure whether I had.

That evening, I met him privately.

"The ceremony is tomorrow," he said.

"I know."

"Are you still considering leaving?"

"I haven't decided."

Falcon looked at me carefully.

"I don't want you to feel trapped."

"You say that now."

"Because I mean it."

"What changed?"

"You."

I stared at him.

"That's not an answer."

"It is."

"Before you arrived, I believed I already understood my life."

"My pack."

"My responsibilities."

"Then you walked into a jewelry shop and insulted my childhood sweetheart within five minutes."

I smiled despite myself.

"She deserved it."

"Probably."

"You admit it?"

"I do."

For the first time, Falcon laughed.

"You're dangerous."

"You haven't seen anything yet."

His eyes lingered on me.

"I believe you."

The next morning, the ceremony grounds were filled again.

This time, every major Alpha in Northmere had attended.

The elders stood around the moonstone altar.

Falcon stood at the center.

I walked toward him.

The silver-white gown moved softly around my feet.

A new crown rested in the hands of the ceremony elder.

This one had been created overnight.

Pure silver.

Moonstones.

A single First Moon symbol engraved in the center.

Julia was also present.

She stood at the side of the crowd.

Her expression was unreadable.

The ceremony elder raised his staff.

"Today, Falcon Sterling and Sloane Lunebom will join their bloodlines through the ancient mate bond."

"If both accept, the bond will be recognized before the entire territory."

Falcon reached for my hand.

His palm was warm.

"Ready?" he whispered.

"Not really."

"Neither am I."

I almost smiled.

Then the elder began the ritual.

"Falcon Sterling."

"Do you accept Sloane Lunebom as your mate, your equal, and the future Luna of Silvermoon?"

"I do."

The elder turned to me.

"Sloane Lunebom."

"Do you accept Falcon Sterling as your mate and Alpha?"

I opened my mouth.

Then a scream interrupted the ceremony.

"Stop!"

Everyone turned.

Julia had stepped forward.

A group of guards immediately moved toward her.

"Let me speak!" she shouted.

Falcon's expression hardened.

"Julia, this isn't the time."

"It is exactly the time."

"She isn't who you think she is."

The crowd erupted in whispers.

Julia pointed at me.

"She has been hiding the truth about her bloodline."

"She isn't simply an Alpha heir."

"She's dangerous."

I crossed my arms.

"Anything else?"

Julia looked shocked that I wasn't afraid.

"You don't understand what will happen if you complete this bond."

"Then explain."

"The First Moon bloodline can control other Alphas."

"If you become Luna, Falcon will no longer have authority over his own pack."

Several elders exchanged worried looks.

I turned toward Falcon.

He remained silent.

Then one elder stepped forward.

"That claim requires proof."

Julia immediately held up a document.

"I have it."

The document contained old historical records about the First Moon line.

The crowd began whispering again.

Julia smiled triumphantly.

"See?"

"She's too powerful to be trusted."

I slowly stepped toward her.

"You were the one who threatened a shopkeeper yesterday."

"You were the one who used Falcon's name to take something that wasn't yours."

"Now you're suddenly concerned about power and responsibility?"

Julia's expression hardened.

"This has nothing to do with the crown."

"Everything has to do with power when you're involved."

Falcon finally spoke.

"Enough."

His voice echoed through the courtyard.

"Julia, leave."

"Falcon!"

"Leave."

"You can't choose her over me."

"This isn't about choosing you."

"It's about respecting my mate."

Julia's eyes filled with tears.

"You really don't care about me anymore."

Falcon looked at her calmly.

"I care about what you meant to me once."

"But that doesn't give you the right to control my future."

The guards moved closer.

Julia stepped backward.

"You'll regret this."

She turned and left.

The ceremony continued.

The elder looked at me.

"Sloane, do you accept Falcon?"

I looked at the man standing beside me.

The Alpha who had once forgotten my number.

The man who had defended Julia for years.

The man who now stood before the entire territory asking me to trust him.

"I accept..."

A sudden wave of power exploded through the altar.

Silver light surrounded us.

Our auras collided.

The mate bond began forming.

Falcon's eyes widened.

My own power surged beyond anything I had experienced before.

The moonstone altar cracked down the center.

The entire courtyard fell silent.

The elder staggered backward.

"The bond is too strong!"

"It's overwhelming the ritual!"

I felt something ancient awaken inside me.

A voice seemed to echo through my mind.

"The First Moon has returned."

Then the silver crown on the altar shattered.

Fragments scattered across the ground.

The ceremony was immediately halted.

Everyone stared in shock.

Falcon reached for me.

"Sloane!"

"I'm fine."

But I wasn't.

I could feel something changing inside my blood.

Something had awakened.

Something far more powerful than a Luna title.

The elders began arguing.

The crowd grew restless.

My brother stepped onto the platform.

"Everyone remain calm."

His voice carried enough authority to silence the courtyard.

Then he looked at me.

His expression told me everything.

He knew exactly what had happened.

"Sloane," he said quietly.

"The First Moon has chosen you."

I stared at him.

"Chosen me for what?"

He looked toward the moonlit sky.

"Not to be someone's Luna."

"To become something much greater."

Across the courtyard, Falcon stared at me in stunned silence.

The arranged mating that had begun as a political agreement...

Had just awakened a power that could change the entire werewolf world.