The Unwilling Luna

Lumina POV

My heavy eyelids flutter open. A stark, musky scent assaults my nose. The smell of sweat and sex clings to the sheets tangled around my legs. I recognize the dark grey comforter spreading across the mattress. I am lying in Kaelen’s massive bed. It is the identical place where, just hours ago, I found him shoving his c**k into my own brother.

A wave of sheer revulsion hits my throat. I scramble off the edge of the mattress. My bare feet slap the cool hardwood floor. I sprint into the attached bathroom and drop to my knees in front of the toilet bowl. I heave, bringing up nothing but bitter stomach acid. I retch until my ribs ache and my throat burns, purging the last remnants of my strength onto the porcelain.

A large, calloused hand rests on my spine. I freeze, bracing my shoulders for Kaelen’s touch.

"Oh, princess."

My father's deep voice resonates within the tiled walls. I slump backward and let out a broken sob. Voss steps closer, dropping his massive frame to his knees beside me. He pulls me into his broad chest. I bury my damp face in his shirt, crying out the shattered remains of my heart. His large hand rubs soothing circles on my back. I hold onto him, praying he is here to protect me from the nightmare outside this door.

"It is going to be alright, princess. I promise."

I push away from him after a long moment, wiping my mouth with a hand towel. I stare into his eyes, searching for answers. "Dad, where are Corbin and Kaelen?"

A mix of sympathy and residual anger tightens his jaw. "Your brother is secured in the pack cells. He struck you."

The news stuns me. I expected my parents to sympathize, but locking Corbin in the dungeon is a drastic step. It gives me a fleeting sliver of hope that they understand my side of this nightmare. He punched me, his own sister, to defend his illicit lover.

"Kaelen and Alpha Garret are waiting for us in the office," my father continues, his tone shifting to business. "We need to talk about what happened and how we move forward. Can you do that for me?"

"So, you know why Corbin hit me?" I ask, my voice turning hoarse.

"I do. Let us go to the Alpha's office, and we can get this worked out. I swear to you, princess, your brother will never lay another finger on you."

We walk down the grand hallway in suffocating silence. My father pushes open the heavy oak doors to Alpha Garret’s imposing office. I step over the threshold, and thick arms blindside me, wrapping tight around my shoulders. Kaelen crushes me against his muscular chest.

There are no sparks. No intoxicating tingles race across my skin, only pure disgust. The very touch that used to make my heart flutter now makes me want to claw my own skin off.

Before I can shove him away, Alpha Garret speaks from behind his massive mahogany desk. "Kaelen, release Lumina now. We have a lot to discuss."

Kaelen hesitates, pulling me tighter for one desperate second before obeying his father's stern command. I step back the instant he lets go. Distress swims in his dark eyes, but I refuse to feel pity. He and my brother both lied to my face for a year.

"Lumina, please take a seat," Alpha Garret orders, gesturing to a leather chair opposite his desk.

I claim the seat, keeping my spine stiff. I stare straight at the Alpha, freezing Kaelen out of my vision.

"I know you are upset, and rightfully so. Seeing what you saw earlier must have been quite a shock," Garret starts. Inside my head, my wolf Vela snarls at his patronizing tone.

"Kaelen, Voss, and I have talked at length about this situation. I believe we have come up with a solution to make everyone happy."

I snap my gaze to my father. He nods in agreement. My stomach twists. Something is very wrong.

"You will officially take back your formal rejection," Garret states with chilling authority.

My jaw drops. "Excuse me?"

"You heard me, Lumina. You were chosen by the Moon Goddess to be Kaelen’s mate and the Luna of this pack. The situation is not ideal, but you have an obligation to get past this. You cannot refuse what she destined for you. We will move forward with the ceremony in two days, making Kaelen the Alpha and you the Luna."

I open my mouth to protest, but Garret raises a scarred hand to silence me.

"Kaelen will mate and mark you. He will also mate and mark Corbin. You will share a mate, as many siblings do. It is a known compromise among our kind for unique circumstances. This arrangement will secure the pack's lineage, ensure you do not feel the pain of infidelity when they are together, and everyone will get what they want."

My mind spins in horrifying circles. This is a sick, twisted joke. Share my mate with my brother? Let Kaelen transition between my bed and Corbin’s while we pretend everything is normal?

I look wildly at Kaelen. He is practically bouncing on his heels, his dark eyes shining with a pathetic, desperate hope. He actually thinks this is a good idea. He believes he can keep us both.

I whip my head toward my father. I expect a man who spent his life protecting me to defend my honor.

"You agree with this? You accept that they sneaked around behind my back for over a year, and your solution is that I just share the mate meant only for me?"

My father sighs, rubbing the back of his neck. He refuses to meet my furious gaze. "Princess, I want you to be happy. I also want Corbin and Kaelen to be happy. Do you not see how this compromise ensures we all remain together?"

A cold numbness spreads through my veins. The ultimate betrayal does not come from my mate or my brother, but from the man who raised me.

"No, it would not. I will not willingly know my mate is going to betray me with my brother every chance he gets."

I jump to my feet, my fists clenched at my sides. Every muscle in my body trembles with rage.

"Princess, please calm down—"

I cut him off, my voice turning to ice. "Do not ever call me that again. I stopped being your princess the exact moment you decided my happiness did not matter. You put the needs of the Alpha and your son before me. You want to reward them for betraying me and the Goddess. Let Corbin be the Luna!"

My father flinches, stepping back. I turn my back on him and march toward the heavy office doors with unyielding determination.

"Lumina, you will not disrespect me, your father, this pack, or your mate!" Alpha Garret bellows, slamming a fist on his desk.

I pause with my hand hovering over the brass doorknob. I turn my head, delivering a cold glare back at the room of men who ruined my life.

"I have no father. I have no mate. I, Lumina Skye Vance, sever all ties with the Obsidian Thorn Pack and Alpha Garret Thorne."

The words hang in the air for a fraction of a second. Then, a horrific tearing sensation rips through the center of my chest. The ancient, mystical pack bond snaps. It feels like invisible claws are ripping my heart straight out of my ribcage.

Vela whimpers in agony. Two deafening roars echo off the office walls. Kaelen and my father scream as the backlash of my severing hits them. I gasp for air, clutching my chest. An unseen force suddenly lifts my feet off the ground. The pressure in my skull builds to an unbearable level.

The room spins out of focus. A heavy darkness swallows me whole.

A bone-chilling dampness seeps into my skin. I wake up shivering upon a hard concrete floor. My vision clears slowly in the dim light. Rusted iron bars stretch from the floor to the vaulted ceiling. I sit up, rubbing my pounding head and testing my sore jaw from where Corbin hit me earlier. I am trapped in a subterranean dungeon. I have never seen this section of the pack house before.

A quiet shuffle draws my attention. I stiffen. Corbin sits in the corner of the cramped cell. His face is swollen, his lip split. Purple bruises paint his jawline from an unseen altercation that landed him down here with me.

I press my back against the cold stone, putting as much distance between us as possible. He fucked my mate. He treated me like dirt for the last twelve months. Then, he punched me in the face to shut me up.

"Lumi, I am so sorry." His voice is hoarse, cracking with fresh tears. "I was a bastard. I do not blame you for hating me. I did not mean to fall in love with Kaelen. I swear it, but I do love him. I love you too, Lumi. I am sorry I hurt you."

I turn my back on him. I pull my knees to my chest and let silent, hot tears stream down my cheeks. I grieve the fiercely loyal protector my brother used to be. I mourn the devoted mate I was supposed to cherish. I cannot forgive either of them. They do not deserve my forgiveness.

Heavy footsteps echo down the stone corridor. Someone is approaching in a rush. I squeeze my eyes shut and slow my breathing, feigning sleep.

The footsteps stop right outside the iron bars.

"Kaelen," Corbin whispers. He scrambles across the floor. Hands grip the metal bars. "Please forgive me. I am sorry I hit her. I was angry she was hurting you."

"Did you apologize to her?" Kaelen asks, his voice thick with distress.

"I did, but she will not talk to me. She refuses to even look at me."

A heavy sigh rattles the bars. "You are lucky Torin did not kill you for striking our mate. Do you not understand that she is my fated mate? As much as I love you, Corbin, I need her. She is the other half of my soul. I cannot lose her."

"I am sorry, Kaelen. The thought of you two together makes me feral," Corbin pleads pathetically. "I will learn to accept it, but I am not sure she ever will."

Corbin pauses, shifting his weight. He lacks any shred of self-respect. "I know you need her, but do you love her the same way you love me?"

I press my eyes shut even tighter. A sickening, wet slapping sound fills the damp air. They are kissing right outside my cell. The heavy pants and the sloppy friction of their mouths make bile rise in my throat again. I fight the urge to throw up on the floor.

"I love you, Corbin," Kaelen murmurs against my brother's lips. "Nothing will ever change that. But I love Lumina too. I need you both to be whole. I need you to accept this, or we cannot be together."

"I will accept it," Corbin vows, breathless and eager. "I love you, Kaelen. I will help you convince her. We can all share this life and be happy together."

Deep inside the confines of my mind, my wolf Vela unleashes a dark, furious growl. Her spirit brims with pure determination to escape this nightmare.

*These two are out of their f**king minds. We need to get the hell out of this place. We will never let him mark us.*

I couldn't agree more.