Chapter 7
893 Words
The night had fully arrived.
Lanterns glowed softly around the clearing, their warm light dancing over faces filled with excitement and fear. The ceremonial fire burned at the center, tall and steady, sending sparks into the dark sky. Drums beat slowly, deep and steady, like a heartbeat shared by the entire pack.
Irene walked beside Zara, their arms brushing as they moved forward with the others.
“I can’t believe it’s finally happening,” Zara whispered, her voice trembling with excitement.
Irene smiled, though her heart felt too full. “I know.”
They giggled softly, whispering little comments as they took their places among the unmated wolves. The air buzzed with anticipation. Scents mixed nerves, hope, longing, desire.
Irene inhaled deeply.
Somewhere in this night, everything would change.
The elders stepped forward, their faces serious but calm. One of them raised his hand, and the drums slowly faded into silence.
“The night has come,” the elder said. “Tonight, the Moon Goddess reveals what has always been written.”
A hush fell over the clearing.
Irene felt her pulse in her ears.
She glanced around, searching instinctively for Sebastian.
There.
Across the clearing.
Their eyes met.
Just for a moment.
Her heart leapt, warmth spreading through her chest. He looked at her really looked at her and something in his gaze felt intense, unreadable.
Then someone moved between them.
When Irene looked again, he was gone.
She frowned slightly but forced herself to relax.
He was here. He had promised.
She clasped her hands together and waited.
The ceremony began.
One by one, wolves stepped forward as the moon rose higher. Some gasped softly as recognition struck them. Some cried. Some laughed. Some fell to their knees in disbelief.
Mates found each other.
Bond scents filled the air, powerful and undeniable.
Zara squeezed Irene’s hand as Simon stepped forward toward her, his face glowing with hope.
Irene smiled for her, even as her own chest tightened.
Minutes passed.
Then more.
Irene’s excitement slowly shifted into something restless.
She searched again.
Sebastian wasn’t near the elders.
He wasn’t among the unmated group.
Her gaze moved through the crowd, faster now.
Where is he?
She told herself not to worry. Some wolves took longer. Sometimes fate waited.
The drums beat again, slower now.
More mates found each other.
The clearing felt smaller.
Irene swallowed hard.
She shifted her weight, her eyes scanning faces again and again.
Still nothing.
A strange chill crawled up her spine.
She could have sworn she had met Sebastian’s eyes earlier. She was sure of it. He had looked at her like...
“Irene,” Zara whispered gently. “Are you okay?”
“Yes,” Irene said quickly. “Just… nervous.”
Zara nodded, distracted again as Simon brushed his fingers against hers.
Irene felt suddenly very alone.
Time stretched.
The moon climbed higher.
Her heart beat faster, louder, each second heavier than the last.
Then a sharp wave rolled through the clearing.
Not loud. Not sudden.
But powerful.
Irene felt it before she understood it.
She turned slowly.
Her eyes landed on Carris.
Carris stood with a group of betas not far away. She looked calm at first but then her posture changed. Her body stiffened, shoulders squaring, chin lifting as if she had just been called by something unseen.
Irene’s breath caught.
Carris inhaled deeply, her eyes darkening.
“I feel it,” someone whispered nearby.
Irene couldn’t move.
Carris’s wolf surged forward visibly, power rippling beneath her skin. Her scent shifted, becoming stronger, sharper, undeniable.
Mate recognition.
The clearing stirred with excitement.
Irene’s heart slammed painfully against her ribs.
No. No, no
Carris’s head snapped up.
Her gaze locked onto someone across the clearing.
Irene followed her line of sight.
Her world stopped.
Sebastian stepped forward.
Sebby.
His shoulders were tense, his jaw clenched, but his eyes, his eyes were glowing with recognition.
The same pull.
The same force.
The mate bond snapped into place like thunder.
Gasps filled the clearing.
Whispers exploded like fire.
“That’s Sebastian—”
“The Alpha’s brother—”
“Carris found her mate—”
Irene couldn’t hear anything clearly anymore.
She watched, frozen, as Sebastian walked toward Carris, his steps slow but certain, like something stronger than choice was guiding him.
Carris’s lips parted in awe.
Sebastian stopped in front of her.
The air between them shimmered with bond energy.
Public.
Unmistakable.
Final.
The scent hit Irene a second later.
Mate bond.
Strong.
Permanent.
Her knees nearly gave out.
No.
Her vision blurred.
This wasn’t happening.
This couldn’t be happening.
Sebastian reached out.
Carris took his hand.
The crowd erupted into cheers.
Irene couldn’t breathe.
Her chest felt crushed, like something had caved inward and left nothing behind.
She stared at them at the way Sebastian looked at Carris with shock, wonder, and something dangerously close to relief.
He never looked back.
Not once.
Her ears rang.
Her hands trembled.
Everything she believed, everything she had held onto shattered in that single moment.
Love without a bond.
Choice.
Promises.
All of it crumbled into ash.
The night didn’t care. Fate didn’t care.
The Moon Goddess had spoken.
And Irene stood there, unmated, unseen, as the man she loved was claimed by someone else.
Her world didn’t end loudly.
It broke quietly.
Right inside her chest.
- Writer
