CHAPTER - 9
1187 Words
The world outside had gone silent, but inside Lucienne’s chamber, the air trembled.
Selena stood near the edge of the bed, moonlight pouring through the tall windows, turning her hair to pale fire. Her pulse raced too loud in her ears as Lucienne closed the door behind him…. slow, deliberate, final.
He didn’t speak.
He simply walked toward her, each step heavy with unspoken hunger.
“You shouldn’t have done that,” she whispered, voice unsteady. “In front of everyone…”
Lucienne stopped before her, close enough for her to feel the heat of him. “I had to. If I hadn’t, they’d keep doubting you.”
Her eyes lifted to his. “You didn’t do it for them.”
His gaze softened. “No. I didn’t.”
The confession hit her like lightning… sudden, bright, impossible to ignore.
He reached out, brushing his fingers along her jaw, tracing the faint mark glowing beneath her skin. “This light,” he murmured, “it answers when I touch you.”
Selena’s breath caught. “Because it knows what you’re doing to me.”
Lucienne’s lips curved…faint, dangerous. “Then let it watch.”
Before she could reply, his mouth was on hers again… deeper this time, no hesitation, no restraint. The kiss burned, demanding, fierce, yet somehow achingly gentle. His hand slid into her hair, his thumb catching the tear she didn’t know had fallen.
Selena gripped his shoulders, torn between resistance and surrender. “Lucienne…”
He broke the kiss just long enough to speak against her skin. “Tell me to stop.”
She didn’t.
Her silence was an answer, and it shattered him. He kissed her again, slower now, like a vow whispered against eternity.
But when the mark between them flared brighter, the room shifted. The candles flickered wildly, the air heavy with magic that shouldn’t have been awakened.
Selena drew back, trembling. “The bond… it’s changing.”
Lucienne stared at the mark glowing between them, his expression unreadable. “Then let it change. Let it bind us before the Moon changes her mind.”
Her voice broke. “You can’t defy her forever.”
“I already have,” he said quietly, and kissed her again.
The night swallowed the rest of their words.
---
By dawn, the fortress was quiet. But peace never lingered long in the Nightbane territory.
Selena awoke alone, the sheets still warm where Lucienne had lain. A note rested on her pillow… short, sharp, written in his distinct hand:
“Stay inside the west wing. Rheya will come for you.
Do not trust anyone outside these walls.”
Her fingers trembled as she folded it, an unease pressing against her chest.
She rose, wrapped a shawl around her shoulders, and moved toward the balcony. Mist curled over the valley below, veiling the forest like a secret.
And there, near the border of the woods, stood a lone figure in black armor, watching the fortress from afar.
Darius Nightfall.
Even from this distance, she could feel his eyes…. sharp, knowing, invasive. A chill ran down her spine.
She turned to leave, but his voice reached her… low, haunting, carried on the wind like a whisper meant only for her.
“Does he still kiss you like the world’s about to end?”
Selena froze. Her breath caught as she looked down again, but Darius was gone. Only the shifting mist remained.
Her heart hammered painfully. She backed away, but before she could retreat, a knock sounded at the door.
“Selena?” Rheya’s voice.
She let out a shaky breath and opened it, but the corridor beyond was empty.
No Rheya. No footsteps. Only silence.
Her pulse quickened. She turned to shut the door, and a shadow slipped through it like smoke.
Darius.
He moved with a predator’s grace, closing the distance before she could even scream. One hand covered her mouth, the other pressed lightly against the wall beside her head.
“Shh,” he murmured, eyes glinting in the dim light. “If I wanted you dead, you wouldn’t be breathing.”
Selena’s body stiffened under his touch. “What do you want?” she managed, voice muffled against his palm.
He let her go, his tone almost lazy. “Answers. About your bond.”
She stepped back, glaring. “You’re trespassing on Nightbane land.”
“And you,” he countered softly, “are playing with powers you don’t understand.”
His gaze dipped to her wrist, where the bond mark still glowed faintly beneath her skin. “That light shouldn’t exist without balance. If he took your will, the Moon will take his soul.”
Her breath hitched. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
He smiled.. slow, amused. “Don’t I? The curse on your bloodline began with a choice. And it’ll end with one. The question is…” He stepped closer, his voice dropping to a whisper. “whose heart will you destroy to save your own?”
Selena’s eyes burned. “You’re lying.”
He tilted his head, studying her face. “Then why do you look like you already know I’m right?”
Silence stretched between them… sharp, suffocating.
Then, almost gently, he lifted a strand of her hair between his fingers. “You smell like him,” he said quietly. “Like fire trying to pretend it’s light.”
She slapped his hand away. “You have no right…”
“I have every right,” he interrupted, voice suddenly cold. “When his defiance threatens every pack under the Moon.”
The air thickened. Magic crackled faintly between them.
“Why are you telling me this?” she whispered.
“Because,” he said, eyes darkening, “when the Goddess demands payment, she won’t ask for his blood. She’ll ask for yours.”
The words struck her harder than any blade.
Before she could respond, the door burst open.
“Selena!” Lucienne’s voice thundered through the room.
Darius turned, his smirk returning, unfazed. “Speak of the devil.”
Lucienne’s eyes burned like embers. “Get away from her.”
Selena stepped forward, her voice trembling. “Lucienne, please…”
But Darius only laughed softly. “Careful, Alpha. The more you hold her, the faster she’ll slip through your hands.”
Lucienne lunged…. but Darius was already gone, vanishing into the shadows as if he had never been there.
The only thing left behind was the faint scent of iron and smoke.
Lucienne caught Selena by the arms, searching her face. “Did he touch you?”
She shook her head, though her heart screamed the truth,he had touched something far deeper than skin.
Lucienne’s jaw tightened. “You’re not leaving this room again.”
Selena stared at him, fear and defiance warring in her chest. “You can’t cage fate, Lucienne.”
He leaned in, eyes hard. “Watch me.”
The mark on her wrist pulsed again…. brighter, hotter, almost burning.
And somewhere far beyond the fortress walls, Darius Nightfall smiled into the wind.
“The Moon’s game has begun.”
- Writer
