ALPHA'S CURSED LUNA

Chapter One: The Alpha’s Claim Lira Velasquez – POV --- It was supposed to be my birthday. Eighteen. The age of freedom. The age when a girl steps into her own — goes to university, falls in love, begins to chase her dreams, and carves out her identity. Instead, I was standing barefoot in the cold foyer of our pack house, my hands trembling as I held the thick envelope my father had just thrust at me. I couldn’t feel my fingers. My breath caught, chest tight with something too big to be fear — something like betrayal. Inside was a contract. A marriage contract. Signed. Sealed. Official. Not by me, but by him. My father. Alpha Luis Velasquez — once the proud leader of the Silverfang Pack, now a weary shadow of the man I used to know. His shoulders, once broad with pride, were stooped under the weight of loss and desperation. My eighteenth birthday wasn’t a celebration of life or freedom. It was a transaction. And I was the currency. I stared at the gold-embossed document in disbelief, the letters swimming in front of my eyes. My name was there in harsh black ink: Lira Anne Velasquez. And beside it, written in the same unforgiving script, was the name of my would-be husband: Kael Navarro. Alpha of the Blackfang Pack. The most feared, ruthless Alpha in the region. Stories of him were whispered around campfires, told like ghost tales — a man who tore through rogue wolves like paper, who ruled with an iron fist and never showed mercy. My blood ran cold. “That has to be a mistake,” I whispered, voice cracking under the weight of disbelief. “You can’t seriously expect me to marry him.” My father wouldn’t meet my gaze. He hadn’t looked at me properly in weeks, maybe longer. “This isn’t a discussion, Lira,” he said flatly. “A discussion?” I let out a bitter laugh, but it came out like a strangled sob. “You signed away your only daughter to a man I’ve never even met —” “Watch your tone.” “—a man who’s infamous for slaughtering rogues like sport. You expect me to walk into his den and… what? Pretend this is normal?” His jaw clenched tight. That look in his eyes — the hardened edge, the command buried in silence — was the same one he used on warriors. On prisoners. On enemies. “I didn’t have a choice,” he said, each word cold and clipped. “Our pack is collapsing. We’ve lost warriors. Territory. Our alliances are dying. Kael offered protection. A merger.” I felt like the ground tilted beneath me. “And I’m the bargaining chip,” I muttered, the sting of it lodging deep in my chest. He turned to leave, as if the matter was closed, but I stepped forward and held out the contract with shaking hands. My voice rose despite the lump in my throat. “Why didn’t you tell me? Why now?” “Because it was decided long ago,” he snapped, his eyes flashing. “The moment you were born, the agreement was sealed. You were always meant to be his Luna.” My breath caught. Every memory of freedom I thought I had — the late-night runs through the forest, the dreams of escaping this suffocating legacy, the quiet hope of falling in love — all of it crumbled to ash. A lie. My whole life had been a lie. And somewhere out there, a cold, merciless Alpha had been waiting for me — not out of love. Not even out of interest. But because of a desperate deal made long ago. “When… when does he expect me?” I asked, my voice barely audible. “Tonight.” The word hit me like a slap. My knees nearly gave out. “Tonight?” I choked. “You’re sending me away tonight?” “There’s a car waiting outside,” he said. “Pack lightly.” And that was it. No apology. No explanation. Just the sound of his boots retreating down the hall — a father who couldn’t even look back. --- I didn’t cry. I wanted to. Goddess, I wanted to scream and tear the curtains from the walls. But I didn’t shed a single tear. Maybe the shock hardened me. Maybe I’d cried myself empty in all the years I spent pretending I mattered. I walked to my room in a daze. My fingers moved mechanically as I opened my suitcase and began packing — not because I wanted to, but because… what other choice did I have? A few clothes. A couple of old books. The small silver necklace my mother gave me before she died — a moonstone pendant that once brought me comfort. I looked around one last time, memorizing the walls, the worn floorboards, the tiny window where I used to daydream. There was no one to say goodbye to. My friends… what could I even tell them? That I was being sold off to the coldest Alpha in the region? That tonight, I’d be marked, claimed, and bound to a man I had never met? Would they have cared? I slipped on my boots and walked toward the main gates. The sun had already begun to sink behind heavy gray clouds, casting everything in shadow. My breath fogged the air. A sleek black SUV idled just beyond the entrance, its tinted windows hiding whoever waited inside. My heart pounded. What if Kael was cruel? What if he hated me on sight? What if he didn’t even wait? Was I expected to submit the moment I arrived? To let him mark me — maybe even mate me — without consent? No one had told me what was expected. No one had cared to. I clutched the handle of my suitcase tighter. One step. Then another. My boots crunched on gravel like the ticking of a clock. When I reached the SUV, the back door swung open silently. I hesitated only a second before climbing in. The door shut behind me with a finality that sent shivers through me. The man in the front seat — a driver, maybe a warrior — didn’t turn around. “Miss Velasquez,” he said curtly. “Alpha Kael is expecting you.” I said nothing. What was there to say? --- The drive was long. Endless stretches of trees blurred past the window, shadowed by the approaching night. I pressed my forehead against the cool glass, trying to anchor myself, to make sense of the storm inside me. I must’ve dozed off at some point, lulled by exhaustion and the hum of the engine, because the next thing I knew, the car was pulling through an enormous iron gate. I sat up straighter, my chest tightening. Ahead stood the Blackfang estate. It looked nothing like the homes in my territory. This was a fortress — carved from black stone, tall spires clawing into the sky. Gothic windows glowed dimly with lantern light, casting eerie shadows across the gravel courtyard. It was cold here. Wilder. The moment I stepped out of the SUV, I felt it — the difference. The air buzzed with something ancient. A darker magic. And then, the front doors opened. Kael Navarro stood there. My breath caught in my throat. He was tall — towering, even — with a presence that devoured the space around him. Midnight-black hair, perfectly tousled, framed a face carved from marble. Sharp cheekbones. Strong jaw. And a scar that ran from the edge of his right eye down to his jawline — faded, but impossible to ignore. His eyes weren’t gray. They were silver. Cold. Sharp. Dangerous. And locked on me. “You’re late,” he said, voice deep and smooth like dark wine. My throat dried. “I—” “Come in.” He turned without waiting for my response. I followed on shaking legs, clutching my suitcase like a shield. The manor was silent. No servants. No greetings. Just a long, echoing hallway lined with portraits — dark figures in regal poses, eyes following us as we passed. Kael didn’t speak. His footsteps were steady, each one echoing off the marble. At the end of the hall, he stopped and pushed open a door. “Your room.” I peered inside — massive, elegant, but cold. A four-poster bed. Fireplace. Velvet drapes. A gilded mirror above a writing desk. “You’re not…” I hesitated. “I mean, we’re not—” “We will share nothing until the bond is accepted,” he said, his expression unreadable. “By you?” I whispered. His eyes narrowed slightly. “By the Moon Goddess.” I stepped inside, stunned by how empty such a beautiful room could feel. It was like a gilded cage — luxury meant to silence protest. “I’ll have food brought,” Kael said. “Do not leave this floor without permission.” Then he turned and vanished, closing the door behind him. --- I stood alone in the quiet, heart pounding. So this was it. My new home. My new prison. I walked to the mirror slowly, staring at the girl reflected back. Pale. Hollow-eyed. Barely eighteen — and already sold off like a pawn in a political game. I touched my neck. No mark. No claim. Not yet. But I could feel it coming. A storm brewing beneath the surface of this house. And when it finally broke… There would be no turning back.