ECLIPSE OF THE FATED LUNA

Chapter 4

Thorne’s POV

I didn’t stop walking until I reached the end of the executive corridor. My hands were still clenched at my sides, my claws half-extended beneath my skin. One wrong breath and I would have shifted right there in the gym, in front of her. The mate bond was no longer a spark. It was a fire, and Brielle Arden had just poured gasoline on it.

The moment I stepped into the private stairwell, I let the change ripple through me just enough. My eyes burned gold, my fangs pressed against my lower lip, and the wolf inside surged forward, demanding I turn around, go back, and finish what the bond had started. I slammed my fist into the concrete wall instead. The impact left a crack, but the pain helped.

Barely.

She had felt it too. I saw it in the way her hazel eyes widened, the way her pulse thundered at her throat when I stood too close. And that dream she mentioned—wolves, red moonlight, teeth in her shoulder. The bond was already whispering to her. My wolf had reached across the link while she slept and showed her the truth. If I had stayed in that gym one minute longer, I would have told her everything. Or worse, I would have marked her right there on the treadmill mat.

I took the stairs two at a time down to the ground floor and pushed through the side exit into the cool night air. The resort gardens stretched out in perfect lines, manicured hedges, glowing lanterns, and the soft splash of fountains. To any human, it looked peaceful. To me, it looked like a battlefield waiting to happen.

The moon hung directly overhead now, swollen and crimson, its light painting everything the colour of fresh blood. The first full blood eclipse wasn’t supposed to hit for another three nights, but the sky had other plans. I could feel the pull in my bones, the ancient magic stirring. Every wolf in the pack would be feeling it. Some would fight it. Others would lose.

I pulled out my phone and hit Lena’s number. She answered on the first ring.

“Patrol report,” I said, voice low.

“Three rogue scouts spotted on the eastern ridge,” she answered quickly. “Bloodfang scent, fresh. Marcus and two betas are tracking them now. They’re staying just outside the boundary—for now. But Thorne… the moon is messing with everyone. Two of our own almost shifted in the staff lounge. I had to send them to the containment room.”

I cursed under my breath. “Double the outer guards. Tell the elders to meet me in the ritual chamber at dawn. And Lena… Brielle had a dream tonight. Wolves. A bite. She woke up restless and came to the gym.”

Silence stretched for two seconds. “The bond is already talking to her?”

“Yes.” I rubbed the back of my neck. “She described it perfectly. My wolf reached her while she slept. If the elders are right, the Crimson Eclipse is starting earlier because she’s here. Because the mate bond is real.”

Lena’s voice softened. “Thorne, you can’t keep fighting this forever. She’s not just any human. She’s strong. I checked her file again after you left the lounge. Orphaned at seventeen, built an empire from nothing. That kind of fire doesn’t come from nowhere.”

“I know what she is,” I snapped. The words came out harsher than I meant. “I also know what the prophecy says. ‘The human Luna will rise with crimson chaos, but the shadows will eclipse the blood with grace.’ My father died believing that prophecy was a warning, not a promise. I won’t watch another person I care about get torn apart because of me.”

Lena sighed. “You’re not your father. And she’s not Mom. Give her a chance to choose.”

I ended the call before I could say something I’d regret. The night air felt heavier now. I walked the stone path that circled the main building, keeping to the shadows. My feet carried me toward the wing where Brielle’s suite glowed softly on the third floor. I stopped under a cluster of pine trees and looked up. Her terrace doors were open. I could see the faint outline of her moving inside, probably still trying to shake off the dream.

The bond hummed between us like a living thread. I could feel her confusion, the restless energy in her limbs, the way her skin still tingled from being near me. It was torture. Every instinct screamed to go to her, to pull her into my arms and tell her the truth: that she was mine, that the moon was changing because of us, that I would burn the world down before I let Viktor touch one hair on her head.

Instead, I stayed rooted to the spot.

A low growl rumbled in my chest. My claws slid out fully this time. I forced them back in and turned away, heading toward the containment wing where the pack members who couldn’t control the moon were being held. Two young betas paced behind reinforced glass, eyes glowing, fur rippling along their arms. They stopped when they saw me.

“Alpha,” one of them said through the speaker. “The moon… It’s calling louder than ever. Feels like something’s waking up inside me.”

I placed a hand on the glass. “Fight it. The elders will be here at dawn with the suppression ritual. You’re not alone.”

They nodded, but I saw the fear in their eyes. This was only the beginning. Three nights from now the moon would reach its peak, and if the bond between Brielle and me grew any stronger, the veil would tear wide open. Spirits would walk. Humans would see wolves where they should never see them. And Viktor Kane would bring every Bloodfang warrior he had straight to our gates.

I left the containment wing and made my way to my private office on the top floor. The room was dark except for the red moonlight streaming through the windows. I dropped into the leather chair behind my desk and opened the old leather journal my father had left me. The pages were brittle, the ink faded, but the words were burned into my memory.

“If the human mate is claimed, the blood moons will multiply. Packs will fracture. The veil will fall. Only the shadow-blessed Luna can turn the crimson to black and restore balance.”

Shadow-blessed. That part had always sounded like fairy tale nonsense. Until tonight. Until I felt the power already stirring in Brielle—the way her body had responded to the moon without her even knowing it.

A soft knock sounded. Lena slipped inside again, this time carrying two mugs of strong coffee. She set one in front of me and took the chair opposite.

“I checked on her,” she said quietly. “She’s back in her suite. Lights still on. She looked… unsettled, but safe.”

I nodded, wrapping my hands around the warm mug. “Good.”

Lena watched me for a long moment. “You were in the gym with her.”

“I left before anything happened.”

“But you wanted to stay.” It wasn’t a question.

I stared into the black coffee. “More than I’ve wanted anything in years. The bond is stronger than I thought possible. Every second I’m near her, it gets harder to remember why I have to stay away.”

My sister leaned forward. “Then stop staying away. Talk to her. Tell her the truth before the moon forces your hand. She deserves to know what she’s walking into.”

I closed the journal and pushed it aside. “Tomorrow. After her first session. I’ll take her on the private trail tour I promised. If the bond pushes again, I’ll explain enough to keep her safe without scaring her off. But Lena… if the blood moon hits full strength and she starts shifting, we use the containment protocol. No exceptions.”

Lena stood. “You’re still planning to fight fate.”

“I’m planning to protect my pack. And her.” I met my sister’s eyes. “Even if it means breaking my own heart.”

She left without another word.

I stayed at the desk until the crimson moon began to dip toward the horizon. The glow faded slowly, leaving the sky a normal deep blue again. For now. But I could already feel tomorrow’s moon gathering strength.

Somewhere below me, Brielle was probably trying to sleep. I closed my eyes and reached through the bond—just a light touch. She was restless, but calm. The dream had left her curious instead of terrified. That strength of hers… it was going to be the thing that either saved us all or destroyed everything I had built.

I stood and walked back to the window. The resort lay quiet below, lights twinkling like stars on the ground. Beautiful. Expensive. Mine to protect.

And in the middle of it all slept the one woman who could bring it all crashing down.

I pressed my forehead to the cool glass.

“Hold on, Brielle,” I whispered. “Just a little longer. I’ll keep you safe… even if it kills me.”

The wolf inside me howled in protest, but I locked it down. Tomorrow I will face her again. Tomorrow the real test would begin.

And this time I wasn’t sure I would be strong enough to walk away.