(Damien's POV)
"I want to end the marriage."
The words had barely left my mouth when my grandmother's face crumpled in distress. "Absolutely not!" She moved protectively toward Elena, who had retreated to a corner of the room, her small form almost shrinking into the shadows.
MATE! DON'T SEND HER AWAY! Zoe's howls echoed through my mind with such force that maintaining my neutral expression became a battle. The wolf in me fought against every instinct to claim her, mark her, keep her close. The mate bond pulled at me like a physical force, but I couldn't – wouldn't – let it show. I carefully controlled my scent, masking any trace of the mate connection. The last thing I needed was for her to realize we were true mates. My plans for revenge were complicated enough without adding a mate bond to the equation.
"Grandmother," I said carefully, injecting just the right amount of pain and regret into my voice, "my legs may never heal. And these violent episodes..." I let my voice trail off meaningfully. "I can't control my strength. I won't risk harming an innocent."
The excuse was perfect – playing on both my grandmother's love and her fear. I watched guilt and uncertainty war on her face as she looked between Elena and me.
But before she could respond, a soft yet determined voice cut through the tension.
"I can help you." Elena stepped forward, her chin lifted with surprising confidence. "I have a way to cure your control issues."
My heart stopped. She knows. Zoe howled in triumph – Our mate can heal us! – but decades of caution made me freeze.
The poison had been my constant companion for eighteen years, since I first showed signs of being an Alpha at age eight. Ten years of my father's careful dosing before I discovered the truth, followed by three years of pretending to be its helpless victim while secretly fighting its effects. The toxin had worked its way into my very bones, triggering episodes of genuine violence when my control slipped.
I'd searched extensively through my Shadow Pack connections, consulting every renowned healer in werewolf territory. Most couldn't even detect the poison's presence. The few who did admitted they were powerless to treat it. Yet here stood this slip of a girl, barely twenty, claiming she could cure what had stumped the greatest medical minds in our world?
My eyes narrowed as I studied her. Was this some plot of my father's? Had he and Leo orchestrated this whole thing, using their shared history to plant her in my bed as a spy? The memory of her conversation with Leo last night made my blood boil.
"Elena, dear," my grandmother said gently, clearly sharing my skepticism, "Damien's power control issues began when he was eight years old. All the healers agreed it was simply a matter of his extraordinary strength overwhelming his control. With proper training—"
"No," Elena interrupted, her voice soft but unshakeable. "It's not about power at all. He's being poi—"
I released my Alpha power before she could finish the word. I released it in a targeted surge, wrapping the invisible force around her delicate throat like a vice. Not enough pressure to truly harm her, but enough to silence her. Shock rippled through me – how had she discovered what an army of healers couldn't? But I couldn't let her reveal this to my grandmother. Learning that her own son had been slowly poisoning his heir for eighteen years would destroy her.
"Enough!" I growled, letting some of my genuine rage seep into my voice. The sight of my fingers around my mate's throat made Zoe thrash in protest, but I held firm. "Pack your things and get out."
Elena's POV
The Alpha power wrapped around my throat like an invisible noose, cutting off my words before I could finish revealing the truth about the poison. The pressure wasn't violent like last night's attack – this was calculated, precise, a clear warning.
He doesn't want his grandmother to know, I realized, meeting Damien's cold gaze. But why? Who gave him the poison, and why is he protecting them?
Gina whimpered inside me. *Don't dig deeper. This isn't our fight.*
She was right. In just twenty-four hours, I'd seen enough of Stone Pack politics to last a lifetime. I had Moon's Tears now – I could heal Grandma, take her far away from Silver Creek Pack, find some small territory where no one knew us. No more pack politics, no more arranged marriages, no more deadly secrets...
"Absolutely not!" Alani's voice cut through my escape plans. "Elena isn't going anywhere. She's your wife, Damien, and she'll help with your treatment."
I pressed myself further into the corner, trying to become invisible as grandmother and grandson faced off. This wasn't my battle to fight. These powerful wolves would decide my fate whether I spoke or not. The Moon's Tears herb felt heavy in my pocket, my one chance at freedom now hanging by a thread.
Alani's eyes filled with tears as she pleaded with Damien. "Please, my boy. We've waited so long for you to wake. Don't push away the one who might be able to help you."
I watched Damien's face carefully. For someone who'd supposedly been comatose for three years, he was remarkably skilled at controlling his expressions. But something flickered in his eyes when he saw his grandmother's tears – a crack in his perfect mask.
"Fine," he said finally, his voice clipped. "She can stay. But I need to speak with her. Alone."
The smile that broke across Alani's face was radiant. She turned to me, patting my cheek affectionately. "Everything will be fine, dear. You'll see."
No, I thought as she walked to the door. Nothing about this is fine.
The moment the door clicked shut, the temperature in the room seemed to drop ten degrees. The Alpha power that filled the chamber was different from last night's rage – this was calculated, cold, lethal. Like the difference between a wolf's wild attack and a snake preparing to strike.
Gina collapsed inside me, belly up, throat bared in absolute submission. Run, she whimpered. We need to run!
But I couldn't move. The pressure around my throat tightened, not quite choking but promising that it could.
"Who are you? Who asked you to marry me?" Damien's voice was soft, almost gentle, making the deadly intent behind it even more terrifying. His legs might be useless, but he didn't need physical movement to kill me. His Alpha power alone could snap my neck with a thought.
I swallowed against the invisible pressure. "I'm Elena," I forced out, each word a struggle. "Daughter of Silver Creek Pack's Luna. I married you to get Moon's Tears for my grandmother."
His eyes narrowed, darkening to almost black. The pressure increased until spots danced in my vision. Through the growing haze, I saw something dangerous flash across his face – suspicion, calculation, rage.
He thinks I'm working for whoever poisoned him, I realized with growing horror. He thinks this was all a setup.
The pressure around my throat became unbearable. This wasn't like last night's display of power – this was a wolf who'd spent years perfecting his control, who could end my life with just a thought.
He's really going to kill me.
The realization crystallized in my mind with perfect clarity. After everything – surviving Leo's betrayal, Seraphina's attack, last night's terror – I was going to die here, just when I'd finally gotten the means to save Grandma.
No!
"You can't kill me!" I choked out, desperation giving me strength. "I'm the only one who can cure your poison!"
The invisible pressure around my throat eased slightly, though Damien's eyes remained cold with suspicion. This was my chance – maybe my only chance.
"If you don't believe me," I rushed out before he could change his mind, "I can prove it right now." His eyebrow lifted slightly, questioning but not agreeing. I pressed on quickly, "What do you have to lose? If I'm lying, you can still kill me."
Not the smartest thing to remind him of, Gina whimpered, but I kept my eyes steady on his. After several tense heartbeats, he gave an almost imperceptible nod.
I approached the bed with the careful movements of someone nearing a wounded predator. My hands trembled slightly as I reached for his chest, but I forced them steady. You're a healer, I reminded myself. This is what you were trained for.
The moment my palm touched his chest, I felt his muscles lock up beneath my hand. Even through his shirt, his skin burned like fire against mine. Taking a deep breath, I called forth my healing power – the gift Noah had helped me refine over years of secret training.
As my power seeped into his body, I nearly gasped at what I found. His Alpha power was overwhelming – like trying to map an ocean while drowning in it. But threaded through that magnificent force were tendrils of darkness, oily and wrong, corrupting everything they touched.
Focus, I commanded myself, carefully directing my purifying energy toward the nearest strand of poison. It was delicate work, like trying to extract a single thread from a tapestry without disturbing the whole. One wrong move and his power could crush me.
But it worked.
I felt the moment my energy made contact with the poison. The black tendril resisted at first, then began to dissolve under my purifying touch. It was a tiny victory – like removing one grain of sand from a beach – but it proved it could be done.
Joy surged through me.
Damien's eyes were wide with shock, his breathing coming in quick, sharp bursts. "How?" he demanded, his voice rough. "How did you do that?"
The restraint in his body was terrifying – like watching a dam about to break. Every muscle was coiled tight, his power churning beneath the surface.
I continued to release my purifying energy. "I have a gift for purification. If you'll let me continue—"
The words weren't even fully out of my mouth when everything changed.
Alpha power exploded through the room, but this was different from before. This was primal, savage – the full unleashed force of an Alpha heir's true strength. The pressure nearly drove me to my knees.
When I looked up, Damien's eyes had shifted to Alpha red – that terrifying crimson that marked a wolf lost to their most primitive instincts. But his face... his face remained eerily calm, making the deadly intent in those blood-red eyes even more horrifying.
He is losing control again! Gina screamed inside me. This is worse than last night! RUN!
I tried to scramble back, but his hand shot out with impossible speed for someone who claimed to be paralyzed. Strong fingers wrapped around my throat – not crushing, but holding me in place with terrifying gentleness.
"Where are you going, delicious little wolf?" His voice had dropped to a deep growl that sent shivers down my spine.
But it wasn't his grip or his words that made my knees go weak. It was his scent.
The moment his skin made contact with mine, his carefully controlled scent barrier shattered. A new smell flooded my senses – pine forests after rain, winter wind, and something wild and distinctly Alpha. Something that called to my very soul.
No, I thought desperately as my wolf responded with a yearning whine. This can't be happening.
But there was no denying it. After the devastation of losing Leo, after thinking I'd never find that connection again...
The Moon Goddess had given me a second chance mate.
And he was currently debating whether or not to kill me.