I should have known something was wrong when Damon's smile turned cold.
We stood in the main square of his territory, surrounded by his pack members who were cheering for their new Luna. I'd just saved eleven lives during the rogue attack. I'd earned their respect. For the first time in three years, I felt like I belonged somewhere.
"So what happens now?" I asked, still high on adrenaline and acceptance.
"Now we deal with Sophia Bell," Damon said, his voice carrying an edge I'd never heard before. "Her little game cost lives tonight. That requires consequences."
"What kind of consequences?"
His silver eyes went dark. "The permanent kind."
Before I could ask what he meant, his phone rang. He answered it with a sharp "Morrison."
"Cross, we have a problem," Kai's voice came through the speaker, tight with panic. "Sophia's gone. Fled during the attack with her father's warriors."
"Good," Damon said. "Let her run."
"That's not all. She left something behind. A message carved into my office wall." Kai's voice cracked. "It says 'The rejected mate will burn, and her new pack with her. This is just the beginning.'"
I felt cold dread settle in my stomach. "She's not done."
"No," Damon agreed. "She's not."
He hung up and turned to address his pack. "Warriors, gear up. We ride in ten minutes."
"Ride where?" I asked.
"Morrison territory." His smile was all teeth. "If Sophia wants a war, we'll give her one."
"Damon, wait. You can't just attack Kai's pack. They helped us tonight."
"Did they? Or did they just clean up their own mess after their precious princess tried to kill us all?"
"That's not fair. Kai didn't know what Sophia was planning."
"Didn't he?" Damon stepped closer, and suddenly I was looking at a stranger. "How convenient that he shows up with reinforcements right after his territory gets attacked. How convenient that his fiancée disappears right before we can question her."
"You think Kai was in on it?"
"I think Alphas will do anything to get what they want. Even fake being the hero."
The words hit me like a slap. "Is that what you think you're doing? Faking being the hero?"
His expression didn't change. "I'm protecting what's mine."
"By starting a war?"
"By finishing one."
Around us, his warriors were already shifting into battle formation. These weren't the same friendly faces from earlier. These were predators preparing for violence.
"I won't let you do this," I said.
"You won't let me?" He laughed, and the sound made my skin crawl. "Little wolf, you seem to have forgotten something. You're not my equal. You're my mate. My property. My responsibility, to protect and control."
The words were like ice water in my veins. "Property?"
"Did you really think tonight changed anything? That saving a few lives made you my partner?" He circled me slowly, and I could see his pack watching with interest. "You're useful, I'll give you that. Good for morale. But don't mistake usefulness for power."
"You said I was your Luna."
"I said the pack chose you. I never said I agreed with their choice."
The betrayal hit me harder than any physical blow could have. Around us, his warriors were mounting motorcycles, loading weapons. They were really going to do this.
"Please," I whispered. "Don't hurt innocent people because of what Sophia did."
"Innocent?" Damon's voice was cruel now. "There are no innocents in pack politics, Aria. There are only winners and losers. Strong and weak. Predators and prey."
"Which one am I?"
He studied my face for a long moment. "That depends on how smart you are."
His phone rang again. This time, he put it on speaker without asking.
"Cross." A voice I didn't recognize. "We have the target."
"Good. Bring him to the meeting point."
"Who's the target?" I asked, though I was starting to have a terrible feeling.
"Insurance," Damon said. "To make sure Morrison cooperates with our terms."
The phone crackled again. "Alpha, the boy fought hard. Took four of us to bring him down. But he's secure now."
My world stopped spinning.
"Jake," I whispered.
Damon's smile was vicious. "Your brother has such a strong sense of loyalty. Tried to defend Morrison's territory all by himself when our scouts found him on patrol."
"You kidnapped my brother?"
"I acquired leverage."
I stared at him, seeing him clearly for the first time. Not a mate. Not a partner. Not even a man. A monster.
"Let him go."
"I don't think so. You see, I have plans for Jake. And for you."
"What plans?"
"Simple. You're going to help me destroy Morrison's pack from the inside. Starting with their precious Alpha heir."
"I'll never help you hurt Kai."
"Won't you?" He pulled out his phone and showed me a video. Jake, tied to a chair in what looked like a warehouse, blood running from his nose. "Your brother's life depends on your cooperation."
"You bastard."
"Careful, little wolf. That's your Alpha you're speaking to."
Around us, his pack was watching with expressions ranging from uncomfortable to excited. None of them looked surprised. They'd known this was the plan all along.
"What do you want me to do?" I asked, my voice barely a whisper.
"First, you're going to let me mark you. In front of everyone. Make it official."
"And then?"
"Then you're going to help me take apart Morrison's pack piece by piece. Starting with their leadership."
I looked around at the faces surrounding us. People I'd thought were my pack. People I'd risked my life to save.
"And if I refuse?"
"Then Jake dies. Slowly. While Morrison's territory burns around him."
The choice wasn't really a choice at all.
"Fine," I said. "But I want to see him first. I want proof he's alive."
"You'll see him when I'm ready for you to see him." Damon stepped closer, his voice dropping to a whisper. "But first, the marking."
He didn't wait for my agreement. His hand shot out and grabbed my wrist, pulling me against him. His other hand tangled in my hair, jerking my head to the side to expose my neck.
"Hold still," he commanded.
I felt his teeth pierce my skin, and pain shot through my entire body. But worse than the physical pain was the feeling of violation. Of being claimed against my will.
The mate bond, which had felt like coming home, now felt like chains.
When he pulled back, blood was running down my neck. His pack howled their approval, but the sound felt hollow now.
"There," he said, wiping blood from his mouth. "Now you're truly mine."
I touched the fresh mark on my neck, feeling tears start to fall.
"Did you think I actually wanted you?" he asked conversationally. "The rejected mate of a weak Alpha? The pack charity case?"
Each word was a knife to the heart.
"You were useful," he continued. "A way to get close to Morrison. A way to learn his weaknesses. But now that I have what I need..."
He stepped back, his expression going cold as winter.
"I, Damon Cross, reject you, Aria Stone, as my mate."
The words hit me like a physical blow. The mate bond, already corrupted by his betrayal, snapped completely. Pain beyond description tore through my chest, and I fell to my knees.
Around us, his pack had gone silent. Even they seemed shocked by the cruelty.
"But the mark stays," Damon said, looking down at me with disgust. "So everyone knows you belong to me. My property. My tool to use however I see fit."
I couldn't breathe. I couldn't think. I couldn't do anything but kneel in the dirt while the man I'd trusted destroyed me completely.
"Get her up," he ordered his warriors. "We have work to do."
Strong hands hauled me to my feet, but I barely felt them. I was drowning in pain and betrayal and the horrible realization that I'd been played from the very beginning.
"Oh, and Aria?" Damon's voice followed me as they dragged me toward the vehicles. "If you try to warn Morrison, your brother dies. If you try to run, your brother dies. If you do anything other than exactly what I tell you..."
"My brother dies," I finished numbly.
"Smart girl. I knew there was a reason I chose you."
As they forced me onto the back of a motorcycle, I caught sight of my reflection in a window. The mark on my neck was already healing, but it would scar. A permanent reminder of my stupidity.
I'd thought the worst thing that could happen was being rejected once.
I was wrong.
Being rejected twice, after being marked and used and betrayed, was so much worse.
But as we rode toward Morrison territory, toward whatever nightmare Damon had planned, I made myself a promise.
I would save Jake. I would find a way to warn Kai. And then I would make Damon Cross pay for every single thing he'd done to me.
Even if it killed me.