Chapter 2 Flight Under the Velvet Moon
Branches tore at her gown, ripping silk into rags. Selena’s lungs burned as she stumbled through the forest, barefoot, dirt and stones cutting into her skin. Her chest ached worse than her feet—each breath shallow, each heartbeat jagged with the pain of the bond tearing inside her.
She clutched at her chest, gasping, whispering into the empty dark. “Why? Goddess, why him?”
Every step replayed memories she wanted to forget. Adrian’s smile when they were children, his promise that he’d always protect her, the way Clara used to braid her hair and swear they’d stand together at each other’s ceremonies. All lies.
Wolfless. Worthless.
The cruel whispers she’d grown up hearing now roared like a chorus in her head. She had clung to the bond as her salvation, the one proof she was not a mistake. And tonight, even that had been ripped away.
She stumbled over a root, crashing to her knees . Her palms scraped raw, blood pouring across the soil. For a moment she stayed there, trembling, too hollow to move .
But the thought of their laughter—Adrian’s sneer, Clara’s triumphant smirk—spurred her to her feet. She couldn’t let them see her crawl.
She pushed forward, branches clawing her arms, until the trees thinned and the glow of the main road broke through. Headlights swept across the curve, blinding her teary eyes.
“Wait—” she gasped, raising a hand too late.
A sleek black car screeched, tires biting the pavement, stopping inches from her. The engine growled like a beast caged.
Selena froze, breath ragged, gown tattered, hair plastered to her tear-streaked face .
The driver’s door opened with deliberate slowness .
A tall figure stepped out, the air around him shifting as if the night bent to his will . He was broad-shouldered, dressed in a dark suit that clung to him like power itself. His gaze cut through the shadows, icy blue, piercing straight into her .
Selena staggered back, heart pounding. She knew that face. Everyone did.
“D-Damian Blackthorne,” she whispered.
The infamous Alpha. Billionaire CEO. Ruthless, feared, untouchable. Rumors clung to him like smoke—that he was cursed, that he was more beast than man.
He studied her in silence, eyes narrowing. “You’re bleeding.” His voice was deep, smooth, and cold enough to chill her bones.
Selena shook her head quickly, panic rising. “I—I’ll go. I didn’t mean—”
“Stop.” The command snapped out sharp, freezing her mid-step. He took one measured stride closer, his presence suffocating. “What were you doing in the road?”
“I wasn’t—I wasn’t thinking.” Her voice cracked. “Please, just… let me pass.”
His eyes flicked over her torn gown, her bare feet, her tearstained face. “Running,” he said flatly. “From what?”
Selena’s breath caught. She tried to answer, but the words tangled in her throat.
Damian tilted his head, gaze narrowing further. “You reek of heartbreak. Of rejection.”
Her stomach twisted. “That’s none of your business.”
“Everything here is my business.” His tone carried the weight of command. He stepped closer, and she could feel the energy around him shift—heavy, electric, dangerous.
Selena forced herself to look up, though her voice shook. “I don’t owe you an explanation.”
A low sound escaped him, not quite a laugh, not quite a growl. “Brave. Or stupid.” His gaze sharpened, like he was trying to pierce through her skin.
He inhaled, slow, deliberate. His jaw tightened.
Selena flinched. “What?”
“Your scent.” He said it like an accusation, eyes glinting with something dark. “It’s… wrong.”
Her brows drew together. “What are you talking about?”
“No wolf smells like this.” He circled her slowly, like a predator sizing prey. “You don’t carry the scent of weakness. Not entirely. There’s something else buried beneath it.”
Her throat closed up. “You’re mistaken. I’m just… wolfless.”
He stopped in front of her again, gaze burning. “That word doesn’t fit you.”
Selena hugged her arms around herself. “It’s all I’ve ever been.”
Damian’s eyes narrowed. “Do you truly believe that?”
She hesitated. “…What choice do I have?”
His lips curved faintly, not quite a smile. “Belief doesn’t change truth.”
Her voice cracked as she snapped, “And what would you know about my truth?”
“Enough to see you’re lying to yourself.”
“Lying?” Selena’s laugh was sharp, bitter. “Do you think I want to be wolfless? Do you think I chose this?”
“I think,” Damian said evenly, “you don’t even know what you are.”
The words hit harder than she expected. “You don’t know me.”
“I don’t need to.” His voice dropped lower, laced with authority. “I can smell it. I can feel it.”
She shook her head violently. “Stop saying that!”
“Then explain it.” His eyes bored into hers. “Why does your scent shift like smoke? Why does it pull and repulse at the same time?”
Selena stumbled back, shaking. “I don’t know. I don’t know what you’re talking about!”
Damian’s gaze softened for a fraction of a second, like curiosity cracked through his armor. “You’re scared.”
Her chest heaved. “Of course I’m scared! I was rejected tonight—in front of everyone. My best friend—my mate—” her voice broke, “they humiliated me. Isn’t that enough reason to run?”
He regarded her quietly, then spoke. “Humiliation doesn’t erase identity.”
“Identity?” She let out a choked laugh. “My identity is nothing. Wolfless. Weak. Worthless. Haven’t you heard? That’s all I’ll ever be.”
For the first time, his jaw ticked, a flicker of something dark passing over his face. “Do not use that word again.”
“Why not?” she whispered fiercely. “It’s true.”
“No.” His voice cracked like thunder. “It’s a lie someone fed you until you swallowed it whole.”
Selena’s throat tightened. “You don’t understand.”
“Then make me.” He stepped closer, each stride a challenge. “Tell me why you ran. Tell me what they said. Tell me what you fear most.”
Her eyes brimmed. “That I’ll never belong.”
A silence stretched, heavy, broken only by the rustle of night wind.
Damian’s gaze didn’t waver. “You belong. But not where you think.”
Her lips trembled. “Why are you saying these things?”
“Because your scent tells me you’re not wolfless. You’re… something else. Something hidden.”
Selena shook her head, terrified. “Stop it.”
“Do you even feel the bond tearing still?” His eyes flashed. “Does it burn, or does it shift into something new?”
She bit her lip, refusing to answer.
“You don’t know, do you?” His grip tightened on her wrist as her silence stretched. “That’s the danger—you don’t know what you are.”
Selena gasped, twisting, but he held her easily. “Let me go!”
His eyes blazed under the moonlight, that piercing blue de
epening into something feral. His voice rumbled low, edged with a growl that made her skin prickle.
“Do you even know what you are?”
