Chapter 51
(Siena’s POV)
The grand hall of the Lycanthrope Council gleams with an almost oppressive elegance.
Crystal chandeliers cast prismatic light across marble floors, illuminating the faces of the pack representatives with an unforgiving brightness that reveals every calculation, every political maneuver written in their expressions.
The scent of power hangs in the air–old money, expensive cologne, and beneath it all, the unmistakable musk of predators watching for weakness.
The applause roars around me, loud and relentless, but it feels distant, like I’m hearing it through a thick pane of glass
I stand on the platform, clutching the award in my hands–a polished silver plate engraved with the words Most Innovative Diplomatic Strategy. It’s heavier than I expected, its sharp edges digging into my palms, grounding me in the moment.
From this elevated position, I can see the entire assembly. The Northern Alliance delegates bear with genuine pride–they backed my proposal from the beginning.
The Southern Coalitions maintain polite, measured applause, their expressions carefully neutral despite voting against me.
And there, near the back wall, stands Raiden, his posture rigid and unyielding, hands at his sides rather than joining the applause. The mate bond pulses with his barely contained fury, a cold current running beneath my skin.
The overhead lights catch the ceremonial chains worn by the Elder Council members, sending flashes of gold across the room that momentarily blind me.
In those brief seconds of disorientation, the world seems to tilt and shift–success supposed to feel different than this hollow victory. This achievement should be the culmination of months of work, yet all I feel is the weight of what it has cost me
“Windhowl!” the announcer repeats, her voice bright and chipper, urging the crowd to cheer louder. They oblige. The sound crescendos, layers of clapping and whistling crashing together like waves.
I glance at my pack scattered among the audience.
Their faces are lit with pride, their shoulders squared, spines straighter than I’ve seen in years. For so long, we’ve endured whispers and pointed stares, the weight of shame pressing us down.
Rejected Luna
Unworthy.
Weak
That’s how they saw me. That’s how they saw us. But tonight? Tonight, they see something else.
They see a leader.
It should feel good–no, it should feel great. This is everything I’ve worked for, isn’t it?
To prove that I don’t need anyone else to define me. To show them–and myself–that I’m more than a discarded mate
And yet, holding this award, hearing their cheers, it feels hollow. Like I’m trying to fill a cavernous void with whispers of validation that never quite reach the bottom.
I force a smile and step back from the microphone, nodding politely as the announcer ushers me offstage.
Chapter 51
The applause fades as I descend, the silver plate still clutched tightly in my hands.
My heels click against the marble floor, each step echoing in my head.
I reach the edge of the room, I exhale slowly, letting my shoulders relax. Around me, the crowd mingles, champagne glasses clinking, voices buzzing with congratulations and half–hearted small talk.
I should join them, I know. But the thought of plastering on another fake smile, of enduring more empty compliments. makes my stomach churn.
Instead, I slip out the side door and head back to my quarters.
The room is quiet when I enter, dimly lit by the soft glow of the lamp on my desk. I set the award down carefully, its metallic surface gleaming under the light. For a moment, I just stare at it.
This is what success looks like, isn’t it? Recognition. Achievement Progress. But it doesn’t feel like success. It feels like a bandage slapped over a wound that refuses to heal.
I sink into the armchair by the window, pulling my knees to my chest. Outside, the moon hangs low in the sky, its pale light casting long shadows across the room.
My fingertips brush against the edge of the bond mark on my neck–a faint, silvery scar that once burned with the intensity
of a mate’s connection.
Now, it’s cold. Lifeless.
I close my eyes and let out a shaky breath. The ache in my chest is familiar, a constant companion these past few years. It’s not just the absence of the bond–it’s the knowledge that Raiden chose someone else. That he looked at me, at the life we could’ve built together, and decided it wasn’t enough.
A sharp knock at the door jolts me from my thoughts.
My heart stutters, a flicker of annoyance sparking in
chest. The last thing I want is company
But the knocking persists, firm and deliberate.
I rise reluctantly, crossing the room to open the door.
And then I freeze.
Raiden stands on the other side, his broad frame filling the doorway.
He’s dressed in his usual dark suit, but there’s something off about him tonight. His shoulders are tense, his jaw tight, and his eyes–normally so cold and unreadable–are flickering with something I can’t quite place..
“Siena,” he says, his voice low and almost hesitant. “May I come in?”
Thesitate, gripping the doorframe so tightly my knuckles ache. My first instinct is to slam the door in his face. But something about the way he’s standing there–like he doesn’t quite know what to do with himself–softens the sharp edges of my anger.
Wordlessly, I step aside and let him in.
He moves into the room slowly, his gaze sweeping over the space like he’s cataloging every detail. When he turns back to me, his expression is unreadable.
“Congratulations on your diplomatic success,” he says stiffly
I blink, caught off–guard. Raiden doesn’t give compliments. Not to me, at least. For years, all I’ve received from him is
WE
Chapter 51
criticism, indifference, or silence.
Thank you, I reply cautiously, my voice laced with suspicion. I wait for the inevitable follow–up–the jab, the backhanded remark. But it doesn’t come..
Instead, he hesitates, his hand brushing against the back of his neck. He looks, uncertain.
“Your father would have been proud,” he says quietly.
The words hit me like a punch to the gut. My composure cracks, the carefully constructed mask I’ve worn all evening splintering under the weight of his unexpected acknowledgment.
“My father died while you were ignoring my calls,” I say, my voice trembling with a mix of anger and pain. “The day you were trending to Lila’s mortal wounds in the hospital.”
Raiden’s face goes pale, his eyes widening in genuine shock. “What?” he breathes.
He looks so confused, so genuinely blindsided, that for a moment, I falter.
Did you really not know?
“I called you seventeen times that night Raidne. Before I knelt for hours in teh rain, I begged as much as he did. When we needed you-”
Understanding dawns in his eyes, followed by something that looks dangerously close to regret
He opens his mouth to speak, but no words come out. Instead, he just stands there, staring at me like he’s seeing me for the
first time.
“Siena, 1-”
Whatever he’s about to say is cut off by a voice calling his name from the corridor.
“Raiden?”
It’s Lila. Her voice is light and musical, tinged with curiosity.
The moment shatters like glass, the fragile connection between us splintering under the weight of her presence. expression hardens, his walls slamming back into place.
He steps back, his posture stiff and formal.
“Goodnight, Siena,” he says curtly, nodding once before turning and leaving the room.
Raiden’s
I watch him go, my chest tight with a whirlwind of emotions–anger, sadness, confusion, and something else I can’t quite
name.
When the door clicks shut behind him, the silence rushes back in, deafening and oppressive. I sink back into the armchair my hands trembling as I press them to my face.
For years, I’ve told myself that Raiden doesn’t care. That he never cared. But tonight, for the briefest of moments, I saw something in his eyes that makes me question everything.
And that terrifies me more than anything else..
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Chapter 52
Chapter 52
