Chapter 5 Chapter 5

Ava's POV

The challenge circle was packed with wolves from multiple packs. Word had spread about Marcus's return, about our supposed mate bond, about the challenge that would change everything. The full moon hung overhead like a spotlight.

I stood at the edge of the circle wearing the wedding dress I had bought for Garry. It fit perfectly, white silk and lace that caught the moonlight. Marcus had been right. The look on Garry's face when he saw me was worth every penny I had spent.

"You look beautiful," Marcus whispered beside me. He wore black pants and nothing else, preparing to shift for the fight. His body was covered in scars I hadn't seen before, old wounds that told stories of the five years he had been gone.

"Remember the plan?" he asked.

I nodded. We had prepared for this. The rogues would attack from the north tree line when the fight began. But they didn't know that Marcus's own allies were waiting for them. It would be a bloodbath, but not the one Alpha Blackwood expected.

The Alpha stepped into the circle, also shirtless, his aging body still powerful. "Marcus Stone, you have challenged me for leadership of the Moonvalley Pack. Do you maintain your challenge?"

"I do."

"Then let us settle this as wolves."

Both men shifted simultaneously. Alpha Blackwood became a massive gray wolf, scarred and dangerous. Marcus transformed into something I had never seen before. His wolf was pitch black, larger than any wolf I had ever encountered, with eyes that glowed like golden fire.

Gasps echoed through the crowd. Even Sophia looked shocked.

"That's not possible," someone whispered. "That's a Lycan."

Lycans were the original wolves, stronger and faster than regular werewolves. They were supposed to be extinct.

The two wolves circled each other. Then, Alpha Blackwood attacked.

The fight was brutal. Despite his age and illness, the Alpha was still formidable. His teeth found Marcus's shoulder, tearing flesh. Marcus responded by throwing him across the circle, his Lycan strength obvious.

Then I heard it. The howl from the north tree line. The rogues were coming.

"Attack!" someone screamed. "Rogues!"

But instead of chaos, something else happened. More howls answered from the south, east, and west. Marcus's allies, surrounding the rogues who thought they were ambushing us.

"It's a trap!" Alpha Blackwood's beta shouted.

The rogues tried to retreat but found themselves surrounded. In the confusion, I almost missed what happened in the circle.

Alpha Blackwood, distracted by his failed plan, left himself open. Marcus struck, his massive jaws closing around the Alpha's throat. Not killing, but holding. Dominating.

"Submit," Marcus growled, the word somehow clear despite his wolf form.

The Alpha struggled for a moment, then went limp. Submission.

Marcus released him and shifted back to human form. Someone threw him pants, which he pulled on casually, as if he hadn't just changed the entire pack structure.

"I am your Alpha now," he announced, his voice carrying across the clearing. "Anyone who has a problem with that can challenge me now."

No one moved.

"Good. Then let's discuss changes. First, Garry Stone is no longer Beta. He is banished from this pack for the murder of Sarah Mitchell."

"You can't prove that!" Garry shouted, pushing through the crowd.

"Actually, I can." Marcus smiled coldly. "Would you like to tell them, or should I?"

That's when I noticed someone else pushing through the crowd. A woman with dark hair and familiar features. She looked like Sarah Mitchell. Almost exactly like her.

"Hello, Garry," the woman said. "Miss me?"

Garry's face went white. "Rachel? But you... you were in Europe."

"Sarah's twin sister," Marcus explained to the confused crowd. "She's been investigating her sister's death for five years. And she found some very interesting evidence."

Rachel held up a plastic bag. "This is the shirt Garry wore that night. He thought he burned it, but his mother kept it. Sentimental value, she said. It's covered in Sarah's blood."

"That proves nothing!" Sophia screamed. "He could have been trying to help her!"

"The blood spatter pattern says otherwise," Rachel continued calmly. "Plus, there's this." She pulled out a phone. "Sarah sent me a message that night. A voice message, right before she died."

She hit play. Sarah's terrified voice filled the clearing:

"Rachel, it's Garry. He's here. He says if I don't choose him, I can't choose anyone. Oh god, he's shifting. Help me! Someone help—"

The message cut off with a scream.

The clearing erupted. Pack members shouting, some trying to grab Garry, others standing in shock. Garry tried to run, but Marcus was faster. He grabbed him by the throat, lifting him off the ground.

"You killed my mate. My child. You let me be banished for your crime."

"Please," Garry gasped. "I didn't mean to. I loved her. I just... I couldn't let her leave with you."

"And now you'll face justice." Marcus dropped him. "Pack law says the punishment for murdering a pregnant wolf is death. But I'll give you a choice. Death, or eternal banishment. You can never set foot in any pack territory again. You'll be rogue, alone, for the rest of your life."

"That's not your choice to make!" Sophia shouted. "My father is still Alpha until the ceremony is complete!"

"Your father," Marcus said slowly, "knew the truth and covered it up. Didn't you, Blackwood?"

The former Alpha, now in human form and looking defeated, nodded slowly. "Garry's father was my best friend. I thought... I thought I was protecting the pack from scandal."

"You were protecting a murderer," I said, finding my voice. Everyone turned to look at me. "And you let an innocent man be banished for it."

"Ava's right," Marcus said. "Which brings me to my second announcement. My Luna will be taking over the investigation of all pack crimes from the last five years. Anyone who was wrongly punished will be pardoned. Anyone who escaped justice will face it."

"She's not your Luna!" Sophia screamed. "She's not even your real mate! I can smell it! There's no bond!"

The crowd murmured, confused. This was the moment we had prepared for, but now, standing here, I wasn't sure I could pull it off.

Then Marcus did something unexpected. He walked over to me, cupped my face in his hands, and kissed me.

It wasn't like the quick peck at our wedding. This was real, deep, passionate. And something impossible happened.

I felt it. A spark, electric and undeniable. My wolf howled in recognition. The crowd gasped as the scent of a new bond filled the air.

When Marcus pulled away, his eyes were wide with shock that matched mine.

"That's not possible," he whispered, so only I could hear. "We weren't mates before."

"I know," I whispered back.

But the crowd could smell it. The beginning of a mate bond, fresh and new. Sometimes, rarely, the Moon Goddess gave second chance mates to those who had lost their first. But for her to do it right here, right now, in front of everyone?

"The Moon Goddess has blessed this union!" someone shouted.

"It's a sign!"

"Long live Alpha Marcus and Luna Ava!"

The chant spread through the crowd. Even those loyal to the old Alpha couldn't deny what they had witnessed.

Garry fell to his knees, tears streaming down his face. "No. No, she was supposed to be mine. This isn't how it was supposed to happen."

"You made your choice," I told him coldly. "Now live with it."

"Banishment," Garry whispered. "I choose banishment."

"Then leave," Marcus ordered. "Now. And if you ever return, your life is forfeit."

As Garry stumbled away, Sophia screamed after him. "What about me? What about our baby?"

He didn't even look back.

Sophia turned on me, her face twisted with rage. "This is all your fault!"

She lunged at me, shifting mid-leap into her wolf form. But I was ready. I shifted too, my wolf finally free to fight.

We crashed together, teeth and claws. She was strong, but I was stronger. All those years of training, of holding back, of being the perfect Beta's girlfriend. They were over.

I pinned her quickly, my teeth at her throat. One bite and she would be dead.

"Stop!" the former Alpha shouted. "Please, she's pregnant!"

I looked to Marcus. He nodded once. I released her and shifted back.

"You and your father have one hour to leave pack territory," Marcus announced. "Don't come back."

As the Blackwoods left in disgrace, Marcus pulled me against him. The mate bond hummed between us, new and confusing.

"We need to talk about this," he said quietly.

"Later," I promised. "After your Alpha ceremony."

But as the pack celebrated around us, I noticed something. A figure in the trees, watching. When our eyes met, they disappeared, but not before I recognized them.

My father. And he was with someone else. Someone who looked exactly like Marcus.

A twin brother? But Marcus never mentioned having a twin.

The plot had just become much more complicated.