Beverly's POV

The old pier stretched into the darkness, abandoned and creaking with every gust of wind. I stood at the entrance, supposedly alone, my heart hammering against my ribs.

"I can hear your heartbeat from here," Bruce's voice came through the tiny earpiece he'd given me. "Breathe."

Easy for him to say. He wasn't the bait.

"Any sign of them?" I whispered.

"Not yet. But stay alert."

I walked forward, my footsteps echoing on the rotting wood. The moon was hidden behind clouds, making everything shadowy and threatening.

"Hello, Beverly."

I spun around. Marcus stood twenty feet away, but he wasn't alone. Five men flanked him, all massive, all radiating danger.

"Where's my mother?"

"Safe. For now." He stepped closer. "You came alone. Good girl."

"What do you want, Marcus?"

"What I've always wanted. You."

"We're over. I'm married now."

He laughed. "To Bruce Leonard? That won't last long. Haven't you heard about the family curse?"

"I don't believe in curses."

"You should. Every Leonard mate dies within a year. Car accidents, drownings, mysterious illnesses. You're living on borrowed time."

"Bruce," I whispered into the mic. "Something's wrong. He knows too much."

No response.

"Bruce?"

Static.

Marcus smiled. "Cell jammer. We're completely alone out here."

My blood ran cold. The backup plan required communication. Without it, I was truly alone.

"Don't look so scared," Marcus moved closer. "I'm not going to hurt you. Much."

"Why are you doing this?"

"Because you humiliated me. You were supposed to be grateful. A nobody marrying into the Riverside Pack. Instead, you threw it in my face and ran to Leonard."

"You cheated on me!"

"So? You think you're the first bride to catch her groom sampling the goods? Most women would have ignored it for the status."

"I'm not most women."

"No, you're not." His eyes glowed yellow in the darkness. "You're something special. I sensed it the moment we met, but I didn't understand until recently."

"What are you talking about?"

"Your bloodline, Beverly. Did you never wonder why your father really left?"

"He abandoned us."

"He was hunted. Driven out. Because of what he was. What you are."

"I'm just a regular wolf—"

"You're a Luna blood. Pure Luna blood. Do you know how rare that is?"

I stepped back. "You're lying."

"Your grandmother was the last true Luna of the Silver Mountain Pack. Your father inherited the gift but was male, so it stayed dormant. But you..." He inhaled deeply. "You carry the full power. Dormant now, but once awakened..."

"Even if that's true, what does it matter?"

"A Luna blood can make any Alpha stronger. Their pack is unbeatable. Wars have been fought over women like you."

"I'm already mated—"

"To Leonard. Yes, I know. But mates can be broken." He pulled out a vial of dark liquid. "Wolfsbane concentrate. Enough to sever any bond."

"No." I backed away, but his men had circled me.

"Don't fight this, Beverly. You were meant to be mine. I've been planning this for years. Why do you think I courted you so carefully? I knew what you were before you did."

"Bruce will kill you."

"Bruce will never find your body. There are old caves under this pier. They go on for miles. By the time he tracks you there, you'll already be mine."

One of his men grabbed my arms. I struggled, but he was too strong.

"Hold her still," Marcus ordered, approaching with the vial.

This was it. I was going to lose my mate bond, be kidnapped, and Bruce would never know what happened.

Except...

I smiled.

"What are you smiling about?" Marcus demanded.

"You really should have done more research on the Leonard family."

"What?"

That's when Bruce struck.

He came from above, dropping from the pier's support beams like a shadow. Not alone—twenty wolves followed, surrounding Marcus's men in seconds.

"Hello, Marcus." Bruce's voice was deadly calm.

Marcus stumbled back. "How—"

"Cell jammer only works on phones." Bruce tapped his ear. "This operates on a different frequency. Military grade. Very expensive."

"You set me up."

"No, you set yourself up the moment you threatened my mate."

"She's not your true mate. She can't be. I would have sensed—"

"You sensed Luna blood and assumed it was dormant." Bruce moved closer, his eyes now fully gold. "But a true mate bond awakens it instantly."

I felt it then, the power Marcus had talked about. It had been building since I met Bruce, but I'd ignored it. Now it surged through me like electricity.

"Beverly," Bruce said without looking at me. "Close your eyes."

"Why?"

"Because what happens next isn't something you need to see."

"Bruce—"

"Please."

I closed my eyes, but I could still hear everything. The sounds of fighting. Bones breaking. Screams. And through it all, Bruce's steady presence in my mind—another gift of our mate bond.

*It's almost over,* his voice echoed in my thoughts.

*Can you talk to me telepathically?*

*Mates can. If the bond is strong enough.*

*Why didn't you tell me?*

*Would you have believed me?*

The sounds of fighting stopped. I opened my eyes to find Marcus on his knees, blood streaming from his nose, his men either unconscious or fled.

"You have two choices," Bruce told him. "Leave the city tonight and never return, or challenge me formally for Beverly."

"Challenge?" I asked.

"Traditional pack law. Fights for mates must be witnessed by both packs."

Marcus spat blood. "You're stronger than me."

"Yes."

"You'll kill me."

"Probably."

Marcus looked at me, and for the first time, I saw fear in his eyes. "You don't know what you've chosen, Beverly. The Leonard curse is real. You'll be dead within the year."

"Maybe," I said, surprising myself with my calm. "But it'll be my choice."

He struggled to his feet. "This isn't over."

"Yes, it is." Bruce's voice carried the full weight of his Alpha power. "You have one hour to leave the city. If I see you again, there won't be a challenge. I'll just kill you."

Marcus ran.

Bruce's pack melted into the shadows, leaving us alone on the pier.

"Are you okay?" he asked, checking me for injuries.

"I'm fine. Is it true? What did he say about Luna blood?"

"Yes."

"And you knew?"

"I suspected when we met. The strength of our bond confirmed it."

"More secrets."

"I was going to tell you—"

"When? After Marcus kidnapped me? After someone else tried to claim me?" I pushed away from him. "I'm so tired of everyone knowing more about me than I do."

"Beverly—"

"Take me home."

The ride back was silent. At the penthouse, I went straight to my room, but Bruce followed.

"We need to talk about this."

"About which part? The Luna blood? The curse? The fact that you've been playing chess while I've been playing checkers?"

"About the fact that Marcus was right about one thing. The curse is real, and now that your Luna blood is awakening, it's going to accelerate."

I turned to face him. "What do you mean?"

"Luna blood amplifies everything. Including curses." He ran his hand through his hair. "We have maybe six months instead of a year."

"Six months until what?"

"Until the curse claims you. Unless..."

"Unless what?"

"Unless we break it first."

"How?"

"I don't know. But I'm going to find out."

"Bruce..." I sat on the bed, suddenly exhausted. "What if we can't?"

He knelt in front of me, taking my hands. "Then we make the most of the time we have."

"That's not fair to either of us."

"None of this is fair. But Beverly, I need you to know something."

"What?"

"If I had known that meeting you would trigger all of this—the threats, the curse accelerating, everything—I would still have stopped that day. I would still have asked you to marry me."

"Why?"

"Because even if I only get six months with my mate, it's worth it."

My heart clenched. "Bruce..."

"You don't have to feel the same. This is still business if you want it to be. But I needed you to know."

He stood to leave, but I caught his hand.

"Stay."

"Beverly—"

"Just to sleep. I don't want to be alone tonight."

He hesitated, then nodded. We lay on the bed, fully clothed, not touching except for our linked hands.

"Tell me about Luna blood," I said into the darkness.

So he did. He talked about the ancient bloodlines, the power that came with them, and the responsibility. He talked until I fell asleep, feeling safer than I had in years despite knowing I had maybe six months to live.

When I woke, he was gone, but there was a note on the pillow:

*Pack meeting this morning. You should come. It's time they met their Luna.*

*-B*

I smiled despite everything. Six months or sixty years, I was going to face this head-on.

After all, I was Luna blood.

It was time I started acting like it.