Luna Valenhart had learned early in life that no one came to save the broken.

The world didn’t notice invisible girls. Especially not ones like her — caged, controlled, and used. For eighteen years, she’d been nothing more than a shadow in the corner of a cruel man’s house.

The latest bruise on her cheek throbbed as she sat on the cracked floor of the servant’s quarters, arms wrapped around her knees. The stale air pressed heavy against her skin, carrying the faint scent of damp wood and blood.

You’re nothing, his voice echoed in her mind. Not even worth a name.

He never used it. Not once.

But she wasn’t nothing.

Somewhere deep beneath the layers of pain and fear… something stirred. A flicker of heat in her chest. A quiet pulse that refused to die, no matter how many times life tried to crush her.

That something would save her — if she survived long enough to find it.

Miles away, in the heart of Blackthorn Tower — the steel-and-glass monolith that ruled the city skyline — Darian Blackthorn stared out of his penthouse office window.

The city below thrummed with life, but it wasn’t life he trusted.

Humans walked in ignorance, blind to the monsters hiding among them. Vampires prowled the dark alleys. Hybrids manipulated power in secret. And wolves… wolves ruled the shadows.

He ruled them all.

Alpha. CEO. Billionaire. The king of an empire built on blood, business, and power.

And yet, for the first time in years, unease coiled in his gut.

A single message glowed on his phone.

The Luna heir has been located. Your mate. She’s unclaimed — and abused.

His jaw clenched. Heat licked at his skin — that possessive instinct he’d always kept in check roaring awake.

Mate.

The one destined for him by blood and fate. The one who would be his — in every way.

Darian grabbed his jacket from the leather chair, heart pounding with something dangerously close to… anticipation.

He wasn’t a man who chased women. They came to him. Fell at his feet. Worshipped him.

But this wasn’t about desire.

This was power. Territory. Fate.

And fate never asked permission.

Luna didn’t see the black SUVs until it was too late.

They rolled up to the crumbling house like a silent storm — sleek, dark, and ominous. Men in sharp suits moved like shadows, their eyes scanning every corner as they surrounded the house.

Panic clawed at her throat.

No. No, not again…

But these weren’t the usual enforcers sent by her tormentor.

This was something… worse.

A man with cold eyes grabbed her roughly by the arm. “You’re coming with us.”

“W-Why?” she whispered, voice raw.

His gaze flicked over her. “You’re the Luna.”

The what?

Before she could speak, a second man approached — tall, dark-haired, eyes like storm clouds. He radiated power. Authority. And a dangerous, burning heat she couldn’t understand.

Darian Blackthorn.

He looked down at her like she was both a prize… and a problem.

“You belong to me,” he said quietly, his voice a dark velvet threat.

Luna’s breath caught. “I don’t even know you.”

A slow, predatory smile curved his lips. “You will.”

Her heart slammed against her ribs.

Everything inside her screamed to run — but her legs wouldn’t move.

Because when his eyes met hers…

Something ancient inside her whispered one word.

Mate.

The ride to Blackthorn Tower was silent, but the air was thick with tension.

Luna sat across from Darian in the back of the SUV, her wrists tight with silver cuffs — more symbolic than necessary. She wasn’t going anywhere.

His eyes never left her.

He watched like a hunter observing prey, but there was something else. An almost… territorial gleam beneath the cool exterior.

“What do you want from me?” she whispered.

His head tilted slightly. “Everything.”

Her stomach twisted.

“I’m not some possession.”

He leaned forward, elbows resting on his knees. “You’re my mate. The Luna of my pack. You carry a bloodline that’s been hidden for too long — a legacy that belongs at my side. You were born for this.”

“Born for what?” she whispered, fighting the tremble in her voice.

His expression darkened. “To rule. To stand beside me. To be mine.”

Her pulse raced. The words weren’t tender. They weren’t sweet.

But something inside her… stirred.

And it terrified her.

Blackthorn Tower was a world of cold marble, glass, and whispered power.

Luna was led into a massive office lined with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the city. The walls pulsed with silent authority — the kind that didn’t need to be spoken.

Darian dismissed his guards with a sharp glance.

They obeyed instantly.

He turned back to her, eyes scanning every inch of her face.

“You’ve been hurt,” he said quietly.

Luna swallowed. “You don’t care.”

His jaw flexed. “I care more than you’ll ever understand.”

“Why?” she snapped. “Because I’m your mate? Some fate-marked toy for you to own?”

His hand shot out, grabbing her chin with gentle but unyielding force.

“You think I want this?” His voice dropped to a low growl. “You think I asked for a broken girl with no pack, no name, and no idea who she is?”

Her heart slammed into her chest.

“But here we are,” he whispered, his thumb brushing over the faint bruise on her cheek. “And fate doesn’t make mistakes.”

She jerked her chin away, fire flashing in her eyes. “I’m not yours.”

His lips curved into a slow, dangerous smile. “Not yet.”

Far below the tower, in the city’s underbelly, shadows moved.

Kael watched from the darkness, sharp eyes gleaming with predatory hunger.

“So… the Alpha finally found his little Luna.”

His vampire-hybrid blood thrummed with cruel amusement.

Let the Alpha claim his prize.

Because when the time came…

Kael would take everything from him.

Including her.

Luna stiffened as Darian’s fingers brushed her chin, tilting her face toward him. His touch wasn’t harsh… but it wasn’t soft either. It was like he hadn’t decided whether she was something fragile or something he wanted to break.

Her heart pounded in her chest — a wild, panicked rhythm.

She hated this. Hated the way her skin burned beneath his hand. Hated the way her body reacted when it shouldn’t.

She should be terrified.

And she was.

But underneath the fear was something far more dangerous.

Curiosity.

Who are you? she wanted to demand. What do you really want from me?

Instead, her voice came out low, cracked. “Do you get off on caging women?”

His eyes narrowed. “I don’t cage what’s mine.”

“Yours?” The word tasted bitter on her tongue.

A spark flickered behind his dark eyes — like a storm rolling in over calm waters. “Fate chose you. I don’t argue with fate.”

“You don’t even know me.”

His hand fell away, but his gaze never softened. “I know enough.”

Luna’s chest heaved as anger fought with the pulse of something hot and unwanted curling in her stomach.

No one had ever looked at her like this. Like she wasn’t invisible. Like she wasn’t worthless.

And she hated that a part of her… wanted him to keep looking.

She dropped her eyes, forcing her voice to stay steady. “I’m not some prize. I won’t be your Luna just because fate says so.”

For a second, silence wrapped around them.

Then…

“You’re right,” he said softly.

Her head snapped up.

Darian’s eyes held something sharp — something raw.

“You won’t be mine… until you choose it.”

She blinked, swallowing hard. Was this some twisted game?

“But when you do…” His voice dropped, a dark promise. “You’ll never want to leave.”

A shiver ran down her spine — part fear… part something else entirely.

Darian didn’t miss the flicker of heat that sparked in Luna’s wide, silver eyes.

She wanted to fight. Good.

He didn’t need a submissive little doll at his side. He needed a Luna who could stand with him when the blood war came.

But gods help him… something about her made every possessive instinct roar like wildfire in his veins.

She was too thin. Too pale. Marks on her skin she shouldn’t have.

Someone had hurt her.

And that someone would die — whether she asked for it or not.

But this wasn’t about vengeance.

It wasn’t even about fate.

It was about her.

The moment their eyes met, his wolf had snapped awake, snarling against its leash. He felt the bond forming — thin, fragile threads twisting between them.

And it terrified him more than anything else.

He wasn’t a man who lost control.

He didn’t fall.

And yet here he was… leaning dangerously close to the edge.

Over a girl who wasn’t ready.

Not yet.

But soon.

Darian let his gaze linger on her for a heartbeat longer, before stepping back. “I won’t touch you without your consent. But don’t mistake that for weakness.”

Luna blinked, her mouth parting slightly.

Was that surprise in her eyes?

He smirked, just a little. “I’m a possessive bastard, Luna Valenhart. I don’t share. And I don’t lose.”

Her jaw clenched, but her chin lifted in the smallest act of rebellion. “Good to know.”

Damn. She had fire.

And he was already burning.

Luna watched as Darian turned away, crossing the massive office with slow, confident strides. The weight of his words pressed heavy on her chest.

I won’t touch you without your consent.

She should be relieved.

Instead… she felt something strange twist inside her.

A sharp ache she couldn’t name.

Her entire life had been nothing but chains. Hands that grabbed. Voices that commanded. A world that took and took and took.

But this man — this Alpha with ice in his eyes — had just given her the tiniest piece of power.

The choice.

The choice to give herself… or not.

And for the first time in her life… someone wasn’t going to force her.

Even if everything in his eyes said he wanted to.

Her hands trembled as she wrapped her arms around herself, but her heart beat louder now.

Something inside her whispered…

You’re not nothing.

Darian stared out the window, watching the city glow beneath a rising moon.

His wolf paced inside him, restless.

He could feel her standing behind him — fragile, furious, a storm wrapped in soft skin.

She didn’t even know who she was yet.

Didn’t know the legacy running in her veins.

But she would.

And when she did…

No one would ever touch her again.

Not Kael. Not the hybrids. Not even him… unless she asked for it.

Darian’s lips curled into a dark, dangerous smile.

Soon.

Outside the tower, the wind howled softly.

Change was coming.

And neither the Alpha… nor the Luna…

Had any idea just how deep the shadows would reach.