CHAPTER 139: FLAMES OF DUTY

[ Blackmoon territories ]

The red moon had shifted high above the mountains by the time Kieran returned to the Blackmoon stronghold.

The air felt sharper and cleaner somehow but it did nothing to clear his mind. His body burned...not particularly with desire, but with heat that came from under his skin, curling along his spine.A forced warmth. A forced heat.He couldn’t tell the difference between natural and unnatural at the moment... his mind was too far gone.

The aphrodisiac Velor had fed him was taking root.

His hands trembled too, slightly, as he rode in. The taste of Velor’s drink still lingered in his mouth.

He hadn’t eaten all day.

But this fire in his blood? It wasn’t hunger.

It was...need.A hunger of a different kind.

His guards were startled to see him back so soon.

"Alpha?" one of them stepped forward, brow furrowed. "Is everything..."

"Prepare the Binding Ritual pyre," Kieran said, voice low, distant.

The man stilled. "Alpha...?"

"You heard me." Kieran’s gaze didn’t waver. "Light the pyre. Dress the Luna in those silks. Velor sent a few Seer. Tell them we are doing the Binding Rite. Tonight.Some Councilmen might be here. Host them well. "

The guard hesitated only a second longer before nodding a couple of times and rushing off.

The pack buzzed into motion.

But Kieran stood still...completely still...beneath the looming sky, wind whispering through his dark hair.His heart aching.

His eyes searched for her... They stole glances at the cottage where she used to stay. He had it sealed. Didn’t let anybody touch it...and now it stared back at him like a haunting.

His heart thudded like a war drum. Not out of longing. Not out of love...But grief.

"Autumn!!! Where are you??! " A spasm made him lean forward but all he could hold onto was emptiness.

Her name echoed in every part of him. Her scent, her voice, her soft fury when she challenged him, his feisty little thief... Kieran scoffed,she haunted every breath he took.

He hadn’t even buried her.Because deep down, he refused to believe she was dead.

He knew she was alive! She was with child! Damn!!! His true heirs!! And instead of looking for her, he was being forced to make other lives!!!

How??? How did Alpha Kieran become so weak?! So indebted?!

Tonight,the council had cornered him yet again. And Velor... that bastard knew exactly where to twist the knife.

Kieran walked slowly up the stone steps.

Each step was heavier than the last.

The courtyard had been cleared. The great fire pit at its center already roared to life...blue flames lapping against the night air, scented herbs tossed into its center.

Elders from his own pack and some neighbouring packs had gathered quietly around the perimeter.

None of them looked at him.

Not out of disrespect...but out of sorrow.Even they knew what this meant.

Velor’s Seer approached in silence, nodding respectfully. "The Luna is being dressed," she said gently. "Do you wish to say the vows before or after the fire’s blessing?"

Kieran closed his eyes for a beat. "After."

He wasn’t sure he had the strength to say them at all.

***

The silks Lyla wore shimmered like molten silver in the firelight as she was led toward him.It was almost see through except for its glitters which stopped her features from being on public display.

Her expression was unreadable.But her hands... trembled.

She had no illusions about his heart. She wasn’t naïve.She knew she wasn’t the one he loved.And she knew she would never be.

Still, she walked.Because like him, she was bound into this duty that she didn’t choose.

The Seer lifted her hands, beginning to chant some verses. Words whispered by generations before them.

Kieran barely heard them.His mind was spinning. His chest felt too tight.

The effect of the aphrodisiac pulsed harder through his bloodstream now. His mouth was dry, and his palms were sweating. Every heartbeat made his skin too tight, his head too foggy.

He looked at Lyla...really looked for the first time that night...and in her place, he saw what his mind wanted to see... Autumn... standing there in that sheer silk. She looked... ethereal.

Then as quickly the image evaporated and reality crashed back in. Kieran took a step back as he saw Lyla looking at him.

This wasn’t how it was supposed to be.

The Seer gestured them forward, into the ring of firelight. Her voice rose higher, a little."Under the sacred flame, where bond meets blood... we gather to witness the union of Alpha Kieran and Luna Lyla. May this union seal the pack. May this seed the future."

Kieran swallowed hard.

The Seer stepped back.

The silence that followed was suffocating.

Kieran turned to Lyla. She waited...poised, unsure.

They stepped into the ceremonial chamber...just beyond the fire, inside the stone sanctum meant for consummation and privacy.

Inside, it was warm. Incense hung heavy in the air. Soft cushions and silks lined the chamber floor.

Kieran stood frozen for a moment.

His breathing ragged.

Then he turned his back to her, one hand on the warm stone wall, as if steadying himself.

"I am sorry," he said, voice hoarse.

Lyla stepped closer but didn’t touch him. "You don’t have to explain. I know who your heart belongs to."

"She is... not here.And I don’t even know where she is...it’s killing me...Lyla,honestly...I am dying within." His throat tightened. "But they are going to rip this pack apart if I don’t give them what they want."

She nodded. "Then let me help you protect it."

It wasn’t seduction.It was surrender.

Kieran turned around slowly.

The aphrodisiac pulsed sharper now...his senses inflamed. But it wasn’t just desire. It was something else entirely...unnatural, urgent, hot.The need for an immediate release.

He hated how it numbed the grief.He hated that part of him wanted to forget her, even temporarily.

No words were exchanged...his soul remained elsewhere.

His fingers tightened on her wrist. He could feel the rapid flutter of her heartbeat beneath his palms.

The chanting grew louder. The fire roared.

Kieran leaned in, his breath hot against her ear. "Close your eyes," he murmured. "Pretend I am someone else."

A broken scoff escaped Lyla. "You first."

Even as the sacred mark began to glow faintly between their wrists.

Even as the outside crowd began to chant even louder in approval.

Kieran closed his eyes.And the only thing he saw... was Autumn’s face.