The darkest path of all....
The noise won't stop, Andrea hated every second and minute of it. He was getting engaged-against his own will.
He had to become the Alpha of the pack at the age of nineteen due to the sudden death of his father and by the age of twenty, questions have been going round regarding when the next Luna would be chosen.
He couldn't escape his fate-the one that requires him to get married to someone he does not love.
The door to his office open to reveal his mother. "Staying in here and burying yourself with work does not change the fact that you are going to marry her." She said as she take a seat in front of me
"But it makes me think about if I will end up finding her" He said as he stare at the document in front-failing to understand a thing about what was written in it.
She smile as she look over at the family picture on Andrea's desk. "I wasn't his mate but we ended up falling up in love and giving birth to the most wonderful kids. You will also learn that this is for the best of the pack and we need a Luna that is very much capable." She explain making him let out a long and heavy sigh.
"There is a reason why I asked for you to only go ahead with the engagement party." She said forcing a frown out of him.
"Why?"
"If the Goddess is so kind to let you meet her, then you can go ahead and mate with her but if otherwise you have no choice than to make Natasha your Luna." She said which makes him feel better in a way and at the same time-not better.
She gets up and head towards the door.
"By the way, your document is upside down. A new trick you developed?" She asked making him groan. He hate this-his life in general.
Andrea walk towards the main venue with all attention on both Natasha and him with everyone smiling and congratulating them about the engagement.
"There is a meeting in Spain about the Global summit, there is a need for you to be there in person" Drew, Andrea's beta explained making him frown.
" And why on earth should I be there when you are here." He asked.
"The problem with the Blood fang pack still stands and Harris wants to meet with you in person in order to discuss the matter and with all this celebration honestly..." He said before whispering "I think you need a break."
An idea which Andrea couldn't wait to put in place.
Firstly, he needed to get through this night-the event which he couldn't wait to be finally over.
The crowd roared with applause as Andrea raised his glass, forcing a practiced smile on his face. Natasha stood beside him, her arm laced through his, the perfect Luna-in-waiting—on the outside.
Inside, he was drowning.
He felt Drew's hand brush his shoulder discreetly. "You need to breathe," his Beta muttered under the applause. "We leave tomorrow. Spain."
Andrea nodded. One more night, then freedom—even if temporary. He looked around the room full of smiling faces, half of them fake. He was surrounded, yet completely alone.
-----
The next morning,the hum of the engine soothed him as he stared out the window, the sky endless and blue. Still, the weight didn't lift.
He kept thinking about the mate he hadn't met. The one the Moon Goddess was cruel enough to keep away from him… or worse, not grant him at all.
His fingers curled around the ring box in his coat pocket. The ring meant for Natasha.
He hated it.
He hated that he was expected to lie to the entire world, and to himself, for the sake of duty.
"You think she's real?" he asked Drew quietly, surprising even himself.
Drew looked up from his tablet. "Who?"
"My mate."
Drew was quiet for a moment. "I think... if the Goddess is kind, you'll meet her. Maybe even in Spain."
Andrea didn't respond. But something stirred in his chest—a flicker. A strange sense of pull he couldn't explain. He brushed it off.
-----
The venue for the summit was packed. Wolves from different territories, human elites, ambassadors, and powerful creatures walked the marbled halls in luxury suits and masks.
Andrea stood at the top of the ballroom stairs, eyes scanning the crowd. Something was off. A buzz beneath his skin. A strange heat in his chest.
Then he caught a scent.
One he didn't recognize—
Yet every instinct in him howled.
He gripped the railing tightly.
"What is it?" Drew asked beside him, already alert.
Andrea didn't answer.
His gaze locked on a woman across the room. Brown hair. Slim frame. She looked as if she was bored of the event-tired from the crowd.
She was standing alone near the far wall, awkward and stiff—like she was trying not to be seen. Like the shadows were watching her.
She was a blur of hesitation, tucked in the corner near the grand archway. Brown hair. Pale hands gripping the stem of her glass too tightly.
She looked like she didn't belong there—not out of place, but like the universe had dropped her into the wrong world entirely.
The scent got stronger. Wild. Addictive. Familiar.
Andrea's pulse slammed in his ears.
"No," he whispered to himself, stunned.
His wolf stirred violently.
The ballroom glowed with opulence, but Andrea barely noticed. His senses were drowning in noise—until everything stilled.
His gaze snagged on her never leaving-trying to take her in at once.
And yet…
The scent hit him like a blow to the chest. Warm, floral, a touch of rain-soaked earth—utterly unfamiliar, but so deeply his.
His wolf surged awake.
Mate.
His breath caught in his throat. He blinked, disoriented. It can't be.
A human?
Andrea took a single step forward—and she turned.
Their eyes met.
And in that moment, he knew. Knew without question that this girl, whoever she was, didn't just belong to him—she was made for him. Designed by the Moon Goddess herself.
But then—she moved.
No—she didn't move. She was pulled. Her eyes widened, lips parted in a startled gasp—and suddenly a hand clamped down on her arm.
A man in a dark suit whispered something in her ear. She resisted.
Andrea's vision tunneled. Every cell in his body screamed to get to her.
He surged forward—but the crowd blocked his path.
"Move!" he barked.
By the time he reached the place she stood—
She was gone?.
Just gone.
The scent still lingered like a phantom. But the girl? Vanished.
Andrea's fists clenched. His wolf thrashed.
Someone had taken his mate. And he would tear the world apart to get her back.