Luna Everleigh's POV
***
Damian's words echoed in my mind, hollow and sharp, cutting deeper than I wanted to admit.
"You're the lost heir of the Moon's Bloodline."
The truth should have hit me like a hammer, but instead, it slid through my veins like ice.
I stared at him, searching for something—denial, regret, hesitation. But Damian only stood there, his face unreadable. As if he had known all along that this moment would come.
"How long have you known?" My voice was quieter than I intended, but the weight of my own question suffocated me.
Damian exhaled slowly. "My family has known forever."
My breath caught.
"What?"
His gaze flickered, his jaw tightening as if he was forcing himself to keep speaking. "We've been protecting the truth, keeping it buried. Do you think it was a coincidence that I was always near you? It wasn't love, Luna. It was duty. I was keeping an eye on you because I had to."
His words struck harder than any blade could.
It wasn't love.
All the stolen moments, the whispered promises, the years I spent thinking I wasn't enough for him—none of it had mattered. Because Damian had never truly wanted me.
He had feared me.
I took a step back, my stomach twisting. "You knew what I was, but you still let me live a lie?"
"I had to." Damian's voice was low, urgent. "Because if you ever awakened—if the others knew—"
"Luna!"
A new voice cut through the air like a blade.
I turned just in time to see a blur of movement—Kael.
And he had a blade aimed straight at Damian's throat.
—
To be continued