3. Ruslan

Ruslan

The second I lock eyes with her, my chest tightens, and something snaps deep inside me. 

No. No fucking way. This can’t be real, it has to be some sick joke. There’s no fucking way the Goddess would curse me like this—mate me to the Luna of the bastard who took everything from me and made me watch.

I can feel the bond pulling at me, stronger than anything I’ve ever felt in my life. It claws at my insides, trying to drag me toward her, as if my body doesn’t even belong to me anymore. I grit my teeth, my muscles tensing, and fight the urge to give in. 

It’s not possible. It’s not fucking possible.

Her scent hits me again—fucking peaches and honey— it’s something that stirs parts of me I’ve buried for a long time. But I don’t want it. I don’t want her. My mind rebels against the very idea. 

I look at her, the way her face is twisted in shock, her lips parted, and her hand gripping her chest like she’s trying to stop her heart from breaking out. She’s just as confused as I am, but that doesn’t make this any easier.

The bond is relentless, and I can’t stop the primal attraction that courses through me, no matter how much I wish I could. It’s the cruelest fucking thing the Goddess could have done to me. 

To mate me to the widow of the man I killed. The same man who forced me to watch as he raped and killed my sisters.

I growl low in my throat, shaking my head, trying to shake off the pull. “Kill me,” I snap at the Beta. My voice is rough, strained with the effort of holding back the fury building inside me. “Just kill me and get it over with.”

He hesitates, clearly unsure of what the hell is going on as he looks between me and the Luna, confusion etched all over his face. He doesn’t move, doesn’t raise his hand to strike. Why is he fucking waiting? He should have killed me the second they brought me out here.

But then her voice cuts through the tension, sharp and cold. “No.”

I whip my head toward her, my blood boiling. “What the fuck do you mean ‘No’? I killed your Alpha; ripped out his heart and fucking ate it! Kill me and get it over with!”

What the hell is she doing? Does she want to drag this out? Does she want to see me suffer more? I don’t understand. She should want me dead more than anyone. 

“I know what you did, you animal! But it’s taboo,” she says, her voice trembling.“We don’t know the consequences of breaking a mate bond.”

“Fuck the mate bond!” I snarl, my fists clenched so tight I can feel my nails biting into my palms. “I don’t give a shit about your rules, Luna. Break the bond. Kill me. This is a curse, and you know it.”

Her jaw tightens, and for a second, her eyes flash with anger. Good. Let her be angry. Let her feel what I feel—a rage so deep, so consuming, it feels like it’s going to tear me apart. But there’s something else there, too, something beneath the fury. I can feel it, even if she doesn’t want me to. The bond won’t let her hide it.

“I won’t kill you,” she says, her voice quieter now, but still firm. “I won’t break the bond. Not until we know what it will do.”

I laugh, but it’s a bitter, hollow sound. “What it will do?” I spit the words out, shaking my head. “It’ll tear me apart. It’ll tear you apart too, Luna. This is a punishment, a death sentence for both of us.”

She flinches, and her eyes dart away from mine for a second, just a brief flicker of uncertainty, before she squares her shoulders again and meets my gaze head-on. She’s stronger than I expected. But it doesn’t matter. Strength won’t save her from this bond. Nothing will.

The Beta walks towards her, his brow furrowed, his fists still clenched at his sides. He’s waiting for a command, waiting for her to tell him what to do. I can see the anger in his eyes, the same hatred I’ve seen in every one of her pack members since the day I killed Andrei. 

They all want me dead, but none of them move. Not with her standing there, still torn between duty and the fucked up bond.

My gaze drifts back to her, and I can’t help but feel the pull again. That fucking scent. The way her lips tremble when she speaks, the way her eyes—so full of pain—still somehow hold strength. It disgusts me how much I feel drawn to her. It shouldn’t be this way. I shouldn’t want her. 

Not her. Not the widow of the man I killed.

“I don’t care what the bond says,” I growl, taking a step forward despite the chains pulling tight against my wrists. “You’re not mine, and I’m not yours. Kill me, or I’ll do it myself.”

Her eyes widen slightly, and I see a flicker of fear in them, but it’s quickly replaced by something else. Determination. She’s not going to let this go. She’s not going to give me the death I want.

“You don’t understand,” she says, her voice steady now, even though I can tell she’s still shaken. “This bond… it’s more than just fate. It’s more than us. If we break it, if we try to go against it, the consequences could destroy us both. It could destroy the pack.”

I sneer at her, baring my teeth. “I don’t give a fuck about your pack. I’m a dead man walking, Luna. You think this bond changes anything? You think I’ll suddenly start caring about your people? About you?” I laugh again, harsh and empty. “You’re wrong. I’m not going to be your fucking mate.”

Her eyes darken, and for a moment, I see a flash of anger in them that almost matches my own. She closes the distance between us, her face inches from mine. 

“You think I want this?” she hisses, her voice low and dangerous. “You think I asked for this bond? I hate you. I hate everything about you. You killed my husband and you took everything from me.”

I can’t help but grin at her anger. Good, let her hate me. I want her to; I need her to.

“Then kill me,” I growl. “If you hate me so much, kill me and end this.”

She shakes her head, her eyes narrowing. “I’m not giving you the easy way out. Not until I know what rejecting this bond will do to me and my pack. Not until I know what we’re dealing with. Until then, I invoke The Gallows Law.”

My heart lurches and bile rises to my throat. No… No, she can’t fucking do that! The Gallows Law protects a mate from certain death, even from execution. How dare she do this!

I snarl, pulling hard against the chains, but they hold me in place. “I thought your husband was the fucked up one,” I spit, my voice dripping with venom. “But you’ve just proven you’re just as ruthless as he was.”

Her lips press into a thin line, but she doesn’t respond. Instead, she steps back, turning away from me and facing the crowd, her pack. I watch her, my chest heaving, my muscles trembling with the effort of holding back the rage that’s threatening to tear me apart.

The bond pulses between us, an invisible thread tying me to her, and I hate it. I hate the way it makes me feel. The way it makes her feel. I don’t want this. I don’t want her. But the bond doesn’t care what I want.

“Take him back to the cells,” she says to the Beta, her voice calm but cold. “We’ll figure this out. But he doesn’t die today. Not until I give him permission to die.”

He hesitates, glancing at me with a look of disgust before nodding. He motions to the guards, and they step forward, grabbing me by the arms and dragging me back.

I don’t fight. There’s no point. Not now. Not with the bond still burning between us.

As they pull me away, I look back at her one last time. Her face is hard, her eyes locked on mine, but I can see the same turmoil in her that’s tearing me apart. She hates this as much as I do.

But hate won’t break this mate bond.