KNOX

"You absolute fool!" Liam snarls in my mind, his fury washing over me in waves. "That's our mate you just threatened! What the hell is wrong with you?"

Regret floods through me, cold and bitter as winter rain. What have I become? Standing here in this moonlit clearing, towering over the woman the Moon Goddess chose for me, using my power to intimidate her into submission. This isn't who I am. This isn't who I want to be.

"Aubrey," I say, my voice immediately shifting to something softer, more earnest. I take a step back, giving her space to breathe. "I... I'm sorry. That was inexcusable." I run a hand through my hair, scattering the carefully styled strands. "I handled that terribly. You have every right to be angry with me."

She stares at me, clearly caught off guard by the sudden change in my tone. The fear in her eyes begins to fade, replaced by confusion and wariness.

"I should have explained properly from the beginning," I continue, kneeling down to gather the scattered roses with hands that shake slightly. The petals are already wilting, crushed beneath the weight of my desperation. "My proposal wasn't... it wasn't about romance or fairy tales. There's something you need to know."

I straighten, holding the damaged bouquet like a peace offering. "The Awakening Ceremony. Have you heard of it?"

She shakes her head, and I'm not surprised. It's not common knowledge outside the royal family and elder circles.

"It's performed every fifty years to renew our kingdom's sacred bonds with the Moon Goddess," I explain, watching her face carefully for understanding. "The ceremony requires the Crown Prince and his Luna to perform the ritual together. Without both participants, the magic fails."

The moonlight catches on her features as she processes this information, highlighting the conflict written across her face.

"As heir to the throne, I must have my mate by my side to complete the ceremony," I continue, hating how clinical this sounds, how far from the romantic proposal she deserves. "The alignment happens only during the winter solstice. If we miss this window, the kingdom's magical protections will weaken significantly."

I pause, letting the weight of that sink in. "This isn't about personal feelings, Aubrey. It's about the survival of everyone in this kingdom."

She remains silent, but I can see the wheels turning in her mind, calculating the implications of what I've told her.

"I know I handled this poorly," I admit, my voice rough with exhaustion and shame. "The threats, the kidnapping—none of that was right. But the stakes..." I gesture helplessly at the forest around us, at the world beyond. "If you reject me, I can't perform the ceremony. My parents will be forced to announce your rejection, and my mom..." I swallow hard. "She wouldn't allow you to stay in the castle afterward. You'd have no political purpose there anymore."

The truth tastes bitter on my tongue, but it needs to be said. "I'm not trying to manipulate you. I'm simply laying out the reality of our situation. The choice is yours, but now you know what hangs in the balance."

AUBREY

The silence stretches between us as I process his words, the weight of his explanation settling over me like a heavy cloak. The kingdom's fate, innocent lives, magical protections—it's all too much.

"Are you insane?" Aria's voice explodes in my mind, sharp with disbelief. "He just offered you everything—a crown, a kingdom, a place by his side—and you laughed in his face?"

"I can't just accept because it sounds good on paper," I snap back, wrapping my arms around myself as the cool night air raises goosebumps on my skin. "Knox and I are supposed to be on opposite sides, remember? I have a mission."

"Your mission can go to hell," she snarls. "That man just poured his heart out to you, and you treated him like he was asking you to clean the stables."

I push her voice away, but I can't push away the guilt gnawing at my chest. The hurt that flashed across Knox's face when I laughed at his proposal haunts me. He'd looked so vulnerable kneeling there in the moonlight, blood still trickling from his split lip, offering me everything he had to give.

And I'd laughed.

The memory makes me sick to my stomach. Whatever else Knox might be, whatever blood might stain his hands, he didn't deserve that cruelty. Not when he was laying himself bare before me, no matter what his reasons.

But his explanation about the ceremony changes everything. This isn't just about our personal relationship—it's about the fate of the entire kingdom. The magical protections that keep this land safe, that shield innocent people from whatever darkness lurks beyond our borders.

Still, I feel resistance rising in my chest like bile. I came here with a purpose, and it wasn't to become Knox's Luna. It wasn't to stand by his side and help him strengthen the very kingdom Jax wants to tear down.

"I..." I start, then stop, the words dying on my tongue. How do I explain that saying yes would betray everything I've promised to do? How do I tell him that accepting his proposal would make me a traitor to the man who saved my life?

"I can't," I whisper, the words barely audible over the babbling of the nearby stream. "Knox, I... I just can't."

The pain that crosses his features is immediate and devastating. It's like watching a door slam shut, sealing away whatever hope he'd been clinging to.

"Even knowing what's at stake?" he asks, his voice hollow. "Even knowing that people will suffer if the ceremony fails?"

The guilt hits me like a physical blow. Innocent people—children, families, elders who've never hurt anyone—they'll pay the price for my loyalty to Jax. The weight of that responsibility settles on my shoulders like a stone.

But if I leave the castle now, I'll fail Jax's mission entirely. Years of planning, of careful positioning, of everything he's worked toward—it would all be for nothing. And after everything he's done for me, after he saved me from the streets and gave me purpose...

I find myself desperately wishing Jax were here, that I could ask him what to do. Would he want me to accept Knox's proposal if it meant gaining access to even more secrets? Or would he see it as the ultimate betrayal, a sign that I've been seduced by the enemy?