Third Person's POV It was the first time Quentin had ever seen his elder brother this brutal. The younger Blackwood wolf had already retreated several meters away, tongue clicking in disbelief. Tsk. If he had known this bonding ceremony would be so entertaining, he would have doubled the crimson gift he sent to Celestine. The Blackwood elders were on the verge of losing their minds. A death during a bonding ceremony-what kind of curse was this? "Stop it! Damon, stop!" Alpha Blackwood roared, his voice cracking with fury and panic. The enforcers from the Pack Tribunal-wolves summoned only to investigate a commercial crime-were completely stunned. They had come to handle paperwork. Not to witness an Alpha tearing another wolf apart. "Calm down! Alpha Damon, calm down!" "Severe injury is a violation of pack law!" Yet every time they tried to move forward, someone accidentally blocked their path-an elbow here, a shoulder there-leaving them trapped at the outer ring of the chaos, watching helplessly as the violence unfolded. In the frenzy, Damon abruptly changed direction. He released Dariusz, whose nose was nearly crushed flat, seized a wine bottle from the ceremonial table, and smashed it down onto Celestine's head as she was shoved toward him. Glass shattered. Blood bloomed. All notions of dignity, all Alpha restraint-he discarded them all. It was Celestine.She was the one who had destroyed his bond. His life. His fate. "Die!" Damon snarled, voice raw and feral. Blood streamed down from the bride's scalp, soaking her veil and white ceremonial gown. The hall erupted in shrill screams, echoing like panicked howls through stone and crystal. Celestine staggered, her vision swimming. She stared at Damon-still swinging, still roaring curses as he attacked both her and Dariusz like a mad wolf stripped of reason. Bottles flew. Goblets shattered. Fists struck flesh. She dodged instinctively, clutching her head, terror ripping through her as she cried out toward the Moonvale Pack elders. "Father! Mother! Save me!" But Alpha Remus and Luna Evelyn only watched her coldly. Now that the truth was laid bare-now that they knew even Dariusz's supposed death had been part of Celestine's design-they remembered how foolishly they had once helped her steal Damon from Aysel. How they had blamed Aysel for being "cold-hearted." How they had excused Celestine's cruelty. If Damon killed her here and now- They would not lift a paw. This was supposed to be the ceremony that crowned her happiness. Instead, it had become her nightmare. Celestine covered her ears, endured the blinding pain, and staggered backward, desperate to escape.But as she turned, she ran straight into Jackson. Damon and Dariusz were finally subdued-pinned to the ground by Shadowbane enforcers-while the guests hovered at a safe distance, half-thrilled, half-terrified, snapping photos and whispering excitedly. Jackson smiled pleasantly at Celestine. "Miss Ward," he said lightly, "Where do you think you're going?" He tilted his head. "We've only opened Alpha Damon's gift so far. Yours hasn't been received yet." Celestine shook her head violently, backing away. No. No-she didn't want it. But whether she accepted it or not- Was never her choice. She was dragged back to the center of the ceremonial hall. Blood soaked her veil, stained her gown, slicked down her hair. No one cared whether she lived or died. The officers Fenrir had summoned stared blankly, minds overheating. Sibling betrayal. A lover faking death. Bride and groom attempting to kill each other. Who were they even supposed to take first? Jackson, sensing their hesitation, smiled considerately. "No rush," he said. "Since you're already here, you might as well handle a few more reports." He clapped his hands.At the entrance, backlit by shadow and torchlight, a thin young woman appeared-pushing a wheelchair-bound middle-aged man into the hall. The guests murmured in confusion. Only Celestine recognized that face. The moment she did, all strength drained from her body. The girl stopped before her, eyes burning with hatred and vindication. "Celestine Ward," she said. "Do you remember me?" She turned to the officers and the assembled wolves, her voice ringing clearly. "Years ago, to steal a dance championship, she stole my choreography. Then she had me kidnapped and spread rumors to destroy me." "When I tried to sue her, she sent people to run my father down-leaving him paralyzed from the neck down-as a warning." She looked back at Celestine's bloodied face, at her injured leg. "Celestine Ward," she said coldly, "the Moon turns. Karma hunts. Your reckoning has finally arrived." Before the echo faded, another woman entered. Her face was mottled with bruises-fading, but still visible. "For a single argument," she said bitterly, "because I called you a thief who stole another's place, you forced my family to marry me to a violent, gambling brute." She lifted her chin. "I divorced him. I'm free now." "But Celestine Ward-" She smiled thinly. "Your performance has only just begun."The hall fell silent.