Chapter 40: The Trap

I ran through the streets in wolf form. My silver fur glowed in the dark. People in cars stared. I didn't care.

My mother was ten minutes away. At the gym's safe house. Where we kept her locked up.

I should have brought backup. Should have listened to Alex.

But there was no time.

I reached the building. Quiet. Too quiet.

The front door was open. Broken lock.

I shifted back to human. Grabbed clothes from the emergency stash by the door. Dressed fast.

"Mom?" I called.

No answer.

I walked inside. Down the hallway. To the locked room.

The door was open.

Inside, my mother sat on the bed. Perfectly still. Eyes closed.

"Mom?"

Her eyes opened. Red.

Not her anymore.

"Hello, little Luna." Multiple voices. The demon. "So nice of you to come alone."

"Let her go."

"Why? This body suits me. And she invited me in." The demon smiled with my mother's face. "She was so scared. So desperate. When I offered protection, she said yes."

"You're lying."

"Am I? Ask her yourself." The red faded for a second. Brown eyes. My mother's eyes. Terrified.

"Lita, run. It's a trap. They want you."

Red came back. "Stupid woman. Too late now."

The demon stood. My mother's body moved wrong. Jerky. Unnatural.

"My master wants to meet you. Before you die tomorrow." The demon walked closer. "He has an offer."

"I'm not interested."

"You will be. Because he can save your mate. Save your pack. All he wants is you."

"What kind of offer?"

"Come with me. You'll see."

The demon grabbed my arm. Fast. Too strong.

Everything went black.

I woke up somewhere else.

Not the safe house. Somewhere cold. Dark. Smelled like death.

I was chained to a wall. Silver chains. They burned my wrists.

"Awake. Good." A voice from the darkness. Deep. Ancient. Wrong.

A figure stepped into the dim light.

Tall. Maybe seven feet. Red skin covered in black symbols. Horns curling from his head. Eyes like burning coals.

The Demon King.

"Luna Alpha. Finally we meet." His voice shook my bones. "I am Malphas. Lord of the demon armies. Ruler of the ninth circle."

"Where's my mother?"

"Safe. For now. Possessed but alive." He smiled. Teeth like knives. "She makes a good host. Weak minded. Easy to control."

"Let her go."

"After we talk. I have a proposition."

"Not interested."

"You should be. Because I'm offering you everything you want." He walked closer. "Your mate lives. Your pack survives. The war ends. No one else dies."

"In exchange for what?"

"You. Your body. Your power." He touched my face with one burning finger. "Become my vessel. Let me wear you like a suit. Together, we rule both worlds. Demons and wolves united."

I spit in his face.

He laughed. Wiped it away. "Such spirit. I like that. Makes the breaking more fun."

"I'll never agree."

"We'll see. I have ways of convincing people." He snapped his fingers.

A door opened. Two demons dragged someone in.

Cole.

Beaten. Bloody. Barely conscious.

"Cole!" I pulled against the chains. They burned hotter.

"Hello, Alpha." Malphas grabbed Cole's hair. Yanked his head up. "Your mate is very stubborn. Maybe you can change her mind."

"Don't do it, Lita," Cole said. Blood dripping from his mouth. "Don't give in."

"How touching." Malphas threw Cole to the ground. "But let's see how long that lasts."

He pulled out a knife. Long. Black. Covered in symbols.

"This blade is special. Made from demon bone. Forged in hell's fires." He knelt beside Cole. "It can kill anything. Even Alphas. Even mates."

"No. Please." My voice broke. "Don't hurt him."

"Then agree. Become my vessel. Let me in willingly. And I'll let him live."

"She's lying, Lita. It's not really me. It's an illusion." But Cole's voice sounded weak. Uncertain.

"Is it?" Malphas pressed the knife to Cole's throat. "Shall we test that theory?"

"Wait!"

He stopped. Smiled. "Yes?"

"How do I know you'll keep your word? Demons lie."

"True. But I'm bound by ancient law. A deal made in blood is unbreakable. You agree, I let him go. Simple."

"And my pack?"

"Untouched. I have no interest in them. Only you."

I looked at Cole. Really looked.

Was it him? Or a trick?

His eyes met mine. Those dark brown eyes I loved.

"It's me," he whispered. "I can feel you through the bond. It's weak but there."

The mate bond. Demons couldn't fake that.

It was really him.

Malphas had really captured my mate. Was really going to kill him.

Unless I agreed.

"I need time to think," I said.

"You have five seconds. Then I start cutting." The knife pressed harder. Drew blood.

Cole didn't make a sound. But pain filled his eyes.

"Four. Three. Two."

"Stop! I'll do it. I agree."

"Lita, no!" Cole tried to get up. The demons held him down.

Malphas smiled. "Excellent choice. Now. Say the words. 'I invite you in. I give you my body willingly.'"

I took a breath.

This was it. The moment everything changed.

If I said yes, Cole lived. The pack lived. But I'd be gone. A prisoner in my own body while a demon wore me like a mask.

If I said no, Cole died. Right here. Right now.

Not a choice at all.

"I invite you in. I give you my body willingly."

Malphas's smile grew. "Perfect. Now we seal the deal."

He raised his hand. Black smoke poured from his palm. Rushed at me.

Entered my mouth. My nose. My eyes.

Pain. Worse than anything.

The demon filled me. Pushed against my mind. My soul. Trying to take control.

I felt myself fading. Getting smaller. Weaker.

This was possession. Real possession.

And I'd invited it in.

No way to fight. No way to stop it.

The last thing I saw was Cole screaming my name.

Then darkness took me.

When I opened my eyes again, I wasn't in control anymore.

I was a passenger. Watching through my own eyes as someone else moved my body.

"Finally." My voice but not my voice. "This body is perfect. So much power. So much potential."

The demon wearing me looked at Cole. Smiled.

"Thank you for your sacrifice, Alpha. Your mate is mine now. Forever."

Then everything went black again.

And in the darkness, I heard a voice.

The soul stone.

Still in my pocket. Still waiting.

"Use me," it whispered. "Before it's too late. Transfer your soul. Save yourself."

But if I used the stone, I'd need a host.

Someone to hold my soul while my body was possessed.

Someone willing to fade away for me.

And the only person close enough was Cole.

Who was already broken. Beaten. Dying.

Could I ask him for more?

Could I survive in his body while mine belonged to a demon?

The soul stone pulsed. Waiting.

Decision time.

Use it or don't.

Live or die.

Save Cole or save myself.

I reached for the stone with what was left of my consciousness.

And made my choice.