Page 26 of Marked

“Yeah. Apparently that’s what they call the alpha’s mate.” I hesitate, fingers brushing the crescent moon pendant at my neck.

Then I look her in the eye.

“And Bolton says… I’m his. That I’m his mate.”

Mom’s posture stiffens, the air between us going taut. Her face doesn’t change much, but I see it—the way her eyes narrow just slightly, calculating and suddenly very alert.

“His fated mate?” she asks, voice low, like she’s afraid of the answer.

I nod slowly. “Yeah. He told me the night of the bonfire.”

She exhales once, sharp and quiet. “And the Cassie girl—she thought she would be the Luna?”

“Until I showed up,” I say.

Her mouth tightens. “And now she sees you as competition.”

“She challenged me,” I say quietly. “In front of the whole pack.”

Elena’s voice drops to a sharp whisper. “A formal challenge?”

Her worry sharpens, and I can tell it’s not just about Cassie anymore—it’s Bolton, too. The implications of what he’s told me. What it could all cost.

“Theycall it that. It’s like some kind of ritual proof of strength. She wants to humiliate me—to prove I’m not worthy.”

A sharp silence settles between us.

“You don’t have to accept,” Mom says, her voice tight.

“I already did,” I reply.

Her eyes flash. “Maya—”

“She said if I wanted to play Luna, I had to earn it,” I interrupt. “So I said yes.”

The air grows still. Then she speaks, voice low and fierce.

She closes her eyes. “Maya. This is bigger than high school drama.”

“I know.” I say it without flinching. “But it started in a circle. And it ends in one.”

She looks like she wants to stop me. Like some part of her still thinks she can snap her fingers and make me a kid again, small and safe and ignorant.

But I’m not that girl anymore.

And I think she knows it.

So instead of stopping me, she stands. Places a hand on my shoulder. “Then be who you are. Both halves. All of it. And whatever you do next—make sure it’s your choice.”

I nod once, slow.

Because this time, it is.

Cassie doesn’t want answers.

She wants dominance.

But I’m not giving her the win she thinks she’s already earned.