5) Damien

The moon shone brightly above, its silvery light filtering through the branches of the ancient oaks that lined the park. The stillness of the night would have brought peace to anyone else, but not to me. For me, it was just another reminder of the silence within - a hollow void that nothing could fill.

I stood there, hands clasped behind my back staring at the horizon as if it held the answers I sought. Answers that I'd stopped believing I would ever find.

DAMIEN

The name was enough to make the strongest alphas lower their heads in submission. I was the Lycan King, feared and revered by all. My strength and ruthlessness were unmatched, my decisions final. There wasn't a single pack across the lands that didn't know my name, and the weight it carried.

But none of it mattered.

Not the power, not the respect, not the fear in their eyes.

Because the one thing I truly wanted was gone.

Her face came to me unbidden, like a whisper in the wind. Her laughter had once been the melody to my otherwise savage existence, her touch the balm to my raging storms. She had been my mate, my Luna, my sanity, the only one who knew how to keep me sane and I had lost her forever.

It had happened during the war with vampires - a moment of weakness, a split second where I wasn't fast enough, strong enough. I'd held her as the life drained from her eyes, powerless to stop it. My strength, my title, my reputation - none of it could save her.

The memory was a blade that cut deeper each time it resurfaced, I couldn't close my eyes cause the image of her lifeless body kept staring at me.

Since that day, I had vowed never to let anyone close again. Love was a weakness I couldn't afford, it made me weak enough to let my pack stuffer. I had built walls around my heart, fortified them with coldness and indifference. Women came and went, their presence fleeting and meaningless. They were distractions, nothing more. And that's how it has always been, a lady to warm my bed and tend to my needs - nothing more

Even now, my mother's words rang in my ears.

"Damien, it's time to move on," she had said her voice filled with a mother's concern. "You're the Lycan King. You need a queen by your side."

Her persistence irritated me. She didn't understand. How could she? The only woman fit to rule by my side was gone.

"No one can replace her," I had told her, my tone final.

"It's not about replacing," she had replied, her voice softer. "It's about living."

But I wasn't living. I was existing. Ever since I lost her, I stopped living.

....

The sound of footsteps broke my train of thought. I turned, my golden eyes narrowing as Jenna approached.

Her auburn hair gleamed in the moonlight, and her green eyes held a familiar determination. She was beautiful - objectively so. Any man would have been lucky to have her. But I wasn't any man, and she wasn't the one I wanted. Jenna had attended to my physical needs before until I found out she wanted more than I could offer.

"Damien," she greeted, her voice soft yet confident.

"Jenna," I replied curtly. "What are you doing here?"

"I wanted to see you," she said, taking a step closer.

I resisted the urge to sigh. Jenna had been a friend in my life since we were children. She was my beta's sister, a loyal and powerful pack member and a fierce warrior. But lately, her intentions had shifted, and it was becoming increasingly difficult to ignore.

"I'm not in the mood for company," I said, my tone dismissive.

"You're never in the mood for company," she shot back, her smile faint but teasing. "Damien, you can't keep pushing everyone away. You're hurting a lot of people that care about you"

"I can, and I will," I replied coldly.

Her expression softened, and she moved closer. Too close.

"I care about you," she said, her voice barely above a whisper. "More than you realize."

I stared at her, my jaw tightening. I knew what she wanted, what she hoped for. But I couldn't give it to her.

"Jenna," I began, my tone harsh, "don't do this. I am not in the mood"

"Do what?" she asked, her eyes searching mine. "Tell you the truth? Tell you that I see the pain you try to hide, the weight you carry alone? All I want is to share your burdens Damien"

"You don't know anything about me," I snapped.

Her face fell, but she quickly masked her disappointment. "You think you're protecting yourself by shutting everyone out," she said, her voice steady despite the tension between us. "But you're just isolating yourself. You deserve more than this, Damien. You deserve to be happy." She said as her hands started creeping up my jeans to my crotch.

Happiness. The word felt foreign, almost laughable.

"I don't deserve anything, and you're just wasting your time with whatever you're trying to do. You know it won't change a thing." I said, my voice cold and final.

She stared at me for a long moment, her green eyes glistening with unshed tears. Then, with a small nod, she turned and walked away.

As her footsteps faded into the distance, I turned back to the horizon. The park felt colder now, the silence heavier.

I clenched my fists, frustration bubbling beneath the surface. Why couldn't she understand? Why couldn't anyone? The only person I wanted to be with was gone, my mate was dead and she died with a piece of me.

I was the Lycan King. I didn't need anyone.

But as the wind carried the faintest echo of her laughter - the laughter that had once made my heart feel alive - I couldn't help but wonder if I had been lying to myself all along.