Page 48 of Branded By Shadow
The Claiming
Damon
Legend had it that the claiming platform in the Council’s amphitheater came from Mount Olympus itself. I didn’t know if that was true. But as I stepped onto the polished marble with Cora by my side, every Alpha instinct I possessed roared to life.
This was a place of judgment, a fighting pit disguised as a court, and we were the intended sacrifice.
“I always knew House Hades was reprehensible, but this is extreme, even for you, Blackwood.” The House Artemis guard glared at me from the platform’s edge, then dismissed me with a disgusted sneer.
Her gaze lingered on Cora with a look of intense pity. “You deserve better, Cora Ellis.”
My Alpha snarled at the guard’s insult. A possessive fury coiled in my gut, and I had to physically swallow it down. I wanted nothing more than to make her eat her presumptuous words.
Before I could answer, Cora’s hand found mine, her fingers a surprising warmth against my cold skin. She met the guard’s eyes without flinching, her voice quiet but unwavering. “It was your twin-House, Apollo, who ruled this was necessary. Perhaps your disapproval is better directed at your own kin.”
The guard’s jaw tightened, her certainty momentarily shaken by Cora’s logic. But the women of House Artemis were nothing if not stubborn. “The law forces us to witness this depravity,” she spat. “It doesn’t mean we have to approve.”
A sharp bark of laughter cut through the tension. Marcus Dred rose to his feet in the Ares section, a predator enjoying the escalating conflict. “Let them have their fun, warden,” he called out. “Blackwood needs all the help he can get.”
As if his words were a cue, a wave of honey-sweet pheromones washed over the platform. The Aphrodite Omegas watched us from their seats, their faces masks of rapt amusement. They rarely got involved in the business of the Olympian Council, but when they did, they were always a wild card. Their scent was not an attack, just a careless byproduct of their excitement. A gift from their seductive patron they shared without thought.
This life-and-death struggle, Cora’s safety, the fate of my House… It was all just a spectacle for them. The idea that her pain could be anyone’s entertainment infuriated me beyond belief. It was a rage so profound it almost eclipsed the void’s primal demands.
I leaned closer to Cora, my voice a low growl meant only for her. “They want to see a monster. Let them.”
“I’ve seen your monster, Damon,” she whispered back. “He’s not the one I’m afraid of right now.”
Her trust was a brand against my skin. She stood on this sacrificial altar, surrounded by wolves, and looked to me for protection. What had I done to deserve her faith?
The Alpha in my blood screamed a deafening command.Take her. Mark her. Show them she is yours.The urge was a tidal wave, threatening to sweep away every rational thought. It would be so easy to let go, to let the beast have its way.
But her words anchored me, and a memory that wasn’t mine surfaced in my head.
Once, aeons ago, a mortal bard walked into the Underworld itself, armed only with his music. He faced down the god of death not for power, but for love.
Orpheus. He had not been an Alpha. He had been a man, and his resolve had proven stronger than any god’s command. He’d been the ancestor of House Hades.
That was the strength I needed now. Not the beast’s rage. Not the void’s emptiness. The heart of a man.
I wasn’t armed with a lyre, or with the gift of a muse. But I had her. I had the memory of her lying still in my arms, broken on the Shadow Chamber floor, yet reaching for me. She was all the music I needed.
I forced my eyes shut, and in the darkness, I began my own descent. A thousand voices screamed for me to give in, to take what was mine without thought or care. Every cell in my body demanded a brutal, simple release.
I ignored it all. I focused on the single, perfect note of my purpose.Her.I walked through the chaos of my own internal underworld, my will a shield against the storm. The pain was immense, a sensation of being torn apart from the inside, but Orpheus had endured worse. I held on.
When I opened my eyes again, the world had gone still. The roaring in my ears had ceased. The chaos had been forged into a single, sharp point. The beast still raged, a blade pressed against my spine, but my will was now the hand that held it.
My attention settled on Cora. She was watching me, her expression a mixture of terror and fragile, desperate hope. I started toward her, my boots making no sound on the polished marble.
When I reached her, I brushed my fingers over the line of her jaw. A slight tremor ran through her at my touch, and a jolt of possessive satisfaction swept through my veins.
“Damon...” she murmured.
The simple sound of my name on her lips should have broken me. I narrowed my eyes, refusing to fail this first, accidental test. “Not Damon now, Dr. Ellis. Alpha.”
Her breath caught, and she swayed on her feet. I grabbed her arm, my grip a band of iron. Pulling her off balance, I dragged her away from the platform’s edge and into the vast, empty center. Her feet scraped against the polished marble as she stumbled to keep up.
This was our altar now. The stone would serve as the bed for our claiming.
