Damien.

My face darkened instantly the moment the healer mentioned the words ’alternating bond.’

The term alone irritated me deeply.

It was because of that same cursed thing that I had been unable to mark Maria completely from the very beginning.

At first, I thought something was wrong with me, then I thought perhaps Maria was rejecting the bond subconsciously.

And with my brothers rubbing it to my face, I felt...

But now...now everything is beginning to make sense.

This damn alternating bond was real!

I clenched my fists tightly by my side as my jaw hardened.

For months, I had secretly searched for a solution—Ancient records, forbidden scrolls, even old pack legends.

Yet I had found absolutely nothing useful.

And honestly, despite how irritating the entire situation was, a part of me still felt relieved.

Because if the bond had fully completed...we might have truly lost her forever.

At least now there was still something tying Maria to us and right now, that was all that mattered.

Still, I hated this alternating bond nonsense to my bones.

More than five mates?

Seriously?

I could barely stand sharing Maria with my own brothers, even till now, the thought alone irritated me endlessly.

Every single time one of them touched her...every single time Maria looked at one of them...I felt possessive, restless and territorial and now the healer was casually saying more mates could appear in the future?

No! That would never happen.

It suddenly explained why Darren kept claiming Maria was still his mate despite everything that had happened.

The thought alone made my chest tighten painfully.

I dragged a hand through my hair roughly before forcing myself to calm down. No matter what happened, one thing was certain, we needed to stop this wedding immediately.

The faster Maria became ours officially, the better.

Because if she married us first, then no matter how many stupid bonds tried forming later, those future mates would have no choice but to reject her eventually. 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

That was the only logical solution.

"There has to be something that can be done about this alternating bond," I finally said, my voice firm as I stared directly at the healer.

The old man looked troubled immediately.

"For now..." he began carefully, "I do not believe I know any direct solution."

My irritation immediately worsened.

The healer quickly continued before anyone could interrupt him.

"However, I could continue searching through the ancient medical books and records. There may be information hidden somewhere regarding this type of bond."

The room remained silent.

Honestly, that answer did not satisfy me one bit.

Searching books?

It was something I had done, and it sounded uncertain and slow, and we barely had time.

Maria’s wedding was only a few days away.

Then suddenly, the healer spoke again.

"But..." he paused carefully, his eyes drifting toward Maria. "...there is also a possibility that Luna Moon has a twin."

The moment those words landed, the atmosphere shifted instantly.

I rolled my eyes instantly.

Honestly, the whole twin situation was not exactly shocking to me. I had already read that.

What surprised me instead was the expression on everyone else’s faces.

My brothers looked stunned, as Aidan frowned deeply, Davian stared blankly at the healer and Adrein narrowed his eyes suspiciously.

"What twin?" Maria asked immediately, her brows furrowing deeply in confusion. "And how exactly does having a twin cause an alternating bond?"

Her voice carried both disbelief and impatience.

The healer turned back toward her slowly.

"It is to avoid sharing a mate," he explained calmly.

The moment those words left his mouth, my eyes widened slightly.

To avoid sharing a mate?

Then why the hell didn’t my brothers and I have such a bond?

I clenched my jaw instantly.

Because if I were being honest with myselfI absolutely hated sharing Maria with them. There were still moments when I wished Maria belonged to only me.

Meanwhile, the room had gone quiet again.

Everyone seemed lost in thought.

Then Davian suddenly spoke. "Does that mean currently we are also mated to her twin?" he asked, raising his brows as he stared directly at the healer.

The healer hesitated briefly before answering carefully.

"I cannot say for certain, Alpha."

That answer only made the atmosphere even heavier.

I ran a hand through my hair slowly, trying to process everything. This entire situation was becoming more complicated with every passing second.

"But Maria doesn’t have a twin," Adrien suddenly muttered under his breath.

Even though his voice was low, I heard him clearly and honestly, part of me agreed with him.

Because I had already questioned Patricia. So where exactly was this supposed twin coming from?

Or had she been hidden somewhere all this time?

The healer cleared his throat softly before speaking again.

"Luna Moon..." he began respectfully. "You must find your twin so both of you can decide which bond you wish to keep."

Maria’s face immediately darkened.

I could tell she was trying hard to process the healer’s words without completely losing her composure.

Honestly, even I could tell her mind was spiraling right now.

First, she discovered she could not reject us, then came the incomplete mark, now an alternating bond and suddenly... a possible twin.

Anyone would feel overwhelmed.

The healer bowed his head slightly afterward.

"I would like to go attend to Lady Sonia now," he added respectfully.

Maria inhaled deeply before responding coldly. "You may leave."

The healer nodded immediately before heading toward his quarters to gather whatever items he needed.

The moment he disappeared from sight, silence fell over all of us again. No one seemed to know exactly what to say anymore.

But my gaze remained fixed on Maria the entire time. From her looks, It was obvious she was still processing everything the healer had said.

Meanwhile, countless thoughts were already running through my own head.

If Maria truly had a twin...then where was she?

Why had no one ever heard of her?

And most importantly...who exactly could she be?