The bond has a strange way of keeping me up at night. It hums under my skin, a constant reminder that no matter how much distance I try to put between myself and Ruslan, it’ll never be enough. Even now, lying in my bed, I can feel it pulling at me, tugging me in his direction.I try to ignore it, forcing myself to close my eyes and shut out the world, but it’s no use. His presence is too strong, too consuming. And tonight, something’s different. The bond is louder, more insistent, and I can feel his emotions crashing over me in waves. The anger, the frustration—those are familiar, but there’s something else now. Something darker. Hotter.I feel it, deep in my chest, a tug that’s more insistent than the usual pull of the bond. It’s not panic or anger this time. It’s something more primal, more urgent. And it’s coming from him. I can feel his desire, hot and raw, pushing through the bond, wrapping around me like a heated coil. My breath catches, and I sit up in bed, my heart pounding.
The council chamber feels colder than usual, the heavy stone walls closing in around me. I sit in the centre of the room, the long table filled with the elders who’ve governed the pack for years. Tomas sits beside me, his presence solid and reassuring, but even he can’t calm the storm brewing inside me. My heart pounds in my chest, a mixture of anxiety and anger, and I already know this meeting won’t end well.The council has been quiet, studying me with their sharp, calculating eyes. Finally, one of them—Elder Garin, an old man with a weathered face and more power than most—clears his throat.“Luna Katya,” he begins, his voice slow and deliberate, “how are you feeling lately?”I frown, taken aback by the question. It’s not what I expected. They didn’t call me here to talk about feelings. But I know better than to lie. I take a breath, my hands gripping the edge of the chair. “I’m... managing,” I say, trying to keep my voice steady. “It’s been difficult, with everything that’s happe
The shackles bite into my wrists and ankles, the chains rattling with every forced step. They drag me out of the cell without a word, like I’m nothing more than an animal. The light outside is blinding, the first real sunlight I’ve seen in weeks.My eyes burn, and I have to squint just to see. The guards don’t slow down, don’t give me time to adjust. They shove me forward, arms locked in place, legs barely able to move in the tight restraints. I stumble, but catch myself before I hit the dirt. No one says a damn word to me.I’m not stupid. I know what this is. They’re taking me to my execution. I expected this day to come. Maybe not this soon, but I knew it was inevitable. A small part of me thought they might let me rot in the cell, but no. Katya must have found some loophole. Maybe the council pushed her harder than I expected.I breathe out, a strange sense of relief flooding through me. I’ve been waiting for this, waiting for the end. It’s better than being chained up, better than
The hot water hits my skin, and for a moment, I just stand there, letting it cascade over me, washing away the grime, blood and sweat that’s been clinging to me for God knows how long. It feels... strange. To be in a shower. To be clean again. After weeks of being chained up in that cell, it’s almost surreal. The steam rises around me, filling the small bathroom with warmth, and I can feel my muscles slowly start to relax.I lean my head back, closing my eyes, letting the water run down my face. My body aches, every part of me stiff from being confined for so long, but the heat is helping. I can feel the tension melting away, bit by bit, the tightness in my chest easing. It’s the first time I’ve felt anything close to comfort in what feels like forever.But even as I try to relax, there’s this nagging feeling in the back of my mind. I’m not really free. Not yet. I might be out of the cell, but I’m still a prisoner. The barrier around the cabin makes sure of that. No running. No esca
I wake up feeling off, my stomach churning the second I open my eyes, a wave of nausea hitting me hard. I try to ignore it, to push through the uncomfortable sensation as I roll out of bed and head to the kitchen. It’s just morning sickness. It’ll pass.The cabin is quiet, and for a moment, I relish the stillness. It’s the only thing that feels normal anymore. I grab a pan and start making breakfast, eggs sizzling as the scent of food fills the air. But as soon as the smell hits my nose, my stomach lurches violently. I barely make it to the sink before I’m bent over, heaving, my body betraying me.I hear footsteps behind me, and I know it’s him. Ruslan. I can feel his presence before he even says anything, the bond thrumming with his concern. I don’t look at him, still bent over the sink, trying to get the nausea under control.“What’s wrong with you?” His voice is rough, almost accusing, but there’s a layer of something else beneath it. Worry.I wipe my mouth with the back of my han
She’s pregnant. My mate is pregnant, and not with my child.This is a fucking joke. The Goddess must be laughing at me, watching as she keeps twisting the knife. It’s like I can’t catch a break, like the universe is hell-bent on making me suffer, on rubbing salt into every open wound.I can barely think straight, the anger is so strong. It fills every part of me, claws at my insides, until all I can feel is the injustice of it all. I didn’t ask to be tied to her, to be bound to the woman who is carrying the child of the man who destroyed everything that mattered to me.And now his child grows inside my mate. As much as I loathe this bond, as much as I hate everything about what it’s done to me, there’s a part of me that’s... angry that the child isn’t mine.I grit my teeth; the thought disgusting me, but it’s there. It’s like a sickness spreading through me, twisting my thoughts, making me want things I have no right to want.Why isn’t it my child? Why am I the one cursed with this b
The fire crackles in front of me; flames licking at the sky as Andrei’s pyre burns. The scent of smoke fills the air, and the heat from the blaze is so intense that it almost feels like it’s burning me from the inside out. I stand there, frozen in place, clutching the fabric of my black dress as if it can somehow ground me, somehow stop the spinning inside my head. It doesn’t. Nothing does.Tears blur my vision and I blink them away, refusing to let myself fall apart in front of the pack. I’m their Luna, their leader now, and I can’t show weakness, not even when the man I loved more than anything is nothing but ash and memory. But it’s impossible to hide the way my body trembles, the way every breath feels like I’m suffocating under the weight of the grief crushing my chest.I look up, and there’s Andrei’s face, still so vivid in my mind. His laugh, the way his eyes crinkled at the edges when he smiled. How he would rest his hand on my belly, even before I told him I was pregnant. I
Three weeks of building anger, of restless nights, and waking up to an empty bed that should still belong to Andrei. Three weeks of watching the pack try to move on, while I can’t seem to move past the moment I lost him. Every breath I take feels tainted by the fact that the man responsible for his death is still alive, breathing the same air as the rest of us. But today, that changes.Today, the Rogue filth dies.I stand at the front of the clearing, my heart pounding in my chest as I watch the pack gather, their faces filled with cold satisfaction and pure anger. They want blood, justice for their Alpha, and I want it more than anyone.Every nerve in my body is taut with fury. My hands shake at my sides, but not from fear. From rage. The kind of rage that’s settled into my bones, burning hotter with every passing day. How dare he live while Andrei’s body is ash? How dare he get to breathe even for a second longer?Tomas approaches, his face set in a grim line. “It’s time.”I nod,