Diva ran.Branches clawed at her skin, the cold night air biting at her as she pushed forward. Her breath came in ragged gasps, her pulse pounding so hard it drowned out everything else.But nothing could silence the truth burning inside her.The mate bond was a lie. A curse. A trick played by Ronan to bind her to Derek.It wasn’t real.None of it was.Tears blurred her vision, but she didn’t stop. She couldn’t. Stopping meant facing the unbearable truth.Derek knew something was wrong.He hadn’t denied it. He hadn’t fought for her.That hurt worse than anything.Her foot caught on a root, and she stumbled, hitting the ground hard. Pain flared in her knees, but she barely registered it. Pressing her forehead against the damp earth, she swallowed a sob.She had been so foolish.For a fleeting moment, she had believed fate had given her something good. That even as the weakest wolf in the pack, she had been chosen.But she was just another pawn in someone else’s game.A sound shattered
Diva didn’t look back.Her legs burned, every step fueled by adrenaline and desperation. The cold wind lashed against her face, but she pushed on. She had no choice.Breaking the bond might kill me.Derek’s words echoed in her mind, a warning she should heed. But she wouldn’t.Because safety was just another word for being trapped.And she refused to live as a prisoner—not to fate, not to Derek, and definitely not to this bond.She had to find Ronan.Even if it meant risking everything.---Derek stood in the clearing, fists clenched at his sides.She was gone.Again.His wolf snarled, demanding he go after her, drag her back where she belonged. But he stayed rooted in place.For the first time in his life, he was afraid.Afraid of losing her. Afraid of what Ronan would do.Afraid she would never forgive him.A sharp voice cut through the silence.“You let her go?”Derek turned. Jaxon stood at the edge of the clearing, disbelief darkening his expression.Derek exhaled. “I didn’t let h
I stepped toward Ronan.The air between us was electric, crackling with something dark and dangerous. My pulse pounded against my ribs, but I kept my chin high.Behind me, I could feel Derek’s stare. Burning. Unyielding.I didn’t look back.I couldn’t.This was my choice.Freedom.That’s what Ronan promised.So why did it feel like something inside me was unraveling?Ronan’s smirk widened, golden eyes gleaming. “Smart girl.”A low, deadly growl rumbled from behind me.“Diva.”I stopped.Derek rarely said my name like that—like a plea, like a warning, like he was grasping at something fragile.I turned slightly, meeting his gaze.His silver eyes weren’t cold now.They were stormy. Desperate.“I won’t stop you,” Derek said, voice rough. “If this is what you truly want.”A sharp ache bloomed in my chest.I had expected a fight. A struggle.But instead—He was letting me go.Because he knew.He knew if he forced me to stay, I would never forgive him.I swallowed hard. “I have to do this.”
A fierce, blinding silver light ripped through the darkness.Derek’s roar thundered through the void, shaking the ground beneath me. The shadows shrieked, writhing, but they didn’t vanish. They hovered. Waiting.Ronan didn’t flinch. Instead, he let out a low, amused chuckle.“You never learn, do you, Alpha?” His golden eyes gleamed in the eerie glow. “Always fighting for something that was never truly yours.”Derek’s gaze locked onto me.Not Ronan.Me.I didn’t hear him say my name.But I felt it.Then—Without another word—Derek lunged.The two Alphas collided, the impact rippling through the air.Ronan met Derek’s attack without effort, deflecting his claws with a flick of his wrist. Their movements were too fast, too brutal—I could barely track them.Claws slashed. Fangs snapped. Snarls and growls echoed through the suffocating darkness.But Ronan wasn’t just fighting with his strength.He was using the shadows.Dark tendrils coiled around Derek’s arms, yanking him back.Ronan lau
Derek’s warning echoed in my ears."Run."But how could I?I was trapped.The room was cold, thick with the scent of iron and something worse—something unnatural. The walls were smooth stone, unyielding. The only way out was the massive iron door between me and him.And Ronan was smiling.“You thought you could fight me?” His voice was calm. Amused. “That was cute.”I clenched my fists, claws biting into my palms. The shadows behind him twisted, restless. The things lurking within them watched me. Waiting for his command.Behind me, Derek groaned, shifting against his chains.I forced myself to stay still. To think.There had to be a way out.I refused to die here.Ronan took a slow step forward, his golden eyes flickering in the dim light.“Do you know what your problem is, Diva?” He tilted his head, studying me like I was some broken thing. “You’re still playing by the rules. You still think there’s a way to win without losing something first.”My jaw tightened. “And what exactly do
Something was wrong with the air.It was cold. Too heavy.Ronan stood in front of us, his smirk sharp as a blade. But it wasn’t just him anymore.The figures behind him—they wore our faces.One stepped forward.A perfect copy of Derek.The same chiseled jaw, the same piercing gaze. But something was… off.The way it moved—too smooth. Too controlled.Then, it spoke.“You don’t belong here.”Derek’s voice. But hollow.A chill crawled down my spine. This wasn’t real.Derek tensed beside me, a growl rumbling in his chest. “I’m going to tear them apart.”“No.” My voice barely carried. “That’s what he wants.”Ronan was watching us, amusement flickering in his eyes—like he’d already won.“You’re clever, Diva,” he mused. “But not clever enough.”Before I could react, the shadow-Derek lunged.Derek barely had time to brace before it slammed into him, sending them both crashing into the wall. The impact shook the ground. But Derek wasn’t one to stay down.He roared, his claws ripping through th
A Wolf Turned Against MeDerek stood before me.But it wasn’t him anymore.His red eyes glowed like embers in the dim light, his stance rigid, unnatural. This wasn’t my mate. This was something else—something Ronan had twisted him into.“Derek,” I whispered.He smirked. Not his smirk.Ronan’s.“Diva,” he murmured. “You still think you can save him?”I clenched my fists. I had to.I took a slow step forward. “Derek, fight it. I know you’re still in there.”His smirk didn’t waver. “He’s gone, Diva.”“No.” My voice wavered, but I refused to believe him. “You’re lying.”I reached for him—And he struck.His claws sliced through the air, barely missing my face as I leapt back.The wind howled around us.My mate—the man I loved—was trying to kill me.But I refused to accept it.Derek lunged, moving faster than I’d ever seen.I barely reacted in time before he slammed me into a tree, the impact knocking the air from my lungs.His claws pressed against my throat.He leaned in, voice barely a
The Effects of the CurseThe world came back into view.I gasped in air, lungs burning, as I dropped to my knees.The darkness disappeared. The curse disappeared.But Derek—Panic struck me full-force as I spun around to him. He lay on the floor, too still.Too still."Non—" I scrambled to his side, my hands on his chest. Warm-skinned, but his breathing was weak, faltering.And then, finally—his golden eyes snapped open.I was hit by relief so powerfully that I came close to tears."You did it," he whispered in a voice almost inaudible.I laid my hands on his face, and they were trembling. "We did it."Our bond hummed between us, stronger than ever. Whatever Ronan had attempted to enforce between us—whatever darkness had bound Derek—it was severed.But something was wrong.A chill, icy dread twisted through me.This wasn't complete.Ronan's RevengeA roar tore through the darkness.I spun around as Ronan emerged from the shadows.He was—twisted.The curse hadn't killed him. It had dev
She looked at Derek. His own eyes, still burning with determination even though he was hurt, reflected her own horror and shock. They both felt that moment of wordless comprehension that every second now counted.The stranger went on, "Three days from now, judgment will be upon you. Until then, you need to prepare and gather your spread light. Only thus can you try to overcome the darkness that will cover you.".Diva's brain went haywire. Three days. The countdown has begun. Each second was a precious, clockwork moment that could rescue her or nothing. Her heart thumped with adrenaline and utter terror. "And what is your price?" she snarled, voice steady over the tempest raging within her.The stranger's eyes clenched and he gave no swift reply. He extended his hand—a gesture in silence full of potential and threat. The air was charged with tension.Diva hesitated, hand hanging between the palmar calluses of destiny and trembling skin. She knew that to take it would reverse everything
The beat of Diva's heart was a war drum pounding as she led the pack into the ruined courtyard of the stronghold. The sunrise on the horizon-painted with red and gold—a bitter reminder that even a morning plucked from the darkness had horrors yet Chapterunimagined. Every step a battle cry, every breath a challenge of the shadows that would consume them.Diva's gaze scanned the horizon, where morning's earliest light and smoke from burning fires were combined. The enemy was advancing again. From that chaos, the Void awoke from slumber—its strength always on standby, devouring at her whim. She gripped her sword firmly, with brute strength flowing through her, a skill she'd had pounded into her veins and given.By her side, Derek strode with desperate circumspection, his gold eyes blazed hot though welts on his battered frame testified to a struggle of another sort. His hand is still fast around hers, a promise that they should never be parted, no matter what. They had fought for this fl
Diva paused in the doorway of an enormous room. The ground was strewn with shards of broken mirror, each with partial reflections of the past—a past of love, loss, and endless struggle. In the center of the room, balanced atop a pedestal, sat a glowing fragment of mirror. Its beam was peaceful, nearing in upon her.Varin invited them in. "That is the Fragment of Light," he said to them. "It holds in it the promise of rebirth, but at a price. To claim it, you have to let go of that which binds you to your sorrow."Diva's stomach pulled in. Every memory, every sob, every whispered promise was hers. To let it go…was like erasing her very being.She looked at Derek. His eyes silently pleaded with her—a mix of love and sadness that nearly shattered her determination.She closed her eyes for a moment, drawing a jagged breath. When she opened them again, they burned with a fierce resolve. "I choose our future," she whispered. "Not the pain of the past."A brilliant light poured out of the sh
Diva's heart thrummed as she sprinted down the stronghold stone corridor. Every step echoed like a rebellious drumbeat. Wind sliced across her cheek, mixed with the foam and purpose. Before her lay the dark threat beating like a living shadow; behind her lay the pack's warriors in a wall of growls and biding talons.Derek charged at her side, his golden eyes afire with a fierce determination that belied his battered body. His eyes, usually steady and reassuring, now blazed with urgency. During the fleeting interludes between battles, their eyes spoke all that needed saying—a silent vow to hold on, to fight on, no matter the cost.The enemy was no longer dark threat. Mutters had evolved to bellowing. The Void—the hoary, amorphous monster described in halcyon recollection of old myth—came into being. Its presence squeezed against the ramparts of the fortress like a hug of vengeful haze, distorting reality in fiendish, chaotic ways.A slam from the outside wall jarred the fortress brutal
Diva's heart pounded against her ribcage as she sprinted down the fortress corridor, blinded by the black-outs. Every step a frantic trot through the silence of the aftermath. The devastation of the previous day's battle—scorched dirt and acrid shreds of broken vows—remained etched on the walls. Every burst of torchlight made her jump, every figure vanishing into the shadows reminded her of decisions now weighing on her conscience.She gripped her side where the bruise pulsed with pain, but not pain that hindered her—it was betrayal, the cold sting of doubt in her veins. Her mind whirled back to Caelan's words moments before, a poisonous truth that questioned her who she was. Even as the pack bayed her name in triumph, she felt a void gnawing in her chest, as if something was ripped away from her.Derek's dark form emerged from the corridor down the hall. His gait was uneven; each step a tell-tale for a man fighting the battle against fatigue and hidden grief. When his gaze met hers,
For one moment, as the first blush of dawn stole above the line of the world, the universe paused as a single breath.Then a distant symphony of horns shattered the fragile calm. The enemy forces marched forward—black hordes marching with death in their minds through the valley. The land trembled under the weight of their advance.Diva's heart thudded. The energy that seethed in her was wild and unforgiving, a fire she barely recognized but was bent on controlling. The strands of light within her, the potential of the new beginning, were for redemption.The war had barely ended. Preyed on by the Void, an emptiness just coming into being, there was threatening her on the horizon like a storm. But upon seeing Derek, then Alaric's stern face, a spark of rebellious hope was kindled in her."We have three days," she repeated again, voice a soft command that rang in every warrior's head. "Three days to gather our strength, to prepare ourselves for the coming darkness. And if we do. we might
Diva leaned against the slippery balustrade of the fortress, her gaze raked over the storm-shrouded horizon on which waves of clouds seemed to twist around like maddened phantoms. There had been a triumphant shouting at last, but a cold stillness closed in about her like a second skin. All the pack roars now seemed so hollow, as if victory had been won at a cost, biting deep into every heart.He moved slowly through the courtyard, each step a struggle with his own wounds.Diva's heart pounded, each beat a reminder of that dark turn in her life. Ronan's words reverberated in her mind: "You were never meant to exist." The memory of that cold statement mixed with the bitter aftertaste of betrayal. She clenched her fists until they turned white, refusing to let that ugliness claim her future.A ruckus of boisterous shouting from inside the hall attracted their attention. Wolves—pack members—huddled anxiously, eyes wide with fear and confusion. Jorah stepped out into the open, shaking voic
Diva stood at the balcony of Blackfang stronghold, gazing out over rolling hills now hers. The full moon cast silver light upon the ravaged battlefield, shining down upon the wolves once at war with each other but now united.She should have won. She should have won.Instead, a pain was firmly rooted in her chest.Being Alpha never was a dream of hers.She had spent her life fighting for survival, not for power. But power had found her anyway.A warm presence moved behind her.Derek.His touch was gentle as he placed his hands on her shoulders, his fingers tracing the bruises and healing wounds that still marked her skin."You’re thinking too much," he murmured.Diva exhaled sharply. "There’s too much to think about."Derek turned her to face him, his yellow eyes locked on hers. "Then let me take some of it."She wanted to.By the gods, she wanted to.This was her responsibility now.She had become the Alpha, and with that came the burden for every life in her pack.And not everyone a
Diva's hands closed around Derek's blood-soaked shirt as she held him to her breast. His body was limp, his breathing shallow—too shallow."No, no, no," she whispered, her trembling hands applied to his wound. "Stay with me, Derek. Please."But his golden eyes remained shut. His skin was growing cold.Horror clutched at her chest.The battlefield was quiet, wolves still in the aftermath of Ronan's fall. Blackfang warriors hoped cautiously, but the survivors of Ronan's army had already surrendered, their commander nothing but ash.It did not matter.Not if she lost him.Diva clenched her teeth, attempting to disregard the burning of her own wounds. "Someone get the healer!" she shouted, voice raspy.No one moved.They were still in shock, still waiting for her command.Then—A person pushed through the crowd.Jorah, Derek's beta. His eyes were wide with fear, his actions quick. "We have to move him," he said urgently. "Now."Diva nodded, but when she went to lift Derek, a rough hand pu