Chapter : 4.

She sat up in bed, running her fingers through her hair as her thoughts raced. Something was missing in their bond, something that she hadn’t been able to identify, but she felt it in her bones. The connection between them was incomplete, broken in a way that she couldn’t explain. It was as if the bond had fractured, and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t figure out how to mend it.

Maybe, she thought, if she gave it one more chance, she would find that missing piece. Maybe there was still something there, hidden beneath the anger and the hurt, that could be salvaged. If she could just reach Luka—if she could get him to open up, to remember the man he had been when they first met—maybe they could fix this.

But just as Elara was beginning to convince herself that there was still hope, a sudden commotion outside shattered her thoughts.

Her ears perked up, and she frowned, listening closely. The sound of hurried footsteps and muffled voices reached her through the window, and her heart began to race. Something was wrong. Very wrong.

Without wasting another moment, Elara threw off the covers and leapt out of bed. She rushed to the window and looked out into the courtyard below. Her blood ran cold at the sight of several Crescent Moon warriors rushing across the grounds, their expressions tense and alert. The air was thick with the unmistakable scent of danger.

The pack was under attack.

Elara’s heart pounded in her chest as she quickly dressed in her warrior leathers, her mind racing with a thousand thoughts. Who was attacking? How had they breached Crescent Moon territory without warning? And where was Luka?

She didn’t have time to dwell on her questions. The adrenaline coursing through her veins drowned out everything else. Without hesitation, Elara shifted into her wolf form—a sleek, powerful black wolf with emerald eyes that gleamed in the moonlight. Her muscles tensed as she bounded out of her quarters and into the night.

The sounds of battle reached her ears as she neared the edge of the estate, her paws pounding against the earth. Howls echoed through the air, mingling with the growls and snarls of wolves locked in combat. Elara’s instincts kicked in, and she surged forward, her senses sharpening as she prepared for the fight ahead.

As she arrived at the battlefield, chaos greeted her. Rogue wolves swarmed the Crescent Moon warriors, their eyes wild with bloodlust. Elara wasted no time, launching herself into the fray with a snarl, her claws slashing through the air as she fought off the rogues who dared to challenge her pack.

Her mind focused solely on the battle, the tension between her and Luka forgotten as she fought alongside the other warriors. She moved swiftly, her body a blur of black fur and sharp teeth, her every move calculated and precise. The rogues were vicious, but Elara was fiercer. She had been trained to fight, and she wasn’t going to let these rogues threaten her pack.

But as she tore through the line of rogues, something strange caught her attention.

A familiar scent hit her nose, one that made her freeze in place. She turned, her emerald eyes scanning the battlefield until she saw him.

A wolf, standing tall amidst the chaos, watching her with silver eyes that gleamed in the darkness.

For a split second, Elara’s heart stopped.

The wolf looked exactly like Luka.

Same silver eyes, same powerful build, same gray fur that she had seen countless times before. The scent that reached her nose was unmistakable—it was Luka’s scent, mixed with the familiar musk of the mate bond that tied them together.

But there was something wrong.

As she stared at the wolf, her instincts screamed at her that this wasn’t Luka. It couldn’t be. She had fought beside Luka many times, and while this wolf had his appearance, there was a subtle difference—a strange energy that made her fur stand on end.

The wolf watched her with an intensity that made her stomach twist, and for a moment, Elara felt the mate bond surge between them, a familiar pull that sent her heart racing. But even as the bond tugged at her, she knew deep down that this wasn’t Luka.

It couldn’t be.

She growled softly, her body tense as she stood her ground. The rogue wolves continued to fight around her, but her attention was locked on the strange wolf before her. He looked so much like Luka—so much that it made her doubt herself for a split second.

But her instincts were never wrong. And her instincts told her that this wolf, despite his appearance, was not her mate.

The wolf tilted its head, as if studying her, and Elara’s growl deepened. She took a step forward, her muscles coiled with tension, ready to attack if he made any sudden moves.

But before she could do anything, the wolf turned and darted away, disappearing into the shadows as quickly as he had appeared.

Elara stood frozen for a moment, her heart pounding in her chest as confusion and unease washed over her. She couldn’t explain what had just happened—why the wolf had looked so much like Luka, or why the mate bond had flared between them. But something about the encounter left her with a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach.

She shook herself, forcing her mind back to the battle at hand. There would be time to think about the strange wolf later. Right now, her pack needed her.

With a fierce snarl, Elara leapt back into the fight, determined to protect her pack at any cost.

But even as she fought, her mind kept drifting back to the wolf who looked—and felt—like Luka.

And she couldn’t shake the feeling that the missing piece she had been searching for in her bond with Luka might have just appeared on the battlefield in the form of a stranger who wore her mate’s face.

The battle raged on, the clash of teeth and claws echoing through the Crescent Moon Pack’s territory. Elara fought relentlessly, her wolf form agile and fierce as she cut through the rogue wolves attacking her pack. The night air was thick with the scent of blood and sweat, the howls of the wounded mixing with the growls of those still locked in combat.

But no matter how hard she tried to focus on the battle, Elara couldn’t shake the image of the wolf she had just seen—the one who looked exactly like Luka.

Her mind raced as she tried to make sense of what had just happened. The wolf had Luka’s silver eyes, his powerful build, even the same scent that tugged at the mate bond between them. But something about him had felt off. Her instincts had told her that it wasn’t Luka, and she had learned to trust her instincts long ago.

Now, as she fought her way through the battlefield, her gaze kept flickering toward the shadows where the mysterious wolf had disappeared.

Suddenly, a loud, piercing howl rang out through the air, cutting through the sounds of battle like a blade. It was a sound that made the hair on the back of Elara’s neck stand up, and for a moment, everything seemed to freeze.

The howl came from deep within the forest—a commanding, authoritative call that sent a shiver down her spine. It was a signal, clear and unmistakable. A signal to retreat.

As if on cue, the rogue wolves around her faltered, their attacks losing momentum. One by one, they stopped fighting, their heads turning toward the forest as if responding to an unseen command. Elara’s heart raced as she watched in disbelief. They were leaving.

Without warning, the rogues began to pull back, their once vicious assault now abandoned as they darted toward the tree line. The Crescent Moon warriors, caught off guard, hesitated for a moment, unsure whether to pursue or hold their ground. The confusion was palpable, the pack members exchanging bewildered looks as their attackers retreated without explanation.

“What the hell is going on?” one of the warriors near Elara growled, his voice thick with disbelief. “Why are they running?”

Elara shifted back into her human form, her chest heaving with exertion as she tried to make sense of the sudden turn of events. All around her, the other Crescent Moon wolves were doing the same, their bodies shifting back as they stood in shock, watching the rogues disappear into the forest.

“They’re leaving,” someone muttered behind her. “Just like that.”

Elara’s eyes narrowed as she scanned the treeline, her mind racing. This wasn’t normal. Rogues didn’t just abandon a fight in the middle of battle—not without a reason. But what reason could possibly explain their sudden retreat?