KAAN‘Fucking Fates!’ Caspian shouted through the mind link, his voice laced with laughter. ‘Are you seeing what I'm seeing?’I surely did. I stepped back, lining up with my little one—my Luna and a future Queen. Undoubtedly, she already was the Queen in the eyes of those who bowed down before her.Asena smiled nervously, gesturing at them to rise. They looked as if they had woken up from a long, dreamless sleep, slowly acknowledging where they were and who they were. It was sort of tragic that the oath that was supposed to be the highest privilege had become their nightmare.Nathair chuffed, making a sound resembling a chuckle, as he looked around at the battlefield. What had just happened could only be described as a miracle. Asena managed to stop the bloodshed mere minutes after she entered the grounds. With all the enemy warriors either killed or switching sides, there was only one thing left to do…I motioned my chin, pointing at the hill. ‘Get her,’ I commanded, and several wolv
ASENA Three Weeks Later A soft gasp escaped me as the wicked tension began to coil between my thighs. I bit my lip and drew a deep inhale. Citruses. Another gasp escaped me, one followed by a shudder that coursed through my body. I opened my eyes, chasing away the remains of sleep. I was lying on my back with my legs spread and my King between them. He lifted his head, and a sly grin spread across his face. “Now that you are awake, my little one, shall I stop or continue?” I tilted my head back and groaned. My skin was already feverish, and all my sensitive parts demanded immediate attention. My humidity grew. My chest rose and fell erratically as his fingers splayed on the inner side of my thighs, inches away from where I needed them. “Your choice, my Queen,” he purred. “Don't stop,” I murmured, pushing my hips toward him. He laughed before dipping his head and drawing his wicked tongue along my sensitive center. I cried as he teased every nerve within me, pulling me closer to t
I shouldn't have been here. My father would have killed me knowing that I had sneaked out of our shabby cottage house… again. I should have prepared for tomorrow's Mating Ball. I should have tried to find myself a dress worthy of entering Alpha Cadoc's castle. I should have tried to get some sleep. But was I doing any of it? No. I was standing in the old, abandoned hut at the top of the hill with my heart pounding in excitement. My eyes were locked on the door. My breath was erratic. My hands were shivering. Kylar should have been here by now. I hadn't seen him for over two weeks, and I couldn't wait to feel his strong arms around me again. I wished we could have seen each other like normal couples did. I wished I could have held his hand while walking through the center of Hilalville. I wished Alpha Cadoc had blessed my relationship with his son… I wasn't that lucky. My wolf was a sleeper. I felt its presence in the depths of my soul, but I couldn't turn into my wolf form. I might
I leaped behind the first tree, which I found broad enough to work as a hideout. I crouched down and plastered my back to the trunk, listening to the sound of footsteps. What I heard was two feet, not four paws, but I was yet to determine whether it was a good or bad sign. My heart rate increased as the footsteps became louder… This powerful being was coming this way.I cringed in my temporary hideout and held my breath, focusing on the sounds. Suddenly, the footsteps stopped, and what came next was a faint splash of water. I was almost certain that moving from my position was a terrible idea, but I couldn't stop until I satisfied my dumb curiosity. I twisted my body, barely keeping my balance, and leaned out from behind the tree.“Damn,” I breathed out, locking my eyes on the man who crouched by the shore.Illuminated by the moonlight, he seemed almost godlike. He looked like an incarnation of darkness, packed in the most alluring body I had ever seen. I mean, Kylar had a nice body,
I must have fallen asleep at some point of tossing and turning in my bed because I had seen the black wolf from the woods again. This was an odd dream. I wouldn't call it a nightmare, but it was... disturbing.The beast stood among the trees, looking at me the way he was back then when I had seen him first. He came closer but kept a safe distance between us as if he didn't want to frighten me. Then he howled and cried, lowering his large head before me. Something inside me knew he was trying to warn me, I only didn't know what he was trying to warn me from.I woke up with a sharp gasp, shivering from the intensity of what I had just seen. Everything in the vision I had was strangely vivid—too vivid to be called a simple dream. Groaning, I glanced through the window at the lazily rising sun and crawled out of bed.Unsurprisingly, Ellaria and my father were still asleep, but they hardly ever got up early in the morning, especially my father. Never even once had he gotten up before noon
I stood numbly and stared at the thin stream of light coming through the door crack. My heart had just broken into pieces. Had I been wise enough to listen to my survival instincts, I should have run the hell out of that castle or out of this pack's territory. Yet I stayed still, refusing to acknowledge that what I heard was true.“I'll gladly watch that bitch squirm in pain and die.” Sloan clasped his hands together and laughed.“Actually, if that's Asena, I'm hoping for a bigger audience,” Kylar said coldly. “I'm planning to do that in the ballroom, in front of everyone.”Something within me snapped. The pain of betrayal faded, and rage surfaced. My hands fisted into balls as I slowly dragged myself out of my stupor. A wave of heat washed over my senses, and I knew that I was running out of time. As much as I wanted to barge into that room, I was still wise enough to know I couldn't fight them. Grinding my teeth, I turned around and started running, the further from Kylar, the bette
For a moment, everything turned silent, still... I stared into Kylar's gray eyes, awaiting the pain.“No!” I heard a heart-tearing cry coming from the side of the ballroom. It was my sister. My head slowly turned toward the sound, and I saw her pushing through the crowd and running to the dais. “How could you reject her?! She will die!”I looked at my sister and gave her a weak smile. And then I felt it—the searing ache in my chest that slowly spread through every vein in my body. I raised my eyes to Kylar and saw nothing more than a faint wince twisting his features. Surely, he didn't feel the ounce of pain that began to consume me.Every inch of me began to rattle, and I collapsed to the floor. “She's in pain!” Ellaria screamed. “Help her! Silas, help her!”“I'm sorry, Ellaria,” came Silas's mournful voice. “The consequences of the broken bond cannot be healed.”The fire that started inside me slowly drifted to the surface, making the wolfsbane poisoning seem like a gentle rash. The
I had become a wolf without a pack—or rather, a shadow wolf without a pack. I was also kind of… homeless… and dead. Well, maybe not in an unalive-dead way, but in the dead-to-the-world kind of sense.This was frustrating. I thought that living in a pack where everyone thought I was a nuisance had been difficult, but this? This was like building my life back from scratch. Of course, I had enough common sense to know I couldn't have survived another day in my old pack, even if Ellaria hadn't proclaimed me dead. Here in the mountains, at least I could live and be free. Unfortunately, I had yet to figure out what this new life and freedom could mean…“Think about it as a unique opportunity.” Riona smiled warmly as we sat in her hut, drinking herbal tea. “You can start over. You can be who you always wanted to be.”My lips twitched into a wry smile as I turned my head to the window overlooking the narrow path leading down the mountain and toward Eastern Valley Pack's territory. Ellaria and
ASENA Three Weeks Later A soft gasp escaped me as the wicked tension began to coil between my thighs. I bit my lip and drew a deep inhale. Citruses. Another gasp escaped me, one followed by a shudder that coursed through my body. I opened my eyes, chasing away the remains of sleep. I was lying on my back with my legs spread and my King between them. He lifted his head, and a sly grin spread across his face. “Now that you are awake, my little one, shall I stop or continue?” I tilted my head back and groaned. My skin was already feverish, and all my sensitive parts demanded immediate attention. My humidity grew. My chest rose and fell erratically as his fingers splayed on the inner side of my thighs, inches away from where I needed them. “Your choice, my Queen,” he purred. “Don't stop,” I murmured, pushing my hips toward him. He laughed before dipping his head and drawing his wicked tongue along my sensitive center. I cried as he teased every nerve within me, pulling me closer to t
KAAN‘Fucking Fates!’ Caspian shouted through the mind link, his voice laced with laughter. ‘Are you seeing what I'm seeing?’I surely did. I stepped back, lining up with my little one—my Luna and a future Queen. Undoubtedly, she already was the Queen in the eyes of those who bowed down before her.Asena smiled nervously, gesturing at them to rise. They looked as if they had woken up from a long, dreamless sleep, slowly acknowledging where they were and who they were. It was sort of tragic that the oath that was supposed to be the highest privilege had become their nightmare.Nathair chuffed, making a sound resembling a chuckle, as he looked around at the battlefield. What had just happened could only be described as a miracle. Asena managed to stop the bloodshed mere minutes after she entered the grounds. With all the enemy warriors either killed or switching sides, there was only one thing left to do…I motioned my chin, pointing at the hill. ‘Get her,’ I commanded, and several wolv
Aeron and I made it back to Inberville alive. Of course, we both needed a healer to patch us up, but we were going to recover in a matter of hours. Aeron barely talked to me from the moment I opened the hatch and entered the passage. I saw his relief when he made sure I wasn't severely wounded. Still, he was sulking because I didn't let him fight and protect me.When we returned to the city, it already resembled a huge war camp, with armed warriors running back and forth, securing every inch. Nathair was the first person who spotted us as we exited the passage. He ran toward us, and we briefly told him about everything that happened. He instantly passed the news of General Acyn's death to a few of his men so it could spread through the battlefield. Undoubtedly, Acyn's commanders and warriors had yet to be informed about the death of their leader, and the sooner they heard it, the faster their morale and will to fight would break.“I still cannot feel whether the blood spell worked or
I could barely keep my eyes open as Aeron all but dragged me deep into the forest. Arrows kept flying. A few missed us by an inch; two scratched Aeron's arm as he shielded me. I begged him to leave me and save himself, but he only growled in response.The good news was that the arrow hadn't pierced my heart. I knew that because I was still alive. The bad news was that it pierced through me and that it was coated with wolfsbane. The bleeding in my chest increased, and I knew I was about to reach my limit. I clenched my teeth, pushing through the pain, but I couldn't force my feet to move faster.“There's a rocky hill with a few caves ahead of us,” Aeron said as he tightened his grip on my waist. “We'll hide there.”I didn't argue. I had no strength to do so. Instead, I concentrated on running. The arrows stopped flying above our heads, but we didn't dare assume we were no longer being chased. I tried to hear the pounding footsteps somewhere behind us, but the wolfsbane weakened my sens
I convinced Nathair to include Zeno and Aeron in the emergency meeting in the war room. The three of us sat among the commanders of General Nathair's army. Surprisingly, none of them dared question our presence. There were no signs of disrespect or hostility, even though some of them must have already known that we were from the resistance or that I was Alpha Kaan's mate. Instead, their heads bowed before me, acknowledging my Luna status.Nathair shocked me even more when he decided to announce that I was Alpha Vardan's daughter. Again, no one asked me to prove my lineage; they believed their General as if his every word was sacred. I highly doubted that Jalissa could have counted on such loyalty from her warriors had the blood spell been broken.“We straightened every post from each side of our territory, General,” reported Zander, one of Nathair's commanders. “Still, I'm afraid that without a solid backup, the enemy will destroy our defenses in less than three days.”I glanced at Ze
I became more restless the closer we were to the Dark Lakes Pack's territory. I could no longer feel Kaan's emotions or mind link my mate, and this strange emptiness inside me filled me with an urge to turn back Atius and return to Alento. Only now did I fully understand why the mated couples could barely stand staying away from each other for more than a day. I felt as if I couldn't breathe a mere hour after we parted.Surely, I didn't mention anything about my emotional state to Aeron or Zeno. Aeron would have probably laughed his ass off, and Zeno would have most likely ignored everything I said. Letting out a quiet sigh, I shifted my focus to the road ahead, where Inberville's ramparts came into view.Aeron sucked in a sharp breath as we neared the massive gates with at least six guards protecting the city's entrance. “Are you sure that Nathair will let us into the Dark Lakes Pack's capital?”A nervous chuckle escaped me. “I guess we're about to find out.”A few heartbeats passed,
Fear turned out to be a better motivator than any logical argument we could have come up with. The icy terror satiated the air in the meeting hall. It took a few minutes for everyone gathered to realize that only we could give them what they truly wanted, and that was survival.Of course, some would rather hold on to their hatred even though they would risk the lives of their families that way. The insults and curses were still audible in the hall. I could sense that Kaan was at his limit. His urge to end those who spoke ill of us grew. His patience was about to run out, and I had to admit that so was mine. Surprisingly, it was Vidarr who spoke up first.“If you think that you can insult Luna Asena or Alpha Kaan just because they came here in peace, then I suggest you think again!” he growled. “You will show them respect, or we won't blame them for the bloodshed your stupid tongues caused!”Standing by my side, Kaan breathed out a chuckle. “I think I like him,” he whispered in my ear.
ASENAOne side of my lips curled up as I listened to Dritan's speech. I lined up with Kaan and smiled at my mate. He instantly grabbed my hand and intertwined our fingers. My chest swelled, and I felt hot tears gathering in the back of my eyes. Kaan had blood on his hands. He had killed for Alpha Khaos, but he had also saved many lives. He had chosen to become a villain because it had seemed like the only way to gain leverage in this war. He had allowed others to hate him for years. It was time for those who hated him to know his reasons…Garren scratched his beard, processing Dritan's words. I knew that he was a reasonable man who would never be blinded by general beliefs. Unfortunately, the warriors around him still oozed hostility, and none of Dritan's words softened the anger written on their faces.“For now, I believe that you didn't come here for bloodshed,” Garren said, his eyes shifting from me to Kaan and back to me. “You need more than a few words to gain my trust, and you c
KAANI watched my amazing Luna pack her clothes into a leather bag. Mine was already packed, so I just sat on the bed, enjoying the view, while I talked through the link with Caspian.‘He regained consciousness mere hours ago, and now that idiot insists on coming with us,’ Caspian groaned.I blew out a breath. ‘I didn't tell Asena that you found him a few days ago. No one could tell whether or not he was going to wake up, so…’‘She'll understand, Kaan,’ Caspian assured. ‘She needed to cope with Delmira's betrayal and Lelah's death. It's understandable you didn't want to tell her about Dritan.’I breathed out a curse and dragged my fingers through my hair. ‘So where is that idiot now?’‘Most likely on the way to your chambers. Angus and Damien tried to stop him, but he threatened to punch them when they blocked his way.’I pinched the bridge of my nose. ‘Fuck… I guess I will need to let Asena know before this fucker parades inside our bedroom.’A rough chuckle came through the link. ‘G