CLAUDE I COULD TELL something was wrong the moment they told me to step out of the car. The way they moved, the way they avoided my gaze—it was all wrong.You’re being detained. Shit.So here I was, pacing in a small, dimly lit room, waiting for something to happen, and I knew exactly what that something would be—my father.My jaw clenched as I turned to the two men standing guard. "Why are you holding me here when I should be on my way back to my pack?" My voice came out sharp, a growl filled with frustration.They exchanged a glance before one of them finally spoke. "You’ve been reported missing—"My heart dropped."By the Alpha of Rising Moon Pack."Of course.I dragged a hand over my face, trying to keep calm. With what had happened the last time, of course he would be worried, but I didn’t think he would actually report me missing. Not when he was the kind of man who preferred handling things alone.I didn’t know how long I sat there, pacing, waiting, feeling the minutes stretc
CLAUDEI PRESSED MY palm flat against my tie, smoothing out invisible wrinkles as I stared at my reflection in the mirror. My own eyes looked foreign—empty, like I’d already been hollowed out.A sigh slipped from my lips. Too quiet. Too weak. I clenched my jaw, forcing my expression into something passable before turning away to my nightstand. My fingers curled around the drawer handle pulling open the drawer.Lupenol. The small, familiar bottle sat at the top, right where I’d left it. I picked it up, rolling it between my fingers before twisting the cap off.It wasn’t real medicine—not even registered. Just something my father forced on me, a chemical solution to my problem. The first time I’d asked where they came from, I was nine. He’d ignored me. By the time I was twelve, I’d stopped asking altogether.Now, I just swallowed.The pills hit the back of my throat, bitter as always. I didn’t bother chasing them with water, just shoved the bottle back into the drawer and slammed it sh
NIKOLAITHE BASTARD WASN’T even shaking.His hands were tied behind his back, knees pressed into the cold concrete, a gun to his skull—and he still had the audacity to look me in the eye.I should’ve killed him already. The second they dropped him in front of me—blindfolded, gagged—I should’ve pulled the trigger. But I didn’t. Not yet. Because I wanted him to see me. I wanted him to know exactly who was taking his last breath.“You’re quiet,” he rasped, his voice barely recognizable after the screaming. “Expected more from you.”I crouched in front of him, tilting my head. “Like what?”“A speech.” His mouth twisted into something that might’ve been a smirk if his face weren’t so fucked up. “Something poetic. Revenge always brings out the theatrics in men like us.”I let the silence hang between us for a moment, just staring at him. Then I smiled—barely, but enough to show him I wasn’t fazed.“He was weak,” he spat. “Would’ve never made it in this world, and you know it.”The word hit
CLAUDEIT WAS TIME.My stomach churned, tightened, and I had to swallow the bile rising from the pit of my stomach.A week. That’s all it took for them to prepare for this damned mating ceremony. Held right under the full moon, at the heart of the pack, like some kind of joke.The whole pack was buzzing, full of excitement, but for me? This felt like my funeral.“I can smell your nervousness, Claude,” my father’s voice broke through the fog of my thoughts and I flinched, but I didn’t bother to glance at him. I just kept watching the world blur past me.The car screeched to a stop in front of the packhouse. I didn’t waste a second, throwing open the door and stepping into the cool night air, my feet hit the earth with a soft thud.Around us, I could hear everything—the chattering voices, the sizzling meat somewhere in the distance, the heavy buzz of excitement.My father stood beside me as we both stared at the double doors of the packhouse. He sighed, like he had something wise to say
CLAUDEHOW LONG HAD it been since I mated my mate? Three months? Four? Fuck, I wasn’t even sure anymore. Time blurred when every day felt like this, a cycle I couldn’t break no matter how much I wanted to.On the surface, everything was going well. The pack was thriving, stronger than ever. Since my mating with Ava, our lands had merged, resources had doubled, and we had secured our place among the top ten most powerful packs in the world. The borders that once separated us had been brought down, our people moving freely between both territories, the unity strengthening us in ways I couldn’t deny.But none of it meant anything to me.Being mated to Ava was hell. Every chance she got, she tried to pull me into bed, her hands wandering even when I made it clear I didn’t want her touch. She tried to mark me, tried to get me to mark her, her heat rolling off her in waves like it was some kind of weapon meant to force me into submission. It was suffocating, and no matter how many times I
CLAUDE “YOU CAN’T JUST leave.”Ava’s voice was tight, the kind that dug under the skin. I exhaled slowly, dragging a hand over my face before turning to her. She stood by the bed, arms locked over her chest, her eyes glaring holes at me.“You’re going to him, aren’t you?” She stepped forward, her nostrils flaring. “That human I smelled on you?”I tightened my grip on the bag’s handle but didn’t say a word.Her lips curled, but there was nothing soft about it. “My heat is close, and you want to run off? Like a fucking coward?”I turned for the door.“Use the drug, Ava.”I barely got the words out before she was on me, pressing against my back. Her nails dug into my arms, not enough to break skin, but enough to make her point.“Why do you keep pushing me away?” Her voice had dropped, but I knew that edge. That push. And I knew what she was going to say next—“I’m your mate. Your true mate.”My muscles coiled tight.“Ava.” A warning.She inhaled, slow and deep, like she could taste the f
NIKOLAITHE DOOR SLAMMED open, rattling against the wall, and Andrie stood there, chest rising and falling with heavy breaths. His face was tight, his jaw locked, and his eyes—fuck, his eyes told me everything before he even spoke. Something was wrong.“Pakhan.” His voice was tight, his jaw locked and I already knew it wasn’t going to be good.“What?” I snapped, trying to push myself up, but a sharp, burning pain tore through my side. My muscles locked up, breath catching as I swallowed down the groan threatening to escape. Fucking wound. It felt like someone had ripped me open all over again.“It’s… that boy.”My fingers twitched. Not at the way he said it, but because I already knew exactly who he was talking about.Claude.Here.Back in Russia.When I fucking told him not to be.“Where is he?” The question came out like a hiss, my throat tightening as my pulse slammed against my skull. I shoved off the bed, pushing past the pain, but the moment my foot hit the ground, my body betra
NIKOLAIFUCK. PAIN RIPPED through every inch of my body, a deep, burning ache that made it hard to breathe. My head pounded, my ribs screamed, and when I shifted, something sharp tore at my wrist. Restraints. Fucking metal.I forced my eyes open, the dim light cutting through the haze of unconsciousness. Concrete walls. Bloodstained floors. The bitter taste of iron on my tongue. And then—footsteps. Slow, heavy. Someone was coming.I swallowed back the pain and lifted my head, a sharp grunt leaving my lips as I forced myself to focus.Surrounded.Fuck.“I see you’re awake.”The voice was smooth, almost amused. My eyes locked onto the bastard standing in front of me. Not some lackey. Not Antonov’s right-hand. No—Ivan Antonov himself.A sharp laugh tore from my throat. Out of all the people, I hadn’t expected this prick to show his face. His uncle was dead. He should’ve been thanking me.“Of all the people, I thought you’d benefit most from your uncle’s death,” I said, my voice hoarse an
CLAUDE MY WHOLE BODY ached, and a grunt left my lips as I forced my eyes open. A shaky breath slipped out as I stared at the beige wall.I blinked. My vision blurred at the edges, my throat raw as I sucked in a slow breath, tasting clean air—warm, stale, nothing like the damp rot I’d been drowning in for… gods, how long?I turned my head slowly, but the space beside me was empty.Nikolai.He had—he’d—My heart slammed once, twice. I pushed myself up, muscles screaming, my body heavy and my arm ached. I looked down, saw the needle hooked into my vein. The sight made my stomach lurch. The sharp pull of skin. The cold press of metal. Hands that had grabbed, torn, held me down—A sharp breath burned its way through my lungs.I yanked the IV out. Blood welled at the puncture site, beading, slipping over my skin, but I barely felt it. It was nothing. Nothing compared to—I swallowed hard.The sheets smelled clean. Too clean. No sweat, no filth, no blood soaked into the fibers. My pack didn
NIKOLAI EVERYTHING FUCKING HURT.My stomach felt like it had been torn open—because it had—the bandages wrapped tight around my torso doing nothing to ease the burning throb beneath. My left wrist was useless, broken and swollen, fingers stiff and unmovable. Every breath dragged through my ribs like a knife.Pain didn’t matter. Not when Claude was lying there, still as fucking death.I hadn’t moved from this chair in hours. Maybe longer. Time had blurred into the steady drip of the IV flushing the drugs from his veins, the too-shallow rise and fall of his chest, the quiet, pained sounds that barely even reached my ears. Sounds that never should have left his fucking lips. Not Claude. Not mine.I wanted to touch him. To brush my fingers over his skin, to feel the warmth of him and remind myself he was still here. Still breathing. But he looked so fucking fragile. A man who could bring me to my knees, reduced to this. Bruises painted across his body, silver burns marking his wrists whe
NIKOLAITHE GUN WAS empty. I already fucking knew that. He knew that. But I still held it like it meant something. Like I could shove it down his throat and pull the trigger just to hear the useless, hollow click. Viktor stood there, fucking smirking, like he hadn’t earned the slowest death I could give him. I wanted to carve that smirk off his face. I wanted him on his knees, choking on his own fucking teeth. His nostrils flared. He was scenting me—like an animal, like he had any right. I dragged in a sharp, deep, breath trying to steady the anger clawing at my ribs. And then he grinned. “This must be him,” he said, voice low, amused. His eyes slid past me—to Claude. Hanging there. Bound in chains. “The man I could smell all over you.” A pause. Just a second. Just long enough for me to hear it—Claude’s breath catching. Viktor chuckled. “The one who’s been fucking you.” His head tilted, his smirk stretching. “I must’ve taught you well.” Taught. The word felt like b
NIKOLAIHE WAS EASY to track.The chip was still in his ear.That meant he was still alive. That meant—I gripped my phone so tight my fingers ached, my jaw locking as I forced myself to breathe. It rang once. Twice. Then—“Nikolai.”I closed my eyes, exhaling sharply through my nose. “Enzo.”A pause. Then that goddamn smirk in his voice, like he didn’t realize I was this close to losing it. Or maybe he did and just didn’t give a fuck.“Didn’t expect you to call me this quickly.”I didn’t have time for this. Not when I finally knew where he was. Not when I didn’t know what they’d done to him. My Claude.My chest felt too tight. My pulse was a hammer against bone.“What kills a wolf?” My voice came out low, steady—too steady—but my fingers curled tighter around the phone, white-knuckled and my breath short.Enzo took a sharp breath. Then chuckled. “Why? You planning to get rid of me? Didn’t think you’d be so eager.”I bent down, yanked the zipper open on my bag, my hands moving fast, p
NIKOLAITHE DOOR SLAMMED open. I turned my head sharply, muscles tensing as a man walked in, and Christ—I didn’t need to be told he was Claude’s father. The resemblance was enough. The weight he carried in his steps was enough.Then the door opened again, and she—Ava—was rushed inside. Unconscious, clothes filthy, body limp in someone’s arms. I shot to my feet, my pulse hammering as I waited for the door to open once more. For him to walk through it.But he didn’t.“Where the fuck is he?” My voice was sharp, my steps quick as I closed the distance between me and Claude’s father. He stopped, his face twisted in something close to pain before he turned and took the stairs two at a time.A pit opened up in my stomach. Something was wrong. Something was very fucking wrong.I ran my hand through my hair and only when I dropped it did I realize—I was shaking.I turned and bolted out the door, my breath coming fast, my heart slamming against my ribs as I scanned the vast driveway. He wasn’t
!Content Warning!This chapter contains themes of sexual assault, non-consensual drugging, and past trauma. While the assault itself is not depicted on the page, the emotional and physical aftermath are explored in detail. This scene is intense, raw, and may be distressing for some readers.CLAUDEI JERKED—HARD. Hard enough that the skin of my wrists burned raw against the silver, but I didn’t care. I couldn’t care. The only thing that mattered was getting him off me. Getting away. But Viktor was right there.His breath fanned across my face, hot and cloying, the same way it always did, the way it had when I was nineteen and begging for it to stop. My stomach lurched, bile burning its way up my throat, but I swallowed it down. I couldn’t be weak. Not now.Viktor clicked his tongue, a sound of amusement, of mockery. “Look at you,” he murmured, his grip tightening on my chin as he tilted my head up. “All grown up. You’ve been getting fucked, haven’t you?”His words were a blade, cuttin
CLAUDEFUCK. MY HEAD HURTS. I tried to force my eyes open, but no matter how hard I blinked, everything stayed dark, and that’s when it hit me. I was blindfolded.No. No. No.How did this happen? How did I end up here?A snarl clawed up my throat as I jerked forward, but the pull of metal—biting, burning—stopped me cold. My arms were stretched above me, bound tightly with silver. I could smell it, taste its acrid sting in the back of my throat.No.I yanked harder, muscles straining, breath heaving. The scent of damp stone and rust filled my lungs. The sound of water dripping from somewhere above was too familiar. The chains rattling over my head, too familiar. And the sound of boots—heavy, slow on concrete—hitting the ground, too fucking familiar.No. No. No.My body jerked violently, panic clawing through me, my muscles screaming as I yanked against the chains. I couldn’t—I couldn’t be here again. This can’t be happening. Not again.I felt him stop in front of me, his breath warm a
NIKOLAI“WHO THE HELL are you?”I set the bottle down, shoving my hands into my pockets, letting the silence stretch between us. I tilted my head, letting my eyes stay on her, watching every flicker of emotion cross her face.I didn’t answer right away and she Just stood there, jaw clenched so tight I thought it might crack. Her eyes roamed over me—calculating—like she was trying to piece me into some world I didn’t belong in.I smirked.She could smell him on me. That much I knew. I could see it in the way her gaze flickered, the tightness in her jaw. Her mate. Her fucking husband. The thought almost made me laugh.“You’re human,” she finally said, her voice tight, clipped.“And you’re his wife.” I let the words hang in the air, watching her reaction like I was savoring a slow burn.A breath left her, but she didn’t speak. She just stood there, staring at me with those cold eyes, anger rolling off her in waves. Then, she took a step forward, her heels clicking on the floor, challengin
CLAUDE I RAN A palm over my face as I slammed the car door shut and made my way toward my father’s house.‘Get over here. Now.’ That’s all he had said. No explanation. No warning. Just an order thrown through the pack link while I was with him. Nikolai. My fingers drifted to the tiny bump behind my left ear. I’d never given it much thought before. Never cared enough to. But now, as I walked, my touch stayed.The maids bowed as I passed, but their eyes stayed locked on me, their whispers curling through the air and into my ears. My scent was thick, there—like an omega bred past the heat season, claimed beyond reason. I reeked of him. Of what he had done to me. Hell, I was still leaking him.I turned left, inhaled sharply, and shoved the door open—then froze.It wasn’t just my father in the room.Alpha Monroe stood beside him.Fuck.I swallowed, shutting the door behind me, my gaze flicking from my father—his glare so sharp it could slice—to Monroe, who was staring at me like I was so