Valeria The cold air bit at my skin as I walked back to the packhouse, my body moving on autopilot while my mind spun wildly, trying to process everything that had just happened. The truth about my past. The deception. My family. The weight of it all pressed down on me, suffocating, squeezing the breath from my lungs. I could still see Malachai’s eyes, the way he had looked at me, as if he had all the answers to the questions I didn’t even know how to ask. My parents, the Alpha King, Prince Darius—it was all a twisted, horrifying reality that I was now a part of.And what was worse, a part of me—no matter how small—couldn’t help but wonder if Malachai was right.By the time I reached the packhouse, I felt as though I were in a daze. I barely registered the familiar surroundings, or the soft warmth of the building as I pushed open the front door. My legs were weak, trembling beneath me, but I forced myself to keep moving.I didn’t expect to see Aiden so soon. He appeared at the top o
ValeriaKade and Rylan arrived at Stormclaw just after dusk, their expressions grim and filled with worry. The moment they walked into the packhouse, I could feel the tension building between us. We had all been through so much together, and now the weight of Malachai’s looming presence hung over us like a suffocating cloud. Aiden greeted them with a tight nod, and they wasted no time gathering in the large sitting room to discuss the situation.Kade’s eyes found mine almost immediately, searching for answers, for reassurance, but I had none to give. I knew he was worried—he always had this way of carrying the weight of everyone’s problems on his broad shoulders. Rylan, on the other hand, paced the room like a caged animal, his energy restless, his focus sharp.“I can’t believe this is happening again,” Rylan muttered under his breath as he stopped by the fireplace, running a hand through his tousled dark hair. “We barely got out of the last attack alive, and now we’re dealing with M
KadeI woke up early, a strange sense of unease gnawing at me before my eyes even opened. The air in the packhouse felt wrong, like something had shifted during the night. My first thought was to check on Valeria—she hadn’t been herself lately, and the weight of everything going on was pressing down on her hard. Malachai’s presence loomed over all of us, and I couldn’t shake the feeling that things were about to get worse.I swung my legs over the side of the bed and stood, rubbing the sleep from my eyes. Without wasting time, I headed down the hallway toward Valeria’s room. The closer I got, the more the anxiety in my gut twisted like a knife. When I reached her door, I knocked softly, not wanting to wake her too abruptly if she was still asleep.No answer.I knocked again, harder this time. Still nothing.My pulse spiked, and I shoved the door open. The room was empty. Her bed, untouched. My heart plummeted into my stomach. I stood there for a moment, staring at the emptiness before
Valeria The forest stretched out before me, every tree and shadow carrying memories that I both longed for and dreaded. The familiar scent of pine and earth filled my lungs as the car rode towards the heart of the pack’s territory. The sun dipped low in the sky, casting golden light on the path ahead, but I knew the real celebration would begin when the full moon rose. The pull of the wolf pack had been growing stronger with every mile, tugging me back to where I belonged, yet a strange apprehension settled deep in my chest. After my painful rejection by Prince Darius, the Alpha Prince, I had been away from the wolf pack for years—long enough for things to change, long enough for me to change. As the border came into view, the feeling of crossing into the wolf pack’s territory washed over me, a sense of relief mixed with the uncertainty of what lay ahead. I wasn’t the same girl who had left; I had seen the world outside, and now I was returning to face whatever destiny awaited me he
Valeria “Enough!” His voice was a low growl, and even though he was several yards away, the power in his tone sent a chill down my spine. As he closed the distance, I could feel the gravity of his authority settling over me like a heavy cloak. The pack members who had been bustling about preparing for the celebration stopped in their tracks, all eyes turning toward the Alpha King and to me. My heart pounded in my chest as the Alpha King’s gaze swept over me, then shifted to the three Alphas standing beside me. His lips pressed into a thin line, his displeasure evident. I didn’t know what he had heard, but whatever it was, it had drawn his attention, and I could sense that this confrontation was far from over. “Valeria, you are not done with serving your banishment terms. Returning to the wolf pack without my permission is strictly forbidden. And worse still,” the Alpha King’s voice was echoing in the large room. “You’ve disrupted the balance of this pack. Your presence here has c
Valeria The moment the words left my mouth, declaring Kade, Aiden, and Rylan as my mates, the weight of the entire council’s judgement fell on me like a crushing wave. Every eye in the room turned to me, wide with disbelief and silent condemnation. My heart raced, not from fear, but from the certainty that what I had just done was right. I had known, even as I stood before the Alpha King’s throne, that this decision was more than just about love. It was about power. It was about rewriting the future of the wolf pack. The air in the council hall was thick with tension, the silence stretching on for what felt like an eternity. Then, like a thunderclap, the Alpha King’s voice rang out, shattering the silence. “Unacceptable!” His roar reverberated through the stone walls of the hall, and the council members flinched at the fury in his tone. I forced myself to meet his gaze. His eyes were blazing, not with disappointment or disbelief, but with pure, unbridled rage. “You dare to defy m
ValeriaThe burden of the accusing eyes feels like a physical blow. I can hardly breathe as the Beta’s voice echoes through the hall, his finger pointed directly at me.“Valeria,” he snarls, his voice sharp and cold. “You’re the reason the Alpha King and his family are dead.”What the…?I stand frozen, the words crashing into me. My chest tightens as disbelief floods my veins. How could they possibly think I had anything to do with this? My heart pounds, but I keep my head high, refusing to show the fear bubbling inside. I open my mouth to speak, but Aiden is faster.“That’s ridiculous!” Aiden’s voice cuts through the tension like a blade. “Valeria didn’t do this. She couldn’t have. We all saw what happened—their deaths were unnatural.”Rylan steps in next, his tone dangerously low. “There’s no proof tying her to any of this. Accusing her without evidence is reckless.”I glance at them, relief softening my shoulders. At least I’m not alone in this. But as my eyes shift toward Kade, ho
KadeThe chaos in the hall still hums in my ears, a deafening roar of accusation, disbelief, and fear. The Alpha King and his family—dead. I can’t wrap my mind around it. The sight of them collapsing, one after the other, their bodies convulsing in pain before falling still—it plays on a loop in my head, and my chest feels tight, like I can’t get enough air.I’m still frozen, standing in place as if my feet are anchored to the floor. I remembered Valeria’s eyes as they looked at me, the pleads in them. Pleading for something, for belief, for trust, for me to step forward and say something, anything. But my throat was dry, and the words had to stick to the back of my tongue. I just watched dumbly as she was dragged away by the guards. But what was I to do? Defend a murderer?‘She isn’t a murderer… yet,’ my wolf, Kenny, reminded me.Valeria was innocent until proven guilty, but why was I convinced that she was already guilty of the crime?“Are you just going to stand there and do nothi
KadeI woke up early, a strange sense of unease gnawing at me before my eyes even opened. The air in the packhouse felt wrong, like something had shifted during the night. My first thought was to check on Valeria—she hadn’t been herself lately, and the weight of everything going on was pressing down on her hard. Malachai’s presence loomed over all of us, and I couldn’t shake the feeling that things were about to get worse.I swung my legs over the side of the bed and stood, rubbing the sleep from my eyes. Without wasting time, I headed down the hallway toward Valeria’s room. The closer I got, the more the anxiety in my gut twisted like a knife. When I reached her door, I knocked softly, not wanting to wake her too abruptly if she was still asleep.No answer.I knocked again, harder this time. Still nothing.My pulse spiked, and I shoved the door open. The room was empty. Her bed, untouched. My heart plummeted into my stomach. I stood there for a moment, staring at the emptiness before
ValeriaKade and Rylan arrived at Stormclaw just after dusk, their expressions grim and filled with worry. The moment they walked into the packhouse, I could feel the tension building between us. We had all been through so much together, and now the weight of Malachai’s looming presence hung over us like a suffocating cloud. Aiden greeted them with a tight nod, and they wasted no time gathering in the large sitting room to discuss the situation.Kade’s eyes found mine almost immediately, searching for answers, for reassurance, but I had none to give. I knew he was worried—he always had this way of carrying the weight of everyone’s problems on his broad shoulders. Rylan, on the other hand, paced the room like a caged animal, his energy restless, his focus sharp.“I can’t believe this is happening again,” Rylan muttered under his breath as he stopped by the fireplace, running a hand through his tousled dark hair. “We barely got out of the last attack alive, and now we’re dealing with M
Valeria The cold air bit at my skin as I walked back to the packhouse, my body moving on autopilot while my mind spun wildly, trying to process everything that had just happened. The truth about my past. The deception. My family. The weight of it all pressed down on me, suffocating, squeezing the breath from my lungs. I could still see Malachai’s eyes, the way he had looked at me, as if he had all the answers to the questions I didn’t even know how to ask. My parents, the Alpha King, Prince Darius—it was all a twisted, horrifying reality that I was now a part of.And what was worse, a part of me—no matter how small—couldn’t help but wonder if Malachai was right.By the time I reached the packhouse, I felt as though I were in a daze. I barely registered the familiar surroundings, or the soft warmth of the building as I pushed open the front door. My legs were weak, trembling beneath me, but I forced myself to keep moving.I didn’t expect to see Aiden so soon. He appeared at the top o
Valeria The trees loomed around me, their branches swaying in the gentle breeze as I stood in the clearing Malachai had described. The weight of his words from the night before still pressed heavily on my chest. I couldn’t stop my mind from spinning as I waited for him. The morning had passed in a blur, my thoughts entirely consumed by what I might face today.Aiden had asked me where I was going, and I had lied. It made me sick to do so, but I couldn’t involve him in this. Malachai’s warning was clear—come alone, or risk everything. I couldn’t bear the thought of putting Aiden or anyone else at risk because of me. My instincts screamed at me to turn around, to run back to the safety of Stormclaw, but I knew it was too late.I glanced up at the sky, the sun hanging high above, marking the time. Noon. He would be here any minute now.Sure enough, I felt a presence before I saw him. Malachai appeared from the shadows of the trees, his face calm, but his eyes sharp and calculating. He m
Valeria Selene stormed out of my room, slamming the door hard enough to rattle the walls. I let out a long, exhausted sigh, sinking back into the chair by the window. My heart was still racing, a mixture of anger and frustration pulsing through my veins after our heated argument.For days, Selene had been pushing my buttons, sniping at me with snide remarks, and flaunting her connection to Aiden in a way that made my stomach churn. But tonight was the worst. She hadn’t held back—throwing every possible insult at me, from questioning my right to be in Stormclaw to accusing me of using Aiden and the others for my own gain. I had tried to remain calm, tried not to let her get under my skin, but it was impossible. Every word she spoke was like a dagger, aimed directly at my insecurities.I rubbed my temples, feeling a headache creeping in. The moonlight poured in through the window, casting a soft glow over the room, but even the serenity of the night couldn’t calm the storm inside me. S
Malachai I paced back and forth in my chambers, each step more restless than the last. The stone walls, which had always felt cold and unwelcoming, now seemed to press in on me, amplifying the anger simmering just beneath my skin. I couldn’t shake the memory of my encounter with Kade—the defiance in his eyes as he stood his ground, refusing to tell me where Valeria was. That fool thought he could protect her, that he could keep her hidden from me.The thought made me grind my teeth in frustration. It had been days since I’d attacked Shadowfang, and yet, I was no closer to finding Valeria. The idea that she was out there, hiding, slipping through my fingers, enraged me. She was supposed to be by my side, ruling the packs as Luna Queen, wielding her power alongside mine. But instead, she was choosing them—Kade, Aiden, and Rylan—over me. I wouldn’t stand for it.Where the hell was Dorian?I stopped pacing and clenched my fists, feeling the familiar heat of my rage burning through me. Do
KadeWhen I opened my eyes, the harsh light of the infirmary made me wince. The smell of antiseptic filled the room, and the dull ache of my injuries reminded me of the fight with Malachai. My chest throbbed with every breath, the bandages tight against my skin, and my head was still foggy from the blood loss. I tried to sit up, but the weight of exhaustion kept me pinned to the bed.“You’re awake,” came a soft voice beside me.I turned my head, and there was Mikaela, sitting in a chair by the bed. Her eyes were red, probably from worry, but there was also something else there—frustration.“Doctor said you’ll be fine,” she added, standing up to pour water into a glass. “But you were lucky. Another few hits from Malachai, and you might not have made it.”I took the glass from her, sipping slowly. My throat was dry, and the cool water was a relief, but I couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling growing in my chest. Malachai had almost killed me, and he was still out there, plotting his next mo
Kade The night was quiet, too quiet. It had been gnawing at me since the sun had dipped below the horizon, leaving the Shadowfang pack cloaked in uneasy silence. My senses were sharper than usual, every shadow in the packhouse casting doubt, every sound making me tense. Something was coming. I could feel it, like a storm brewing just out of sight, ready to tear everything apart.As I moved through the packhouse, making my usual rounds, I found myself thinking about Valeria—again. She was safe with Aiden, but the distance between us felt like an open wound. I hated being away from her, hated not knowing exactly what she was doing, if she was alright. I knew she was strong, capable, but with Malachai lurking around, I couldn’t shake the fear that something could go wrong. And I wasn’t there to protect her.Shaking off the thought, I kept walking. The weight of my father’s earlier warning still hung over me. “Don’t cross any lines,” he had said, but what did he know about the lines I wa
KadeThe weight of everything pressing down on me was almost unbearable as I walked through the corridors of the Shadowfang packhouse. My mind was still on Valeria—on how much she had been through, how her world had been turned upside down, and how, despite all of it, she was still standing strong. She had gone through so much already, and now she was living with the constant threat of Malachai’s twisted ambition looming over her. I couldn’t help but feel helpless.But I had responsibilities here too. I couldn’t let Shadowfang fall apart while Valeria was away. The pack needed me. The pack needed me.As I walked past the pack’s dining hall, the clinking of silverware and low murmurs of conversation caught my attention. It wasn’t the first time I’d heard this particular voice, but it always grated on my nerves just the same. I paused for a moment, glancing into the room. There, seated at the long dining table, was Mikaela.Her eyes met mine immediately, and the smile that spread across