The atmosphere in the pack had shifted. Gloria may have escaped, but her presence seemed to leave a never- removable stain.It was no challenge identifying the root of the problem because it lied on the surface. This is how wicked and dangerous the witches are: Gloria’s escape from the dungeon as an insult and a threat. Even though Ardan’s warriors patrolled the borders day and night, there was no comfort in their vigilance.The war room had become our second home over the last few days. Maps, silver remnants of broken chains, and scattered parchments cluttered the table as Ardan, Zone, Rachel, and I tried to piece together how Gloria had escaped.“It doesn’t add up,” Rachel muttered, leaning over the table with her brow furrowed. She held one of the broken chains between her fingers, twisting it thoughtfully. “Silver can’t be broken this way—not without a mix of strength and magic.”Zone, pacing in the corner of the room, snorted. “Strength and magic. That narrows it down to werewolv
The forest was eerily quiet, the kind of silence that made my wolf tense and restless. I led the scouting party deeper into the dense wilderness with my senses on high alert as we made our way between tall pines and underbrush’s. A faint mist clung to the ground, curling around our boots and shifting unnaturally. It felt wrong. The air emitted this weird energy—one I couldn’t quite place, but I’d learned never to ignore.Ardan walked beside me. His presence reassured me. He insisted on coming, of course. I hadn’t been able to talk him out of it, though I knew his presence here made Rachel nervous back at the camp. We couldn’t afford to lose Ardan, and yet here he was with his sword strapped to his back and his eyes scanning the trees for any sign of trouble.“You feel it too, don’t you?” I asked, leaning in and speaking to him in a low tone so that the rest of the scouts would not overhear us.Ardan nodded. “It’s too quiet. Something’s waiting for us.”I glanced back at the group foll
Rachel’s voice echoed through the dim war room with her fingers running through the pages of a tattered spell book.“It’s called a convergence ritual,” Rachel said. “Gloria isn’t just trying to win a war—she’s trying to amplify her power to unimaginable levels. If this ritual succeeds, she could become something far worse than we’ve ever faced.”I sat at the edge of the table, staring down at the sketch she had drawn of the ritual circle. The intricate lines, symbols, and blood markings on the parchment gave off menace. I didn’t have to understand witchcraft to feel its dark purpose.“How does it work?” I asked with my voice quieter than I intended.Rachel pushed her glasses higher on her nose and looked at me. “The convergence ritual draws magic from various sources—rogues, witches, and any magical being tied to them. It channels their collective power into one vessel, elevating the witch who performs it to a level of control over everyone connected to the magic. That’s why Gloria’s
The rogue leader struggled to move in the chains we had him in. He growled for his release but I knew neither Zone nor Ardan were willing to let him go, at least until we got our answer. He sweated along his eyebrows, and his eyes darted around as if searching for any way to escape. His wrists were bound tightly with silver chains, making the room scent of burning flesh.Ardan stood over him and spoke with a cold tone. “We don’t have time for games. Speak.”The rogue spat blood onto the ground and then glared up at Ardan defiantly. “I won’t tell you anything.”“You will,” I said, stepping forward to meet his eyes. I crouched so we were eye level. “Because I know how this works. You follow orders. You’re not a leader—you’re a pawn. And I don’t think you want to die for someone else’s game.”The rogue’s jaw tightened, but his confidence faltered. I could see it&m
Very quickly, we got to the pack house. I feared for Gilly. She had been through enough.“What happened, Rachel?” I asked Rachel as we descended the stairs to the medical wing.Rachel looked at me nervously and unsettled. “I found her talking in her sleep again. But this time… it was different. She was muttering strange words, phrases I didn’t recognise. I wrote some of them down. They sound like witch incantations.”“Witchcraft?” I whispered.Rachel nodded. “It’s not normal, Serena. She’s burning up too, as if something inside her is trying to fight its way out.”We reached Gilly’s room, and I hesitated just a moment before entering. Gilly lay on a small bed, drenched in sweat and her hair plastered to her forehead as she tossed restlessly. Every so often, her lips would move and faint whispers would escape from her mouth like a chant.I moved closer. The sound of her mutterings sent a shiver down my spine. Rachel wasn’t lying—the words were not her own. I didn’t understand them, but
The sky was filled with grey clouds when I first saw him. A lone figure approached the gates of Ardan’s pack with his dark cloak whipping in the wind. There was something unsettling about his presence. The guards at the gate were already on edge and their hands hovered near their weapons.“Who is that?” I muttered, standing beside Ardan as we watched from the pack house steps.Ardan’s eyes narrowed. “Someone who doesn’t belong here.”We descended toward the gates just as the guards stopped the stranger. He raised his hands calmly with a small, disarming smile playing on his lips. “I come in peace,” he said smoothly. “I’ve heard whispers of a girl - witch touched by magic - and I think I can help.”Ardan growled softly. “And who exactly are you?”The stranger lowered his hood, revealing his face. He had a pale skin that was marked by faint scars which ran along his jaw. His hair was a mix of dark and silver strands which gave him an ageless quality. His eyes were green.“My name is Dra
Ardan stood at one end of the war table with crossed arms and a dark face with suspicion written all over it. Zone paced near the fireplace, pacing up and down, clearly frustrated. Across from me, Roman leaned casually against the wall, with his usual composed expression giving away nothing, but I could see it—Ardan and Zone’s distrust was starting to chip away at his calm exterior.“Something’s not right,” Zone muttered for the third time, shooting Roman another glare. “We’re chasing leads, scrambling to keep Gilly safe, and every time something goes wrong, he’s around.”Roman let out a quiet sigh and rolled his eyes as he pushed himself off the wall. “You know, Zone, if you’re going to keep accusing me, you might as well bring some proof. I’ve done nothing but help you all since I arrived.”“You mean since you conveniently appeared,” Zone shot back. “No one knows where you came from. You don’t belong here.”“Enough!” I snapped, standing up from my seat and placing my hands on the ta
The sound of Zone’s boots echoed down the hallway as he stormed into the war room. I could see anger in his eyes. Ardan, Rachel, and I were huddled over maps and scouting reports, discussing strategies to secure the territory.“We have a problem,” Zone said as he tossed a worn scrap of fabric onto the table.I picked it up, frowning. The material was torn and dirty, reeking faintly of magic and rogue wolves.“What is this?” Ardan asked coldly as he straightened his back to face Zone.“I found it near the south border,” Zone replied, crossing his arms. “Tracks leading in and out of the pack’s territory. Someone’s sneaking around.”Rachel furrowed her brow as she leaned closer, inspecting the fabric. “It’s rogue,” she muttered, then paused. “But there’s something else here. A faint magical trace.”Ardan’s eyes turned to me. “Roman.”I sighed heavily, already knowing where this was going. “You can’t keep blaming Roman for every problem we have, Ardan. It’s starting to feel personal. I me
Evelyn PoVAt first, I had not thought that Gilly's story would turn out to be so tragic. I thought I was merely doing my mother a favour: I was releasing a spirit and giving peace to the pack. But every single step I took in the direction of solving was heavy with shadows that just threw more secrets in my direction. I could feel the darkness circling in, twisting me into a hangman's noose.The old records of the pack were dusty and brittle, worn yellow with age. Weeks I spent in the archives bent over a desk deciphering the scribbled handwriting and cryptic notes. Draven helped where he could, his fingers dancing over ancient texts while I pieced together, bit by bit, the fragmented history of Gilly's downfall.It started innocent enough. Gilly was loved; with those attributes of kindness and strength, she was never really a natural leader. Somehow respect turned to jealousy, and jealousy turned to betrayal. The swirling in the ancient documents held very hostile stories of a family
Authors PoVThey started like whispers in the night.In the stillness of sleep, they forced their way into her brain to take her through dark and twisted visions. Some shadows curled around her, cold and snake-like; their touch glided over the rippling skin and left frosted impressions behind. The dreams picked their way through her nightmares the same way—her pack in chains, expressionless and with eyes like black pits; there was someone ahead, a person cloaked in shadows.The figure's face shifted and distorted; at one time it would be reminiscent of Gilly with her soft features, at another of Gloria, with that awful smirk. She would desperately attempt to run, to scream, but either the land would crumble beneath her feet, swallowing her whole in the world, until she woke up gasping for air.The dreams haunted her daily, tormenting her with the reality of the world outside the realm of sleep. Gilly's spirit seemed to linger in the edges of reality sewn into the very fabric that woul
Evelyn PoVThe truth sat heavy on my chest, a stone sinking into dark waters. Gilly's voice lingered in my mind, a soft, desperate whisper threading through my thoughts even as I went through the motions of daily life. The blood of the betrayed will break the chains.Those words had been haunting me ever since the ritual with Draven, every syllable a jigsaw puzzle piece that refused to fit. What betrayal? Whose blood? The answers I sorely craved could only be unearthed by digging deeper into Gilly's past, the life which she had led before Gloria's darkness swallowed her whole.I started my search among the old documents located in the pack's ancient archive building where old books and fragile scrolls blended their aged scent with forgotten tales. For hours I studied the pack's historical records that included birth and death records as well as political alliances and loyalty breakdowns. Being careful with my page turns made me sharply conscious that the sound of crinkling pages carri
Evelyn PoVWas this a mere figment of my imagination?… Gilly’s voice had become an echo that trickled into the stillness, catching me unawares. The torment did not even allow me peace in sleep. I would close my eyes, and her voice would take me into shadowed dreams-corridors layered in darkness, chains clanking in the distance."Evelyn."It now sounded weak and soft, no more than an echo but soon merely a whisper grazing my skin. Jerking upright in bed, I pulled the blanket tighter around my shoulders."Wh-What do you want from me?" I whispered back, my voice lost in the dark.Silence.I woke up abruptly from my bed before drawing the blanket closer to protect my shoulders."What do you want from me?" I demanded quietly. I managed to answer him but my words vanished into the darkness.Silence.I clenched my fists. “If you’re real I need to see you to be sure.”The air moved through the room as the window remained closed. The candle flame moved in an unexpected sideways wave as though
Evelyn’s PoVAs I came to stand amidst the rubble of Odessa’s fortress, there rioted smells of smoke and blood. The bodies of both friends and foes lay scattered on the ground from a battle that, to me, seemed less a victory than a doomsday. My body screamed for peace, and the tightness of every muscle felt unbearable; yet it could hardly compare with the turmoil within me.Finian stood a few paces away, his eyes piercing into mine. His expression was inscrutable-somewhere between hope and acceptance. His knuckles were bruised, his hair caked with dirt, and yet still he seemed the bedrock I have leaned upon during my stay with the pack at Odessa. He had saved me countless times, and now, standing before freedom, I no longer knew where we stood.And then there was Marcus.He emerged from the smoke like an apparition. Relief, pain, and something else—something much deeper, something older, much older—were stamped on his face, making my chest tighten. The last rays of sunlight broke thro
Author PoVBefore sentries had time to alert their camp the arrows struck their targets. The wolves crashed into each other while they shifted as their howls unified their counterparts.Inside the fortress, Evelyn felt it. The vibrations of battle were within her, through the stone walls, deep and low; she felt a low hum settle deep into her bones. She was clasped in silver chains burning against the skin, watching Finian about to die.One of the guards entered the room quickly, his face extremely pale. "We are under attack!"Odessa's face hardened, "By whom?""Callum and his people… he’s alive my alpha. And the Red Blood Moon pack."Odessa's lips twisted into a snarl. "Then they have come to die." She turned toward Evelyn, handing her a dagger she had drawn from her belt. "I ought to kill you. But I will save you for last.”Evelyn then looked into Odessa's eyes, her fear burning away and replaced by determination. "No, I will save you for last.”Then the ambush began. Callum and Ryan
Author PoVThe woods was dark as Marcus and Luca passed through the underbrush in silence. Marcus’s heart thudded against his ribs, with a steady caution. He glanced toward Luca, who had graduated from one stern face of determination to intent.They had been trudging through the woods for hours on nothing more than scraps of intelligence and the stubborn pull of hope. Ryan's rogues had pointed them in the right direction but were ultimately not adventurous enough to try to approach the Red Blood Moon pack directly. After all, Odessa's territory was a death trap of sorts. Even the most adventurous rogues knew better than to cross her borders without sufficient cause.The moonlight was just enough to see the outlines of makeshift tents and some shadows on watch. Marcus motioned for Luca to keep it low and crouched behind some ferns to take in the camp."Do you see her?" Luca whispered in a voice so faint it was almost a sigh."Not yet," Marcus ground out, struggling to make each breath
Serena’s PoVTears stung my eyes, and I woke up in a start with broken breath as the persistence of the dream clung to me. In this muted room, shadows danced upon the wall; for a second, I was hardly certain of where I stood. The dream had borne the reality—Odessa, her eyes bright with evil gleam, standing atop a heap of bones. Her army, a roar of growling rogues and defiled creatures spread out to the last sight. And then there was Evelyn... Evelyn was there, firmly standing by the side of Odessa, the empty look on her face an undercover of madness.I put my trembling hand over my forehead, it was sweating. This dream wasn't just a figment of imagination; it was a warning.I pushed aside the thick furs, stood, and went to the unbarred window. The pack grounds lay quiet, a deceitful calm before a storm. My instincts screeched like a mother's intuition that something far worse than what we had imagined was in the making.If only I could make Ardan see it too.But Ardan... he was no lon
Evelyn’s PoVThe dagger felt heavy and cold in my palm. Odessa’s cold demand rang in my ears. Kill Callum. Bring me his head. This wasn’t a test or ,twisted game to see how far I would go to prove my loyalties. I just had to do it. I knew I had to do it.If I turned it down, she would turn against me. If I carried out her order, I would lose the only ally I had managed to win over. Either way, she would win.Not this time.Finian walked beside me as we traveled through the thick forest. His expression was a mixture of concern and determination. He had not questioned me for warning Callum. He had not hollered when I insisted we needed to fake a death, to give like a disguise for the purpose of tricking Odessa into believing I had done my job. Instead, he nodded, affirming my sense of loyalty."Are you sure it will work?" he asked softly."It must." I responded. "If Odessa realises we lied to her, we would be dead."