The castle walls creaked under the darkness of night. Thicker, more suffocating silence wrapped itself around the room where Emereah lay—her life hanging on by threads.The poison of the scorpion still seared in her veins. The welts of her lashings festered. Her throat was sore from weeping.But she wept for no one but her people.For the ones she couldn't save. For the ones Vladimir had threatened to kill. For the ones who still believed in her."I should have died."The door slammed open without warning.Her heart stopped.And there he was—Vladimir.Clad in his dark royal cloak, his golden eyes sparkled with something far more sinister than anger. Cruel amusement.He strode toward her as if stalking prey."Get up."Emereah barely had the strength to move. Her body ached, her limbs limp, her head pounding with dryness."I… can't…"She croaked, barely over a whisper.Vladimir tsked."I did not query whether you could. I commanded you to get up."Her body refused. Her legs trembled ben
Her breath hitched as she reached Vladimir’s chamber. The heavy oak doors loomed before her, guarded by two of his most loyal men.“Let me through,” she demanded.The guards stiffened but stood firm.“Alpha has requested privacy,” one muttered.“I am his fiancée,” Alexandria hissed, her voice low and lethal. “Step aside… or you’ll answer for it.”The guards hesitated. One gave the other a warning look before reluctantly opening the door.There he was-Vladimir. Standing beside the bed, gazing out the window. But not Emereah that got Alexandria's blood running hot. It was Vladimir. The way his eyes stayed on her. The way his fingers swept a strand of sweat-drenched hair off Emereah's face moments ago."No. no, no." Alexandria's heart thundered."You're watching her," she growled, her voice trembling with fury.Vladimir scarcely moved his head. "Do you have some reason for coming here?""There's always a reason when my Alpha gets her hands on a slave like she's some breakable trophy!" Al
As the stench of burned flesh clung to the dripping castle walls, echoing with every suffering whimper that came after screams had once led the way. The hurt persisted.Alexandria loomed over the fractured shape of Emereah, her fingers sticky with the ferocity she had created. The branding iron had a glowing ember still in her palm. The hot metal in the bucket at her side cooed low, its potential victim still untold.However, something was… missing.Alexandria had longed to discover Emereah broken beyond repair, to watch her soul reduce to dust. And yet—those silver eyes still burned with rebellion.It infuriated her.Sneering, she seized a cruel grip on Emereah's jaw, her fingernails raking over Emereah's bruised skin."Why. Won't. You. Break?" she spat, her grip growing tighter.Emereah's lips shook, but she went on to draw a quivering, gasping laugh."Disappointed?" she panted, her voice a mere whisper.Alexandria's eyes blazed. She was. And it made her furious.She pulled Emereah'
The walls of the dungeon kept the echoes of pain, confining them in the stone like screams from the damned.Vladimir observed closely, his golden eyes sparkling as Emereah's body twitched with the raw pain coursing through her flesh.He applied the still-smoldering rag deeper into the burns, relishing the pained gasp that escaped her lips.A rich, shuddering noise.But still—not enough.She hadn't screamed.Not quite.Not in a way that would please him."Do you have any idea what I hate the most, little wolf?" Vladimir pondered, his tone so close to normal. His fingers brushed over the rim of the brand, following the mark Alexandria had burned into her shoulder.Her muscles flexed under his touch, but she did not respond.That resistance—it made him shiver.He smiled."I hate hope," he whispered. "I hate the idiots who hold on to it, hoping it will miraculously save them."He drew closer, his hot breath on her shivering lips."But you have no hope, Emereah."His grip around her injure
It was deafening, a gut-wrenching celebration of carnage.Emereah barely saw them.Her world had broken the moment her father's headless corpse had been hurled before her.Her Alpha.Her father.Dead. His dead eyes gazed directly at her, the sword still embedded in his head.The world went haze.The laughter, the taunts, the sounds of blows—all else were wiped out.A silence so deafening enveloped Emereah's mind.No.No, this could not be.This couldn't be possible.She had sensed his death, had known in her own heart that he was gone.But to see—To see her father's head, laid out like a trophy—Something within her broke.A raw, tearing scream ripped from her throat.A scream of pain.A scream of fury.A scream which shattered the air itself.The hall trembled.The torches blazed—and died.And then—A blinding white explosion burst from Emereah's body. Warriors shrieked as power hurled them to the ground.Tables splintered, chairs flew through the air.The first warrior who tried t
Vladimir's breathing was in ragged, gasping gusts. His muscles screamed, his golden eyes blazing with something he never thought he'd ever experience.Fear.The great hall—the very heartbeat of his victory, his power—was collapsing around him. Pillars crumpled, the once-magnificent banners of the Red Crescent Moon Pack ablaze.And amidst it all—She stood.Emereah.The woman he had provoked, the woman he had beaten, tormented, and intimidated into submission.She was no longer fractured.She was no longer vulnerable.She was vengeance incarnate.And the white fire danced around her like a living thing, nipping at her flesh but never touching. She had been made invulnerable—a goddess born in fire and pain and fury.Vladimir's men were dead.All of them burned.Only the servants of the Silverfang Pack slunk in corners, eyes awestruck with fear.Among the battle-trained warriors—one who had fought together with her father—fell onto his knees. His voice trembling, he barely whispered, "Th
Emereah gasped, her vision blurring as a steely embrace closed around her from behind.No.She never had time to react before a heartless force slammed her into the cracked stone pavement. The impact shuddered a jagged pain snapping through her spine, her breath whooping in a raw scream.The surrounding white fire convulsed.Her magic faltered.Her muscles were heavy—weighting under something unnatural, something she couldn't rid herself of.Magic.Dark magic.The white flames around her smoldered.A rumbling, guttural laughter echoed through the ruins."You thought you'd won?"Vladimir's voice.No. That was impossible.Her silver eyes flared upwards—And there he was.Standing stock still.Bloodied. Bruised. But very much alive.His golden eyes gleamed with something feral, something untrammelled.Emereah struggled to stand, but chains—heavy, black chains creaking with dark magic—wrapped themselves around her wrists, her ankles, her neck.Her magic—the lightning and fire—was fading a
Emereah spat blood onto the chilled stone, her silver eyes blazing like molten stars."I am still standing."A jaw muscle flexed in Vladimir's face."Not for long."He attacked.They assembled like war gods—fire and darkness, fury and destruction.Steel shrieked as their swords clashed, their strikes savage and relentless. Sparks flew like fireflies, a killing tempest radiating from them. The earth trembled under their fury, fissures cleaving the stone.Vladimir's breathing was even, cold, controlled. Emereah's was harsh, driven by something unbreakable, unstoppable.Vladimir smiled, taking advantage. "Do you know your father's dying words?"Emereah's attack stuttered—half a second too slow.Vladimir's eyes sparkled, and he attacked, sending her back. "He begged."No.Her blood burned with fire. She attacked—harder, faster, brutal."Shut up."Vladimir sidestepped, golden eyes laughing. "He begged for your life, little wolf. Before I slit his throat."The world exploded.Rage ignited.
The fire now had a name.Emereah.It was not only in her eyes, or in the touch of her hands, or in the whisper of Vladimir's name like a prayer gone sour—it was present in the very air she surrounded herself with. A slow-consuming, unstoppable blaze that consumed everyone too close to her into dust.And Vladimir?He was already ablaze.He sat in the window of the eastern wing at dawn, the sky still bruised from night, gazing over her sleeping form on the divan. She had insisted on remaining near him, refused to let him sleep in his own rooms, had cried when he'd even spoken of it.And there she was now.Serene. Beautiful. Deadly.Her lips curled once in sleep, and she murmured something—his name, maybe. Or a threat. With her nowadays, there was no difference.Helena slipped in behind him, holding a creased report."She broke Mireille's arm," she breathed."I know.""She threatened another noble's mate in the corridor. We had to postpone the afternoon audience.""I know."Helena stood
The great hall of the Red Crescent Moon Pack hummed with tension. Guards stood against the stone walls, nobles spoke in hushed tones behind velvet sleeves, and advisors kept looking toward the high throne where Vladimir sat by himself.By himself, for Emereah was late again."She's developing unpredictability," one of the elders whispered."She's developing danger," another growled.The doors groaned open before anyone could comment.Emereah strode in, barefoot, her long dark red robe flowing behind her like spilled blood. Her eyes raked the room—not with innocence or poise, but with the ravenous, unbalanced desire of a wolf unfed for days.She spied Vladimir.And smiled. "There you are," she chimed in saccharine sweetness, as if she hadn't just left an hour before. "Missed you?"Vladimir rose to his feet. "Emereah, this is a council session—""Council?" she repeated. Her eyes drifted to the nobles in the ring below. "They are still trying to keep you apart from me, are not they?""Em
"Touch what is mine, not." Emereah's voice was cracked like lightning. Bare slaps resounded as she barefooted it across the marble, but she appeared to be volcanic, she was so immovable. "You do not lay hands on what is mine."Gossips spread like fire consuming dry ground."Your Lady Emereah—" the Beta began."I am Luna," she mocked him, her eyes iced with fire-like frost. "Say my title correctly, or farewell to tongue."The Beta bowed forthwith, droplets of perspiration at temples. "Yes, Luna."Vladimir had had his fill at last.He stood, deep, commanding voice. "Emereah. With me. At once."Her eyes stabbed him. The fire faded—but lingered. "Why? To protect her?""Now."Her jaw was clenched. And then, like a sulky mollified child who scorned anything but a precious toy, she walked to his side and curled her fingers around his. She clung like ivy—slow, elegant, stifling.They moved silently through the castle corridors until the doors to their own room softly creaked shut behind them.
"Did she attempt to persuade you to leave?""Yes."She spun around."And what did you reply?""I said I won't.""Did you enjoy your little conversation?" she asked gently."Emereah—"She spun about, anger dancing in her eyes. "Don't say my name like that. Like a child having a tantrum. Like I had no idea what was happening."He hesitated. "Nothing is happening."She laughed with acid venom. "Liar.""Emereah—""Liar!" she yelled, and the mirror she stood before vibrated, the glass groaning across its image like a wound.Vladimir's wolf stiffened.Her magic had never been so strong before. Not even in combat.She moved towards him warily, shaking with rage. "And what is Helena to you, Vladimir?" Her voice was husky, deadly. "Once, you had Alexandria. Your beautiful Alexandria. The one you locked up in your dungeon but cherished in your heart.""That's not true—""And now it's Helena. Helena with her whispers. Her history. Her devotion. You let her speak to you as if I didn't exist!""He
The air was heavy with heat and quiet peril, encased in gold firelight and silk blankets that curled around them like snakes. Emereah slept peacefully, a gentle breathing on Vladimir's skin, her arm taken possessively thrown over his chest.He hadn't stirred. Not for hours.His hand stayed lightly on her spine, but his mind seethed like a storm beneath the surface.Each breath she took pressed her bare skin against his ribs, and each second felt heavier than the last. His wolf—so often wild and sure—paced inside him now, anxious. Conflicted.Because he hadn’t imagined it.She’d meant every word.“I’ll kill them all…”And not with the detachment of a queen defending her claim—but with a child’s desperate fury. Like someone who'd lost too many things, too many people, and finally snapped.He breathed slowly and moved his eyes to the window.There, beyond the ice-encrusted glass, the moon hung low. Pale. Watching.A sharp knock shattered the quiet.Then another. Louder."Your Majesty!" G
The sunlight of morning filtered through the heavy velvet curtains like a warning and not a blessing.Vladimir woke to a stirring, the warm heat of Emereah too much, too much, enveloping him. She was around him like ivy on stone, her nails grasping barely on his chest. Her red hair was around his neck, her hot, harsh breath on his skin.She hadn't slept. Not really.His eyes gradually opened. She was looking at him."Emereah," he croaked."You disappeared in my dream," she breathed, eyes growing wide and feral. "I was crying for you, but you didn't respond."Vladimir eased himself up, unentwining her arms from around his arms. "It was only a dream."Her face contorted. "But it occurred. It felt like they were taking you away from me. I woke up and thought—maybe you'd left.""I didn't," he growled."I'm here.""But for how long?" she ordered, near accusatorily. Her hand tightened around his arm. "You'll leave. Everyone leaves. Except that you shouldn't."He gritted his teeth. "You're t
The sunbeam stroked the velvet drapes with a gentle touch, and gold stripes fell away on the bed where Vladimir lay. The morning calm was sacred—but Emereah had already awakened, much sooner than the sun would cross the hills.She was regarding him.Nestled next to him in slumber, her palm lay upon his bare chest, fingers tracing patterns in the air above the runes inked over his skin. Her eyes did not blink. They burned with feverish intensity, a passion bordering on madness. "Mine." The words were a breathless whisper of awe. "You're mine."Vladimir stirred. His brows furrowed as her voice pulled him from sleep.What time is it?" he whispered drowsily.Emereah's lips grazed his shoulder. "It doesn't matter. I won't waste a single second without you."He shifted to the side, keeping her gaze. Something was amiss—something too raw, too frantic. It annoyed him for a moment. But then she kissed him, and the uncertainty disolved into nothing."Last night," she breathed. "You gave me lif
He buried his face in her pussy and fully dedicated himself to taking her to orgasm. The Alpha licked the blade of his tongue up and down her vulva slowly. He left a string of whispy kisses on her clit, then rimmed it with his tongue. Emereah threw her head back and groaned. With his lips still on her, He inserted a finger into her cunt. She was tight and wet. Vladimir's dick pounded to slam her against the desk, but he was determined to get Emereah off first. He inched one finger in and out slowly, and then added another. When he hit the rough sweet spot, he curled his fingers, tickled it with his fingertips, and in the process, licked her clit. Emereah gasped and the whole of her body hardened it was the first time she experienced such. She looked at the smile of Vladimir."Do not play games with me and be gentle my Alpha," she admonished."My love, I dare not and I will be soft my luna."Emereah slapped Vladimir's face back down once more, and he was more than willing to comply. He
The moon rode high—silver and watchful—casting a chill gleam upon Vladimir's private quarters' obsidian walls. There was a fire in the hearth, sputtering like muffled mirth. Silk drapes rippled on the unseen wind. And at the center of the great bed, draped in sheets of blood-red velvet, sat Emereah—still, waiting.She was clothed in nothing but a gossamer mantle of gold, the leftovers of ritualistic robes cast off by invisible slaves at the bidding of the sorcerer. Her hair cascaded in waves of red down her spine, her skin glowing faintly with the remains of the spell. Her eyes—blue pale ones—were the oddest of all, however. Still. But unempty.Vladimir entered, his robe half-open, his gaze locked on her as if she were the world and all its stars. He stopped a few paces away from the bed and looked at her."Do you know what tonight is, my Luna?" he whispered.Emereah nodded once. "Our bond night."His lips curled. "Yes. Our final seal. After this… no magic can undo what we become.".