Elias’ POV
The doors flung open, with two men dragging Amara in. They held her arms as if she were nothing more than a sack of potatoes.
She didn't struggle and I wondered what had happened. She looked bloodied and her head bowed.
They threw on the floor, and she slowly rose struggling to hold her weight up with her hands.
“What is the meaning of this?” Alpha Charles commanded.
Amara struggled to raise her head, with her hair falling down her face. She didn't bother to fight like she expected the worst to happen.
Something in me tightened as I watched her tremble. I didn't want to see her like this, yet but I had refused her as my mate.
“She killed Kamla!” One of the men said. Loud gasps flowed in the room.
“No, that can't be,” I heard someone whisper.
“It's true. She killed her sister,” the second bodyguard added.
“I…I didn't do it,” Amala stuttered. “Please…I swear, I didn't...you have to believe me.”
“Shut her up,” Gamma Rawl ordered and Alpha Charles raised his hand.
“Who gave you the right to shut her up? She's also my daughter?” Alpha Charles warned and the men stepped back.
I remained silent, unable to believe what I had heard.
“Where's Kamla?” I asked calmly despite the terror I felt.
“She's here,” someone said, and the crowd made way for the guard carrying a lady. My eyes widened as he got closer and I couldn't look away. It was Kamla, sha laid motionless in the man's arms.
“Oh my God,” some of the women gasped and moved back.
“She's evil. How dare she kill her own sister? Just because of a man!” another murmured.
The dagger was buried in her stomach. I watched her lifeless body laid to the ground and I grew angry.
“How did this happen?” I asked, crouching to my knees and touching Kamla's face.
“I don't know, Alpha. I found Amara on her body when I got there,” Luther Cain said, making his presence known.
“That's a lie,” Amara whispered. “He did it. He…”
“Really? And I guess I also stabbed her. You were fighting her and I saw you stab her,” Luther responded.
“No,” Amara argued. “You threw it. I had a different blade.”
“Where is it then?” Luther asked, and Amara began to look around.
“I…I had it with me. It must have dropped when…” she explained.
“Enough!” I cut in. The room fell silent and Amara gulped.
“Alpha,” Luther called. “She's guilty.”
I glared at Amara and in anger I moved to grab her neck, lifting her from the floor. She choked, slapping at my hands, trying to free herself.
“Tell me why I shouldn't kill you like you did to her?” I asked, watching her choke. She gasped, scratching my arm as the air left her body. Her eyes withdrew and she turned red.
Suddenly, someone held my hand, pulling hard to free Amara. When I wouldn't budge, he punched my chest and I stumbled back, letting go of Amara.
“That's enough!” Alpha Charles said.
Amara coughed, and slowly rose her head to stare at her father.
“You’re defending her?” I asked angrily.
“She's also my daughter. I won't stand and watch you kill her,” Alpha Charles warned.
“But she killed her,” Marcus said firmly. “She should be executed.”
“Yes!” The crowd shouted.
“Out. Now!” Alpha Charles yelled. “All of you!”
“They aren't not going anywhere,” I spat.
He took a step forward, and looked me in the eyes. “You forget something, Alpha. This is my territory.”
The crowd shook and dashed for the door leaving just six of us in the room.
“Are you sure that Amara killed her?” Alpha Charles asked.
Luther nodded. “Yes.”
“Then she'll be dealt with,” Alpha Charles said and Amara gasped.
“Only if she's guilty,” he added.
“Please, Elias,” Amara whispered, her voice shaking as she forced herself up.
“I want her dead,” I breathed, ignoring Amara's scared face.
“Not on my watch,” Alpha Charles declared.
I narrowed my eyes. “What did you just say?”
“I said it before. She is my daughter,” he said. His voice was as steady as a rock. “I will not allow this.”
I exhaled slowly, controlling my rage. “Do I need to remind you Alpha that she killed my mate. Your own daughter.”
Alpha Charles, looked down at Amara locking eyes with her, and returned his gaze to me. “I know. And I am not foolish enough to lose both.”
“And did you say mate? Amara was your mate and you rejected her. Did you really expect her to ignore what you did?” Alpha Charles questioned.
I couldn't say anything. He had me at a tough spot. “You have been sleeping with her sister. Creating division in my family and among my daughters. I should blame you for all of this!”
“D…Dad,” Amara gasped, holding his leg, but he pulled it away from her hold.
“Answer me Elias!” He yelled and I remained quiet.
I inhaled deeply, and slowly moved my gaze until it rested on Amara.
She was still trembling, and stared at Kamla’s lifeless body.
“I don't care if you are his daughter. I want my revenge and I'll have it,” I said and knelt down to carry Kamla's body in my arms. The moment I did that I felt a sharp pain in my head.
Alpha Charles looked at Kamla and walked forward to me, reaching out his hand to touch his daughter.
I moved Kamla's body away from his touch. “I doubt your daughter would want you to do that. You couldn't give her justice.”
That made him shocked, and he stepped back. “Amara will be held in the dungeons, until she can prove her innocence,” I said, and my men went to her and dragged her.
Alpha Charles didn't say anything else as she was dragged out of his pack.
“I didn't do anything. I was framed!” She screamed.
Amara's POVI couldn't scream. I was taken from my pack and made a prisoner in his own pack. For the first time I heard my father defend me. It made me feel happy even if it was for a moment. He had never taken me as his daughter all these years. I knew he didn't want to lose his last heir, but it was still better than not having him say a word in my favour. The men threw me into the cell and I crashed to the floor hitting my body hard. I groaned and lifted my face only to feel a sickening fist land on my face. “Murderer,” he spat and I coughed. The blood choked in my throat and I let it out. I wanted to argue, to prove my innocence, but I didn't. What was the point? “What a loser?” The voice continued. “You had to kill your sister because you were dumped. Pathetic bitch!” The next thing I felt was his hand pulling my hair, making me yelp. I struggled and his hand smacked me. I was doomed. There was no one going to save me. When he lifted his fist, I gasped, closing my eyes
Elias’ POVI barely returned to my room when my legs failed me, and I fell against the edge of my bed, sweating profusely, my chest heaving as if I had just raced a long distance. My hands gripped my head, but nothing could stop the searing pain that was bouncing inside my brain.The rejection hadn’t worked.I could still feel her.Amara.My mind called. Her name was a wound I could not mend.Each time I reached for her, something within me shifted, the bond mate tightening, refusing to let go. I could still feel her blood on my lips, hear the fury of her voice, that wheeze whispering spurn around me. I tried.And almost died.I tore off my sweat-soaked shirt, pacing the room. I could feel my skin burning, the unnatural, hot fire refusing to disappear in spite of all the fresh air it got. There was electricity in my veins, something lurking just under my skin.And the worst?Every time I blinked, I saw her.Not the Amara in that dungeon, bruised and battered. But a different, stronge
Amara's POVI was still here, alive and a prisoner. I hate it. If I ever got my hands on Luther, I would….Do nothing.My mind reminded me of my limits. I looked around, at the prison walls. It was cold and wet. My dried blood filled my nose. It was dull and my wolf howled. How much longer?How much more before something inside of me just…broke?I licked my dry lips, wetting them with my saliva a little. I was thirsty and my throat felt dry. I was starving and my body ached from my wounds. They were healing slowly because my wolf was hurt. And worst of all, perhaps? I was suicidal. The thought lingered around me like an anchor below the water, keeping me down lower than anything in my body could.I compelled my fingers to my chest, over my heart, where the mate bond throbbed like an infected wound. Elias. His name was venom in my veins. I hated him. I needed to be free of him. The urge burned me bright, wild with desperation. I ached to reject him. Here. Now. I clenched my
Elias' POV"She is poison, Elias. She needs to be eliminated."That was my mother, Luna Ingrid. She had so much hate for Amara. "Mom," I called. "No…enough. She hurt you. She killed your mate. No one toys with my son's emotions," my mother continued. I listened to my mother, and realized I had done worse to Amara. "Mom…" I called again. "No, your fiancée's funeral is tonight. Both the packs are coming. They need answers and I want one too," she said. "Will you just let me talk?" I asked, looking at her. She sighed, and breathed out. "Fine. What is it?" She asked. "I think there must have been something wrong. Amara is my mate," I confessed. She looked at me like I had grown horns. "Have you gone mad? Didn't you reject her in fron
Amara’s POVElias’ lips were hot, the crash of them blazing through every nerve ending in my body. For a split second I forgot where I was. I forgot who I was, the shame, the agony, the betrayal.And then reality hit me like a thunderclap.I pushed him away with what little strength I had left.His emerald eyes grew dark, his breath coming hard. He staggered back, as if he were not only responding to my push but battling something else altogether.“What the hell, Elias?” His mother asked. “You didn’t just kiss this dumb piece of…”“Get out of here, mom,” he said.“Elias…” she argued.“Now!” He yelled.She stared angrily at me and then at her son, panting, and exited the room. I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand, sick twisting in me. How dare he?“Never touch me again,” I hissed, poison dripping from my every word.Elias tightened his jaw, and I glanced at his
Elias’ POVBlood was everywhere.On my hands. My clothes. Seeping into the floor. I could still taste it — coppery and thick, coating my throat as if I had ingested something foul.The body at my feet no longer looked like a person. The assassin had been ripped to pieces by me. I had severed his limbs from his body. But I didn’t recall having done it.One moment, I had entered and found Amara pinned against the wall, a blade against her throat.The next…this.My chest heaved. My heartbeat was irregular and thumping in my ears.Inside of me something was still desperately clawing its way to the surface, restless. I wasn't satisfied.When I stepped forward, Amara stepped backward.Her shoulders squared as if to prepare for a renewed assault. She should have run.Instead, she remained there, hands balled into fists, her eyes flickering with something brittle.
Amara's POVI jolted awake with my heart pounding like a jackrabbit. Something felt off. I had this gut feeling that something was off. It came as a kind of nagging voice in the back of my head saying things I didn't seem to understand.I took a few slow, deep breaths and tried to tell myself it was just a bad dream, but I still felt it. It was as if my instincts were roaring at me to awaken, to take notice.Just as I stood from the couch, a voice called my name Not loud, but in my voice, inside my mind. I was pulled forward, as if by an invisible string, as if something was drawing me toward it. I walked behind it, my feet in spite of themselves.Before I knew it, I was in front of the bathroom door. My heart hammered in my chest like a blacksmith pounding metal. I raised my hand to knock but before I had the chance the door opened by itself.Inside, I discovered Elias sweating, shaking, fighting something invisible. His breath
Elias' POVAnd there was fire all inside of me.I didn’t recognize myself.My vision was black, lungs panting, muscles locked in a feral grimace. I could hear the rumble of my own heartbeat, could feel the crackle of something old awakening inside me. The intensity of it threatened to engulf me.Marcus was before me, his stance alternating between fear and calculation while his gaze peeked over to Amara. I bared my teeth. “If you ever touch her I'll make sure you stop breathing.”I could hardly recognize my own voice. It was deeper and different and when I growled, my body vibrated. Marcus flinched but recovered quickly, his mask of arrogance falling into place again.“You’re being played, Elias,” he said, and raised his hands in surrender. “She’s not who you think she is.”“Really? I have heard that a lot,” I said, breathing harshly as I took a step closer towards him. Marcus exh
Elder Thalia Reed's POVThe old books tumbled from the shelf as I yanked the secret lever. Behind me, I heard the heavy footsteps of the Guardians searching the house. They'd already checked this room once, but they'd be back soon.I didn't have much time.The bookcase swung open with a creak, showing a narrow passage. I slipped inside, pulling it closed just as voices approached. My old bones complained as I hurried down the stone steps, my only light a small crystal that glowed blue in my palm.For eighty years, I had served as Elder of the Blood Moon Pack, keeper of our most dangerous secrets. Only three people knew about this secret chamber beneath the pack house. Charles, Seraphina, and me.At the bottom of the stairs, I pressed my hand against the stone door. It recognized my touch and slid open."Finally," Orion Blackwood said, rising from where he sat against the wall. "I've been waiting for hours.""The Guardians are everywhere," I
Luther Cain's POVI smashed the burner phone under my boot, grinding the parts into the dirt. The call had taken only thirty seconds, but it changed everything."Amara is still alive," the voice had said. "She's with Elias. They know what you did."My carefully built plan was coming apart. For eighteen years, I'd worked as Beta to Charles Winters, waiting for the right moment to take control of the Blood Moon Pack. Now that stupid girl had ruined everything.I kicked the pieces of the phone into the bushes and headed back toward the pack house. Members nodded respectfully as I passed. They still trusted me. Still thought I was the loyal Beta who'd stepped up after Charles disappeared.They had no idea what I'd done. What I was capable of.Inside my office, I locked the door and pulled out the list of names. Five people who knew too much. Five lost ends that needed to be cut.Marcus Hale topped the list. Elias's Beta had seen me talking to Celeste the night before Kamla's murder. He'd
Elias Beaumont's POVThe bullet grazed my shoulder as I dove behind the fallen table. Wood splintered above my head as more gunfire tore through the home."Viktor!" I yelled over the chaos. "Where are they?"My uncle reloaded his shotgun with trained hands. "Everywhere. At least twenty Guardians outside."I peered through a broken window. Black-clad figures were moving on the house from all sides. In the distance, I caught a glimpse of Rowan's motorcycle disappearing into the trees with Amara hanging to his back.A strange mixture of relief and fear washed over me. She was safer away from here, but the thought of her with Rowan made my stomach twist. I didn't trust him, promise keeper or not."We need to move," Viktor said, breaking into my thoughts. "They'll burn the place down if they have to."I nodded, trying to focus. My pack needed me. But Amara—my true mate—was going into danger without me.The front door crashed open. I shifted instantly, bones popping as my wolf form emerged.
Rowan Kingsley's POVI ducked as the knife whizzed past my ear and stuck in the wooden beam behind me. Elias Beaumont stood in the doorway, another blade already in his hand."Get out of my house before I put the next one between your eyes," he growled."I'm not here to fight," I said, keeping my hands where he could see them. "I'm here to help Amara.""How did you get past the guards?" Viktor asked from behind Elias."The same way the Guardians will get in if you don't listen to me," I answered. "Your security is good against werewolves, but not against what's coming."I'd been tracking Amara Kings for two years. Watching from a distance, waiting for the right time. I'd seen everything – her imprisonment, her torture at Elias's hands, her escape with Lyra's aid. All part of the prophecy that had ruled my life since I was a kid."Who are you?" Elias asked.Before I could answer, footsteps rushed down the stairs and Amara appeared. Her eyes were red from tears. She must have felt Charl
Luna Seraphina Winters's POV"You cannot enter here," the hooded guardian said, blocking my way. "This temple is forbidden to outsiders."Blood dripped from the cut on my forehead where a branch had struck me during my climb up the mountain. I was tired, hungry, and in no mood for more challenges."I am not an outsider," I said, pushing back my hair to show the mark behind my ear – three silver stars in the shape of a triangle. "I am Seraphina of the Starborn. This temple belongs to my people."The guardian's eyes widened. He dropped to one knee. "Forgive me, My Lady. We thought the Starborn were extinct.""Nearly," I said, my voice bitter. "But not quite."I felt Charles's death like a knife to my heart just hours ago. The link we had shared for twenty years suddenly torn away. I had fallen in the forest, screaming his name. Now I had to hurry. Amara needed me, even if she didn't know I was living.The guardian led me through stone passageways lit by blue flames that needed no fuel.
Orion Blackwood's POV I caught the guard's arm mid-swing and turned it behind his back. His knife clattered to the ground. "I don't want to hurt you, Travis," I whispered. "I just need to get inside." Recognition flashed in the young guard's eyes. "Orion? You can't be here! They'll kill you on sight!" "Let them try," I said, releasing him. "I've survived worse than Beta Luther's welcome committee." Eight years in hiding had changed me. Once, I'd been Blood Moon Pack's Head Warrior, Charles Winters' right hand. Now I was a ghost, returning to a place that had forgotten me. Travis glanced nervously toward the main house. "Everything's fallen apart, Orion. Alpha Charles is dead. Kamla was murdered. Amara disappeared. And Beta Luther..." "Is acting Alpha now," I finished for him. "I know. That's why I'm back." Travis hesitated, then gave me his pack jacket. "Take this. It'll help you blend in. The old tunnels beneath the packhouse haven't been sealed. Enter through the east
Five years earlier"You can't be serious, Uncle." Elias stood before me, barely twenty years old, already showing the attitude that would one day destroy him."I've seen it with my own eyes," I insisted. "Charles Winters is hiding something. A child with powers that could change everything.""The Blood Moon Pack has always been secretive," Elias shrugged. "That doesn't mean they're harboring some magical child."I slammed my fist on the table. "This isn't about pack politics! The prophecy speaks of a three-heart child who will either unite or destroy us all. If Charles is hiding her—""Prophecies," Elias laughed. "You sound like the old witch who lives at the edge of our territory.""Celeste Moreau knows more than you give her credit for," I growled."Mother was right. You're becoming unstable." Elias turned away. "Perhaps it's time for new leadership."I froze. "You would challenge me? Your own blood?""If I must." His eyes flashed gold - the mark of an Alpha. My sister's son, but no
Lyra Sinclair's POVI said simply. "No ordinary binding could have held power like hers. It had to be blood magic from all three races." Amara stood suddenly, pacing. "My mother knew. She gave me a choice—keep my power or lose it forever." "And you chose to keep it," I said. "Now you need to learn to control it." "How?" she asked. "Who can teach me to be something no one has ever been before?" Before I could answer, a sharp pain stabbed behind my eyes. I gasped, grabbing my head. "Lyra?" Elias moved to help me, but I waved him away. The whispers came, as they always did—my spirit guides, whispering urgently in my mind. Danger comes. Blood and shade. The mother of lies approaches. "What is it?" Amara asked, worry replacing anger in her eyes. "What's wrong?" I fought to focus through the pain. "We need to leave. Now." "Why?" Elias asked. "What did you see?" "Not see. Hear." I began gathering my scattered goods. "My guides are warning me. Someone's coming. Someone dangerous."
Ingrid Devereaux's POVI smiled thinly. "Because I have something they need."I opened a small wooden box on the table. Inside lay a silver feather—identical to the one Amara had found where her mother apparently died."A trap," Alpha Reiner realized."Call it an invitation," I said. "When Seraphina feels this feather's magic activate, she'll come. And Amara will follow.""You're gambling with all our lives," Alpha Leona threatened."I'm saving them," I amended. "Starting with my son's."After the Council members left, I stood by the window, watching the sun set over the area my husband had built—the legacy meant for my son.The door opened behind me. "The preparations are complete," Kaya said. "The perimeter is secured.""Good. No one enters or leaves without my permission.""And if Elias returns willingly?" she asked softly.I turned to face her, steel in my voice. "Lock him in the holding cells. For his own protection.""Yes, Luna." She paused. "There's something else. A message, f