The walk back to the cottage was a blur, each step heavier than the last. My body moved on its own, but my mind was spinning—overwhelmed, splintering under the weight of everything.
Simon’s message echoed like a poison in my veins.
He’s your mate and you’ll get him killed.
You’ll make him weak and he’ll hate you for it.
I gritted my teeth, tears stinging my eyes as I stumbled through the underbrush toward Draven’s private residence. The sharp winter air bit at my skin, but it did nothing to clear the fog clouding my thoughts.
 
*** Ariana’s POVThe lace of my wedding dress brushed the floor as mother gently pinned the last few strands of my unruly black locs in place. “At last,” she said, her voice sounding triumphant.I stared at my reflection, trying to steady my breathing. The soft hum of the pack’s mind-link buzzed faintly in the background, the excitement of preparations for the ceremony building as my bridesmaids left to help welcome the guests."Your bridesmaids look beautiful," my mother said softly, standing behind me. "And you, my love... even more so."I gave her a small smile, but the tightness in my chest wouldn’t ease. “They’ll be watching me,” I murmured. “Judging. I know what they think of me.”Mom met my eyes in the mirror, her expression softening. "The Moon Goddess does everything for a reason, Ari. If she didn’t bless you with a wolf, then the destiny she has in store for you won’t need one." Her hand squeezed my shoulder gently. "The universe is always conspiring in our favor, even if it
*** Ariana’s POV“Ari, get to the study. Now.” My father’s voice came through the mind-link, sharp and commanding. But beneath it, there was a strain I’d never heard before.“I’m coming, almost there,” I sent back quickly, my voice tight with urgency.My pulse quickened as I darted around a corner and down a rarely used side staircase, thankful I didn’t run into anyone."Calm down, Ari," I whispered under my breath. "Father will know what to do. He always does."“Ari, where are you?” My father’s voice cut through again, more urgent this time. “Get to the study! Don’t stop for anything.”The fear in his voice sent a shiver down my spine, settling deep in my chest like ice.I reached the study and pushed the door open with trembling hands. It was empty. Panic clawed at my throat as I scanned the room, but then my mother’s voice rang through the mind-link, steady and calm.“Ari, hurry. Over here.”I spun toward her voice and saw her standing by the far wall, holding open a hidden panel I
*** Ariana’s POVThe tires of my Audi S3 strained against the sharp turns as I pushed the car faster, desperate to put more distance between me and Stormveil. My knuckles were white against the steering wheel, and the empty highway stretched endlessly in front of me. It was just me, the winding road, and the dark forest pressing in on both sides.I tried to control my breathing, whispering the words over and over to myself. "You’re safe now. Just keep going." But the pounding in my chest told me I wasn’t safe—not yet. “Everything happens for a reason,” I repeated, clinging to my mother’s words. “Everything happens for a reason.”“What am I going to do?” I whispered to the road ahead, my voice cracking. My mind raced with questions: Where could I go? Who could I trust? What pack would take me in now?I didn’t have answers, but I couldn’t stop driving.Then it happened.An ear-splitting crash. Metal smashed against metal, and the car lurched violently to the side.A sharp gasp tore from
*** Alpha King Draven’s POVRogues. Kronos let out a low growl of disgust in my mind, his irritation clear.I parked my car in the garage, stepping out into the chaos. Bodies were everywhere. The caravan had fought hard, taking down most of the rogues, but the losses were heavy.The sight of it all stirred something deep within me. It wasn’t just anger—it was failure. A failure to protect what was mine.She wasn’t even marked, Kronos snarled, his frustration matching my own.Everywhere I looked, wolves lowered their eyes, unwilling to meet my gaze. No one had to say it—I already knew. I’d been too late. Again.“Alpha, over here!” Simon’s voice called out sharply from the side of the building.I rushed over, still caught in the chaos of the scene—the blood, the bodies, the overwhelming stench of death. But then it hit me.Her scent.It cut through everything, sharp and intoxicating. Sweet, yet with a bite that sent a jolt straight through me. My entire body tensed as it filled my lungs
*** Ariana’s POVThe 12-hour journey passed in a blur. My thoughts mostly dwelled on how long I could keep this up before they discovered the truth. And why did my mind keep circling back to Alpha Draven? I could still feel the strange flutter in my chest when he stared at me from across the parking lot, his gaze piercing even through the car window.From the driver’s seat, Beta Simon’s calm voice broke through my thoughts. “Miria,” I almost didn’t respond, “I’ve been asked to let you know the bodies of your guards and party will be returned to your Hollow Ridge Pack. Our elders will send compensation to their families.”I had the urge to come clean, but the words caught in my throat at his generous tone. “Thank you,” I murmured, the lie weighing heavily in my chest.Fear of Ciaran paralyzed me. He’d tried to kill me three times already—could I survive a fourth? At least Draven’s pack had defended me. No one in Stormveil had ever done that. The more I thought about Ciaran, the more my
*** Ariana’s POVI am so screwed, I am so screwed, I am so screwed…It was like a chorus line repeating in my mind as Simon practically dragged me up to the packhouse. For the last 24 hours, I’d focused on survival. Now, in this vast space, I started to think about the future. If Cirian found me, it’d likely mean death. Perhaps if I survived this inadvertent ruse, I could use the position to prevent Cirian from ever being a threat to anyone again.My thoughts were interrupted by the sound of my stomach.“Perhaps a detour to the kitchen,” Simon volunteered, quickly becoming my knight in shining armor.
*** Alpha King Draven’s POVI was thankful to arrive ahead of the caravan. It gave me time to clean up and compose myself, but all my preparation was for nothing when I saw her walking beside Simon with that soft smile on her lips.Something snapped inside me. That smile was mine. Her arm interlocked with Simon’s—was mine. A possessive surge rolled through me, my aura flaring, making Simon disengage from her instantly.I knew I shouldn’t have done it, but seeing her connecting with someone else was unbearable. She was mine, even if I couldn’t claim her.When Simon excused himself, Miria reached for my arm, but I didn’t dare touch her. Her aura shifted, disappointment flickering
*** Ariana’s POVCirian’s hand clamped down on my wrist like a vice, cold and unrelenting. Panic surged through me as I tried to yank away, but his grip was iron. He dragged me, my feet stumbling over the uneven ground as I fought to pull back. The fear was choking, a weight pressing on my chest, suffocating me with each step closer to that stone altar. I recognized it instantly—the obsidian baptismal font shimmering under the dim, unnatural light. A blood wedding.“No... no, please!” I begged, my voice cracking, but my words bounced off him, ignored, useless.My heart slammed against my ribs as Cirian’s cold laughter echoed in my ears. His face—twisted, monstrous, nothing like the man I once knew—was u
*** Ariana’s POVThe walk back to the cottage was a blur, each step heavier than the last. My body moved on its own, but my mind was spinning—overwhelmed, splintering under the weight of everything.Simon’s message echoed like a poison in my veins.He’s your mate and you’ll get him killed.You’ll make him weak and he’ll hate you for it.I gritted my teeth, tears stinging my eyes as I stumbled through the underbrush toward Draven’s private residence. The sharp winter air bit at my skin, but it did nothing to clear the fog clouding my thoughts. 
*** Ariana’s POVThe hallway outside Draven’s hospital room felt both suffocating and endless. My limbs were heavy, my steps sluggish as I stumbled out of the sterile room. I leaned against the cool wall opposite the door, the faint beeping of machines still echoing in my ears.Looking down at myself, my stomach turned.Draven’s blood—dark, dried, and clinging—streaked my clothes, my arms, even under my nails. It coated my skin like a mark of shame. I rubbed frantically at my hands, my breathing quickening.“Get it off,” I muttered to myself, scrubbing my palms against my shirt. “Get it off.”No matter how hard I rubbed, the crimson streaks smeared and darkened
*** Ariana’s POVThe journey from the clearing to the pack hospital had been a blur—voices shouting, orders barked, and the coppery tang of blood staining my hands, my clothes, and my memories.When they’d finally placed Draven in this sterile white room, I hadn’t left his side. The rest of the world faded into insignificance as I pulled a chair close, wrapped my trembling fingers around his, and refused to let go.Dr. Alexander and his team moved around him with practiced urgency, voices lowered to murmurs I couldn’t comprehend through the haze in my mind. Exhaustion dragged at me, but I couldn’t tear my eyes away from him.Draven, the unshakable Alpha, lay still. His face—always sharp and commanding—was far too pa
*** Ariana’s POVThe violent heaving finally stopped, leaving my throat raw and burning. My body trembled, half from exhaustion and half from the sight before me—the blackened remains of Master Oren’s body still smoldered faintly, the air thick with the acrid scent of charred flesh.“Goddess,” I whispered, wiping at my mouth with the back of my trembling hand.A sharp intake of breath startled me, and I looked up to see Dr. Alexander standing frozen a few paces away, his face pale and his eyes wide with horror.How much had he seen? Enough, judging by his expression.“You’re late, Doctor,” I snapped, my voice hoarse but steady. There wasn’t time to let h
*** Ariana’s POVI prayed silently as I worked, my hands slick with Draven’s blood. The world around me faded away, my entire existence reduced to the desperate effort to save him.“Hold on, Draven,” I murmured, my voice breaking. “You don’t get to leave me like this. Not now.”Tears blurred my vision, but I refused to stop.One bullet down. Two to go.And as I worked, a single thought echoed in my mind.Please don’t let me be too late.I’m tired. Tired of lying… to everyone and to myself.Lying had done it
*** Ariana’s POVMy world spun as adrenaline coursed through me, but I had enough presence of mind to scoot away from the pained, gurgling sounds coming from what could only be Jake. The noise was grotesque, wet and hollow, punctuated by the occasional shallow wheeze.He lay about fifteen feet away, his face contorted in silent agony. The cuffs that had dangled from his chin earlier were gone, but one of his legs was missing—severed not so cleanly, the gruesome stump bleeding profusely.The missing limb wasn’t far. It rested, disturbingly intact, in the massive jaws of a wolf—a wolf so enormous it defied belief.It didn’t take much to recognize him. Kronos.Draven’s wolf.A shudder ripped through me, half from relief and half from disbelief. My mind struggled to process what I was seeing.Why was Kronos here?Draven had gone to such extremes to have me “handled.” Mika had died protecting me. Oren had killed packmates to cover their tracks. And now, Kronos was here, tearing through war
*** Ariana’s POV“This is just the beginning, Ariana,” Jake said, his voice low and menacing. “By the time we’re done, you’ll wish you’d stayed dead.”“Now, now, Jake,” Oren cooed… “He does want her alive-ish and she’s not a great healer”.“What he wants with a piece of beta bait, is beyond me”, Jake spewed hatefully, mocking me as a worthless female unable to attract a ranked mate.Oren’s warning seemed to register in some way with Jake as he at least lowered me enough for my feet to catch the ground. “We need to get out of here now,” Jake said, turning to Oren. Jake's grip on my throat forced me to face him and I couldn’t see what oren was doing behind me… but I could hear it and feel it.“Aethel, Aethel, late pateat, nunc resideat porta,” holy hell, Oren’s a halfbreed! I could feel the air around us getting colder as Oren repeated the chant a second and third time.The cold was gradually replaced by a tingling, electric feel… something like static electricity building.I’m not su
*** Draven’s POVThe southern border was chaotic.I could see the telltale shimmer of magic distorting the air even before I reached the clearing, like ripples on a still pond disrupted by an unseen force. As I crested the ridge overlooking the chasm, the faint hum of power tingled against my skin—a sensation I hadn’t felt in years. Portals.“Status?” I barked through the mindlink, directing my question to Simon.“Portals keep opening and closing over the chasm,” Simon responded. “Nothing’s come through yet. It feels… off.”Off didn’t even begin to describe it. I leaped onto the ridge that overlooked the natural barrier—a deep, winding chasm carved by the river below. The sound of rushing water echoed faintly, blending with the eerie silence of the night.Portals shimmered sporadically across the gap, their deep blue hues lighting up the darkness in short bursts. They opened and closed, almost rhythmically, as though someone was toying with us.“Anything on the other fronts?” I asked
*** Draven’s POVI couldn’t take it anymore.Three days had passed since the fire, and every one of those days felt like an eternity. I’d told myself to give her space as it seemed obvious she wanted some.This morning, I gave in.Crossing the threshold of my home, I let her scent wash over me like a balm. The smell of Miria in my home was enough for me to drop fang.Feeling my mating fangs slide against my tongue, I almost turned right back around, suddenly fearful that Kronos might pounce the instant we saw her.Kronos purred in satisfaction, she’s ours.“Down boy, or we’re leaving,” I warned Kronos who reluctantly retracted our fangs after a lengthy internal struggle.The guest room was the only bedroom on the first floor and had been appointed as Maria’s room so the medical team could have easier access to her for treatments. Heading that way, I could see her door slightly ajar. The bed was made, the room neat and tidy, but it was empty.I closed my eyes, reaching out through the